- WorldThe Daily Beast
As Trump Gives Up on ‘Endless Wars,' Russia, China, and Iran Move In
JERUSALEM–Two decades of expanding operations against what United States Special Operations Command called a “global insurgency of state and non-state actors” has led to fatigue at home and questions abroad about U.S. strategy. The latest Trump administration deal with the Taliban, challenges to the U.S. role in Syria and Iraq, and a potential reduction of forces in Africa point to a global trend in how the U.S. will deal with counter-insurgency in the future. What we're looking at is a global drawdown in U.S. forces committed to counter-terrorist operations at the same time President Donald Trump is demanding other countries, including NATO allies, do more.
- U.S.Associated Press
Mom, daughter plead not guilty to slaying 5 close relatives
A mother and her adult daughter pleaded not guilty Tuesday to killing five of their close relatives, including three children, at an apartment outside Philadelphia. Forty-six-year-old Shana Decree and her 20-year-old daughter Dominique Decree sat side by side in court in suburban Bucks County and affirmed their pleas to charges of first-degree murder and conspiracy. The pair barely spoke, except to respond to the judge's questions about the charges and their pleas.
- WorldUSA TODAY
Missing more than a year, an abandoned 'ghost ship' washed ashore on the other side of the Atlantic
A "ghost ship" abandoned for over a year and drifting in the Atlantic finally washed ashore in Ireland amid Storm Dennis' choppy water, the country's coast guard says. The MV Alta was found on the coast near Ballycotton, a small town in southern Ireland's County Cork, with no crew on board, the Irish Coast Guard said Sunday. The county's local council asked the public to stay away from the vessel as crews work to determine whether it posses any environmental risk.
- U.S.NBC News
'Gun Girl' Kaitlin Bennett's appearance on Ohio University campus sparks protests
Conservative activist Kaitlin Bennett, also known as "Gun Girl," incited large-scale student protests Monday when she appeared on Ohio University's Athens campus to film a video. Bennett had arrived on campus to film a President's Day trivia video for the Liberty Hangout, which bills itself as a libertarian media outlet, according to both her and the site. Bennett has been a divisive figure since gaining notoriety in 2018 for posting controversial graduation photos of herself with an AR-10 rifle at Kent State University.
- WorldBusiness Insider
The cruise industry has been rocked by the coronavirus. Here's you how can find out if your ship has been impacted.
Reuters/Kim Kyung-Hoon The Wuhan coronavirus has had a significant impact on the cruise industry. More than 200 people on Princess Cruises' Diamond Princess ship have tested positive for the virus, and passengers on other ships have had their trips canceled or altered. Cruise lines like Carnival and Royal Caribbean International have warned that the coronavirus could hurt their financial performance.
- WorldThe National Interest
The Turkish Trap: How Erdogan Made New Enemies and Enraged the Arab Community
As the Syrian military backed by the Russian air force takes another strategic town in Idlib, thereby inching closer towards the Turkish border, the endgame for Turkey in Syria has begun. The Syrian government has also taken the key highway that links Damascus to Aleppo and secured Aleppo from the incoming Turkish backed rebel artillery. Diplomatically the first acknowledged meeting between the Turkish and Syrian intelligence chiefs in Moscow just over a week ago heralded the final act in Erdogan's quest to knock over President Bashar al-Assad.
- PoliticsNational Review
Hunter Biden Served on Board of Trade Group That Lobbied Obama Admin for Increased Ukraine Aid: Report
Hunter Biden, son of former vice president Joe Biden, was on the board of a trade group that lobbied the Obama administration for increased U.S. aid to Ukraine, according to a report Tuesday. From 2012 through 2018, the younger Biden served as a director for the Center for U.S. Global Leadership and was connected as well with its affiliate, the U.S. Global Leadership Coalition, The Daily Caller reported. The two groups, which include about 400 larger corporations and non-government organizations, lobbied for increased spending abroad by the State Department's International Affairs Budget, including a special focus on Ukraine.
- PoliticsThe Guardian
Ocasio-Cortez faces 13 challengers – but can anyone unseat her?
We don't see a lot of young people accomplish a lot because they're afraid – and she's not afraid. We knew who she was when we sent her, that she'd make a noise, and making a noise was why we sent her Abdul Abbas That's not how all see it. The first-term congresswoman is facing eight Republican and five Democratic candidates aiming to unseat her.
