PoliticsThe IndependentWhite House press briefing goes off the rails as McEnany spars with media over Trump's white supremacist comments
White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany's relationship with the media appeared to reach a new low on Thursday as she repeatedly threw insults at the press as reporters urged her to “unambiguously” denounce white supremacy. Given multiple opportunities at the press conference to condemn groups such as the Proud Boys and white supremacist groups on behalf of Donald Trump, Ms McEnany refused, pointing instead to numerous past statements from Mr Trump and the White House calling for the federal execution of a white supremacist and stronger prosecutions for members of the Ku Klux Klan, among other similar areas.
Trump says he doesn't know Proud Boys, but 'they need to stand down,' as he faces backlash for not criticizing white supremacistsUSA TODAY
Trump has repeatedly been endorsed by white supremacist groups and other far-right extremists, and they've looked to him as a source of encouragementBusiness Insider
EntertainmentThe Week'Basically nobody' turned off the 1st presidential debate while it was in progress
Viewers apparently couldn't peel their eyes away from the first presidential debate Tuesday night. Despite widespread criticism of the chaos that unfolded on stage, the final 15 minutes actually rated slightly higher than the opening 15 minutes, and audiences fell just 2 percent from the 9:30 p.m. ET peak by the time it all wrapped up, Nielsen data shows.
WorldReutersFamily of 'Hotel Rwanda hero' calls on United States, EU and Belgium to help free him
The family of Paul Rusesabagina, the former hotelier portrayed as a hero in a film about Rwanda's 1994 genocide, on Thursday called on the United States, the European Union and Belgium to appeal for his release from prison in Rwanda. Rusesabagina, a political dissident who lived in exile in Belgium and the United States, was charged with terrorism and other offences last month after he returned to Rwanda and was arrested in August. His case has attracted widespread international attention partly because his story of protecting Tutsi guests during the genocide was made into a popular Hollywood film.
ScienceMiami HeraldMassive spider web seen in Missouri photo has some asking: Could it ‘catch’ humans?
A spider's massive web in Missouri has people asking one question: What exactly is it trying to catch? A Missouri Department of Conservation employee recently snapped a photo of the web along a trail in Springfield. “Those are the kind that literally 'catch' people if they walk through them at night,” a Facebook user commented.
PoliticsThe IndependentTrump news - live: White House won't 'unambiguously' denounce Proud Boys, calls questions 'partisan attacks'
The White House was asked to “unambiguously” denounce white supremacy, specifically the group Proud Boys, during the Thursday press briefing. But Kayleigh McEnany first dodged around the question by reading past statements by the president instead of specifically denouncing the group. This clarification came after Donald Trump was asked about white supremacy during the first presidential debate, and he told the Proud Boys to “stand back and stand by”.
PoliticsUSA TODAYJoe Biden tweets joke mocking 'earpiece' and 'drug' allegations with photo of headphones and ice cream
Ahead of the first presidential debate Tuesday evening, former Vice President Joe Biden mocked the unfounded allegations that he relies on an earpiece and performance enhancing drugs to appear coherent. "It's debate night, so I've got my earpiece and performance enhancers ready," he wrote on Twitter with a photo of tangled earbuds and a pint of ice cream. The remark comes after President Donald Trump and campaign surrogates, who have repeatedly suggested that Biden lacks the physical fitness and mental acuity to serve as president, advocated for pre-debate ear inspections and drug tests.
WorldThe TelegraphGandhis attacked and arrested in India after attempted visit to gang rape victim's family
Two prominent leaders of India's opposition Congress Party were attacked and arrested by police on Thursday while trying to visit the family of a gang rape victim whose death has sparked nationwide protests. Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi claim their convoy was stopped by police in Greater Noida, a satellite city on the outskirts of New Delhi, before he was beaten with wooden sticks known as lathi and wrestled to the ground. The Congress Party has condemned the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) over the brutal gang rape of the 20-year-old Dalit woman, who died from her injuries on Tuesday after fighting for her life for two weeks.
U.S.Military TimesArmor attrition in Nagorno-Karabakh battle not a sign US should give up on tanks, experts say
As Armenia and Azerbaijan trade deadly blows in a battle that has taken a heavy toll on the warring parties' armor, experts contacted by Military Times say it is too early to sound the death knell for tanks. Located in western Azerbaijan, Nagorno-Karabakh is populated mostly by Armenians, who control the region and seek independence from Azerbaijan and reunification with Armenia. The decades-old dispute over the province of Nagorno-Karabakh erupted on Sunday with both sides posting videos to their social media channels showing aerial footage of tank kills and other destruction.
