- PoliticsAssociated Press
Bloomberg's debate debut set to shake up Democratic primary
Mike Bloomberg will confront the greatest test of his presidential campaign on Wednesday when he faces five Democratic rivals in a debate in Las Vegas that could fundamentally change the direction of the party's 2020 nomination fight. The debate debut for the billionaire former mayor of New York is poised to offer fresh insight into whether his unconventional campaign strategy — bypassing early voting states such as Nevada and spending hundreds of millions of dollars to spread his message on the airwaves — is sustainable. The debate comes at a pivotal point in the campaign as moderate voters are struggling to unify, with some increasingly looking to Bloomberg to become the clear alternative to progressive Bernie Sanders.
- WorldReuters
Netanyahu's trial to begin on March 17: Israeli Justice Ministry
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's corruption trial will start on March 17, two weeks after Israel holds its third national election in less than a year, the Justice Ministry said on Tuesday. Netanyahu, the first sitting Israeli prime minister to be charged with a crime, has denied any wrongdoing in the three corruption cases against him. In addition to his legal battle, Netanyahu, who heads the right-wing Likud party, is fighting for his political life in a March 2 election, after inconclusive ballots in April and September.
WorldAFPMalaysia suspected MH370 downed in murder-suicide: Aussie ex-PM
Former Australian prime minister Tony Abbott has claimed "very top" level Malaysian officials believed vanished Flight MH370 was deliberately downed by the captain in a mass murder-suicide. No sign of the plane was found in a 120,000-square kilometre (46,000-square mile) Indian Ocean search zone and the Australian-led search, the largest in aviation history, was suspended in January 2017. The disappearance of the plane has long been the subject of a host of theories -- ranging from the credible to outlandish -- including that veteran pilot Zaharie Ahmad Shah had gone rogue.
- PoliticsNational Review
Bolton Slams White House for Effort to ‘Suppress’ His Memoir
Former national security adviser John Bolton criticized the White House on Monday for what he termed its efforts to censor his memoir on working in the Trump administration. “For all the focus on Ukraine and the impeachment trial and all that, to me, there are portions of the manuscript that deal with Ukraine, I view that like the sprinkles on the ice cream sundae in terms of what's in the book,” Bolton told an audience at Duke University. “I'm hoping ultimately I can get the book published,” Bolton said.
PoliticsYahoo News VideoReport: Obama reportedly expects he'll have to play a 'prominent role' in uniting Democrats this summer
The New York Magazine reports former president Barack Obama's radio silence on the 2020 Democratic primary is part of a "choreographed strategy" on the part of Obama, who is "increasingly sure he will need to play a prominent role in bringing the party back together and calming its tensions later this summer."
- WorldNBC News
Coronavirus updates: Quarantine ends on cruise ship as death toll passes 2,000
Almost 450 passengers allowed to leave quarantined cruise ship in Japan • U.S. evacuee from cruise ship confirmed to have virus • American passenger still on cruise ship unclear happens next • 2,004 dead, more than 74,100 confirmed cases in mainland China • Second coronavirus death recorded in Hong Kong • China announces measures to cut costs for business affected by outbreak • Adidas, Puma warn of coronavirus hit to China business Iran reports 2 coronavirus deaths Two Iranians have died in hospital after testing positive for the new coronavirus in the holy Shi'ite city of Qom, the head of the city's University of Medical Sciences told Mehr news agency on Wednesday.
- WorldBloomberg
Turkey Follows Landmark Acquittal With Order to Detain Kavala
A Turkish prosecutor issued a warrant to detain businessman Osman Kavala only hours after an Istanbul court unexpectedly acquitted him in another case of plotting to overthrow the government during mass protests that rocked the country in 2013. Kavala, who was released earlier on Tuesday after nearly 840 days in prison, will be questioned as a part of an investigation into the 2016 coup attempt against Turkey's leader, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, according to state-run Anadolu Agency. The legal reversal caps a day that began with a surprise end to a trial that tested the limits of opposition to Erdogan.
- U.S.INSIDER
ICE says it plans to destroy a trove of detention records, including numbers on detainee deaths and sexual assaults
Customs & Border Protection Agency/Reuters The National Archives and Records Administration approved ICE's request to destroy years of detention records last year. The records included in the trove contain information related to deaths of detainees and allegations of sexual assault and abuse of detainees in December. On Tuesday, the ACLU filed Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests to retrieve the documents before they are erased.
