| Obamas unveil official portraits by Kehinde Wiley, Amy Sherald at National Portrait Gallery Posted: 12 Feb 2018 08:17 AM PST  Former President Barack Obama and wife, Michelle Obama, celebrated the unveiling of their official portraits at the National Portrait Gallery on Monday, as the nation observed the latest art installations.
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| Dozens of White House officials lack proper security clearance, source says Posted: 12 Feb 2018 07:42 AM PST  President Donald Trump is facing mounting questions about whether his top aides are handling classified information without the proper security clearance.
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| Lions Kill And Eat Suspected Poacher Posted: 13 Feb 2018 02:03 AM PST  A suspected poacher was found dead last week after being killed and partially eaten by lions, according to reports out of South Africa.
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| Pennsylvania Governor Rejects GOP Proposal For New Congressional Map Posted: 13 Feb 2018 09:03 AM PST  Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf (D) rejected top Republicans' proposal for a new congressional map in his state Tuesday, saying the plan continued to be an unacceptable partisan gerrymander.
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| Facebook Messenger's latest update unlocks never-before-seen features for one group of people this Valentine's Day Posted: 13 Feb 2018 05:00 AM PST  Millennials often take flak for not being able to accurately or openly express themselves, especially when it comes to romantic endeavors and relationships.
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| Plane crash outside Moscow leaves 71 dead amid snowy conditions Posted: 12 Feb 2018 06:01 AM PST  An airplane carrying 65 passengers and six crew members crashed outside Moscow amid snowy conditions on Sunday.
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| New Hampshire's Attorney General to Powerball Winner: You Can't Remain Anonymous Posted: 13 Feb 2018 11:23 AM PST  The winner is arguing that revealing her name would be an invasion of privacy
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| Mother sobs in court while testifying about 8-year-old daughter's rape and murder Posted: 13 Feb 2018 08:40 AM PST  The mother of a young girl who was abducted by a man posing as a good Samaritan in 2013 sobbed in court as she faced her daughter's accused killer.
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| Herman Cain says Trump doesn't have a racist bone in his body Posted: 12 Feb 2018 10:07 AM PST  Herman Cain says President Trump is not a racist and that he thinks his own time in the limelight as a 2012 Republican presidential candidate gives him an idea of what the president is going through right now.
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| 11 Awesome Sweet & Savory Apricot Recipes Posted: 13 Feb 2018 01:25 PM PST |
| Clash turns up Israel-Iran heat, but neither seeks war: analysts Posted: 12 Feb 2018 05:14 AM PST  A confrontation at the weekend in Syria has turned up the heat between arch-foes Israel and Iran, but neither side seems to want a war for now, analysts said. Israel carried out major air raids in neighbouring Syria on Saturday, including against what it described as Iranian targets in the country. It was the first time Israel publicly acknowledged hitting Iranian targets in Syria since the 2011 start of the civil war there.