PoliticsThe IndependentPolice arrest Proud Boy member on assault and gun charges hours after Trump refuses to denounce white supremacy
A member of the right-wing hate group Proud Boys was arrested in Oregon the morning after the first presidential debate, in which Donald Trump declined to disavow white supremacy, for assault and weapons charges resulting from a confrontation he had with protestors in August. Alan Swinney, who Oregon Public Broadcasting identified as a member of Proud Boys and the far-right protester that pointed a gun at demonstrators in downtown Portland last month, was arrested on Wednesday morning on multiple assault charges. The 50-year-old, who remains held at the Multnomah County Jail, was seen pulling out a gun during a clash with countrprotestors at the Multnomah County Justice Center on videos shared online from the 22 August rally.
PoliticsThe Independent'Inshallah': Biden praised by Muslim Americans but accused of cultural appropriation for using Arabic phrase
One of Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden's most well-known character traits is his colourful way of speaking; sometimes he's telling stories about being a teenager at a swimming pool, sometimes he's reminiscing about how his dad used to drive cars, sometimes he's putting his foot in his mouth, and sometimes he's resurrecting decades old words like "malarkey" and plastering them across buses. During Tuesday night's debates, he added a new phrase to his ever shifting lexicon - "Inshallah." Mr Biden deployed the phrase in a testy exchange with Donald Trump regarding his still-unreleased tax returns.
PoliticsUSA TODAYRepublicans move forward with plan to investigate presidential election in Pennsylvania
A day after President Donald J. Trump in a fiery debate questioned election integrity in Pennsylvania, state House Republicans pushed a plan out of committee to investigate the presidential election. The resolution to create the Select Committee on Election Integrity would give lawmakers the power “to investigate, review and make recommendations concerning the regulation and conduct of the 2020 election.” The new committee would be composed of five members — three Republicans, because they are the majority party, and two Democrats — who would be chosen by House Speaker Bryan Cutler, a Republican from Lancaster.
PoliticsBusiness InsiderThe White House is upping its offer to Democrats to pass a new stimulus bill including $1,200 direct payments, report says
The Treasury has upped its offer on federal coronavirus spending by some $100 billion as it continues negotiations with Democrats, Roll Call reported. The politics news site reported that Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin offered a $1.62 trillion package when talking to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Wednesday. The two parties have been in a standoff as Democrats seek to secure much more spending than Republicans.
U.S.The Daily BeastAccused Gangster Charged With Ambush Shooting of L.A. Deputies
After a three-week manhunt, a Los Angeles man was arrested and charged Wednesday with attempting to murder two sheriff's deputies who were ambushed as they sat in their car. Deonte Lee Murray, 36, is facing two counts of attempted murder of a peace officer and possession of a firearm for allegedly walking up to the squad car parked outside a Metro station on Sept. 12 and opening fire, the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office said Wednesday. “They became victims of a violent crime for one reason: They wear a badge,” L.A. County District Attorney Jackie Lacey said in a press conference.
- PoliticsReuters Videos
McEnany and reporter spar over mail-in voting claims
When the president says they found a lot of ballots in a river, I simply want to know where the river is, a reporter said. McEnany responded saying, "You are ignoring the problem here which is last week, in Pennsylvania, you had ballots found in a ditch, that is a fact." Voting by mail has become a flashpoint in the Nov. 3 election, with Trump making unfounded complaints that the process leads to widespread election fraud, a point he reasserted in Tuesday's debate with Democratic challenger Joe Biden.
WorldReutersUK health minister extends COVID measures in northern England
British health minister Matt Hancock introduced more coronavirus restrictions on Thursday across a wider area of England, including the northern city of Liverpool, extending a tighter regime to try to stem rising COVID-19 cases. Prime Minister Boris Johnson appealed to people on Wednesday to adhere to the rules, repeating his desire to not only protect public health but to also keep the economy going. Earlier this week, the government put much of northeastern England under further restrictions.
WorldAssociated PressTwitter temporarily suspends Hungarian government's account
The Hungarian government says its official Twitter account was temporarily suspended and then restored without explanation. Government spokesman Zoltan Kovacs said Wednesday in a Facebook post that “we have taken the necessary steps and are awaiting an official explanation from Twitter” regarding the status of the government's @abouthungary account. While the account was suspended, the following notice appeared on its feed: "Twitter suspends accounts which violate the Twitter rules."
PoliticsBusiness InsiderJustice Department must release redacted portions of Mueller report dealing with criminal charges before Election Day, judge rules
The Department of Justice improperly redacted portions of the Mueller report, a US federal judge ruled Wednesday. The censored parts of the report dealt with potential criminal charges, Russia's hack of the Democratic National Committee, and the Trump campaign's interest in stolen DNC emails, BuzzFeed reported. US District Court Judge Reggie Walton said those segments of the report must be unredacted by November 2.
