Federal Judge Indefinitely Blocks Biden Administration’s 100-Day Deportation Moratorium

A federal judge on Tuesday indefinitely banned the Biden administration from enforcing a 100-day pause on deportations of most illegal immigrants in response to a lawsuit from Texas, which argued that the moratorium violated federal law and could saddle the state with additional costs. U.S. district judge Drew Tipton issued a preliminary injunction Tuesday, dealing a blow to President Biden's efforts to follow through on his campaign promise to pause most deportations. Tipton first ruled on January 26 that the pause violated federal law on administrative procedure and that the U.S. failed to show why a deportation pause was justified.

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  Judge rules against Biden, bans enforcement of 100-day deportation pause

  Yahoo News Video
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  Judge bans enforcement of Biden's 100-day deportation pause

  Associated Press

Nissan ex-CEO tells Japanese court Ghosn's pay was too low

Former Nissan Chief Executive Hiroto Saikawa told a Japanese court Wednesday he believed the compensation for his predecessor Carlos Ghosn was too low “by international standards,” and so he supported Ghosn's retirement packages to prevent him from leaving. “Mr. Ghosn had outstanding abilities and achievements,” Saikawa said, testifying in Tokyo District Court in the criminal trial of Greg Kelly, a former senior executive at Nissan Motor Co. “We needed to prepare for Mr. Ghosn's eventual retirement to keep him motivated and to have him continue to work for Nissan,” he said in answer to a prosecutor's questioning.

Philippines' Duterte says still undecided on future of U.S. troop deal

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte said he has not made a decision yet on the future of the two-decade-old Visiting Forces Agreement (VFA) with the United States, leaving the fate of the pact hanging in the balance. Duterte has said the United States should pay more if it wants to maintain the VFA, which he unilaterally cancelled last year in an angry response to an ally being denied a U.S. visa. The withdrawal period has been twice extended, however, to create what Philippine officials say is a window for better terms to be agreed.

Climate crisis and Covid have left 8m people in Central America chronically hungry

Nearly eight million people in Central America are now chronically hungry, including nearly 2 million in an “emergency” level of food insecurity, the World Food Programme (WFP) has reported. A year of extreme climate-driven events compounded by the coronavirus pandemic has left millions in El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua struggling for basic needs. WFP reported on Tuesday that hunger has increased almost fourfold in the region in the past two years, and called for $47.3 million in urgent food assistance.

India warns of worsening COVID-19 situation, vaccinations to expand

India announced an expansion of its COVID-19 vaccination programme on Wednesday but warned that breaches of coronavirus protocols could worsen an infection surge in many states. Nearly a month after the health minister declared that COVID-19 had been contained, states such as Maharashtra in the west and Kerala in the south have reported a spike in cases amid growing reluctance to wear masks and maintain social distancing. India's infections are the second highest in the world at 11.03 million, swelled by a further 13,742 in the past 24 hours, health ministry data showed.

Republican leaders want to avoid a party civil war. Trump might have other ideas.

In a two-page memo addressed to GOP donors, voters, leaders, and activists, Sen. Rick Scott (R-Fla.) declared: "The Republican Civil War is now canceled." It isn't clear if his fellow Republicans, including former President Donald Trump, are listening. Scott is chairman of the National Republican Senatorial Committee, and in the memo, first obtained by Fox News, he writes that Democrats control the White House, Senate, and House, but Republicans have a path to victory in 2022.

Instagram Influencer Sparks Outrage After Posing Naked on Top of Endangered Elephant in Bali

A 22-year-old Russian social media influencer is facing heavy criticism online for posing naked on top of an endangered elephant in Bali, Indonesia for her 553,000 Instagram followers. Alesya Kafelnikova received backlash for the short video she posted on Feb. 13, where she was filmed lying naked on top of a “critically endangered” Sumatran elephant, according to The Sun. In a follow-up post, Kafelnikova shared an image presumably with the same elephant and said in the caption, “To love nature is human nature.”

Imran Khan invites Sri Lankan Buddhists to visit Pakistan

Visiting Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan has proclaimed his Muslim-majority nation a choice destination for religious tourism by Sri Lankans, most of whom are Buddhists. In talks with President Gotabaya Rajapaksa on Wednesday, Khan highlighted Buddhist heritage sites in Pakistan and stressed the building of cultural ties, the Pakistan Embassy said in a statement. “Pakistan probably has one of the greatest Buddhist heritages in the world and we invite people from Sri Lanka to visit them,” Khan said a day earlier after meeting with Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa.