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| Let us remember how very bad presidential portraits were until the Obamas Posted: 13 Feb 2018 10:47 AM PST  The Obamas presidential portraits just came out, and they are amazing. SEE ALSO: The internet is enthralled by the Obamas' official portraits I want a print of each one for my home. Everyone wants a print of each one for their home. Barack Obama's portrait should be every album cover from now on. The Obamas portraits are made even better by the fact that until them, presidential portraits were either the most boring or the strangest creations of all time, and nothing in between. If I weren't from America and looked at these presidential portraits without knowing anything else, I would think it was a list of potential actors to be cast as the lead of Mr. Rogers Neighborhood. So let us take a trip down memory lane at how presidential portraits past were simply nothing until the Obamas came along. George W. Bush Image: National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian InstitutionAh yes, George W. Bush. There he is. There he is looking like a tall Bilbo Baggins after he finished "There and Back Again: A Hobbit's Tale." The only thing helping this photo is the fact that there is at least a vase of flowers in the background. Otherwise, very boring portrait that looks like it was taking from my living room, as if I'm on the other side of that couch watching HGTV. And it's George W. Bush, renowned artist. They couldn't have let him paint his own portrait? John F. Kennedy Image: National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian InstitutionTo this I must say, what the hell. I mean, the guy was shot two years into his presidency and you memorialize him with this? This is an insult! It's as if he died and no one could remember what he looked like so they had a fourth grader who met him once scribble down their best effort. It's as if he testified in court but the courtroom sketch artist didn't have enough time so they just tried their best. If I were there when this portrait was unveiled, I would say "Ah yes, I can't wait to remember JFK as someone with a hamburger bun for hair and literally no feet." A stylistic choice perhaps, but whose? JFK's middle school bully? Didn't Jackie go through enough? Lyndon B. Johnson Image: National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian InstitutionAh yes, a portrait of Lyndon B. Johnson who historically walked to work every morning with one book in his hand, I guess. He looks like he's playing hooky but since he's not rebellious at heart is just going to take his homework to a Barnes & Noble and get work done there. This is one of the better portraits, but still. What's going on here? Harry S. Truman Image: National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian InstitutionI will say things got a little more exciting with Harry S. Truman, which is odd because his portrait was before all of these other presidents, so why didn't they follow his lead. Truman looks like he was placed in an enchanted forest just outside of Washington D.C. and handed some papers that look like they're right out of Harry Potter. But seriously? Three blank papers? I'm assuming they illustrate the fact that, as president, one must sign things? Abraham Lincoln Image: National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian InstitutionThis just looks like no one would let Lincoln use the bathroom until they were finished. All I can say is, thank God for Obama, who will now be remembered as someone who always shoved a chair into a wall of bushes to watch cars pass by the White House, and looked great while doing it. WATCH: Trump threw shade at Obama during his first Thanksgiving turkey pardon
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| 2 Baltimore detectives convicted of racketeering, robbery Posted: 12 Feb 2018 06:50 PM PST  BALTIMORE (AP) — Two Baltimore police detectives were convicted of robbery, racketeering, and conspiracy Monday in a trial that's part of an ongoing federal investigation into corruption among rogue members of the city's beleaguered police force.
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| South Africa's Ruling Party Has Given President Jacob Zuma 48-Hours to Resign Posted: 12 Feb 2018 07:56 PM PST  Zuma has refused repeated calls to relinquish the presidency amid mounting graft scandals
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| 'Roseanne' star on how the show's set really 'felt like home' Posted: 13 Feb 2018 06:36 AM PST  Michael Fishman, who played D.J. Conner, said, "We've always kind of taken naps on that couch."
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| Chloe Kim’s Dad Celebrates The ‘American Dream’ After 17-Year-Old’s Gold Medal Win Posted: 13 Feb 2018 12:58 AM PST  The father of U.S. snowboarding sensation Chloe Kim had a message for reporters after her spectacular Olympic gold medal win on Tuesday.
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| Devastated Iraq seeks $90 billion for reconstruction Posted: 12 Feb 2018 06:31 AM PST  Iraq needs nearly $90 billion to rebuild after three years of war with the Islamic State group, officials said Monday, with large parts of the country in ruins and tens of thousands left homeless. As a three-day international reconstruction conference got underway in Kuwait, officials were seeking pledges from donors and investors to restore Iraq's devastated homes, schools, hospitals and economic infrastructure. US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson was joining the conference after holding talks on Monday in Cairo where he launched his latest Middle East tour.
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| 30 Rustic Barn-Style House Ideas & Photos to Inspire You Posted: 13 Feb 2018 11:49 AM PST |
| Police: Man pointing gun at his own head killed by officers Posted: 12 Feb 2018 03:56 PM PST  WILLISTON, Vt. (AP) — A distraught man who was pointing a pistol at his own head was shot by police as he walked toward two officers next to a busy interstate and refused repeated commands to drop the weapon, state police said Monday.
