- PoliticsYahoo News
Sorry, Hillary: Democrats don't need a savior
Reminder: There are 84 days until the Iowa caucuses and 358 days until the 2020 election. With the Iowa caucuses fast approaching, Clinton is just the latest in the colorful cast of characters who seem to have surveyed the sprawling Democratic field, sensed something lacking and decided that “something” might be them. Never mind, for instance, that billionaire businessman and former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg already closed the door on a run earlier this year, declaring in March that he was “clear-eyed about the difficulty of winning the Democratic nomination” and that “the best way for me to help our country is by rolling up my sleeves and continuing to get work done” as a political philanthropist.
- PoliticsYahoo News
3 things to watch for in Friday's Trump impeachment hearing
Yovanovitch, who was recalled from her post in May after Giuliani complained she was interfering with his demand for an investigation into former Vice President Joe Biden, has testified that Giuliani's efforts were at odds with U.S. policy. Her testimony will likely corroborate what Bill Taylor, the top U.S. diplomat in Ukraine, described as the Trump administration's “irregular” channels of diplomacy with Kyiv. At the heart of the Democrats' case against Trump is the contention that he abused his power — House Speaker Nancy Pelosi referred to his actions as “bribery” — in seeking a foreign investigation of a domestic political rival and pressing his demand by withholding security assistance...
- NewsAssociated Press
The Latest: Officer says Miranda failure was a mistake
A police officer who obtained a confession from the suspect in the disappearance and death of University of Iowa student Mollie Tibbetts says she made an honest mistake by initially failing to read him his legal rights. Officer Pamela Romero testified Wednesday that she tried to read Cristhian Bahena Rivera his Miranda warnings from memory during the Aug. 20, 2018, interrogation. After several more hours of questioning, Rivera led police officers to a cornfield where they discovered Tibbetts' body underneath a stack of leaves and stalks.
- WorldBusiness Insider
Pirates attacked an Italian ship off the coast of Mexico — the latest sign of a growing criminal industry
Gunmen boarded a ship in the Gulf of Mexico on Monday night, robbing the passengers and leaving two of them wounded. It's only the latest attack on oil infrastructure in the Gulf, as fuel theft becomes more common on land and at sea in Mexico. A pirate attack on an Italian ship in the Gulf of Mexico that left two sailors wounded isn't the first such incident, and with Mexico struggling to address rising insecurity, it's not likely to be the last.
- NewsUSA TODAY
Santa Clarita students made an active shooter video. Two months later, they took shelter in fear
The school shooting that killed two and injured at least three people at Saugus High School Thursday comes amid a national debate around how to prepare for and respond to active shooter situations, with some schools and policymakers advocating a range of tactics — from "bulletproof backpacks" to curved hallways. The debate gained traction following the Feb. 14, 2018, killing of 17 children and school staffers at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, after it came to light that the school safety officer on duty failed to confront the gunman. He now faces criminal charges.
- NewsThe Independent
American war veteran who spent several days in ICE detention receives $190k settlement
A US citizen and military veteran suffering from a mental health condition will reportedly receive $190,000 (£147,988) from a Michigan city after local officials transferred him to ICE detention following an arrest last year. Jilmar Ramos-Gomez, a decorated Marine veteran suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder, was arrested while experiencing an episode in which he lost all recollection, according to the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU). Police found the veteran, who was born and raised in Michigan, on the helipad of a hospital after he started a small fire and pulled an alarm, according to reports.
- NewsReuters
Russia blames fatal plane crash on pilots, including one who lied to get license
A plane crash that killed all 50 people on board at Russia's Kazan Airport in 2013 was the result of errors made by two pilots, including one who got his license using falsified documents, Russian investigators said on Thursday. The Boeing 737-500 aircraft was operated by the now-defunct Tatarstan Airlines, which later had its license revoked by Russia's Federal Air Transport Agency, Rosaviatsiya. The plane from Moscow had been trying to abort its landing when it nose-dived into the runway and burst into flames.
PoliticsYahoo News VideoThe U.S. Navy canceled a routine Black Sea operation after Trump complained that it was hostile to Russia
Christopher Anderson, an aide to Kurt Volker, former special envoy to Ukraine, testified that the White House canceled a Navy freedom-of-navigation operation in the Black Sea after President Trump complained to then-national security adviser John Bolton about a CNN report that framed the operation as a counter to Russia, Politico reported.
