PoliticsThe IndependentBiden news – live: Republican Party suffers ‘mass exodus’ as FBI thwarts plot against California governor
As Joe Biden marks his first full week in office, a new report suggests that more than 30,000 registered Republican voters have left the GOP in response to the events of 6 January when a mob of pro-Trump supporters stormed the US Capitol in protest at the Democrat's election win, leaving five people dead. The US remains on high alert over the threat posed by “violent domestic extremists”, with California governor Gavin Newsom believed by the FBI to have been the target of a planned attack by a Trump supporter charged with weapons offences in Napa County.
U.S.The TelegraphFar-Right 'Proud Boy' leader arrested ahead of Capitol riots revealed to have been police informer
The leader of the Proud Boys extremist group has been unmasked as a "prolific" former FBI informant. Enrique Tarrio, 36, worked undercover exposing a human trafficking ring, and helped with drug and gambling cases, according to court documents. Tarrio's documented involvement with law enforcement related to the period 2012 -2014.
PoliticsReutersExplainer: Why Trump's post-presidency perks, like a pension and office, are safe for the rest of his life
The impeachment proceeding against Donald Trump on a charge of inciting the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol has fueled speculation online that he could lose some of the benefits extended to former presidents. But according to legal experts, under the laws currently in effect, Trump will retain perks including a pension, office space and security detail even in the unlikely event that he is convicted by the Senate in its impeachment trial. Trump can thank a relatively obscure law, the Former Presidents Act.
PoliticsThe IndependentJill Biden spent her first week as First Lady reshaping the role. Melania Trump spent hers isolated in a tower
Dr Biden tapped former US Ambassador to Uruguay Julissa Reynoso Pantaleon to serve as her chief of staff before Inauguration Day could even arrive. The political strategist and prominent attorney who previously worked under former President Barack Obama would help the new first lady roll out her agenda, which included the relaunch of Joining Forces, an initiative she co-founded with former First Lady Michelle Obama providing support for military families. Whereas the national gaze is typically cast on the new president during their first days in office, the first lady's presence could be felt in a recently unfamiliar way.
HealthThe TelegraphDoctor with terminal cancer kills paediatrician in hostage siege a childrens clinic
A doctor with terminal cancer killed a female paediatrician and then himself after taking hostages at a children's clinic in Austin, Texas. Dr Bharat Narumanchi held hostages in a five-hour siege before killing Dr Katherine Lindley Dodson. Narumanchi had applied for a volunteer position at the clinic a week ago and was declined.
U.S.TimePutting Harriet Tubman on the $20 Bill Is Not a Sign of Progress. It's a Sign of Disrespect
A congressional staffer departs holding a visual aid following a news conference regarding the redesigned $20 bill meant to honor Harriet Tubman, on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., on June 18, 2019. The Biden Administration announced its plan to return to an Obama-era initiative to put Harriet Tubman's face on the U.S. $20 bill. Her image would replace Andrew Jackson, the notoriously racist President, known both for owning hundreds of slaves and for his brutal and genocidal policy of Indian removal. Based on current designs, a statue of Jackson would remain on the back of the bill, while Harriet Tubman would grace the front.
PoliticsNational ReviewMcConnell Signals Support for Effort to Deem Trump Impeachment Trial ‘Unconstitutional’
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R., Ky.) and 45 members of his caucus backed an effort to declare the impeachment trial of former President Trump “unconstitutional” on Tuesday. McConnell's colleague from Kentucky, Senator Rand Paul, introduced a point of order on Tuesday to declare Trump's impeachment trial unconstitutional on the grounds that a president can't be impeached once he has left office. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer then moved to table Paul's point of order, blocking the effort to preemptively invalidate the impeachment trial.
WorldThe IndependentGrandmother ‘overjoyed’ to be outside after receiving Covid-19 vaccine killed in Portland vehicle attack
A woman who was "overjoyed" to be outside again after receiving the Covid-19 vaccine was killed when a driver in Portland ploughed into a group of people. Jean Gerich, 77, was killed after Paul Rivas, 64, drove his vehicle into a group of people in Portland, according to KGW News. The grandmother had just received her Covid-19 vaccine and was enjoying some return to normalcy when she was killed.