How far will Biden go to fix the climate crisis? Pay attention to this gas project

A few days after Joe Biden claimed victory in the presidential election, a San Diego company quietly asked federal officials for permission to send 5 million tons of natural gas each year across the U.S.-Mexico border to an export terminal the company hopes to build along the Gulf of California. The facility would be Sempra Energy's second fossil fuel export plant in Mexico. The Biden administration's decision could offer an early preview of how aggressively it will confront the climate crisis.

Hong Kong's freedoms threadbare as China removes last vestiges of political opposition

China's Communist Party wields much, if not all, of the political power in Hong Kong, having chipped away at the “one country, two systems” model meant to guarantee the former British colony's unique freedoms after being returned to mainland rule. Four elected opposition lawmakers were ousted last year and those remaining resigned in protest, further skewing the city legislature toward Beijing loyalists. Outsized political influence has allowed Beijing the ability to exercise its will over Hong Kong, often thinly disguising it as 'process' – for instance, passing a law last June through city legislature making it illegal to insult the Chinese national anthem.

Germany prepares way for its troops to stay in Afghanistan

The German government is preparing the way for the country's troops in Afghanistan — the second-biggest contingent in a NATO force — to stay in place until next year if needed. Chancellor Angela Merkel's Cabinet on Wednesday approved a new draft mandate that would enable German troops to stay until Jan. 31, government spokesman Steffen Seibert said. German troop deployments overseas require parliamentary approval, which is typically granted on an annual basis.

U.S. report on Khashoggi death expected to single out Saudi crown prince: sources

The Biden administration is expected to release a declassified U.S. intelligence report on Thursday finding that Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman approved the 2018 killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, four officials familiar with the matter said. The release would represent the latest move by U.S. President Joe Biden to realign ties with Riyadh after years in which Washington largely gave its key Arab ally and major oil producer a pass on its human rights record, intervention in Yemen's civil war and other issues. The report's release is expected to coincide with the first phone conversation, possibly on Wednesday, between Biden and Saudi King Salman since Biden took over the presidency.

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  Biden call with Saudi King expected soon -Psaki

  Reuters Videos
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  Biden ‘to call Saudi king’ before release of Khashoggi intelligence report

  The Independent

What the post-pandemic new normal may look like

Public health experts generally agree that the coronavirus is here to stay — which raises the question of when the pandemic will be over, The Atlantic's Alexis Madrigal writes. What they're saying: "Fewer than 100 deaths a day—to mirror the typical mortality of influenza in the U.S. over a typical year—is an appropriate goal," Monica Gandhi, an infectious-disease specialist at UC San Francisco, told Madrigal. "Until then, we'll be confronted with a different sort of risk: that, for some, the pandemic feels like it's over long before it actually is," Madrigal writes.

Iowa Republicans fast-tracking dramatic election changes

Iowa Republicans were moving swiftly Wednesday to sharply limit early voting in the state, months after a general election overseen by a Republican secretary of state resulted in record turnout and overwhelming victories by GOP candidates. Republican Gov. Kim Reynolds, a strong supporter of former President Donald Trump, has indicated she'd consider them. “Last fall we had elections overseen by a Republican secretary of state in which Republicans gained seats in the Iowa House and the U.S. House, so if there is any significant voter fraud in this state then two things are true," Democratic Sen. Herman Quirmbach of Ames said.

The Best Dishwasher Models, According to Interior Designers

The designer-approved dishwashers look good—and perform even better Originally Appeared on Architectural Digest

Northern Irish Brexit issue is two-way street, says EU's Sefcovic

Britain must show it is fully using the avenues available under the Brexit divorce deal to minimise trade disruption in Northern Ireland before seeking concessions, a senior EU official said on Tuesday. Britain's exit from the EU's trading orbit in January has created trade barriers between Northern Ireland - which remains in the EU's single market for goods - and the rest of the United Kingdom. Maros Sefcovic, a vice president of the European Commission, said he hoped to learn of British efforts during an online meeting on Wednesday .

Indonesia presses regional effort to resolve Myanmar crisis

Regional diplomatic efforts to resolve Myanmar's political crisis intensified Wednesday, while protests continued in Yangon and other cities calling for the country's coup makers to step down and return Aung San Suu Kyi's elected government to power. Indonesian Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi visited the Thai capital, Bangkok, and held three-way talks with her Thai counterpart Don Pramudwinai and Myanmar's new foreign minister, retired army colonel Wunna Maung Lwin, who also traveled to Thailand. The meeting was part of her efforts to coordinate a regional response to the crisis triggered by Myanmar's Feb. 1 military coup.

