Joe Biden tells crowd ‘I’m a candidate for the United States Senate’ in confused campaign speech

Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden has raised concern after he delivered a confused campaign speech in South Carolina, saying he was a “candidate for the United States Senate” and that people could “vote for the other Biden” if they did not like him. His speech at the First in the South Dinner on Monday came ahead of the presidential primary in the state on Saturday. A video of Mr Biden's speech shared widely on social media showed him saying: “My name is Joe Biden.

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  Democrats to use debate to try to blunt Sanders momentum

  AFP
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  Poll: Biden's lead narrows ahead of South Carolina primary

  CBS News Videos

South Korea to launch mass coronavirus testing, U.S. pledges $1 billion for vaccine

SEOUL/BEIJING (Reuters) - South Korea aims to test more than 200,000 members of a church at the center of a surge in coronavirus cases, as countries stepped up efforts to stop a pandemic of the virus that emerged in China and is now spreading in Europe and the Middle East. More than 80,000 people have been infected in China since the outbreak began, apparently in an illegal wildlife market in the central city of Wuhan late last year. China's death toll was 2,663 by the end of Monday, up 71 from the previous day.

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  Coronavirus latest: WHO says the virus isn't a pandemic 'yet', but markets think otherwise

  Yahoo Finance
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  Battle against coronavirus turns to Italy; Wall Street falls on pandemic fears

  Reuters

Iran official running anti-coronavirus task force has virus

The head of Iran's counter-coronavirus task force has tested positive for the virus himself, authorities announced Tuesday, showing the challenges facing the Islamic Republic amid concerns the outbreak may be far wider than officially acknowledged. The announcement regarding Iraj Harirchi came after he gave a news conference with journalists in Tehran about the virus just one day prior, seeking to minimize the danger posed by the outbreak. The United Arab Emirates on Tuesday meanwhile banned all flights to and from Iran over the outbreak of the new coronavirus, just a day after its spread from the Islamic Republic was announced across multiple Mideast nations.

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  Iran neighbours impose travel bans as coronavirus toll rises

  AFP
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  Virus pushes beyond Asia, taking aim at Europe, Mideast

  Associated Press

It looks like people with no real interest in Bloomberg are signing up to be grassroots campaigners because he pays $2,500 a month

Reuters Mike Bloomberg's efforts to take social media by storm by paying people to post about him may not be working out, according to the Los Angeles Times. Several California-based operatives told the paper anonymously that they mainly signed up to campaign because of the $2,500-a-month offer. One was a Sen. Bernie Sanders supporter who followed up a campaign text to a friend with, "Please disregard, vote Bernie or Warren."

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  Bloomberg Tops Half a Billion Dollars in Campaign Advertising

  Bloomberg
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  Campaign-Finance Laws Created Candidate Bloomberg

  The Wall Street Journal

Trump Admin. Considers Booting Chinese Reporters in Response to ‘Egregious’ Expulsion of WSJ Journalists: Report

The Trump administration is considering whether to expel Chinese journalists in response to China's own expulsion of three Wall Street Journal reporters, Bloomberg News reported on Monday. A meeting will be held at the White House on Monday to discuss the administration's options. The meeting will be led by deputy national security adviser Matt Pottinger, who himself was a Journal reporter based in Beijing.

Probe into abuse at America's oldest deaf school finds 'appalling truths'

An investigation into inappropriate conduct at America's oldest school for deaf people corroborated multiple allegations of sexual and physical abuse that stretched decades, school officials said. In a report, officials at the American School for the Deaf, in West Hartford, Connecticut, said Friday that the allegations involved former dorm supervisors, a maintenance worker, a dean and the school's longtime executive director. "The results of this investigation reveal startling and appalling truths," Executive Director Jeffrey S. Bravin and Catherine Burns, president of the board of directors, said in the report.

Tom Steyer has paid more than $40,000 to rent a property owned by Jim Clyburn's daughter

Billionaire Tom Steyer is facing some criticism over his spending in South Carolina, a state where his Democratic presidential campaign is making some legitimate headway. Some people have even accused him of trying to buy votes from the state's African-American voters, which Steyer and many others have adamantly denied, The New York Times reports. One thing that's been particularly scrutinized is the Steyer campaign's rental agreement with a company owned by Jennifer Clyburn Reed, the daughter of Rep. Jim Clyburn (D-S.C.), the highest-ranking African American in Congress whose endorsement is considered key in South Carolina.

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  Clyburn thinks Sanders may make it tougher for Democrats to keep House majority

  The Week
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  South Carolina Kingmaker Representative Clyburn to Endorse Biden in Bid to Slow Sanders

  National Review

Chris Wallace Relentlessly Grills Top Pence Aide on Russia Briefing: ‘You Say None of This Happened?!’

Marc Short, Vice President Mike Pence's chief of staff, struggled during a pair of Sunday morning talk show appearances as he was grilled relentlessly over the White House's assertion that Acting Director of National Intelligence Joseph Maguire wasn't fired over a House briefing on Russian interference in the 2020 election to assist President Donald Trump. In an interview on Fox News Sunday, after host Chris Wallace asked why Trump was attacking Democrats over the Russia story, Short insisted early on that “there's no intelligence that said the Russians are trying to help Donald Trump win elections,” prompting Wallace to immediately push back.

