- NewsAssociated Press
Armed border group's leader said to have assassination plans
The leader of an armed group that has been detaining asylum-seeking families from Central America near the Mexican border said two years ago that he was training supporters to assassinate Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama and billionaire Democratic supporter George Soros, according to a criminal complaint filed Monday. The FBI declined to comment on why it waited to bring charges against Larry Hopkins following a search in 2017 but his arrest follows widespread criticism after videos surfaced of their members carrying firearms and detaining groups of immigrants crossing the border. Members of the group the United Constitutional Patriots say they want to draw attention to immigration violations and assist federal law enforcement in patrolling the border.
- WorldThe Telegraph
Who was behind the Sri Lanka bombings? Everything we know so far about the Easter Sunday attacks
Easter Day bomb blasts at three Sri Lankan churches and four hotels killed 310 people and wounded around 500, following a lull in major attacks since the end of the civil war 10 years ago. The explosions, some of which officials said were suicide bomb attacks, led to an immediate clampdown, with the government declaring a curfew and blocking access to most major social media and messaging sites. The three hotels hit in the initial attacks were the Shangri-La Colombo, Kingsbury Hotel in Colombo and the Cinnamon Grand Colombo.
- BusinessReuters
UPDATE 2-PG&E get approval to pay employees $350 mln to meet safety goals after wildfires
PG&E Corp can pay employees up to $350 million in bonuses this year to spur them to help meet the bankrupt California power provider's safety goals to prevent wildfires, a judge said on Tuesday. PG&E's management has said the company needs to implement the bonus plan to carry out tasks such as clearing trees and branches around power lines to avert contact that triggers wildfires. While the maximum cost of the plan is $350 million, PG&E has said it expects the likely cost will be around $235 million.
- LifestyleUSA TODAY
Washington poised to become first state to allow eco-friendly 'human composting'
Washington is expected to become the first state to legalize an environmentally-friendly burial alternative that turns bodies into soil within weeks. A bill allowing “natural organic reduction," sometimes called "human composting," has passed the legislature and is headed to Democratic Gov. Jay Inslee's desk. Inslee, who has staked his 2020 presidential campaign on climate change, is reviewing the bill.
- BusinessCar and Driver
View Photos of the 2019 Lexus LS500h Hybrid
Lexus's big LS500h sedan is both a flagship and a hybrid. We're not convinced it can serve both masters. From Car and Driver
PoliticsYahoo NewsJared Kushner: Russia investigations 'more harmful' than 'a couple of Facebook ads'
Jared Kushner on Tuesday said he believes the investigations into Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election have been “way more harmful to our democracy” than the interference itself. “If you look at what Russia did, you know, buying some Facebook ads to try to sow dissent, it's a terrible thing,” Kushner, President Trump's son-in-law and White House senior adviser, said during the inaugural Time 100 summit here.
- NewsBGR News
Watch the Easter Bunny throw punches in a street brawl, because Florida
That is, unless you're in Florida, where being in the holiday spirit and donning an Easter Bunny costume doesn't stop anyone from getting into a heated street brawl in Orlando. A video, which was first posted by Instagram user Workfth but subsequently removed due to a perceived “community guidelines” violation, shows a friendly Easter Bunny getting right in the middle of a physical altercation between two men on a busy street. Curses are yelled, punches are thrown, and our furry friend is right there in the thick of it all.
- NewsBloomberg
Elizabeth Warren's Student Loan Relief Would Lift Black, Latino Borrowers
Democratic presidential candidate Elizabeth Warren's new student-loan forgiveness plan includes specific policies that would help black and Latino students, two groups that tend to carry disproportionately high levels of educational debt. Her proposal, which is estimated to cost $1.25 trillion over a decade, creates a minimum $50 billion fund for Historically Black Colleges and Universities and minority-serving institutions to help close gaps in per-student spending. It would also prohibit public colleges from considering citizenship status or criminal history in admission decisions.
NewsUSA TODAYStudent sues Apple for $1 billion, claims face-recognition caused false arrest
A New York college student filed a lawsuit against Apple for $1 billion, claiming the company's alleged use of facial recognition software in its stores falsely linked him to a series of Apple store thefts. Ousmane Bah, 18, claims that he received a summons from a court in Boston saying that he stole $1,200 worth of Apple products in 2018, according to papers filed on Monday in Manhattan federal court. On the day of one of the thefts in Boston, Bah was attending his senior prom in Manhattan, according to the court documents.
