U.S.AxiosFBI investigating alleged massive scheme to illegally finance Susan Collins’ re-election bid
The FBI is investigating what it describes as a massive scheme to illegally finance Sen. Susan Collins' 2020 reelection bid, Axios has learned. What's happening: A recently unsealed search warrant application shows the FBI believes a Hawaii defense contractor illegally funneled $150,000 to a pro-Collins super PAC and reimbursed donations to Collins' campaign. There's no indication that Collins or her team were aware of any of it.
PoliticsThe WeekKevin McCarthy appears to throw GOP broker 'under the bus' in rebuke of House's Jan. 6 commission deal
House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) on Tuesday slammed the House's Jan. 6 commission deal, and in the process appeared to throw Rep. John Katko (R-N.Y.), the Republican he reportedly tasked with negotiating the legislation, "under the bus." In a statement, McCarthy specifically complained that the commission was too narrow.
- WorldAssociated Press
Cyprus president unveils 'ambitious' economic stimulus plan
Cyprus' president on Monday unveiled a 4.4 billion-euro ($5.34 billion) economic stimulus plan, which he described as the “most ambitious ever” in the country's 61-year history as an independent republic. Nicos Anastasiades said the five-pronged plan is projected to add another 7% to the gross domestic product over the next five years and at least 11,000 new jobs in the European Union-member country with a population of approximately 875,000. “The plan, 'Cyprus — The Next Day' is a courageous step forward and a new and necessary development model for the future,” Anastasiades told reporters.
U.S.Miami HeraldHe wanted the big pack of soda at a Florida Walmart — then felt a shot as he reached
Kyle Theodore Griffith, a 30-year-old from Largo, Florida, went to Walmart to pick up a 24-pack case of soda. According to the Largo Police Department, Griffith was at a Walmart on Missouri Avenue on Saturday, May 15, and bent over to pick up the soda case. A bullet hit Griffith's upper right thigh.
U.S.The Week'QAnon Shaman' lawyer issues shockingly offensive defense of client's role in Capitol riot
Albert Watkins, the attorney for Jacob Chansley (perhaps better known as "QAnon Shaman"), spoke on the record with Talking Points Memo about his client's alleged role in the Jan. 6 Capitol riot. In the interview, published by TPM on Tuesday, Watkins used shockingly offensive language in an attempt to defend Chansley's alleged actions, saying Chansley has Asperger's syndrome, and asserting that other participants in the riot have intellectual disabilities that were to blame. "These are people with brain damage," he said.
WorldReutersAustralian PM spurns industry pleas to reopen border before 2022
SYDNEY (Reuters) -Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison on Tuesday said it was still not safe to allow residents fully-vaccinated for COVID-19 to travel overseas, as industries hit hard by the pandemic press for a faster reopening of international borders. Morrison said any plans to relax border rules for vaccinated travellers could be implemented "only when it is safe to do so". Australia plans to reopen borders to the rest of the world from the middle of 2022 even as the federal budget unveiled last week hopes to fully vaccinate its near 26 million population by the end of this year.
WorldBBCClimate change: Ban new gas boilers from 2025 to reach net-zero
The International Energy Agency (IEA) says that no new fossil fuel boilers should be sold from 2025 if the world is to achieve net-zero emissions by the middle of this century. The IEA says that from now, there is no place for new coal, oil or gas exploration or supplies. The energy sector, according to the IEA, is the source of around 75% of the emissions of greenhouse gases that are driving up global temperatures.
PoliticsThe IndependentMike Pence tries to blame outbreak of violence in Israel on ‘power vacuum’ created by Biden
Former vice president Mike Pence has attempted to blame Joe Biden for the outbreak of violence between Israel and Palestine. In an op-ed for National Review on Monday, Mr Pence argued that the Biden administration was undoing the efforts of his government, and has created an environment for tensions to increase. A major contributing factor of the violence was restrictions placed on Gaza by the occupying Israeli government during the Holy Month of Ramadan, such as shutting the Gate of Damascus.
