- NewsHuffPost
Accused Russian Agent Maria Butina Reaches Plea Deal With Federal Prosecutors: Reports
Maria Butina, a Russian gun-rights activist accused of working as an agent for the Kremlin in the U.S., has reached a plea deal with federal prosecutors, according to several media reports Monday. Butina, 30, was arrested in July and charged with illegally acting as an agent of the Russian Federation. U.S. authorities charged that she had used her close ties to the National Rifle Association and conservative operatives to wage a covert influence campaign and even tried to broker a secret meeting between Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin during the 2016 presidential campaign.
- NewsYahoo News
Imagining a school shooting through the gunman's eyes: Sandy Hook Promise releases chilling new video
A chilling new public service announcement, released Monday by the gun violence prevention organization Sandy Hook Promise, depicts the moments leading up to a school shooting from the shooter’s perspective. The new ad is the third in a series of now annual PSAs put out by Sandy Hook Promise, which was founded by parents of the victims of the Dec. 14, 2012, massacre. The first, “Evan,” released 2016, showed how those affected by school shootings can miss the warning signs — even as they unfold in full view.
- PoliticsHuffPost
Kevin McCarthy Says Democrats Shouldn't Spend A Lot Of Time Investigating Trump
My belief is let’s see where we can work together and move America forward,” McCarthy, the No. 2 Republican in the House, behind House Speaker Paul Ryan, said Monday during an appearance on Fox News. “We’ve investigated this for a long period of time,” McCarthy added.
WorldAssociated PressUS arrests 32 at San Diego border demonstration
U.S. authorities arrested 32 people at a demonstration Monday that was organized by a Quaker group on the border with Mexico, authorities said. Demonstrators were calling for an end to detaining and deporting immigrants and showing support for migrants in a caravan of Central American asylum seekers. A photographer for The Associated Press saw about a dozen people being handcuffed after they were told by agents to back away from a wall that the Border Patrol calls "an enforcement zone." The American Friends Service Committee, which organized the demonstration, said 30 people were stopped by agents in riot gear and taken into custody while they tried to move forward to offer a ceremonial blessing near the wall.
WorldReutersU.S. military ends search for five Marines missing off Japan
The U.S. military ended a search on Tuesday for five Marines missing in the sea off Japan since two Marine Corps aircraft were involved in an accident during an air-to-air refueling exercise on Dec. 6. The five missing crew of a KC-130 Hercules refueling plane were officially declared deceased. "We know this difficult decision was made after all resources were exhausted in the vigorous search for our Marines," Lieutenant Colonel Mitchell Maury, commander of the U.S. Marine Corps' (USMC) Marine Aerial Refueler Transport Squadron, said in a statement.
- NewsAutoClassics
Volkswagen restores cancer worker's 350,000-mile Beetle
Kathleen Brooks purchased her first Volkswagen Beetle in December of 1966. Collecting a red 1967 model from Riverside, California, the Bug was affectionately dubbed ‘Annie’ by all those who sailed in her. A true enthusiast, Kathleen used Annie as daily transportation for 51 years, racking up an impressive 350,000 miles – enough the circle the globe no less than 14 times.
WorldBloombergMay Kicks Brexit Can Down the Road, Raises Risks of No Deal
Theresa May is playing for time. Faced with a humiliating defeat on her Brexit deal, the embattled U.K. prime minister announced to the House of Commons she would defer a vote and return to Brussels to seek “assurances” from European Union leaders. The pound hit the lowest since April 2017 as the market judged that the risk of no-deal Brexit has increased.
- WorldUSA TODAY
Four dead, 11 wounded in suspected terror attack near famed Christmas market in France
The bustle of holiday shopping gave way to a lockdown in the French city of Strasbourg on Tuesday after a gunman killed four people and wounded 11 others in a suspected terrorist attack, according to police union officials. FGP Police union official Stephane Morisse said officers found explosive materials at the home. Morisse said soldiers guarding the city’s world-famous Christmas market near the evening attack later shot and wounded the suspect before he escaped.