- NewsThe Independent
Armed militia on US border 'training to kill Hillary Clinton, George Soros and Barack Obama'
The head of a far-right New Mexicomilitia group known for detaining undocumented families at gunpoint has been accused of claiming to train a group to assassinate Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton, and billionaire Democratic donor George Soros. The accusations follow after Larry Mitchell Hopkins, a 69-year-old who lives in a borer town near El Paso, was arrested on charges of possession of firearms and ammunition. The FBI now claims that Mr Hopkins told witnesses during a 2017 investigation that his militia was planning to assassinate the three Democratic figures, according to Reuters.
- U.S.KTLA - Los Angeles
Woman Suspected of Dumping Newborn Puppies in Trash Bin Had 38 Dogs at Home: Officials
A woman who faces multiple felony counts of animal cruelty after allegedly being captured on video dumping seven newborn puppies in a trash bin last week was found to have 38 other dogs at her home in Southern California, authorities said Tuesday.
- WorldThe Telegraph
Isil claims Sri Lanka attack as prime minister says there are militants with explosives on the run
Sri Lanka's defence minister on Tuesday declared the attacks were retaliation for a recent attack on mosques in New Zealand, adding that two domestic Islamist groups were believed to be responsible. Ruwan Wijewardene's comments were made as the South Asian island held its first mass funeral for about 30 of the victims of Sunday's serial suicide bombings in three high profile churches and three luxury hotels. Sri Lankan intelligence has named the mastermind behind the Easter Sunday attacks as Moulvi Zahran Hashim, an extremist local cleric who incited his followers to violence with fiery sermons on his social media channels.
ScienceReutersNASA probe records first likely 'marsquake' detected on red planet
NASA's robotic probe InSight has detected and measured what scientists believe to be a "marsquake," marking the first time a likely seismological tremor has been recorded on another planet, the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in California reported on Tuesday. The breakthrough came five months after InSight, the first spacecraft designed specifically to study the deep interior of a distant world, touched down on the surface of Mars to begin its two-year seismological mission on the red planet. The faint rumble characterized by JPL scientists as a likely marsquake was recorded on April 6, the lander's 128th Martian day, or sol.
- BusinessCar and Driver
How Does the Geely Geometry A Measure Up to the Tesla Model 3?
Major Chinese automaker Geely has launched a sub-brand it's calling Geometry. The electric Geometry A is the first production model, and Geely says it's got the Tesla Model 3 in its sights. Tesla might be struggling with bringing the long-promised $35,000 version of the Model 3 to market, but Chinese automaker Geely is suffering from no such problems with the Geometry A, the first production car from what is set to be a wider EV sub-brand.
WorldAssociated PressNorth Korea's Kim will go into Putin summit needing a win
When North Korean leader Kim Jong Un meets with Russian President Vladimir Putin for their first one-on-one meeting, he will have a long wish list and a strong desire to notch a win after the failure of his second summit with President Donald Trump. Despite a relationship that goes back to the very foundation of North Korea, relations between Pyongyang and Moscow haven't always been the picture of comradery, or even particularly close. More than 10,000 North Korean laborers still employed in Russia, many working in the logging industry in the Russian Far East, are being kicked out by the end of this year as a 2017 U.N. sanctions resolution takes effect.
WorldAFPTurkish police hold ruling party member, five others after opposition chief attack
Turkish police on Monday were holding six people, including a member of the ruling AKP party, after a mob attack on opposition leader Kemal Kilicdaroglu that sparked widespread criticism. Kilicdaroglu, 70, of the Republican People's Party (CHP) was assaulted on Sunday in a crowd as he attended a funeral in Ankara for a soldier killed fighting Kurdish militants in the southeast. The attack came days after the opposition CHP won Ankara and Istanbul from President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's AKP in March 31 local elections, seen as a major setback for the ruling party after a decade-and-a-half in power.
- TechnologyBGR News
Samsung is delaying its Galaxy Fold launch so people don't end up with $2,000 paperweights
Samsung's foldable smartphone has been making lots of headlines over the past week, and for all the wrong reasons. After several prominent technology blogs revealed that their review units broke within days (and sometimes hours) of use, it quickly became clear that the nearly $2,000 phone isn't ready for prime time just yet. Now, a new report from The Wall Street Journal suggests Samsung is poised to delay the phone's launch for at least another month.