HealthNBC NewsHow contagious is the coronavirus variant from India? What the science shows
Currently, the most contagious form of the coronavirus was reported to be the B.1.117 that has been dominant in the U.K. and Europe since the winter and now makes up three-quarters of coronavirus infections in the U.S. Last week, the B.1.617 variant, first found in India, was officially classified as a “variant of concern” by the World Health Organization,, which detailed in a report the variant and its three lineages — versions that differ slightly in the mutations in the virus's spike protein. Early data suggests that one of the lineages, B.1.617.2, which has been detected most frequently in the U.S. and the U.K., may be the lineage associated with the greatest transmissibility.
WorldBBCUK farmers sound alarm over Australia trade talks
UK farmers have sounded the alarm over reports the government plans a trade deal with Australia that would make its food and farming imports cheaper. The move is being considered as part of a free trade pact with Australia the UK government hopes will be a springboard for similar pacts with other countries. But UK farming unions have warned of "irreversible damage" from a bad deal.
U.S.Architectural Digest13 Rocking Chairs That Aren’t Your Grandma’s Rocking Chair
Rock, glide, or swivel in these updated takes on old-school rocking chairs Originally Appeared on Architectural Digest
U.S.Kansas City StarConvicted man kills himself in federal court after verdict, North Dakota officials say
A man died by suicide inside a federal courtroom in North Dakota after he was found guilty, officials say. A U.S. Marshal told KVRR the man was on trial at the Fargo courthouse and the jury had returned a guilty verdict when he “produced an edge weapon and cut his throat” in front of the judge, courtroom staff and others. A woman who said she was in the courtroom spoke to KVLY but declined to share her name.
PoliticsThe IndependentRashida Tlaib says Democrats tell her they support Palestine in secret because they’re scared of ‘intimidation’
US Rep Rashida Tlaib says that some of her Democratic colleagues in Congress express empathy towards the Palestinians in private, but do not in public. The Michigan Democrat made the observation during an interview on MSNBC's The Reid Out on Monday evening. “It is really hard because any of my colleagues that even have some sort of empathy towards Palestinians, they do it quietly with whispering because they continue to be intimidated and bullied by those that want to continue the status quo apartheid in Israel,” Ms Tlaib told host Joy Reid.
- NewsYahoo News Video
88% of children to receive monthly payments starting in July
The Treasury Department said Monday that 39 million families are set to receive monthly child payments beginning on July 15.
U.S.USA TODAY'Disappointing beyond measure': New Jersey police officer charged with running meth lab from his home
A New Jersey police department is reeling following the arrest and suspension of one of its longtime officers after prosecutors said a meth lab was found at his home. Christopher Walls, a 19-year veteran of the Long Branch Police Department, faces several charges related to manufacturing and operating a methamphetamine production facility. He also faces charges related to firearm possession and endangering the welfare of a child.
U.S.TheGrio64% of millennials have regrets about buying home, poll says
A slew of millennials have regrets about buying their homes. According to a new poll made up of 1,400 U.S. homeowners from Bankrate, 64% of millennials regret at least one thing about purchasing their home, per CNBC. “These purchases, even for those who are well qualified, can be a leap of faith,” said Bankrate's senior economic analyst, Mark Hamrick.
U.S.Raleigh News and ObserverNew State Farmers Market driveway was to open last fall. Why it’s still not ready.
Last summer, when the State Farmers Market began building a new driveway out to Lake Wheeler Road, it hoped to have it open in time for Thanksgiving. The state agreed to put off finishing the final section of the drive after the city raised questions about its compatibility with other planned changes at the intersection of Lake Wheeler and Maywood Avenue. Specifically, the city is considering adding a traffic light at Maywood and Lake Wheeler, as well as sidewalks along both sides of Lake Wheeler, said Kevin Kidd, an engineering reviewer with the city.