- EntertainmentUSA TODAY Opinion
After 50 years, it's past time to bring human LGBTQ+ characters to America's Sesame Street
Rumors have followed Bert and Ernie around the world as localized versions of Sesame Street are viewed in over 150 countries. Muppets aren't sexual, and making them so might hurt Sesame Street's standing around the world. But human beings are sexual, and millions of Americans are gay.
- PoliticsThe Daily Beast
Rep. Steve King Falsely IDs George Soros’ Son as Whistleblower
In a collision of conspiracy theories, two Republican lawmakers wrongly accused the son of billionaire Democratic donor George Soros of being the Ukraine whistleblower. “Adam Schiff said, 'I do not know the identity of the whistleblower,'” Rep. Steve King (R-CA) tweeted on Thursday morning, referring to remarks House Intelligence Committee chair Adam Schiff (D-CA) made in the first public impeachment hearing Wednesday. King, trying to suggest the whistleblower is tight with top Democrats, attached four pictures of a bearded man standing with Democratic figures like Hillary Clinton, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), and Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA).
- PoliticsYahoo News
'You embarrassed yourself': Kellyanne Conway blasts CNN's Wolf Blitzer for playing George Conway clip
Appearing live on CNN Thursday, Kellyanne Conway, special counselor to President Trump, was asked to respond to the assessment given by her husband, George, that testimony of career diplomats in the first public impeachment hearings was damning for her boss. George Conway, a conservative lawyer and outspoken Trump critic, appeared on MSNBC as a guest analyst during Thursday's hearings. While introducing a clip of George Conway, CNN's Wolf Blitzer told Kellyanne Conway he wanted to ask her a “sensitive” political question.
- PoliticsThe Week
GOP congressman's impeachment hearing tweets spell out 'Epstein didn't kill himself'
On Wednesday, over the course of seven hours, Rep. Paul Gosar (R-Ariz. posted 23 tweets, all pertaining to the public impeachment hearings going on over at the House Intelligence Committee. In reverse chronological order, the first words of each tweet were: "Evidence," "President," "Schiff," "The," "Every," "It's," "No," "Democrats," "It," "Donald," "Neither," "The," "Kent," "In," "Let," "Lying," "Hillary," "It's," "Maxine," "Schiff," "Even," "Let's," and "Finally."
- NewsYahoo News
Immigration officer blows whistle on 'morally objectionable' Trump asylum policy
A new anonymous whistleblower has accused the Trump administration of requiring U.S. asylum officers to enforce an illegal and immoral policy “clearly designed to further this administration's racist agenda of keeping Hispanic and Latino populations from entering the United States. The policy in question is the so-called Migrant Protection Protocols, or MPP, the controversial program requiring that most asylum seekers who attempt to request protections in the United States via the southern border be returned to Mexico to await their immigration proceedings there rather than inside the U.S. Under the MPP, which was first announced at the end of last year, more than 50,000 migrants have been s...
- EntertainmentArchitectural Digest
A History of Modern American Architecture
A new book surveys the stunning work of Ezra Stoller, the most prominent photographer of 20th-century American architecture Originally Appeared on Architectural Digest
- NewsAssociated Press
Virginia police say wanted Marine deserter sought family
Police in Virginia say the Marine deserter wanted for questioning in a murder case was trying to reach out to a family member when he was spotted. Roanoke Police Chief Tim Jones told a news conference that it's believed Michael Alexander Brown was trying to contact his grandmother when a neighbor saw him early Thursday. The Roanoke Times reports the U.S. Marshals Service learned Sunday night that Brown might be driving a recreational vehicle near Clarendon County, South Carolina, about four hours southwest of Camp Lejeune, in North Carolina, where he had been stationed as a U.S. Marine until leaving his post last month.
- WorldBusiness Insider
An Air India flight was delayed nearly 12 hours after a stowaway rat was spotted in the cabin
An Air India flight flying from Hyderabad to Visakhapatnam was delayed for 12 hours after a rat was spotted in the cabin. Flight AI-952 was due to depart at 06:10 a.m. on Sunday but after the rat was spotted passengers were told to disembark the plane— which did not leave until later in the day at 5.30 p.m. according to the Times of India. A domestic flight in India was delayed for 12 hours after a rat was spotted in the cabin as the flight was about to take off.
- NewsThe Independent
'One-in-a-million' deer with three antlers spotted caught on camera
A day after images of a puppy with an extra tail growing from its head made headlines around the world, another animal with unusual extra headgear has been sighted - a rare three-antlered whitetail deer. The creature was pictured between the snow covered trees on Michigan's Upper Peninsula by amateur photographer and former state representative, Steve Lindberg. The large buck was captured looking directly at the camera.