- NewsUSA TODAY
Should Catholics keep their faith? Sex abuse scandals prompt more to personally question ties to church, poll finds
Amid the latest spate of allegations of sexual abuse of young people by priests, an increasing percentage of Catholics are re-examining their commitment to the religion, according to a poll released Wednesday. The Gallup poll found that 37 percent of respondents said "recent news about sexual abuse of young people by priests" has them personally questioning whether to remain Catholic — a 15 point increase since 2002. The polling, conduct in January and February, came as Pope Francis met at the Vatican with Catholic leaders from around the world to respond to a new wave of sex abuse allegations in numerous countries.
- WorldThe National Interest
Check Out This Picture: You Are Looking at the Greatest Aircraft Carrier Ever
The latter USS Enterprise served for fifty years, before decommissioning in 2012. Another USS Enterprise, CVN-80, is scheduled for completion by 2025. In May 1938, the U.S. Navy commissioned the aircraft carrier USS Enterprise, the seventh ship to bear the name in American service.
- CelebrityAOL.com
Easter Bunny hops into all-out brawl in Florida
An unidentified man in an Easter Bunny costume was involved in an all-out brawl in downtown Orlando on Sunday night. Click Orlando reports that the fight began when a man bumped into a woman on the street near SAK Comedy Lab, which quickly escalated into a physical altercation. Footage of the tussle shared on Instagram shows the Easter Bunny hopping into the fight, initially trying to separate the man from the woman before resorting to throwing punches of his own. The Orlando Police Department quickly intervened in the strangely festive fight.
PoliticsYahoo News VideoWoman who claims Biden touched her without permission says his jokes are 'disrespectful'
A Nevada Democrat who accused Joe Biden of touching her without permission says the former vice president has been "so incredibly disrespectful" by joking about the matter. Lucy Flores leveled her criticism Monday on Fox News as Biden nears an announcement of his 2020 presidential campaign.
- WorldBloomberg
Sri Lanka Probes International Terror Link After Blasts Kill 290
Sri Lanka's government has blamed local jihadist group National Thowheed Jamath for one of Asia's deadliest terrorist attacks in years, and said other nations had shared intelligence ahead of the blasts. The death toll rose to 290 in the coordinated attacks on Easter Sunday at churches and luxury hotels, which the government said had been carried out by seven suicide bombers. The Easter Sunday assaults targeted foreign tourists and Christians, marking a shift from the violence that fueled a three-decade civil war on the Indian Ocean island.
BusinessReutersTeva stops testing its migraine drug as cluster headache treatment
The drug, known generically as fremanezumab, competes with rival treatments from Eli Lilly & Co and Amgen Inc. Lilly in November received the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's "breakthrough" status for its migraine drug Emgality in treating episodic cluster headaches. In a late-stage trial, three out of four patients treated with Lilly's drug saw at least a 50 percent reduction in weekly cluster headaches. Teva's decision could be positive for Lilly's drug in differentiating it from its rivals, BMO Capital Markets analyst Alex Arfaei said.
WorldAssociated PressIranian parliament labels entire US military as terrorist
Iranian lawmakers on Tuesday overwhelmingly approved a bill that labels all U.S. military forces as terrorist, state TV reported, a day after Washington ratcheted up pressure on Tehran by announcing that no country would any longer be exempt from U.S. sanctions if it continues to buy Iranian oil. The bill is a step further from the one last week, when lawmakers approved labelling just U.S. troops in the Middle East as terrorist, in response to the U.S. terrorism designation for Iran's Revolutionary Guard earlier this month.
WorldAFPJapan drops 'maximum pressure' on North Korea from diplomatic book
Japan on Tuesday dropped the push to apply "maximum pressure" on North Korea from its official foreign policy, an apparent softening of Tokyo's position as major powers engage with Pyongyang. In last year's "Diplomatic Bluebook", published when tensions on the Korean peninsula were soaring, Japan said it was coordinating efforts with its allies to "maximise pressure on North Korea by all available means." But this language was dropped from this year's edition, drawn up after diplomats had "taken comprehensively into account the latest developments surrounding North Korea", according to chief government spokesman Yoshihide Suga.