- WorldAssociated Press
Pompeo to raise case of US doctor on trial in Saudi Arabia
U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said Wednesday he planned to raise U.S. concerns about human rights during a visit to Saudi Arabia, in particular the case of a Saudi-American doctor facing trial there who was barred from leaving the kingdom and allegedly tortured. Pompeo was scheduled to arrive in Saudi Arabia on Wednesday and will remain there until Friday, before departing to Oman, a close U.S. ally that has ties with both Saudi Arabia and Iran. Pompeo said that during his time in Saudi Arabia, he will speak with the kingdom's leadership about security issues, threats posed by Iran, the economic relationship between the two countries, and issues of human rights.
- U.S.USA TODAY
Secession in the Pacific Northwest? Some Oregon residents petition to join Idaho
Frustrated by liberal policies, some Oregon residents petitioned to leave the state – by moving the border with Idaho westward. The movement secured initial approval from two counties and aims to get enough signatures to put the proposal on ballots in November, according to the group called Greater Idaho. If the group succeeds, voters in southeast Oregon may see a question on whether their county should become part of Idaho by redrawing the border.
- PoliticsThe Week
Andrew Yang is headed to CNN
Andrew Yang's presidential bid failed, but it did land him a gig with CNN. The entrepreneur who made a run at the Oval Office before dropping out last week after a poor showing at the New Hampshire primary will be joining the network as a political analyst. He's doing so just in time for Wednesday night's Democratic debate in Las Vegas, as the remaining candidates take the stage before the Nevada caucuses Saturday.
- U.S.CBS News
How Jewish American pedophiles hide from justice in Israel
Now another alleged Israeli victim has come forward, saying he began abusing her when she was 5-years-old, and continued for years. Karow has successfully evaded authorities by moving between communities in Israel for almost two decades, and he is not alone. A CBS News investigation has found that many accused American pedophiles flee to Israel, and bringing them to justice can be difficult.
- PoliticsThe Guardian
Group of more than 1,000 judges calls emergency meeting amid Trump concerns
A national association of federal judges has called an emergency meeting to address growing concerns about the intervention of Donald Trump and justice department officials in politically sensitive cases, according to US media reports. Cynthia Rufe, a Philadelphia US district judge who heads the independent Federal Judges Association, which has more than 1,100 members, told USA Today the group “could not wait” until its spring conference to discuss the matter. The meeting comes after more than 2,000 former US justice department officials, including some of the top government lawyers in the country, called on the attorney general, William Barr, to resign in the wake of the Roger Stone scandal.
WorldAFPRussia raises eyebrows with blanket ban on Chinese visitors
Moscow is to impose a blanket ban on Chinese visitors over coronavirus fears in a move that will hit its tourism industry as experts question the need for such "draconian" measures. Moscow will ban all Chinese citizens from entering its territory from Thursday. It has already halted visa-free tourism for Chinese nationals and stopped issuing them with work visas and suspended rail links and restricted air travel.
- WorldTime
As Passengers Leave Coronavirus-Stricken Cruise Ship, Crew Members Are Moving Into Their Cabins for a Second Quarantine
As passengers started leaving the Diamond Princess Wednesday following a quarantine that saw them largely confined to their rooms for two weeks, another quarantine is about to begin. The 1,000-some crew members still left on the coronavirus-stricken ship will soon be moving from their decks below the waterline—where they share rooms, toilets and dining areas—into the very passenger cabins that they stayed on board to serve during the first quarantine, several crew members and a passenger tell TIME. Crew members said the empty passenger rooms will be sanitized and fumigated, and that they would be transferred to complete a second 14-day quarantine there.
- WorldReuters
Putin sacks prominent Kremlin ideologue, Ukraine hardliner
Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday dismissed a veteran, once close adviser who until recently managed Moscow's relations with war-torn Ukraine. Putin fired Vladislav Surkov, seen as a hardliner by many in Kiev, in a terse two-line statement on the Kremlin website. The decree was issued a week after the Kremlin said a senior Ukrainian-born Russian official, Dmitry Kozak, was now in charge of managing Moscow's relations with Ukraine, effectively sidelining Surkov.
