NewsAssociated PressThe Latest: Court records say 2 knew man wanted fiancee dead
At least two people knew a man was pressuring his girlfriend to kill his fiancee before that woman's sudden disappearance. According to court records, two friends were told by Krystal Jean Lee Kenney in October that Frazee wanted her to kill Berreth. The women were later interviewed by police investigating Berreth's Nov. 22 disappearance.
- PoliticsThe Independent
Michael Cohen to reveal 'chilling' details about working in Trump Tower, lawyer says
Michael Cohen's lawyer says that his client plans on revealing some “chilling” details about what it was like to work in the Trump Organisation boardroom for nearly a decade, before Donald Trump became president. He needs to tell his personal story to the American people,” Lanny Davis, Cohen's attorney, told ABC News. He continued: “And when he does, you're going to hear personal, front-line experiences of memories, and incidents, and conduct, and comments that Donald Trump said over that 10-year time period behind closed doors that, to me when I first heard Michael tell me all this, even as much as I knew about Trump that was negative, was chilling.
- NewsThe Telegraph
Florida inmates use criminal skills to rescue baby from car
A group of prisoners in Florida put their criminal skills to good use on Valentine's Day – breaking into a car, to free a baby locked inside. The prisoners, on work-release, were repairing parking meters in Pasco County, north of Tampa, when they spotted the family in distress. Another person in the video, filmed by the baby's mother Shadow Lantry, can be heard commenting on the "hilarious situation," with police watching the crew unlock the car.
- WorldNational Review
Farrakhan Praises Omar's Anti-Semitic Remarks: 'Shake Up That Corrupt House'
Nation of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan on Sunday praised Representative Ilhan Omar's (D., Minn.) recent endorsement of an anti-Semitic trope and urged the freshman lawmaker not to bow to pressure from critics. “Ms. Omar from Somalia – she started talking about 'the Benjamins' and they are trying to make her apologize. You sure are using it to shake the government up, but you have nothing to apologize for,” Farrakhan said during his annual Saviour's Day address in Chicago, in comments first reported by the Washington Free Beacon.
WorldAFPPutin promises Russians better living conditions 'within this year'
President Vladimir Putin promised Russians rapid improvements in their living conditions as he kicked off his annual state of the nation address on Wednesday. "We cannot wait, the situation must change for the better now," Putin said. The Russian leader announced several policies that he said would boost living standards, while addressing the country's declining birth rate.
WorldReutersAs Maduro holds on, Venezuela opposition eyes negotiated transition
Venezuela's opposition is trying to convince ruling Socialist Party officials to join a transition government, shifting focus as it seeks to unseat President Nicolas Maduro, who has clung to power in the face of growing international pressure and U.S. sanctions. Last month, Venezuelan opposition leader and Congress chief Juan Guaido invoked the constitution to assume the interim presidency after declaring Maduro's reelection in May 2018 illegitimate. He swiftly received recognition from the United States and Latin American powers.
- BusinessUSA TODAY
Southwest Airlines under FAA investigation for aircraft weight, balance calculations
The investigation, disclosed for the first time Monday by the Wall Street Journal, began in February 2018, FAA spokesman Gregory Martin confirmed to USA TODAY. There have been no fines nor enforcement action from the investigation to date. "Since that time, the FAA has directed the development of a comprehensive solution to the methods and processes used by Southwest Airlines to determine this (weight and balance) performance data,'' he said in a statement.
- NewsTime
An 11-Year-Old Student Was Arrested in Florida After Refusing to Stand for the Pledge of Allegiance
A sixth grade student at a Florida school was arrested for disruption and resisting arrest after a confrontation with a teacher in which he refused to stand for the Pledge of Allegiance, reportedly saying the flag was racist and the pledge was offensive to black people. Spectrum Bay News 9 reports that the 11-year-old was removed from class on Feb. 4, suspended for three days, arrested shortly after and taken to a juvenile detention center. The dispute ensued after a substitute teacher at Chiles Middle Academy in Lakeland asked him to stand up, reportedly unaware of that the school does not require participation during the pledge.
