PoliticsYahoo NewsOmar renews push to 'cancel rent and mortgage payments' during pandemic
With an eviction moratorium issued by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in September set to expire at the end of the month, and Congress and the White House still unable to pass a new coronavirus relief bill, Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., has renewed her push for legislation that would cancel mortgage and rent payments through the duration of the pandemic. In April, Omar originally introduced legislation that would cancel all mortgage and rent payments during the pandemic, a position pushed by activists across the country. The plan includes a relief fund for landlords and mortgage holders to cover losses incurred from missed payments.
U.S.Associated PressFeds: Militia leader pointed rifle at officers in Kentucky
The leader of a pro-gun group that stages armed protests against police violence has been charged with pointing a rifle at federal officers while in Kentucky for a demonstration. John F. Johnson, who calls himself “Grandmaster Jay,” is facing a federal charge of assaulting task force officers. A complaint filed in federal court in Louisville said Johnson pointed a rifle, which had a flashlight mounted to it, at officers who were on a roof in downtown Louisville on Sept. 4.
PoliticsThe WeekBiden reportedly picks Obama veterans for coronavirus czar and surgeon general
President-elect Joe Biden has settled on a team to lead the U.S. through its biggest ongoing crisis, two people familiar with the decision tell Politico. Jeff Zients, who headed the National Economic Council under former President Barack Obama and is co-chair of Biden's transition team, will reportedly be named the White House's COVID-19 coordinator. Vivek Murthy, the surgeon general under Obama, will reportedly return to his role with more responsibilities, and Biden's coronavirus advisory board co-chair Marcella Nunez-Smith will get a special role focused on health disparities.
PoliticsReutersRoles of Trump fundraiser, Kushner's attorney were scrutinized in pardon bribe probe
A former Trump fundraiser and a prominent lawyer were among the people scrutinized by the Justice Department for their roles in what a judge described as a possible bribery scheme to win a presidential pardon for a convicted felon, lawyers for the men said Thursday. Lawyer Abbe Lowell's attorney and friend Reid Weingarten said his client was never a target or subject in the Justice Department's inquiry, while former fundraiser Elliot Broidy's attorney William Burck said his client was "not under investigation and has not been accused by anyone of any wrongdoing whatsoever." No one has been charged in the investigation, the status of which is unclear.
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Georgia GOP Lt. Gov. is ‘embarrassed’ by misinformation surrounding election integrity in his state
As a pair of critical Senate runoff races approach on Jan. 5, Georgia Republican leaders find themselves in a conundrum, trying to balance indulging President Trump's baseless claims of voter fraud with supporting state GOP election officials. Lt. Gov. Geoff Duncan, a Republican, is frustrated with the misinformation about the election process in his state. I'm actually embarrassed at the amount of misinformation that continues to show up on Twitter feeds and Facebook posts and blogs that takes literally 10 seconds to debunk,” Duncan told Yahoo News.
WorldBBCIs Africa overtaking the Middle East as the new jihadist battleground?
About 300 British troops have arrived in the troubled West African state of Mali at a time when the epicentre of the Islamic State group (IS) appears to have moved from the Middle East to Africa. In a three-year mission named Operation Newcombe they are joining a force of around 15,000 UN multinational troops, spearheaded by the French, in efforts to help stabilise a part of the continent known as the Sahel. Mali is one of several Sahel nations currently fighting jihadist insurgencies and the violence is getting worse.
WorldAssociated PressBangladesh begins relocating Rohingya refugees to island
Authorities in Bangladesh have begun relocating thousands of Rohingya refugees to an isolated island despite calls by human rights groups for a halt to the process, officials said Thursday. The United Nations has also voiced concern that refugees be allowed to make a “free and informed decision” about whether to relocate to the island in the Bay of Bengal. The island's facilities are built to accommodate 100,000 people, just a fraction of the million Rohingya Muslims who have fled waves of violent persecution in their native Myanmar and are currently living in crowded, squalid refugee camps.
LifestyleArchitectural Digest10 Remote Airbnbs As Stunning As They Are Secluded
From a private island to a tiny Vermont tree house Originally Appeared on Architectural Digest
PoliticsReutersTaiwan says trade deal would show U.S. support in face of China pressure
A bilateral trade deal between Taiwan and the United States would reinforce U.S. support for the democratic island in the face of "unrelenting intimidation" from China, Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen said on Friday. Taiwan, claimed by China as its own territory, has long angled for a trade deal with its most important diplomatic and military backer, and in August Tsai announced a relaxation on imports of U.S. pork and beef, removing a stumbling block. In a recorded message to the American Legislative Exchange Council, having received its International Pioneer Award for Leadership, Tsai said that with Taiwan's reliance on trade, the island had to strengthen economic ties with trading partners.