- WorldReuters
China-led $280 million Kyrgyzstan project abandoned after protests
A Chinese company has pulled out of a $280 million project to build a logistics center in Kyrgyzstan after protests by hundreds of locals in a fresh display of anti-Beijing sentiment in Central Asia. The deal signed during Chinese leader Xi Jinping's visit to the former Soviet republic last year envisaged construction of warehouses, transport terminals, hotels and other facilities in a free-trade zone near Kyrgyzstan's border with China. However, hundreds of locals saw it as a land grab by Kyrgyzstan's giant neighbor and held a series of protests demanding that the project be canceled.
- CelebrityThe Independent
'It’s reunion porn': Military wives say Trump’s SOTU stunt disrespected families of servicemen
The State of the Union served as President Donald Trump's moment to grandstand his administration's achievements to Congress while also introducing guests he brought in from across the US. Among them that evening was army spouse Amy Williams and her two children. Mr Trump introduced them to the room towards the end of his speech by commending her for carrying on while her husband, Sergeant Townsend Williams, was deployed in Afghanistan over the past seven months.
- WorldCBS News
Man arrested after allegedly tracking U.S. source for Russia
A Mexican man residing in Singapore was arrested in the U.S. on Tuesday, after he allegedly tracked a U.S. government source for Russia in order to obtain the source's license plate number. Hector Alejandro Cabrera Fuentes has been charged with acting in the U.S. on behalf of a foreign government without notifying the attorney general, and conspiracy to do the same. Court documents allege that a Russian government official recruited Fuentes in 2019 and tasked him with renting a specific property in Miami-Dade County, Florida, according to a press release from the Department of Justice.
- U.S.Associated Press
LA adopts new 'war room' strategy for tackling homelessness
Los Angeles city and county officials on Tuesday announced a new strategy to speed the process of getting homeless people into permanent housing that is modeled on the federal government's response to natural disasters. The creation of a “Housing Central Command” marks an overhaul of how agencies work together in addressing the growing number of people living on the street, according to the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority. Previously the system was slowed by red tape and gaps in information showing what housing units were available and who is eligible to move into them, officials said.
- U.S.USA TODAY
Former mayoral candidate drugged woman with cupcake to steal newborn, officials say
A Washington woman and her 16-year-old daughter were arrested and accused of drugging a woman with a tainted cupcake in an attempt to kidnap her newborn child and raise it as her own. Juliette Parker, 38, allegedly used a number of aliases such as Juliette Noel and Juliette Gains, which may have been used to contact unsuspecting parents as a baby photographer. "She wanted (babies) five weeks and younger so she could raise it herself, take it out of state and pretend it was a newborn of her own,” Pierce County Sheriff's Department spokesman Ed Troyer told CBS News.
- CelebrityNBC News
New Mexico woman who was pregnant with third child still missing three years later
“Holidays will never be the same,” Jennifer told Dateline. Liz, as she is known by her family and friends, was four months pregnant with her third child. “She got in his truck and that's the last time I ever heard from her,” Amber said.
- BusinessBusiness Insider
The coronavirus is slamming the US travel industry, with experts predicting it will wipe out more than $10 billion in spending from Chinese visitors
While the vast majority of coronavirus cases have been found in China and Asia, the US travel industry is also steeling itself to be ravaged by the rogue virus. A new report from consulting firm Tourism Economics has put some estimated numbers to that ravaging, saying it expects the US to lose about 1.6 million visitors from mainland China as a result of the coronavirus, translating to a 28% drop for 2020. The report tallied expected losses from Chinese visitor spending at $10.3 billion — more than half of which are expected occur this year.
- WorldThe National Interest
REVEALED: China's Secret Reasons for Imprisoning Uyghurs
The Chinese government imprisoned Muslims for basic religious activity, such as going to a mosque, praying or having a long beard, a database obtained by The Associated Press shows. The newly released database shows that the Chinese government targeted Muslims based both on their religious beliefs and on their ties to family members, according to the AP. The database offers the most complete view yet as to how and why Chinese officials chose to detain people and imprison them in detention camps, examining the internment of 311 people who have relatives abroad and listing information on over 2,000 of their family, friends and relatives.
