‘A slam dunk:’ House managers conclude presentation in Senate trial

After House managers conclude arguments, Chuck Todd says that if this was a criminal case, "the defense probably would be looking for a plea deal."

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    The United States unveiled new measures on Thursday to punish Myanmar's army for its coup.The action includes blocking top military conglomerates and the ministries of defense and home affairs from certain types of trade.Sources told Reuters the U.S. has also indefinitely frozen $1 billion in funds, which Myanmar's military rulers attempted to withdraw from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.Washington is also introducing export restrictions, requiring U.S. suppliers to seek hard-to-obtain licenses to ship Myanmar's military certain items.The new measures come as the military intensifies its crackdown on peaceful protesters, who have taken to the streets almost every day since Aung San Suu Kyi's elected government was overthrown on February 1.More than 1,700 people have been arrested, including 29 journalists, and at least 54 people have been killed, according to the United Nations.President Joe Biden slapped sanctions on Myanmar last month, including the defense minister and three companies in the jade and gems sector.In a statement on Thursday, the U.S. Commerce Department said that it will not continue allowing Myanmar's military to benefit from access to many items.Advocacy group Justice For Myanmar said on Tuesday that the Ministry of Home Affairs, which commands the police, had purchased American technology that was being used for social media surveillance.The two conglomerates being targeted, Myanmar Economic Corporation and Myanmar Economic Holdings Limited, are also used by the military to control vast swathes of the country's economy, with holdings ranging from beer and cigarettes to tires, mining and real estate.But the new measures are expected to have limited impact, as the U.S. ships little to Myanmar annually, and the targeted entities are not major importers.

  • Kate Middleton and Meghan Markle's wedding-dress embroiderer says she hasn't heard from the royal family since revealing she's on the brink of homelessness

    "It just makes me feel like I don't exist," Chloe Savage, who worked on Kate Middleton's and Meghan Markle's wedding dresses, told Insider.

  • China says will deter Taiwan independence but seek peaceful ties

    China will resolutely deter any separatist activity seeking Taiwan's independence but is committed to promoting the peaceful growth of relations across the Taiwan Strait and China's "reunification", Premier Li Keqiang said on Friday. China, which claims democratic Taiwan as its own territory, has increased its military activity near the island in recent months, responding to what it calls "collusion" between Taipei and Washington, Taiwan's main international backer and arms supplier.

  • Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barrett delivers 1st opinion

    Justice Amy Coney Barrett delivered her first Supreme Court majority opinion Thursday, ruling against an environmental group that had sought access to government records. President Donald Trump's third nominee wrote for a 7-2 court that certain draft documents do not have to be disclosed under the federal Freedom of Information Act. The case was the first one Barrett heard after joining the court in late October, and it took four months for the 11-page opinion to be released.

  • Trump served with lawsuit accusing him of breaking ‘Ku Klux Klan’ laws on day of Capitol riot

    NAACP accuses Trump of disenfranchising Black voters and trying to ‘destroy democracy’

  • Tucker: The key difference between 'equality' and 'equity'

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  • IG faults Elaine Chao at Transportation over ethics concerns

    The Transportation Department’s watchdog asked the Justice Department to criminally investigate Elaine Chao late last year over concerns that she misused her office when she was transportation secretary under President Donald Trump but was rebuffed, according to a report released Wednesday. The report said the department’s inspector general found that Chao used her staff and office for personal tasks and to promote a shipping business owned by Chao’s father and sisters, in an apparent violation of federal ethics rules. Chao, the wife of Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, stepped down from her job early this year in the last weeks of the Trump administration, citing her disapproval over the Jan. 6 insurrection at the Capitol by Trump’s supporters.

  • Georgia governor says he'd back Trump in 2024, despite Trump calling for him to be jailed for refusing to overturn election results

    Gov. Brian Kemp faced barbs as President Donald Trump sought to subvert the 2020 election but is now supportive should Trump run in 2024.

  • The Trumps are trying to sell a Florida home for $49 million after buying it from the former president's sister for $18 million in 2018

    Eric Trump tweeted a listing for a home that the family is trying to sell through a limited liability company for more than twice its 2018 value.

  • Elizabeth Olsen said that her mom has been accidentally calling her Red Witch instead of Scarlet Witch for years

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  • Scientists spotted a 'space hurricane' swirling above the magnetic north pole. It was raining charged solar particles.

    Satellites observed a swirling storm above the magnetic north pole in 2014. It was the first space hurricane ever spotted, according to a new study.