LifestyleArchitectural DigestHere Are The Brightest Decor Buys of the Season
Let's get loud Originally Appeared on Architectural Digest
U.S.Charlotte Observer‘Dangerous’ 70-year-old sought in slaying of two duck hunters, Tennessee officials say
A 70-year-old man wanted for the murders of two duck hunters on a lake in Tennessee is still at large, according to state investigators. Law enforcement is looking for David Vowell in connection with the deaths of 26-year-old Chance Black and 25-year-old Zachery Grooms on Monday, the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation said. Warrants for his arrest on two counts of first-degree murder were issued Tuesday.
PoliticsTimeWhat Rand Paul’s Procedural Failure Says About Donald Trump’s Survival
Sen. Rand Paul attends the Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing on the nomination of Linda Thomas-Greenfield to be the United States Ambassador to the United Nations, on Capitol Hill on Jan. 27, 2021. Sen. Rand Paul lost the very first procedural vote of former President Donald Trump's second impeachment trial. “The impeachment trial is dead on arrival,” the Kentucky Republican and regular Trump ally declared yesterday after his attempt to short-circuit the impeachment trial on the grounds it is unconstitutional failed by a 55-45 vote.
U.S.Business InsiderA reporter was kicked out of Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene's town hall and threatened with arrest for asking a question
Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene held a town hall in Dalton, Georgia, Wednesday evening. A reporter said she was kicked out for trying to ask a question and threatened with arrest. A spokesperson for Greene said the reporter was a "disruption" at the event.
- NewsFOX News Videos
Biden administration has system in place where reporters will not ask president tough questions: Media critic
Steve Krakauer, editor at Fourth Watch, says 'it shouldn't be contingent' on one reporter to ask Biden tough questions.
BusinessAssociated PressDifferent types of gambling, media converging for growth
The many different types of gambling are quickly coming together with each other and with media outlets — and Wall Street is taking notice. Casino gambling, internet gambling, sports betting and daily fantasy sports are no longer separate silos with unique audiences: Gambling companies are increasingly combining them and partnering with media companies to expand the reach of gambling. This expansion is leading Wall Street analysts to predict fast-growing revenue in the U.S. over the next five to 10 years.
PoliticsThe IndependentBiden’s new sign language interpreter runs a right-wing Facebook group and has been pictured in a MAGA hat
President Joe Biden's American Sign Language (ASL) interpreter reportedly manages a pro-Trump Facebook group that provides sign language accompaniments to right-wing videos. ASL interpreter Heather Mewshaw was introduced by press secretary Jen Psaki as “today's interpreter, Heather” on Monday, as the administration announced it would be adding a sign language interpreter to its daily press briefings. However, on Wednesday, Time magazine reported that Ms Mewshaw manages the Hands of Liberty Facebook page, which has featured ASL interpreters providing sign language accompaniments to videos featuring former President Donald Trump and his personal attorney Rudy Giuliani.
PoliticsBusiness InsiderGOP group invests $700,000 into backing Sen. Josh Hawley after he was scrutinized for inciting Capitol riot
A political action committee has put $700,000 behind Missouri Sen. Josh Hawley after he was criticized for his role in inciting the January 6 Capitol insurrection, Axios reported. Hawley continued with his effort to dispute the electoral votes even after Trump supporters breached the Capitol. Critics have called on him to resign, and several Democrats have asked for an ethics probe into his and Sen. Ted Cruz's actions.
PoliticsTime‘He’s Saying One Thing and Then He’s Doing Another.’ Rep. Madison Cawthorn Peddles a Different Kind of Trumpism in a Post-Trump World
Rep. Madison Cawthorn, R.N.C., speaks as the House debates the objection to confirm the Electoral College vote from Pennsylvania, at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C. early on Jan. 7, 2021. As the Trump Administration drew to a close, Republican legislators and aides were forced to choose a side. Longtime Trump faithfuls, including Sen. Mitch McConnell and Rep. Tom Rice have chosen Option 1, rebuffing their former leader, calling for rule of law and returning, at least rhetorically, to the storied principles of conservatism that once guided the Grand Old Party.
WorldBBCSingapore's ‘Lion King' cub Simba born from dead dad Mufasa’s semen
Singapore Zoo is celebrating the arrival of its first lion cub born through artificial insemination. Unfortunately, baby Simba will never get to meet his father Mufasa, because the geriatric lion was not revived after the insemination procedure. Simba is the late Mufasa's only son, as the older cat's aggression meant he never successfully mated.