- WorldBusiness Insider
The 1,600-bed Wuhan coronavirus hospital that China panic-built in a few days is less than half full 11 days after it opened
One of two hastily-constructed Wuhan hospitals meant to help handle the surging number of coronavirus patients was less than half full on Tuesday, according to official figures. Its sister hospital, Huoshenshan, is now operating at around its 1,000-bed capacity. The spectacle of the high-speed construction of two brand new hospitals in less than 12 days in Wuhan was a PR coup for the Chinese government.
- EntertainmentArchitectural Digest
9 Rural Farms of the 21st Century Featuring Stunning Modern Design
From Italy to Tasmania, a new book covers those farms with an eye on both sustainability and beautiful design Originally Appeared on Architectural Digest
- WorldAssociated Press
Abbott says top Malaysian leaders suspected pilot of MH370
Former Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott has said the “top levels” of the Malaysian government long suspected that the disappearance of Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 almost six years ago was a mass murder-suicide by the pilot. Australia, working on Malaysia's behalf, coordinated what became the largest search in aviation history, but it failed to find the plane before being ended in 2017. Speaking in a Sky News documentary to air on Wednesday and Thursday, Abbott said high-ranking Malaysian officials believed veteran pilot Zaharie Ahmad Shah deliberately downed the jet.
- PoliticsNational Review
Democrats Still Haven’t Come to Terms with 2016
In an otherwise excellent Politico article advising Democrats how to avoid the fate of 2012 presidential candidate Mitt Romney, former Obama staffer Dan Pfeiffer offers his team some self-soothing revisionism regarding the 2016 election: When all is said and done, the 2016 election might end up being a black-swan event. The combination of Russian interference, Comey intervention and multiple third-party candidates make that election a hard one to extract guidance from. Guess what?
- U.S.USA TODAY
Married, off-duty cops interrupt 'date night' to stop armed robbery attempt at restaurant
Justin T. Carter, 30, was masked and armed with a handgun when he entered Raising Cane's Chicken Fingers in Louisville just before 10 p.m. Saturday, according to an arrest citation. Chase McKeown, were captured on surveillance video getting up from their table, drawing their weapons and chasing the gunman out of the restaurant. Another man who was entering the restaurant is seen pushing the door open so the McKeowns can exit as they hold their guns in front of them.
- PoliticsThe Independent
Bloomberg referred to trans women as 'some guy in a dress' in second resurfaced video
In a video recorded last year, presidential hopeful Mike Bloomberg refers to transgender women as “some guy in a dress.” This is the second time Mr Bloomberg has been recorded making such statements in recent years. The March 2019 video also has Mr Bloomberg referring to transgender people as “he, she or it” in comments aimed at warning 2020 Democratic candidates against emphasising transgender issues, arguing that they would not play well in parts of America. Mr Bloomberg joins the other Democrat candidates on stage tonight in his first debate of the primaries — the ninth for the other contenders.
- PoliticsThe Week
George H.W. Bush deputy attorney general says ex-colleague Barr is creating a 'banana republic'
More than 2,000 former Justice Department officials, current federal prosecutors, and federal judges are urgently concerned about Attorney General William Barr's evident politicization of the Justice Department. Even "Trump voters" should be afraid of "Bill Barr's America," a "banana republic where all are subject to the whims of a dictatorial president and his henchmen," Donald Ayer, a former colleague of Barr's and deputy attorney general under President George H.W. Bush, wrote in The Atlantic on Monday. He elaborated on CNN Monday evening.
- WorldThe Daily Beast
U.S. Coronavirus Cases Nearly Double With No End in Sight
Confirmed cases of the new, deadly coronavirus in the United States almost doubled over the holiday weekend thanks to the messy evacuation of Americans from a cruise ship in Japan, while fresh numbers from China suggested the disease might be deadlier than first believed. The U.S. government evacuated 328 American passengers from Tokyo early Monday on two chartered cargo jets, leaving dozens others behind who preferred to stay on the Diamond Princess cruise ship—despite a strong disembarkation recommendation from the federal government. All travelers from Japan were screened before boarding the aircraft “to prevent symptomatic travelers from departing Japan,” according to the CDC.
- WorldThe National Interest
Russia Hates This: Why the Astute-Class Submarine Is the Pride of the Royal Navy
Key Point: London's Astute class submarines are powerful and very well-built. Since the commissioning of HMS Dreadnought in 1963, the Royal Navy has maintained a formidable force of nuclear attack submarines. The latest nuclear attack subs, the Astute class, have become a critical component of the future of the Royal Navy—but, given Russia's resurgence, are they enough?
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