  • Jeanine Pirro Accuses Immigrants of Bringing ‘All Kinds of Diseases’ Into U.S.

    Fox NewsDuring a shouting match with Geraldo Rivera on Fox News on Thursday night, Judge Jeanine Pirro went on a tirade that was shocking in its blatant racism—even for her. “We’ve got people being released at the border right now who’ve got COVID,” Pirro screamed at Rivera, who was attempting to push back on her argument. “Wait a minute, I listened to you, you listen to me! They’ve got COVID! They’ve got all kinds of diseases! They are being released into the United States!”“Now, you’re not going to tell me that a governor is going to shut me down and not allow me to do my job and let in illegals because we’ve got a heart? Mexico ought to have a heart!”Maybe only drink half of the box of wine next time pic.twitter.com/n9IC7UCw7D— Acyn (@Acyn) March 5, 2021 The host’s comments were reminiscent of ones made by Fox News’ Tucker Carlson that set off a major firestorm and advertiser boycott in late 2018. “It’s indefensible, so nobody even tries to defend it,” Carlson said at the time of policies that would allow immigrants into the country. “Instead, our leaders demand that you shut up and accept this. We have a moral obligation to admit the world’s poor, they tell us, even if it makes our own country poor and dirtier and more divided.”A few months after that, Pirro was suspended by Fox News for questioning the patriotism of Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN). “Is her adherence to this Islamic doctrine indicative of her adherence to Shariah law, which in itself is antithetical to the United States Constitution?” Pirro asked on her Saturday night show. After an outcry from advertisers, Fox temporarily took her off the schedule. Drunk Fox News Host Jeanine Pirro Chugs Bleach on SNL Read more at The Daily Beast.Get our top stories in your inbox every day. Sign up now!Daily Beast Membership: Beast Inside goes deeper on the stories that matter to you. Learn more.

  • Dolphins cut $51 million player after just one season in which he played through a painful hip injury

    NFL linebacker Kyle Van Noy revealed details about what he went through in a recovery process with the Miami Dolphins after the team cut him on Tuesday.

  • Photos show North Korea may be trying to extract plutonium

    North Korea may be trying to extract plutonium to make more nuclear weapons at its main atomic complex, recent satellite photos indicated, weeks after leader Kim Jong Un vowed to expand his nuclear arsenal. The 38 North website, which specializes in North Korea studies, cited the imagery as indicating that a coal-fired steam plant at the North’s Yongbyon nuclear complex is in operation after about a two-year hiatus. This suggests “preparations for spent fuel reprocessing could be underway to extract plutonium needed for North Korea’s nuclear weapon,” the website said Wednesday.

  • Biden's Iran approach praised as deft despite lack of progress

    U.S. President Joe Biden's refusal to offer upfront sanctions relief to Iran may have angered Tehran's clerical rulers but it has won some praise at home despite his failure so far to draw Iran into nuclear talks or deter attacks on U.S. forces in Iraq. "Sensible," said Elliott Abrams, former President Donald Trump's special envoy for Iran, of Biden's unwillingness to give Tehran sanctions relief before any talks on both sides resuming compliance with the 2015 Iran nuclear deal.

  • It is hard to overstate just how unusual Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's media war with Buckingham Palace is

    A series of extraordinary confrontations have seen the Queen's household accused of a smear capaign and Markle accused of bullying.

  • U.S. bomber flies over Baltic states in show of solidarity: U.S. Air Force

    A long-range U.S. bomber flew over the capitals of Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia on Wednesday in a show of solidarity with NATO allies, the U.S. Air Force said, amid Western concerns over a more assertive Russia. "This mission sends a clear message that our commitment to our NATO allies is unshakeable," Gen. Jeff Harrigian, U.S. Air Forces in Europe-Air Forces Africa commander said in a statement. Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia were once ruled from Moscow but are now part of both NATO and the European Union.

  • Alicia Vikander ate 1,900 calories a day on the keto diet to lose weight for 'Tomb Raider'

    Alicia Vikander followed the keto diet because she was traveling so was unable to track her meals, and ate 1,900 calories a day to lose fat.

  • Getting a 'COVID arm' rash after the Moderna vaccine might be itchy, but it's no big deal

    Some people have reported a red, raised rash that shows up days to a week after getting the Moderna shot and goes away quickly.