BusinessUSA TODAY'You know that your dream's ending': Flight attendants bid tearful goodbyes as they're furloughed
The day the airline industry didn't want to see coming is here: Oct. 1, when 32,000 American Airlines and United Airlines employees have been furloughed after lawmakers and the White House failed to agree on a broad pandemic relief package, including more federal aid for airlines. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Rheanna Lawson (@rheannalawson) on Sep 28, 2020 at 5:32pm PDT Flight crew members took to social media to share personal reactions to the furloughs, with hashtags such as "#aastews" and "facingfurlough" flooding Instagram.
PoliticsMiami HeraldFact check: Biden says 1 in 1,000 Black Americans have died from COVID-19. Is it true?
President Donald Trump's handling of the pandemic was a hot topic during Tuesday's debate, including Joe Biden's claim that 1 in 1,000 Black Americans have died due to COVID-19 — and that it could be 1 in 500 if Trump doesn't act quickly. The Democratic nominee appears to be at least partially right. “Actual death rates from COVID-19 data ... have reached new highs for all race groups: 1 in 1,020 Black Americans has died (or 97.9 deaths per 100,000),” the report said.
PoliticsCBS NewsMnuchin presents counteroffer on COVID bill in meeting with Pelosi
Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin met with Speaker Nancy Pelosi Wednesday afternoon to present the Trump administration's coronavirus relief proposal, according to a Democratic aide, after House Democrats unveiled their own revamped $2.2 trillion package earlier this week. Mnuchin and Pelosi met for around an hour and a half, and then Mnuchin went to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell's office. "We will be proceeding with our vote tonight on the updated HEROES Act in order to formalize our proffer to Republicans in the negotiations to address the health and economic catastrophe in our country."
U.S.The WeekHomeland Security reportedly told U.S. officials to speak sympathetically about Kyle Rittenhouse
Internal talking points from the Department of Homeland Security directed federal law enforcement officers to speak sympathetically about Kyle Rittenhouse, the 17-year-old Trump supporter facing intentional homicide charges for the shooting deaths of two people in Kenosha, Wisconsin, during a chaotic night on Aug. 25, NBC News reports. Rittenhouse brought an AR-15-style rifle to Kenosha from his home in Illinois to guard private businesses alongside armed militia groups. The talking points obtained by NBC News urge federal officials to tell the media that Rittenhouse "took his rifle to the scene of the rioting to help defend small business owners," and that "Kyle was seen being chased and attacked by rioters before allegedly shooting three of them, killing two."
PoliticsThe Daily BeastAmy Coney Barrett Signed Letter Urging End of ‘Barbaric’ Roe v. Wade
Supreme Court nominee Amy Coney Barrett signed a letter in 2006 that included a call for the end of Roe v. Wade, denouncing the seminal court decision that provided a legal right to abortion as “barbaric.” The letter came in the form of an advertisement from the anti-choice group St Joseph County Right to Life which was based in South Bend, Indiana. “The Supreme Court's 1973 Roe v. Wade decision legalized abortion for any reason,” the ad read.
WorldReutersPolish divers hope Nazi shipwreck holds key to Amber Room treasure
Polish divers say they have found the wreck of a German World War Two ship which may help solve a decades-old mystery - the whereabouts of the Amber Room, an ornate chamber from a tsarist palace in Russia that was looted by the Nazis. Decorated with amber and gold, the Amber Room was part of the Catherine Palace near St Petersburg, but was last seen in Koenigsberg, then a Baltic port city in Germany but now the Russian enclave of Kaliningrad. It was from Koenigsberg that the Karlsruhe steamer set sail in 1945 with a heavy cargo, before being sunk by Soviet warplanes off the coast of Poland.
PoliticsThe IndependentDoctor ‘snubbed for trying to tell Trumps to wear masks at debate'
Donald Trump's four children were seen ignoring the mandatory mask rule while watching the presidential debate. Donald Trump Jr, Ivanka Trump, Eric Trump, and Tiffany Trump were pictured entering the Cleveland, Ohio venue wearing a mask, as per guidelines put in place by Cleveland Clinic doctors. But then they were pictured with their masks off once they sat in their seats at the front row of the venue.
U.S.The WeekHundreds of thousands of Americans are about to max out their state unemployment benefits
It's been nearly nine months since the coronavirus pandemic launched America into its steepest unemployment crisis in recent history. Over the past few weeks, Americans who lost their jobs at the beginning of the pandemic have started to hit the maximum number of weeks their states will allow them to receive unemployment benefits. New and continuing unemployment claims did fall in the past week, but 183,000 Americans filed for PEUC benefits in the week ending Sept. 12, Labor Department numbers out Thursday revealed.
“Staggered term limits would ensure that electoral winners shaped the Supreme Court, not the Grim Reaper.”
“Term limits undermine the primary function of the judiciary: preventing political majorities from trampling on others’ rights.”
“It would be one important way we could deescalate the stakes of American politics, and protect the system from total breakdown.”
“It would depoliticize the court and judicial selection, and thus promote the rule of law.”
“There are also transition problems...at some point the complications become more trouble than they’re worth.”