PoliticsThe Daily BeastThis May Be the Real Reason Why Rudy’s So Thirsty for a Preemptive Pardon—and Why He Won’t Get One
Reports, denied of course by Rudy Giuliani and his lawyer, that he has discussed a preemptive pardon with Donald Trump are made even more credible by the fact that Giuliani knows that he is part of an investigation by the FBI and federal prosecutors, who may well have held off on further action during the “blackout” period leading up to the election because an indictment of the president's personal attorney would have been perceived as politically motivated. If, as it appears, Giuliani is the subject or target of a federal investigation, prosecutors have already told Giuliani's lawyer that because they are required to do so. Giuliani, then, may be cynically enabling Trump's post-election hysteria with his slapstick lawsuits and show hearings because he knows FBI agents aren't going to jump on stage to handcuff him while the cameras are still on him.
PoliticsAssociated PressBiden adjusting agenda to reflect narrow divide in Congress
Biden is already working on an array of executive actions to achieve some of his bolder priorities on climate change and immigration without having to navigate congressional gridlock. The maneuvering reflects a disappointing political reality for Biden, who campaigned on a pledge to address the nation's problems with measures that would rival the scope of Franklin Delano Roosevelt's New Deal legislation. But Democrats acknowledge that big legislative accomplishments are unlikely, even in the best-case scenario in which the party gains a slim majority in the Senate.
WorldAssociated PressJudge refuses to dismiss media charges in Pell trial
A Supreme Court judge in Australia's Victoria state on Friday dismissed submissions from news media organizations and journalists that there is no case to answer on charges they breached a gag order on reporting about Cardinal George Pell's sex abuse convictions in 2018. More charges were tossed out in the case against Australian media outlets prosecuted over reporting of Pell's abuse convictions. But the judge refused to throw out the bulk of the 87 charges of contempt of court for stories published after the cardinal's guilty verdict.
WorldReutersRussian state employees describe pressure to join vaccine trials
The Moscow health department said the vaccine has already successfully passed two stages of clinical trials and has shown its safety, and the decision to participate in the trial is made by residents only voluntarily and only after a medical examination. But the messages, seen by Reuters, reveal how some Russian state employees are coming under heavy pressure to sign up for the trials, an effort that medical ethicists say may run afoul of ethical norms for voluntary participation in such tests. A source close to Martyanov's department told Reuters that all departments in Moscow's city administration, which employs around 20,000 people, were set quotas for participation in the trials.
WorldBBCHow a blow to Australian wine shows tensions with China
China - this top customer - has bought close to 40% of Australia's wine exports in the past few years. In 2019, China bought more bottled wine from Australia than it did from France. After an intense few years of marketing and trade deals, this love affair with Australian winegrowers was fizzing along nicely.
PoliticsThe IndependentTrump news - live: Press chief quits in apparent nod to defeat, as Murdoch appears to turn on president
On a day that began with warnings by a conservative pundit that Donald Trump's final weeks in power could be his “most dangerous”, and the fallout from a 46-minute speech on social media branded as “one of his most dishonest ever”, the president continues to rail against the results of the 2020 presidential election as his communications director resigns. While he refused to tell reporters whether he had any confidence in US Attorney General William Barr, the Justice Department announced that it is suing Facebook for discriminating against Americans in its hiring practices Meanwhile, first daughter and White House adviser Ivanka Trump has hit out at the “vindictive” probe regarding her hotel...
- PoliticsAssociated Press
Supreme Court again asked to block Biden win in Pennsylvania
Fresh off another rejection in Pennsylvania's courts, Republicans on Thursday again asked the U.S. Supreme Court to block President-elect Joe Biden's victory in the battleground state, while the state's lawyers say fatal flaws in the original case mean justices are highly unlikely to grant it. Republican U.S. Rep. Mike Kelly of northwestern Pennsylvania and the other plaintiffs are asking the high court to prevent the state from certifying any contests from the Nov. 3 election, and undo any certifications already made, such as Biden's victory, while its lawsuit is considered. Biden beat President Donald Trump by more than 80,000 votes in Pennsylvania, a state Trump had won in 2016.
U.S.ReutersU.S. sets single day records for cases; California readies new clamp down
The United States set single-day records for new infections and deaths on Thursday as California's governor said he would impose some of the nation's strictest stay-at-home orders in the coming days when intensive care units are expected to reach capacity. California's latest round of restrictions, going further than any other U.S. state, will be triggered on a region-by-region basis when available ICU-bed space falls to 15% of capacity in any of five geographic areas. Governor Gavin Newsom said four of the regions, including Southern California, were on track to reach the 15% threshold this week, with the San Francisco Bay area expected to follow by mid- to late December.