  • QAnon Shaman Begs for Leniency: I Stopped Muffin Theft During Capitol Riot

    CBS NewsThe notorious “QAnon Shaman” has insisted his actions during the Capitol riot were not an attack on the United States—and that he can prove it because he stopped other rioters from stealing muffins.Jacob Chansley, who became arguably the most infamous Capitol rioter due to his furry and be-horned costume, has given a bizarre interview to CBS News in his latest attempt to beg for mercy. The first glimpse of the 60 Minutes interview was broadcast Thursday morning.Speaking from jail, Chansley became clearly short-tempered when CBS News reporter Laurie Segall asked him if he considered his actions during the storming of the Capitol to be an attack on the nation.The "QAnon Shaman" of the January 6th attack on the Capitol tells his story for the first time from jail, as he faces up to 20 years behind bars.Jacob Chansley spoke with @60minutes+'s @LaurieSegall pic.twitter.com/uhUuFNHRvf— CBS This Morning (@CBSThisMorning) March 4, 2021 When he was then asked to describe his actions in his own words, he explained: “I sang a song, and that’s a part of shamanism, it’s about creating positive vibrations in a sacred chamber. I also stopped people from stealing and vandalizing that sacred space, the Senate. I actually stopped people from stealing muffins out of the break room.”While preventing muffin theft is all well and good, the accusations against Chansley are very serious. On top of storming into the Capitol building, Chansley is also accused of leaving an ominous note for Vice President Mike Pence at his desk in the Senate chamber that read: “It’s only a matter of time, justice is coming.” That day, he was also carrying a spear attached to a flagpole, which prosecutors considered to be a weapon.Chansley is facing as many as 20 years in prison, but can’t seem to see what he did wrong. In the interview, he went on: “I also said a prayer in that sacred chamber because it was my intention to bring divinity and to bring God back into the Senate.” When reminded that it was illegal for him to even enter the chamber, he described that as a “very serious regret.”His mother, Martha Chansley, also insisted he did nothing wrong, telling Segall that her son simply “walked through open doors.” “He was escorted into the Senate. So, I don’t know what’s wrong with that,” she said. “I know that he is sorry but again it all comes back to he walked through open doors.” Prosecutors haven’t said how Chansley got into the building but there’s no evidence that police guided rioters into the Senate chamber. She justified her son’s decision to protest the election result by repeating the lie that the election was stolen. “I don’t think it’s right that [the election] was won fraudulently. I don’t believe it was won fairly at all,” she said. "He walked through open doors." - Martha Chansley, defends the actions of her son -- aka the QAnon Shaman -- during the Capitol siege. This exchange was one of the most telling from the piece. Would watch the full clip. pic.twitter.com/Ie1YJ0YXPf— Laurie Segall (@LaurieSegall) March 4, 2021 On former President Donald Trump, whom Chansley has repeatedly criticized via his attorney because he was not offered a pardon before Trump left office, it appears he still holds a soft spot for him.“I developed a lot of sympathy for Donald Trump because it seemed like the media was picking on him,” said Chansley. “I have been a victim of that all my life, whether it be at school or at home, so in many ways, I identified with a lot of the negative things he was going through.”Chansley went on to admit that he was “wounded” by not being offered a pardon but does not regret his loyalty to Trump. “I [only] regret entering that building, with every fiber of my being,” he said.While Chansley’s strange jailhouse appearance on national television might be viewed as detrimental to his legal battle, his defense attorney believes it was totally logical and justified. “[Chansley] is the most visible face of this riot. So for the first time in my career, it is not a trepidation to have my client speak out—it’s fully abated,” defense attorney Albert Watkins told The Daily Beast on Thursday.“If anything, it’s necessary to shift the message and dialogue that I have been pushing for since Jacob Chansley has been taken into custody: The riots were more than a lynch mob, but the result of years of manipulation [from Trump].”“He believed the president. He believed the words and reacted on those words. So when you have millions of Americans who were embracing over four years of propaganda and lies and misrepresentations daily—we have to have compassion for that. We have to have patience,” Watkins added.The lawyer added that the more people get exposed to his client, they’ll realize the “gentleman that he is” and remember that the thousands who stormed the Capitol “are our brothers and sisters and neighbors.”CBS reporter Segall said Chansley ended his interview by shouting “SEE ME! SEE ME!” and insisting that he’s not a violent man. A judge will hear arguments Friday on whether he should be released before his trial.Read more at The Daily Beast.Get our top stories in your inbox every day. Sign up now!Daily Beast Membership: Beast Inside goes deeper on the stories that matter to you. Learn more.