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| Catholic School Fired Gay Teacher Because She Got Married, Church Says Posted: 13 Feb 2018 07:41 AM PST  "They treated her like a criminal"
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| Isil leader Baghdadi 'alive in Syria but injured and no longer in control' Posted: 12 Feb 2018 05:45 AM PST  Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the leader of the Islamic State, is still alive but injury and poor health has forced him to relinquish control of the terror group, according to an Iraqi intelligence chief and US officials. Baghdadi is hiding out in the desert on the Syrian side of the Syria-Iraq border northeast of Deir Ezzor province, said Abu Ali al-Basri, director general of Iraq's intelligence and counter-terrorism office at the ministry of interior. "We have irrefutable information and documents from sources within the terrorist organisation that al-Baghdadi is still alive and hiding," Mr Basri was quoted on Monday in the government daily As-Sabah. The official said the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (Isil) chief had suffered from "fractures and serious wounds" which were likely the result of previous airstrikes on the organisation's strongholds in Iraq and Syria. Iraqi displaced people flee their houses due to the fighting between Iraqi forces and Isil at the old city areas, western Mosul, Iraq, Credit: EPA Baghdadi, who also suffers from diabetes, is thought to have been left unable to walk unassisted from injuries incurred from a raid in 2015 which were exasperated by another last May. Mr Basri described his condition as "severe", saying he added that the jihadist had recently been admitted to a hospital in the Jazeera desert for his "deteriorating psychological state". Russia had claimed it killed the reclusive leader, who has not been seen in public since declaring Isil's caliphate from the Iraqi city of Mosul in July 2014, in an air strike on a meeting of senior Isil commanders near Raqqa on May 28. However it offered no evidence to back up the claim and it was questioned by the US-led coalition against Isil at the time. US officials confirmed to CNN that while Baghdadi's injuries were not considered life-threatening they did mean he has not been able to continue to command the daily operations of the group. Baghdadi, whose real name is Ibrahim Awad Ibrahim al-Badri, is thought to be communicating with the group's followers via voice messages sent over encrypted app services. His last public message was in September last year. Isil militants pose with the jihadists' flag after they seized an Iraqi army checkpoint in the northern Iraqi province of Salahuddin in 2014 Credit: AFP In the 46-minute audio, he called on supporters to carry out attacks on the West. Baghdadi's whereabouts has been the subject of much speculation since the group's defeat in all its former major strongholds in Iraq and Syria. The 46-year-old was believed to be holding up near Baaj, west of Mosul, until the US-backed Iraqi army offensive on the area in the spring of last year. Since then he is thought to have been moving around villages along the Syria-Iraq border still under Isil's control. The Telegraph was told by a resident of the village of Jdaidet al-Okaibat in the outskirts of Deir Ezzor that he appeared on June 24 last year for Ramadan prayers, where he greeted followers and appeared "in good spirits". Haider al-Abadi, Iraq's prime minister, declared final victory over Isil late last year but stressed Iraqis to stay vigilant as sleeper cells and insurgencies remain a threat. Isil retains a significant presence in the desert plains of northeastern Syria's Hasakeh province despite having lost most of its cross-border "caliphate" which once also covered a third of neighbouring Iraq. Since the end of the offensives in Raqqa and Deir Ezzor - when thousands of fighters fled west - Isil had been taking advance of chaos elsewhere in Syria to regroup. There have been reports of the group launching numerous attacks against Syrian troops in Hama province. Hisham al-Hashimi, an adviser to the Iraqi government on its battle with Isil, said that of the group's 43 founding members Baghdadi is the last one left. He said most of Isil's most senior commanders had been killed, leaving the jihadist group without any real leadership.
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| Chrissy Teigen Politely Explains Why Tweet About Mirai Nagasu Was Insensitive Posted: 13 Feb 2018 11:51 AM PST  After New York Times writer Bari Weiss stirred up controversy on social media with a tweet about figure skater Mirai Nagasu's historic performance at the Olympics, supermodel Chrissy Teigen weighed in and set the record straight.
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| Omarosa Dishes On Mike Pence: 'He Thinks Jesus Tells Him To Say Things' Posted: 13 Feb 2018 01:39 AM PST  Omarosa Manigault-Newman issued a dire warning about Vice President Mike Pence.