- NewsHuffPost
2 Nuns Accused Of Embezzling $500,000 From Catholic School
Two Roman Catholic nuns have admitted to embezzling $500,000 from a parochial school in Torrance, California, according to news reports. “It is with much sadness that I am informing families of St. James School that an internal investigation has revealed that, over a period of years, Sister Mary Margaret Kreuper and Sister Lana Chang have been involved in the personal use of a substantial amount of School funds,” Monsignor Michael Meyers wrote in a letter dated Nov. 28.
WorldAFPIsrael army says delegation heading to Russia over Lebanon ops
An Israeli army delegation will head to Moscow on Tuesday to brief their Russian counterparts on operations to destroy Hezbollah tunnels from Lebanon, the military said. "An Israeli army delegation composed of senior officers and led by the head of army operations, General Aharon Haliva, will fly to Moscow on Tuesday," the military said in a statement. "During the day-long visit, the delegation will brief their Russian counterparts on Operation Northern Shield and other operational issues," said the statement issued on Monday.
WorldAssociated PressNobel Peace winners urge global action vs. sexual violence
The Congolese doctor who shares this year's Nobel Peace Prize for his efforts to end the use of rape and sexual violence as weapons of war called Monday for strong international action against the abuse, including reparations for victims. Dr. Denis Mukwege, founder of a hospital in eastern Congo that has treated tens of thousands of victims of the country's conflicts for two decades, and Iraqi activist Nadia Murad received the prize at a ceremony in the Norwegian capital, Oslo. "I insist on reparations, measures that give survivors compensation and satisfaction and enable them to start a new life," he said.
- BusinessCar and Driver
Photos from Our Prototype Drive of the 2020 Volkswagen Passat
A low-effort update fails to wake up the seven-year-old Passat.From Car and Driver
- PoliticsYahoo News
'I could see' Trump not replacing Kelly, says former Obama chief of staff
William Daley, one of President Barack Obama’s five chiefs of staff, believes President Trump may do away with the role once John Kelly steps down from the job at the end of the year. “I think Trump would be goofy to have another chief of staff because he or she isn’t going to be what, quote, a chief of staff is supposed to be,” Daley, who held the job from January 2011 to January 2012, told Yahoo News in a telephone interview. The position is not legally mandated, but every president since at least Harry S. Truman has had one.
- LifestyleHuffPost
The Best Green Monday 2018 Deals We've Seen So Far
Regret missing out on some of those Black Friday and Cyber Monday deals last month? Lucky for you, there’s still a way you can save — perhaps even more than on Cyber Weekend — when you shop today, on Green Monday.Green Monday is on the second Monday of
- WorldReuters
Canadian court grants bail to CFO of China's Huawei
VANCOUVER/BEIJING, Dec 11 (Reuters) - A Canadian court on Tuesday granted bail to a top executive of Chinese telecoms giant Huawei Technologies Co Ltd while she awaits a hearing for extradition to the United States, a move that could help placate Chinese officials angered by her arrest. Meng Wanzhou, 46, Huawei's chief financial officer and the daughter of its founder, faces U.S. accusations that she misled multinational banks about Iran-linked transactions, putting the banks at risk of violating U.S. sanctions. Justice William Ehrcke at a court hearing in Vancouver, British Columbia, on Tuesday granted bail to Meng, subject to a guarantee of C$10 million ($7.5 million) and other conditions.
- NewsBloomberg
Kavanaugh, Supreme Court Let Stand Rulings Favoring Planned Parenthood
Kavanaugh voted to leave intact lower court rulings that let Planned Parenthood sue Kansas and Louisiana to try to preserve the Medicaid funds. Justices Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito and Neil Gorsuch said Monday they would have heard the appeals, which contended the federal Medicaid law doesn’t allow lawsuits by providers who are kicked out of the program.
- U.S.ABC News Videos
Outrage over a controversial plea deal for a former ex-fraternity president
The former Baylor fraternity president was accused of rape and will not face jail time or be forced to register as a sex offender. ABC News' Janai Norman reports.