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  Indonesia says it holds intensive talks with both sides of Myanmar crisis

  Reuters
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  Elephant-riders join Myanmar coup protests

  Reuters Videos

Liz Cheney says it needs to be made 'clear' the GOP isn't 'the party of white supremacy'

Rep. Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.) told her fellow Republicans on Tuesday that they must "ignore the temptation to look away" and make it "clear that we aren't the party of white supremacy." Cheney, the No. 3 House Republican, made her plea during an event hosted by the Reagan Institute. When supporters of former President Donald Trump stormed the Capitol on Jan. 6, "you certainly saw anti-Semitism," Cheney said.

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  Liz Cheney: Republicans Need ‘To Make Clear We Aren’t The Party Of White Supremacy’

  HuffPost
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  McCarthy and Cheney disagree on Trump's CPAC appearance

  Yahoo News Video

U.S. Postal Service on 'death spiral' without urgent reform: chief

U.S. Postmaster General Louis DeJoy told lawmakers that U.S. mail system is losing $10 billion a year and urgently needs reform and legislative relief from Congress. "I would suggest that we are on a death spiral," DeJoy told the U.S. House Oversight and Government Reform committee at a hearing Wednesday, who did not rule out changing first-class deliver standards or other significant changes. DeJoy, a supporter of former President Donald Trump appointed to head the Postal Service last year, suspended operational changes in August after heavy criticism over postal delays.

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  USPS on 'death spiral' without reform -chief

  Reuters Videos
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  'We will do better' -Postmaster General DeJoy

  Reuters Videos

Ghana 1st nation to receive coronavirus vaccines from COVAX

Ghana received the world's first delivery of coronavirus vaccines from the United Nations-backed COVAX initiative on Wednesday — the long-awaited start for a program that has thus far fallen short of hopes that it would ensure shots were given quickly to the world's most vulnerable people. The arrival of 600,000 doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine in the West African country marks the beginning of the largest vaccine procurement and supply operation in history, according to the World Health Organization and UNICEF. It is a linchpin of efforts to bring the pandemic to an end and has been hailed as the first time the world has delivered a highly sought-after vaccine to poor countries during an ongoing outbreak.

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  Ghana 1st nation to receive vaccines from COVAX

  Associated Press Videos
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  What you need to know about the coronavirus right now

  Reuters

Myanmar's hardened Chinese population takes stand against Beijing

Here, and across the country, swelling ranks of young ethnic Chinese protesters are joining mass rallies against the brutal junta that abruptly deposed Aung San Suu Kyi's government. Many are united by rumours, circulated widely among the protest movement, that China is helping the regime install a repressive new internet system akin to one across the border that severely restricts online freedoms behind a 'Great Firewall'. Eager to show opposition to Beijing meddling, they gather outside the embassy, some displaying bilingual posters reading “Myanmar-born Chinese oppose the military coup.

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  Myanmar coup: What is happening and why?

  BBC
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  Anti-Military Protesters March in North Myanmar

  Storyful

Bernie Sanders approval rating higher than Biden and Harris as he champions minimum wage and stimulus checks

Bernie Sanders's approval rating is currently higher than both Joe Biden and Kamala Harris, according to a new poll. The ratings come as the senator calls for a $15 (£11) minimum wage to be included as part of the $1.9 trillion (£1.2 trillion) coronavirus stimulus passing through Congress this week. Mr Sanders had a net favourability rating of 10 points among survey respondents, according to the poll released on Tuesday by The Economist/YouGov while the US president had a net favourability rating of 8 points, and the vice president 5 points.

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  Republicans see Democrats' $15 minimum-wage increase and counter with $10 instead

  Business Insider
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  The GOP Wants a $10 Minimum Wage – How Does It Compare to $15 in the Real World?

  GOBankingRates

Republican-backed voting curbs set for U.S. Supreme Court scrutiny

Fresh off an election in which former President Donald Trump made false claims of fraud, the U.S. Supreme Court is poised to ponder the legality of a restriction on early voting in Arizona that his fellow Republicans argued was needed to combat fraud. The Republican-backed law, spurred in part by a video purportedly showing voter fraud that courts later deemed misleading, made it a crime to provide another person's completed early ballot to election officials, with the exception of family members or caregivers. Community activists sometimes engage in ballot collection to facilitate voting and increase voter turnout.