U.S.Miami HeraldIt began as a typical eviction case in Miami. Then it turned into a nightmare
When Linda Mallard's tenant stopped paying his $650 in monthly rent last February for an efficiency he leases on Northeast 80th Terrace, she hired a private company to begin eviction proceedings. Mallard's desperation — she's 66, retired and depends on the rent from four local modest properties she and her father, John Palmer, own — illustrates the frustration shared by landlords stuck with fraudulent tenants who cannot be removed due to the ongoing COVID eviction moratorium. “Right now there are probably hundreds of people like Mickens running around Miami doing the same thing,” said Armando Alfonso, a Miami-based attorney who represents landlords and tenants in eviction cases.
PoliticsThe IndependentTrump’s ‘radioactive’ properties in New York are plummeting in value, report claims
Donald Trump's real estate empire appears to be feeling the heat of his divisive presidency, with Trump-branded properties in Manhattan losing half their value since he took office, according to a new report. Data from UrbanDigs, analysed by the real estate website Curb, suggested that even Trump properties that have removed his name from their branding saw their value drop by as much as 17 per cent since 2016. The changes represent reductions in value significantly greater than the shift in property values across Manhattan as a whole, estimated to have fallen 9 per cent.
WorldBusiness InsiderPutin warns against a fight of 'all against all' as the walls close in around him
The Russian leader's remarks came as he faced unrest at home and a new, more assertive US president. Facing escalating challenges at home and abroad, Russian President Vladimir Putin in a speech on Wednesday expressed alarm about the potential for a world war. Addressing a virtual meeting of the World Economic Forum (typically held in Davos, Switzerland), the Russian leader said the COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated existing tensions in the international community.
U.S.USA TODAY‘Cheer’ star Jerry Harris was warned before child porn arrest by the owner of a gym featured on ‘AGT,’ lawsuit claims
Four months before his arrest for sexual exploitation of children, cheerleader Jerry Harris ditched his cellphone after a friend told him he might be under investigation, federal prosecutors say. Authorities have not named the person who warned Harris, saying only that it was someone who owns a gym. An amended lawsuit filed Monday claims the unnamed friend is Angela Rogers, co-owner of Cheer Athletics, a prominent cheerleading company whose Wildcats team competed this year on NBC's "America's Got Talent."
PoliticsThe Daily BeastTrump Allies New Riot Defense Banks on People Not Understanding How Cellphones Work
As the Senate prepares for Donald Trump's impeachment trial over the Capitol riot, the ex-president's allies in the right-wing media remain hard at work creating a range of defenses that absolve him from the violence triggered by months of lies and deception. In the logic of an argument that's been embraced by pro-Trump cable networks, it was impossible for the first wave of rioters to hear Trump's speech on the White House Ellipse in person because they started attacking before he was finished speaking. “The people who were storming the Capitol could not have been the people in front of the president when he was speaking,” Newsmax host Greg Kelly said in an interview with Steve Bannon associate Raheem Kassam on Jan. 12, in a typical statement of the argument.
- ScienceReuters Videos
'Manta' boat takes on world's ocean trash
SOUNDBITE) (French) FRANCO-SWISS SKIPPER AND FOUNDER AND CHAIRMAN OF "THE SEACLEANERS" NGO, YVAN BOURGNON, SAYING: ''With three or four hundred of those boats you could collect a third of the world's pollution. This boat recycles ocean trash on board By 2024 it could turn into a working prototype and help clean up debris polluting the world's seas (SOUNDBITE) (French) FRANCO-SWISS SKIPPER AND FOUNDER AND CHAIRMAN OF "THE SEACLEANERS" NGO, YVAN BOURGNON, SAYING:"The Manta is a sea giant which is 56 meters long, which can collect over a width of 46 meters and which weighs close to 2 thousand tonnes.
PoliticsBusiness InsiderDemocrats are setting the stage to propose $300 monthly direct payments for families with children under 17
Democrats are drafting legislation to have the IRS send monthly payments of up to $300 to millions of families, sources told Insider. People could opt to receive a monthly check or a lump sum after filing taxes, according to an early version of the plan. Biden supported an identical measure during the presidential race, and Democrats are expected to lobby heavily for it.
“By encouraging this act of terror on our capital, Trump’s legacy is destroyed.”
“Both backers and critics of Trump agreed that he remade the federal judiciary — a change that will impact America for decades.”
“He was largely responsible for the deaths of hundreds of thousands of Americans who did not need to die.”
“I do know what the future should hold for this country. That is to say, a policy of Trumpism without Trump.”
“It will be decades before the consequences of his tenure are fully known.”