PoliticsYahoo News VideoIranian president says that he doesn't believe the U.S. will pursue war with his country
Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said Sunday that he doesn't believe the U.S. will pursue war with his country because it will harm President Trump's 2020 reelection bid. Rouhani said Trump knows that war with Iran will “ruin his chances of winning the election.
- BusinessNational Review
Michael Bloomberg Is a Condescending Jerk . . .
The hunt is on for offensive clips of Michael Bloomberg talking off the cuff, and over the weekend a new one circulated. In the version passed around, Bloomberg nonchalantly tells his Oxford audience that he could teach anyone how to farm — “even people in this room”: “It's a process; you dig a hole, you put a seed in, you put dirt on top, add water, up comes the corn. He adds that modern “information economy” jobs require more “gray matter.
- PoliticsReuters
Stone sentencing to go ahead amid pardon speculation
Roger Stone, a longtime friend of President Donald Trump, on Tuesday lost his bid to delay his sentencing amid speculation that Trump might pardon him. Stone is due to be sentenced on Thursday after he was found guilty in November of seven counts of lying to Congress, obstruction and witness tampering. A lawyer for Stone on Tuesday argued that Thursday's sentencing hearing should be postponed until after U.S. District Judge Amy Berman Jackson rules on a request he made for a new trial.
- U.S.INSIDER
A 6-year-old was held in a mental health center for 2 days without her mother's consent, and her lawyer says other parents have come forward to claim the same thing happened to their children
A 6-year-old kindergartner was held in a behavioral health center for two days without her mother's consent. The mother's attorney intends on taking legal action against the school. A Florida kindergartner was taken from her school in a police car to a mental health center and held for two days — all against her mother's wishes.
- U.S.Associated Press
After learning of Whitey Bulger LSD tests, juror has regrets
One of the jurors who convicted notorious crime boss James “Whitey” Bulger says she regrets her decision after learning that he was an unwitting participant in a covert CIA experiment with LSD. Bulger terrorized Boston from the 1970s into the 1990s with a campaign of murder, extortion, and drug trafficking, then spent 16 years on the lam after he was tipped to his pending arrest. In2013, Janet Uhlar was one of 12 jurors who found Bulger guilty in a massive racketeering case, including involvement in 11 murders, even after hearing evidence that the mobster was helped by corrupt agents in the Boston office of the FBI.
- U.S.USA TODAY
Skydiving instructor, former Army Ranger dies after skydiving accident in Florida
Christian Stevens, 49, of Canton, Georgia, was transported to Sebastian River Medical Center just after 10 a.m., according to Police Department spokesman Timothy Wood. Professional jumping group Team Fastrax, which was training at Skydive Sebastian, decided to jump at the same time as Monday's scheduled SpaceX launch, according to an announcement of Stevens' death on the team's Facebook page Monday evening. Stevens named the jump "Falcon9" in honor of the launch.
- U.S.NBC News
Indiana professor is suspended for calling police on student who wouldn't switch seats
An Indiana professor who called the police after a student declined to change seats during class last month has been suspended, the school said. In a statement released Thursday, Ball State University in Muncie said marketing professor Shaheen Borna will not teach for the rest of the semester. "This decision is in the best interest of Dr. Borna and the University," the statement said, adding that Borna's departure will "eliminate any unnecessary distractions, and help our students complete the appropriate course expectations."
- WorldBusiness Insider
Chinese police reportedly put a professor under house arrest, cut his internet, and kicked him off social media after he criticized President Xi over the coronavirus
Reuters A Chinese professor who wrote a scathing essay criticizing President Xi Jinping's handling of the novel coronavirus was placed under house arrest and had his internet services cut, The Guardian reported, citing his friends. After returning from his Chinese New Year holiday, Xu Zhangrun was put under house arrest, with several people patrolling the entrance of his home in Beijing. Friends of the professor told The Guardian that Xu's social-media accounts have either been removed or suspended.
- WorldThe National Interest
Who Makes the Finest Weapons: America, China, or Russia?
Key point: Washington wants to sell more weapons to foreign countries. In order to win over customers, the United States is touting its superior (although more expensive) systems. The U.S. government has a message for those nations that would buy Russian and Chines weapons: buyer beware.
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