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  Trump security adviser slammed for 'politicizing intelligence' on Russian meddling

  The Guardian
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  Trump says he was not told about Russian efforts to help Sanders

  PA Media: World News

Two-Thirds of the World’s Most Polluted Cities Are in India

Several Chinese cities, including Beijing, have dramatically improved their air quality in recent years, while Indian metropolises remain some of the world's worst polluted, according to a new report. Beijing -- once infamous for its toxic haze -- has reduced smog levels and dropped down a list of the world's most polluted cities, falling to 199 from 84 three years before, according to the 2019 World Air Quality Report published Tuesday by IQAir AirVisual. In contrast, India still dominated its list of the smoggiest urban areas, accounting for 14 of the top 20.

Nine of the World’s Most Beautiful Outdoor Saunas

From Seattle to Oslo, these outdoor saunas take relaxation and high-design to the next level Originally Appeared on Architectural Digest

China Is Trying to Compare the Flu to Coronavirus. That Sounds Like Fake News.

Early on in the outset of the coronavirus pandemic, the receptionist at the hotel I was staying at in China asked me if it was true that the United States was experiencing an epidemic of influenza that killed 61,000 people last year. In skimming the Chinese news, I had seen some mentions of the flu “epidemic” in the U.S. I classified it as typical misdirection, the kind of subtle criticism of the U.S. that China's state-owned media engages in from time to time when they are embarrassed, frustrated, or trying to advance a foreign policy goal. Turns out the 61,000 death toll estimate comes from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control, making it all the more fun for China to cite in order to boost their trolling credibility.

German Carnival floats take aim at racism in wake of attack

Biting commentary on racism in Germany featured prominently Monday among Carnival floats in western cities, hastily put together in the aftermath of a deadly far-right attack last week near Frankfurt. The floats for parades in Cologne, Duesseldorf, Mainz and elsewhere are notorious for their no-holds-barred satire, and also took aim at Brexit, the potential candidates to take over leadership of Chancellor Angela Merkel's CDU party, and U.S. President Donald Trump. Last Wednesday, a 43-year-old German man who had posted a racist screed online advocating genocide gunned down nine people of foreign background in the Frankfurt suburb of Hanau, before apparently killing himself and his mother.

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  Several injured as car hits crowd at German carnival

  PA Media: World News
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  Dozens including children, injured after a man intentionally drove his Mercedes Benz into a crowded carnival parade in Germany

  INSIDER

An official leading South Korea's battle against COVID-19 says he's a member of a doomsday cult where a virus 'super-spreader' event occurred

Chung Sung-Jun/Getty Images A senior health official in South Korea who is responsible for leading efforts against the coronavirus outbreak admitted to being a member of a doomsday church "cult" after contracting the virus. The delay forced authorities to quarantine another 50 health officials at a time when medical resources are already stretched thin. A police officer and an elementary school teacher also revealed that they believe in the Shincheonji Church of Jesus after being diagnosed with coronavirus.

Chinese court jails Hong Kong bookseller for 10 years, Sweden objects

A Chinese court sentenced Chinese-born Swedish citizen Gui Minhai to 10 years in jail for illegally providing intelligence overseas on Monday, the Ningbo Intermediate People's Court said in a statement on its website. Gui, a bookseller previously based in Hong Kong who sold books critical of China's political leadership, was detained by mainland police in 2018. He was seized by plainclothes police while with Swedish diplomats.

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  China sentences Swedish bookseller to 10 years in prison

  Associated Press
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  Four years after his disappearance, China sentenced a Hong Kong bookseller to 10 years in prison

  Quartz

14 products dermatologists recommend for soothing redness and rosacea

To help you tackle red, irritated skin, we consulted top dermatologists for their favorite products. "This cleanser is very gentle on reactive or sensitive skin, which most patients with rosacea have. It also contains feverfew, an ingredient known to decrease redness and help with irritation," said Noelani González, MD, director of cosmetic dermatology at Mount Sinai West in New York City.

Democrats' strategy to stop Sanders could be fatally flawed

As the results of the Nevada caucuses showed Sen. Bernie Sanders solidifying his status as a — or the — Democratic frontrunner, those in the party who fear his nomination mounted increasingly panicked calls for other candidates to drop out and allow the opposition to coalesce around a single challenger.

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  MSNBC’s Scarborough Questions If Warren Should Drop Out to Help ‘Efforts Against Bernie Sanders’

  The Wrap
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  Mayor Pete Buttigieg tells ABC11 he's 'very concerned' about Bernie Sanders ahead of Super Tuesday

  WTVD – Raleigh/Durham

Senate FISA Abuse Investigation to Focus on Mystery Source Who Contradicted Steele Dossier

Senator Lindsey Graham (R., S.C.) on Sunday told Fox News the Senate's investigation into FBI abuse of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act will focus on interviews the agency conducted with a Russian source who contradicted much of the information in the Steele dossier. The first thing I want to do is call the people who heard from Russian sub-source that this dossier is a bunch of bar talk and hearsay,” Graham said on Fox's Sunday Morning Futures. I want to find out when did [former FBI director James] Comey and [former FBI deputy director Andrew] McCabe understand it was not reliable and start from there.