WorldThe IndependentBiden promises to keep Rashida Tlaib’s West Bank family safe after she accused him of ‘taking orders’ from Israel
During remarks at a Ford electric vehicle facility in Michigan, President Joe Biden told Detroit-area US Rep Rashida Tlaib that he is praying for her family in the West Bank. The Democratic congresswoman, the only Palestinian member and one of two Muslim women in Congress, has criticised the administration's response to Israel's attacks in Gaza and the West Bank, and has called for conditioning aid to Israel on its compliance with international human rights agreements. “I admire your intellect, I admire your passion, and I admire your concern for so many other people,” the president told her in his remarks from Dearborn on Tuesday.
HealthKansas City StarVaccinations in rural areas falling behind urban areas in Kansas and Missouri, CDC finds
In Kansas, 41.3% of adults in rural counties had received at least one dose as of April 10, compared with 49.7% of adults in urban areas. In Missouri, 31% of adults in rural counties had received at least one dose as of April 10, compared with 41.3% of adults in urban areas. The agency examined county-level vaccination data across all 50 states from December through April, finding nationally that 38.9% of residents in rural counties had received at least one vaccine dose, compared with 45.7% in urban counties.
WorldINSIDERA famous, photogenic rock formation in the Galapagos has collapsed
Darwin's Arch, the famed rock formation in the Galápagos Islands, has collapsed, officials said. The arch was located about a mile away from Darwin's Island, also named for Charles Darwin. UN scientists previously warned that the islands are at risk due to the effects of climate change, the New York Times reported.
CelebrityTheGrioLAPD investigating T.I., Tiny for sexual assault
The Los Angeles Police Department is investigating whether rapper-actor Clifford “T.I.” Harris and his wife, Xscape member Tamika “Tiny” Harris, drugged and sexually assaulted a woman. Allegations that the celebrity couple frequently recruited, drugged and assaulted women at their Atlanta home began in late January when a former friend, Sabrina Peterson, made the accusation and invited women who'd been victimized to share their experiences. Dozens then made claims, which T.I and Tiny vehemently denied.
WorldThe New York TimesWhen Fighting Erupts Between Israel and Hamas, Charges of War Crimes Follow
The Israeli missile that slammed into a Palestinian apartment exacted a shocking toll: eight children and two women, killed as they celebrated a major Muslim holiday, in one of the deadliest episodes of the war between Israel and Palestinian militants that has raged for nearly a week. Israel said a senior Hamas commander was the target of the Friday attack. Civilians are paying an especially high price in the latest bout of violence between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip, raising urgent questions about how the laws of war apply to the conflagration: which military actions are legal, what war crimes are being committed and who, if anyone, will ever be held to account.
U.S.Business InsiderTexas Gov. Greg Abbott signs executive order banning state entities, including schools, from requiring face masks
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott signed an executive order which prohibits state entities from requiring masks. This includes counties, cities, and schools. Prisons, jails, and assisted living facilities are exempt.
- PoliticsKTRK – Houston
Fire breaks out at high-rise in Texas Medical Center
The fire department said that when crews arrived, fire was coming from a large sign on top of the building. One person was inside at the time.
PoliticsThe IndependentMatt Gaetz addresses sex trafficking allegations in Ohio rally speech: ‘I’m being falsely accused’
Republican congressman Matt Gaetz addressed his sexual misconduct allegations at a political rally on Saturday equating them with legislative budget earmarks. “I'm being falsely accused of exchanging money for naughty favours,” Representative Gaetz said during his speech at the Ohio Political Summit. “Yet, Congress has reinstituted a process that legalises the corrupt act of exchanging money for favours, through earmarks, and everybody knows that that's the corruption.”
“We are a nation bobbing in multiple crises. Not one of them involves people taking COVID-19 too seriously.”
“The threat is increasingly concentrated among people who are vulnerable by choice.”
“This announcement would be very welcome if not for one big problem: There is no requirement for proof of vaccination.”
“Joining the protected vaccinated minority, which we hope will rapidly become the majority, is simple.”
“Instead of taking giant steps. I think we should be taking small steps toward the same goal.”