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| Dutch foreign minister quits after lying about Putin meeting Posted: 13 Feb 2018 01:24 PM PST  By Anthony Deutsch AMSTERDAM (Reuters) - Dutch Foreign Minister Halbe Zijlstra resigned on Tuesday after admitting that he had lied about attending a meeting in 2006 at which he said Russian President Vladimir Putin had outlined a strategy for building a greater Russia. The incident has embarrassed Prime Minister Mark Rutte's four-party coalition government, which has a precarious parliamentary majority of just one seat. It risks undermining Dutch foreign policy at a time when diplomatic ties between the Netherlands and Russia have hit a low point, largely over the 2014 downing of Malaysia Airlines Flight MH17 over Ukraine, allegedly by pro-Russian separatists.
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| How Trump's budget would cut the safety net for the poorest Americans Posted: 13 Feb 2018 10:44 AM PST  The president is also proposing work requirements for several federal programs including housing subsidies and Medicaid. Donald Trump's budget proposal, unveiled on Monday, revived his calls for big cuts to domestic programs that benefit the poor and middle class, such as food stamps, as well as plans to entirely eliminate several arts and earth sciences funding. The president, who is looking for large increases in military spending, is also proposing work requirements for several federal programs including housing subsidies and Medicaid.
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| Frozen puppy rescued from river adopted by police officer Posted: 12 Feb 2018 05:13 PM PST  A pitbull puppy left to die in freezing waters has been nursed back to health and adopted by a police officer. The dog, now named River, was left under a bridge in Daytona Beach, Florida, in below freezing temperatures. Thankfully an anonymous call was made and animal control officers John Pearson and James Lee rescued the shivering pup.
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| Bill Gates Warns Tech Giants: Tone It Down -- Or Get Regulated Posted: 13 Feb 2018 10:41 AM PST  From: Bill Gates Memo: Dial back the Silicon Valley hubris, or the government will do it for you.
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| 14 Blueberry Cakes To Eat All Day Long Posted: 13 Feb 2018 01:25 PM PST |
| Raleigh man landed helicopter at SAS to impress woman, Feds say Posted: 12 Feb 2018 01:18 PM PST  Federal authorities said a Raleigh man charged with impersonating an Army officer and landing a helicopter at SAS in Cary, did it to impress a woman.
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| Prince Harry Narrowly Avoids A Bite From An Unruly Scottish Pony Posted: 13 Feb 2018 09:04 AM PST  Prince Harry and Meghan Markle headed to Scotland on Tuesday for their first official joint visit to the country.
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| Barack Obama praises ‘invisible’ workers in dig at Republicans during official portrait unveiling Posted: 12 Feb 2018 07:39 AM PST  Barack Obama has praised the importance of "invisible" workers who underpin America in an apparent dig at the Republican immigration stance during his official portrait unveiling. The former US president said that the cleaners, food servers and garbage collectors who are so important to the country's success are too often overlooked. He said such people "belong at the centre of American life" and warned against "simply celebrating the high and the mighty". It comes as the Senate debates whether to grant citizenship to millions of migrants brought to America illegally while children, many of whom now work in the country. Mr Obama gave these so-called 'dreamer' migrants a path to citizenship while in office, however Mr Trump ripped up his presidential protections and instead handed the issue to Congress. Mr Obama was giving a rare public speech at the unveiling of the official portraits of himself and his wife Michelle at the Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery in Washington DC. His portrait, featuring Mr Obama sitting in a chair before a colourful background of leaves, was painted by Kehinde Wiley while Mrs Obama's was done by Amy Sherald. Former President Obama and first lady Michelle Obama hold hands prior to portraits unveiling at the Smithsonian's National Portrait Gallery in Washington Credit: Reuters Discussing what impressed him about Mr Wiley's past portraits, Mr Obama mentioned the way they "challenged our conventional views of power and privilege". Mr Obama said the artist focused on "the beauty and the grace and the dignity of people who are so often invisible in our lives and put them on a grand stage, on a grand scale and force us to look and see them in ways that so often they were not". He added: "People in our