Missing Tennessee toddler's grandmother and her boyfriend extradited after arrest

Previously: Two fugitives arrested in connection with missing Tennessee toddler Evelyn Boswell The girl, who has been the focus of an Amber Alert issued Wednesday night, was not with her grandmother and McCloud when they were captured. "I'd like to get back there and get this situation with my granddaughter resolved," Boswell told Wilkes County District Court Judge David Byrd. McCloud, 33, of Bristol, Tennessee, claimed the BMW was a gift from Evelyn's mother, Megan "Maggie" Boswell.

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  Police have arrested 'persons of interest' in the case of still-missing toddler Evelyn Boswell on car theft charges

  INSIDER
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  Mom of Missing Toddler Evelyn Mae Boswell Claims She Has 'Full Confidence' Girl Will Be Found

  People

Putin Sent Her Activist Boyfriend to the Arctic Circle. Now She Wants to Go, Too.

MOSCOW—Few people are familiar with Novaya Zemlya, a very obscure archipelago above the Arctic Circle that is controlled by Russia's Federal Security Service (FSB), the successor to the infamous Soviet spy agency, the KGB. It sounds like hell frozen over, in fact—and it figures in what looks like a new tactic by President Vladimir Putin (a former KGB operative) to intimidate his most vocal critics.

Fake News or Reality? Did F-35s from Israel Fly Over Iran?

Key point: An Israeli strike in Iran would be risky even with F-35s, given distance to the target and Iranian air defenses... Israel's F-35 stealth fighters are positively supernatural: here, there and everywhere. In 2018, the Israeli Air Force claimed its new F-35s had attacked Iranian targets in Syria.

Auschwitz Museum upset at scene in Amazon series 'Hunters'

The museum of the Nazi German Auschwitz death camp is objecting to a scene in a new Amazon TV series that shows a murderous game of human chess being played there, insisting that no such thing took place at the camp. The museumand memorial that guard the Auschwitz-Birkenau site in southern Poland, its historic facts and the memory of the victims tweeted about the scene in Amazon's series “Hunters.” It said inventing fake scenes is “dangerous foolishness and caricature," encourages Holocaust deniers and is disrespectful of the camp's some 1.1 million victims, including women and children. The series' creator, David Weil stressed in a statement it was not a documentary but a narrative with largely fictional characters.

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  'Hunters' creator defends show after Auschwitz Memorial calls human chess scene 'dangerous foolishness and caricature'

  Yahoo TV
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  Auschwitz museum criticises scene in Hunters TV series

  PA Media: World News

China said it would relax its lockdown of Wuhan's 11 million residents, only to immediately reintroduce it

Wuhan announced on Monday that some people who are deemed healthy will be allowed to leave the city, whose transport links have been severed since January 23. China's decision to lock down Wuhan and nearby cities is the largest quarantine in human history, with the World Health Organization calling it an unprecedented step that's it's not sure will work. The Chinese city of Wuhan, the epicenter of the deadly coronavirus outbreak, relaxed the unprecedented quarantine restrictions on its 11 million citizens on Monday, only to almost immediately reverse that decision and reimpose the lockdown of the city.

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  Wuhan’s easing of coronavirus lockdown measures lasted all of three hours

  Quartz
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  Kashmiri evacuees from Wuhan face a different lockdown after fleeing the coronavirus

  Quartz

Supreme court denies Rodney Reed appeal

The United States Supreme Court on Monday denied an appeal from Texas death row inmate Rodney Reed. But while the petition for a review of his case was denied, Justice Sonia Sotomayor left the door open for further appeals pending the outcome of upcoming hearings. "There is no escaping the pall of uncertainty over Reed's conviction," Sotomayor wrote.

NASA space telescope spots a double star system with an alter ego

A volatile double star system appears to change its behavior rapidly and unpredictably like a cosmic story of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. The pair consists of a neutron star — an extremely dense remnant of a supernova explosion — and a smaller, sunlike star. Using NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory and the National Science Foundation's Karl F. Jansky Very Large Array (VLA), astronomers found that this binary star system switches between two alter egos every few years.

Bloomberg Seeks Debate Redemption While Sanders Faces Attacks

Michael Bloomberg is trying for a do-over in Tuesday's Democratic presidential debate, previewing that he'll turn his focus to newly minted front-runner Bernie Sanders after a much-criticized debut at last week's face-off. Seven Democratic candidates will meet in Charleston, South Carolina, for a last encounter before that state's primary on Saturday, and it would benefit Bloomberg if the rest of the field also sharpened their attacks against Sanders. South Carolina's primary is the last of the February preliminary rounds before the 14-state Super Tuesday contest on March 3, which includes huge delegate prizes of California and Texas, as well as the populous states of North Carolina and Virg...

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  Fox Business host blames stock market plunge on Bernie Sanders

  The Week
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  Sanders Stands By Comments On Fidel Castro, Says He’s Long Been Critical Of All ‘Regimes’

  HuffPost