- LifestyleHuffPost
I Drove Drunk And It Cost 6 People Their Lives. Here's How My Own Life Changed Forever.
On Nov. 1, 2003, I was involved in a drinking and driving accident. I cost six people their lives ― six good people. I seriously injured two others. I didn’t even think I was drunk, which I know sounds ridiculous, but I was drinking a lot in those days
WorldAssociated PressA look at Brexit as UK prime minister cancels the big vote
British Prime Minister Theresa May on Monday postponed a parliamentary vote on the Brexit deal between her government and the European Union. Voters across the United Kingdom backed leaving the EU by a vote of 51.9 percent to 48.1 percent in a referendum that was held on June 23, 2016. Voter turnout was 72.2 percent, the highest for any U.K. election since 1992.
- NewsUSA TODAY
Incoming congresswoman Ocasio-Cortez reveals Jewish ancestry at New York Hanukkah event
After lighting the Hanukkah candles, the incoming Democratic congresswoman from New York said members of her family had been looking into their background in recent weeks and they discovered that some of their descendants were among a group of Jews who were persecuted during the Spanish Inquisition. "One of the things a lot of people don’t know about Puerto Rico, and something we discovered ourselves, is that a long time ago, many generations ago, my family consisted of Sephardic Jews," Ocasio-Cortez said. It was the first time she had spoken publicly about her Jewish ancestry, she told Haaretz.
- BusinessHuffPost
11 Useful Gifts For The Person Who Can't Cook To Save Their Life
Maybe they are a college student who’s never had to cook before, or maybe they’ve been trying to learn, but just can’t seem to get the hang of it. Get them an Instant Pot that can do most of the cooking for them, or signing them up for a meal kit subscription like Blue Apron that will send everything they need to cook a week’s worth of meals right to their door. 3 An instant pot that can do the cooking for them.
- PoliticsTime
Who Will Be TIME's Person of the Year for 2018? See the Shortlist
The shortlist of candidates for TIME’s 2018 Person of the Year was unveiled Monday on NBC’s Today show. Since 1927, TIME has identified the Person of the Year, recognizing the person or group of people who most influenced the news and the world — for better or for worse — during the past year. In recent years, the shortlist for Person of the Year has included the Silence Breakers of the #MeToo movement, Hillary Clinton, Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos, Chinese President Xi Jinping, Black Lives Matter activists, CRISPR scientists and Beyoncé.
- WorldThe Telegraph
Grace Millane: Man accused over backpacker murder appears in court as PM apologises on behalf of New Zealand for her death
The man accused of killing British backpacker Grace Millane was jeered as he appeared in a packed Auckland court on Monday. Ms Millane, 22, died while travelling in New Zealand and her body was found in bushland on Sunday afternoon, about 30 feet from a highway outside the New Zealand city. Ms Millane, from Essex, was last seen alive entering the CityLife Hotel with the man last Saturday at 9.41pm.
WorldAFPBeijing detains Canadian as tensions soar over exec arrest
A top Huawei executive facing US accusations of Iran sanctions violations was granted bail in Canada on Tuesday, hours after a former Canadian diplomat was said to have been detained in China, intensifying a diplomatic standoff between the North American allies and Beijing. Meng Wanzhou, Huawei's chief financial officer, faces extradition to the United States, where she is wanted for allegedly violating Iran sanctions, but Beijing has expressed outrage over her detention and is holding a former Canadian diplomat in China, intensifying the row.
WorldReutersGunman kills at least two in French Christmas market and flees
With France still on high alert after a wave of attacks commissioned or inspired by Islamic State militants since early 2015, the counter-terrorism prosecutor opened an investigation. Amid fast-moving, confusing scenes it was not clear if the suspect, identified by police as Strasbourg-born Chekatt Cherif, 29, had been cornered by commandos or had slipped the dragnet. "There was confusion initially but they locked the front doors pretty soon after the gunshots," said U.S. citizen Elizabeth Osterwisch, who was sheltering on the top floor of the Galeries Lafayette department store.