WorldReutersHuawei founder says Huawei CFO arrest was politically motivated - BBC
Huawei founder Ren Zhengfei said on Monday that the arrest of his daughter, Huawei Chief Financial Officer Meng Wanzhou, was politically motivated. "Firstly, I object to what the U.S. has done. This kind of politically motivated act is not acceptable," Ren told the BBC in an interview.
NewsAssociated PressPolice: Shooter targeted 3 victims in gated LA community
One of three men who were shot to death at a home in a gated Los Angeles community likely allowed the shooter inside, authorities said Tuesday. The victims were targeted in the shooting Monday, Capt. Billy Hayes said at a press conference. The other victims are Benny Lopez, 46, of Anaheim, and Jesus Perez, 34, of Perris.
PoliticsUSA TODAY OpinionPence and Biden in Munich: Stark contrast shows how Trump is ruining relations with Europe
Former Vice President Joe Biden spoke for many former American officials in both parties who believe that the Trump administration has needlessly weakened our ties to Europe. The normally quiet and polite Merkel came out swinging against President Donald Trump's America First policy, charging the United States with unfair sanctions and criticism over Europe's continued participation in the Iran nuclear deal. She lamented Trump's recent decisions to back away from U.S. military commitments in Syria and Afghanistan and his aggressive trade policies toward the European Union.
WorldReuters VideosPutin: We'll target U.S. if Washington deploys missiles in Europe
Russia will respond to any U.S. deployment of short or intermediate-range nuclear weapons in Europe by targeting not only the countries where they are stationed, but the United States itself, President Vladimir Putin said on Wednesday (February 20). Rough Cut (no reporter narration).
- NewsThe Independent
US weather latest: Powerful coast-to-coast storm to blast Americans with snow, ice and torrential rain
A powerful storm is expected to hit up to 200 million Americans with snow, ice and torrential rain, over the coming week. About 60 per cent of the US will likely to be hit by wintry weather on Tuesday, according to AccuWeather, an American media company that provides commercial weather forecasting services worldwide. The storm began in California over the weekend before it moved north towards the Rocky Mountains on Monday as a foot of snow fell in Arizona, Colorado and New Mexico.
WorldAFPAfter IS, ammunition among the IV drips at Syria clinic
At a clinic in eastern Syria, the Islamic State group have fled leaving a floor strewn with medical supplies -- but also explosives and a foreign passport. US-backed fighters took the three-storey building in the village of Baghouz in recent days, and now use its roof to survey the frontline against the jihadists. After a months-long campaign, the last IS fighters are pinned down in their last scrap of territory just hundreds of metres down the road in the same village.
NewsReutersU.S. agency to cancel $929 million in California high-speed rail funds
California Governor Gavin Newsom said last week the state will dramatically scale back a planned $77.3 billion high-speed rail project that has faced cost hikes, delays and management concerns, but will finish a smaller section of the line. The Transportation Department's Federal Railroad Administration said in a letter it wanted to halt funding because the state had "failed to make reasonable progress." It cited Newsom's announcement to scale back the project. Newsom, in a statement, linked the Trump administration action to California leading 15 other states in challenging what he called "the President's farcical 'national emergency,'" to obtain funds for building a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border.
- BusinessUSA TODAY
Southwest apologizes to travelers for spike in cancellations and delays, blames union
Southwest Airlines, alarmed by a spike in flight cancellations and delays in the past several days due to reported maintenance issues, has taken the unusual step of publicly apologizing to customers and blaming the mess on its mechanics' union. In a statement late Tuesday, Southwest Chief Operating Officer Mike Van de Ven said the Aircraft Mechanics Fraternal Association, which has been in contract talks with Southwest since 2012, has a history of work disruptions and that Southwest will be investigating the "current disruption and exploring all possible remedies.'' He noted that Southwest also has two outstanding lawsuits against the AMFA. "We apologize to our customers who have been inconvenienced by this disruption,'' Van de Ven said.