ScienceBBCClimate change: 2020 set to be one of the three warmest years on record
The warmest six years in global records dating back to 1850 have now all occurred since 2015. The most notable warmth was in the Siberian Arctic, where temperatures were 5C above average. UN climate change goal now 'within reach' Covid pandemic has little impact on rise in CO2 Can sending fewer emails really save the planet?
PoliticsINSIDERA QAnon harassment campaign led to a noose being left at the home of a young Dominion contractor, according to a Georgia official
A QAnon harassment campaign based on a conspiracy theory boosted by President Trump led to death threats and a noose at the door of a young voting-systems contractor, according to a Georgia official. Gabriel Sterling, a Republican and the voting system implementation manager for Georgia's Republican secretary of state, called the harassment "the straw that broke the camel's back." Trump continues to encourage baseless voter-fraud allegations.
WorldAssociated PressMilitants open fire and burn police car in Philippine town
Dozens of militants aligned with the Islamic State group opened fire on a Philippine army detachment and burned a police patrol car in a southern town but withdrew after troops returned fire, officials said Friday. There were no immediate reports of injuries in Thursday night's brief attack by the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters in Datu Piang town. Nevertheless it sparked panic among residents and rekindled fears of a repeat of a 2017 militant siege of southern Marawi city that lasted for five months before being quelled by government forces.
WorldThe IndependentFauci apologises for ‘misunderstanding’ after suggesting UK rushed Covid vaccine approval
Dr Anthony Fauci said he has “great faith" in the UK's scientists and regulators, as he “set the record straight” on comments which seemed to suggest the UK had rushed through its approval of Pfizer's coronavirus vaccine. America's top infectious diseases expert said on Wednesday evening he did “not mean to imply any sloppiness, even though it came out that way”. Dr Fauci had said UK health authorities did not scrutinise vaccine trial data as “carefully” as US officials have been doing, after the UK's Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Authority (MHRA) approved Pfizer/BioNTech's vaccine on Tuesday, making Britain the first western country to green light the injection.
WorldReutersSome Sino-U.S. relations damage 'beyond repair', China state media warn
In an editorial, the government-backed China Daily said it viewed as "worrisome signs" Washington's decision to limit visitor visas for members of the Chinese Communist Party and their families and a ban on Xinjiang cotton imports. "Even if the incoming administration has any intention of easing the tensions that have been sown, and continue being sown, some damage is simply beyond repair, as the sitting U.S. president intends," the paper added. China's ambassador to the United States became the latest of the Asian nation's senior officials to signal a desire to reset the increasingly confrontational relationship as President-elect Joe Biden prepares to take office in January.
ScienceAssociated PressChinese spacecraft carrying lunar rocks lifts off from moon
A Chinese spacecraft lifted off from the moon Thursday night with a load of lunar rocks, the first stage of its return to Earth, the government space agency reported. Chang'e 5, the third Chinese spacecraft to land on the moon and the first to take off from it again, is the latest in a series of increasingly ambitious missions for Beijing's space program, which also has a orbiter and rover headed to Mars. Its mission: collect about 2 kilograms (4 pounds) of lunar rocks and bring them back to Earth, the first return of samples since Soviet spacecraft did so in the 1970s.
BusinessThe New York Times2,596 Trades in One Term: Inside Sen. David Perdue's Stock Portfolio
As a member of the Senate's cybersecurity subcommittee, David Perdue has raised alarms that hackers from overseas pose a threat to U.S. computer networks. Citing a frightening report by a California-based company called FireEye, Perdue was among the senators who asked this spring that the National Guard prepare to protect against such data breaches. Not only was the issue important to Perdue, so was FireEye, a federal contractor that provides malware detection and threat-intelligence services.
HealthBBCFauci apologises for saying UK 'rushed' vaccine
Dr Anthony Fauci, the top US infectious disease expert, has apologised for remarks that seemed to criticise the UK's vaccine approval process. "I have a great deal of confidence in what the UK does both scientifically and from a regulator standpoint," Dr Fauci told the BBC on Thursday. The UK on Wednesday became the first country in the world to approve the Pfizer vaccine for the coronavirus.
“This metastasizing debt crisis has had tremendous social costs. An entire generation has been set back.”
“It is not the government’s job to step in and rescue those who took on more debt than their future incomes would support.”
“Many student-borrowers need relief, but well-off borrowers who are thriving — thanks to their college degrees — do not.”
“It will stimulate the lagging economy. And though not everyone will directly benefit, the country as a whole will improve.”
“Canceling student debt would cost billions of dollars each year and would exacerbate, not lessen, economic inequalities.”