WorldAFPVietnam jails music teacher for 'undermining' state
Vietnam sentenced a music teacher to 11 years in prison on Friday for Facebook posts that allegedly undermined the one-party state, which has been accused of tightening the noose on online dissent. Communist Vietnam has long jailed its critics but has come under fire recently for targeting users on Facebook, a popular forum for activists in the country where all independent media is banned. Nguyen Nang Tinh is the latest activist jailed for his Facebook comments, including posts about police brutality, land rights, and a Taiwanese steel firm that dumped toxic sludge into the ocean, killing masses of fish off the coast of Vietnam.
- NewsCBS News
After 9 USC deaths, students slam school's "weirdly written" letter
A student-only community meeting was held on the USC campus Wednesday night following the release of a letter sent by the university regarding the recent student deaths. CBS Los Angeles reports a letter was sent out to every USC student discussing mental health and the dangers of opioid use. "I think it was weirdly written," said one student.
- PoliticsReuters
U.S. Justice Kavanaugh upbeat in first major public speech
A gathering of conservative lawyers gave U.S. Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh a rapturous reception on Thursday for an upbeat speech in his first major public appearance since sexual misconduct accusations almost derailed his appointment. Appointed last year to the high court by Republican President Donald Trump, Kavanaugh addressed the annual meeting of the conservative Federalist Society at Washington's Union Station. Kavanaugh thanked friends who stood by him during the contentious confirmation process and appeared emotional when mentioning his wife and daughters.
- PoliticsNational Review
AOC Says Impeachment Necessary to Unite Dems, Stop ‘Potential Compromise of the 2020 Election’
Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D., N.Y.) seemed to admit on CNN Wednesday night that she is motivated to pursue impeachment because she believes in will unite the Democratic Party and make victory in the 2020 presidential election more likely. “At the end of the day, we have to be able to come together as a caucus, and if it is this Ukrainian allegation that is what brings the caucus together, then I think we have to run with however we unify the House,” Ocasio-Cortez told Wolf Blitzer, who asked the Congresswoman whether she hoped other potential violations by Trump would be considered in any articles of impeachment.
- NewsThe National Interest
The U.S. Marine Corps Is Making Big Changes (Thanks to Threats from Russia and China)
Currently the Marine Corps deploys infantry battalions to Okinawa, Japan on a rotational basis as part of the Unit Deployment Program. While in Japan, the battalions fall under 4th Marine Regiment, which has a permanent headquarters in Okinawa. The 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit, while not part of the Unit Deployment Program, contributes another infantry battalion to Okinawa for several months per year.
- PoliticsThe Week
William Taylor laughs at GOP question if Giuliani channel was 'as outlandish as it could be'
Republican counsel Steve Castor came to Wednesday's impeachment hearing with a curious line of questioning: could something extremely unusual have, theoretically, been even more unusual? Castor, the lawyer who questioned diplomat William Taylor on behalf of House Republicans during the public impeachment hearing, asked about what Taylor had previously described as a "confusing and unusual arrangement for making U.S. policy toward Ukraine" in the Trump administration, with there being a secondary, "highly irregular" channel including Rudy Giuliani operating outside of formal diplomatic processes. "In fairness, this irregular channel of diplomacy, it's not as outlandish as it could be," Castor said to Taylor.
- NewsAssociated Press
Justice Dept. rolls out new program to combat gun violence
Attorney General William Barr announced a new initiative Wednesday that would better enforce the U.S. gun background check system, coordinate state and federal gun cases and ensure prosecutors quickly update databases to show when a defendant can't possess a firearm because of mental health issues. The push, known as Project Guardian, was unveiled at a news conference in Memphis, Tennessee, alongside officials from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, on the same day public impeachment hearings against President Donald Trump began in Washington. As part of the program, U.S. prosecutors will coordinate with state and local law enforcement officials to consider potential federal charges when a suspect is arrested for weapons possession, is believed to have used a gun to commit a violent crime or drug-trafficking offense or is suspected of being a violent gang member.
- WorldThe Telegraph
Bolivia interim leader recognises Guaido as legitimate Venezuelan leader as balance shifts
Interim president Jeanine Anez moved Thursday to consolidate power in deeply polarized Bolivia, winning recognition from the United States and immediately shifting the country's foreign policy on erstwhile ally Venezuela. Anez was expected to complete her government line-up, having named new military chiefs and half of her proposed 20-member cabinet - including Defense Minister Fernando Lopez Julio - the night before. "We have come to pacify the country," Lopez Julio said in a speech at the military college in La Paz.