WorldAssociated PressVenezuela shuts sea, air links to Dutch islands amid turmoil
Venezuelan officials said Tuesday that the country is banning air and sea trips to and from three Dutch Caribbean islands — a region that has been linked to efforts to undermine President Nicolas Maduro by sending emergency aid to the South American nation. The indefinite shutdown of the "maritime border" applies to commercial and fishing boats between Venezuela and the islands of Curacao, Aruba and Bonaire, said Falcon state's civil protection director, Gregorio Jose Montano. Airspace in the border region was also indefinitely closed to private and commercial flights, said Gen. Miguel Morales Miranda, assistant commander of the Comprehensive Defense Operations Zone.
- BusinessCar and Driver
See Photos of the 2020 Mercedes-Benz SL Grand Edition
The current SL reminds us of Benzes bygone, so it's leaving the scene with exclusive colors and body trim. From Car and Driver
- NewsAssociated Press
Trial over Delaware prison riot ends with no convictions
The trial for four inmates charged with murder in a 2017 Delaware prison riot ended Monday with no convictions. Jurors deliberated about five days before acquitting Abednego Baynes, 26, and Kevin Berry, 28, of all charges filed after the uprising at Vaughn Correctional Center near Smyrna in February 2017, The News Journal of Wilmington reported . Officer Steven Floyd died during the 18-hour standoff.
- PoliticsYahoo News
Lawsuits mount against Trump's 'emergency' measure
No sooner had President Trump announced that he was declaring a national emergency to secure billions in unspent funds to build a border wall than he began outlining the legal battle he expected the measure to face. I'll sign the final papers as soon as I get into the Oval Office. And we will have a national emergency, and we will then be sued,” Trump said in a sing-song cadence, speaking from the White House Rose Garden on Friday.
- NewsUSA TODAY
A tax service turned away a gay couple. Both sides claim discrimination
Bailey Brazzel and her wife Samantha weren't trying to make a political statement last week. "I went in there to have my taxes done, not push my beliefs on her," said Brazzel, 25. Nancy Fivecoate, owner of Carter Tax Service in Russiaville, Indiana, said she's been harassed and abused after Brazzel spoke to media and posted on Facebook about her experience.
- PoliticsThe Independent
Lindsey Graham says redirected funds for Trump border wall 'better for school kids' than new school
That's because the $62m (£48m) that was earmarked for the school's construction is among the billions of dollars already appropriated to the Defence Department, the pot of money the Trump administration now wants to redirect to pay for 230 miles of barriers along the southern border as part of the president's national emergency declaration. And those Kentucky middle schoolers will be better off because of it - at least according to senator Lindsey Graham. The powerful Republican and outspoken Trump ally said that border barriers top a new school.
WorldAFPCardinals blame 'homosexual agenda' for abuse crisis
Two cardinals criticised on Wednesday Pope Francis's approach to the clerical paedophilia crisis, saying "abuse of power" was not to blame but homosexuality. "We turn to you with deep distress! The Catholic world is adrift," US Cardinal Raymond Leo Burke and German Cardinal Walter Brandmueller said in an open letter to the heads of the bishops' conferences. "Sexual abuse is blamed on clericalism.
- BusinessKTRK – Houston
American Airlines denies man was on flight from Los Angeles
American Airlines had a huge mix-up when they claimed to have no trace of a passenger.
NewsReutersSchools shut, flights canceled as storm sweeps U.S. Midwest, East Coast
A winter storm swept across much of the U.S. Midwest and East Coast on Wednesday, hampering air travel and prompting officials to close federal offices in Washington and several large public school systems. The National Weather Service warned the storm could make travel very difficult, with snow, sleet and freezing rain potentially causing downed branches and power outages. The storm reached from northern Minnesota down through Missouri and east into the Mid-Atlantic region and could bring as much as 6 inches (15 cm) of snow along with sleet and freezing rain, the National Weather Service said in an advisory.