families, people who helped to build this country, people who helped to build this capitol, people who to this day are making sure that this place is clean at night and serving food and taking out the garbage and doing all the other stuff that makes this country work, so often out of sight and out of mind. "Kehinde lifted them up and gave them a platform and said they belong at the centre of American life and that was something that moved me deeply because in my small way that's part of what I believe politics should be about. "Not simply celebrating the high and the mighty, expecting that the country unfolds from the top down but rather that it comes from the bottom up." The comments, while not mentioning immigration or the Republican Party explicitly, come in a week when a fierce political battle about the future of undocumented migrants is playing out in Washington. .@MichelleObama: "I am humbled. I am honored. I'm proud. But most of all, I'm so incredibly grateful to all the people who came before me in this journey." pic.twitter.com/Dyo6mBv5j8— Fox News (@FoxNews) February 12, 2018 The Senate is due to debate immigration legislation all week, though it remains unclear what proposals will be voted on or whether a majority can even be achieved. Mr Trump has proposed giving a path to citizenship for 1.8 million 'dreamer' migrants but only in return for $25 billion to fund his Mexican border wall and tighter rules on legal migration. Mr Obama has largely been reluctant to criticise Mr Trump since leaving in January 2016, in line with predecessors who have held their tongue. During the ceremony on Monday, Mr Obama also joked that he had asked for his portrait to have less grey hair and smaller ears than in real life, but the artist rejected his requests. Meanwhile Mrs Obama said she hopes an official portrait of her will serve as an inspiration to young black women who will see "someone who looks like them" hanging in Washington's National Gallery. Artist Amy Sherald and former first lady Michelle Obama participate in the unveiling of Mrs. Obama's portrait at the Smithsonian's National Portrait Gallery in Washington Credit: Reuters She told the audience: "I'm thinking about the young people, particularly girls and girls of colour who in years ahead will come to this place and they will look up and see an image of someone who looks like them...I know the kind of impact that will have on their lives, because I was one of those girls." The paintings were unveiled on Monday at the gallery, which is part of the Smithsonian group of museums. The gallery has a complete collection of presidential portraits. In an emotive speech, Mrs Obama said: "I've never had any portrait done let alone a portrait that will be hanging in the National Gallery. But all those folks who helped me be here today, they're with us physically and in spirit. "I'm thinking of my grandparents... they were all highly intelligent capable men and women. Their dreams and aspirations were limited because of the colour of their skin. Artists Sherald and Wiley gather with Hanks prior to unveiling of Obamas' portraits at the Smithsonian Credit: Reuters "I'm thinking of my dad, who sacrificed everything for me and my brother. And I'm thinking of my mum... always putting herself last. "I'm also thinking of the young people, the young girls who in the years ahead who will come here and see someone who looks like them hanging on the wall of this great institution. And I know what kind of impact that will have on their lives, because I was one of those girls." In a reference to the current political climate, Mrs Obama said: "We have come so far, and yes, as we see today we still have a lot more work to do. But we have every reason to be hopeful and proud."
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| Intelligence Chief Calls for 'Revolutionary Change' in Security Clearance Process Amid Rob Porter Resignation Posted: 13 Feb 2018 08:53 AM PST  "We have a broken system," Dan Coats said
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| The Merkava Tank: How Israel Plans to Crush Any Army, Anytime Posted: 12 Feb 2018 04:30 AM PST  Trophy is combat proven, having saved several Merkava IV tanks (and their crews) from antitank weapons fielded by Hamas in 2014's Operation Protective Edge in the Gaza Strip. Israeli tankers are also set this year to experiment with Iron Vision, an augmented reality system designed to allow crews to "see" outside of their tank with a combination of VR goggles and distributed aperture system. In the past forty years, just a handful of countries have proved themselves capable of building their own main battle tanks.
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| Viva Harlistas! Antique Harley-Davidsons Still Prowl Cuba Posted: 12 Feb 2018 08:59 AM PST  Viva Harlistas! Antique Harley-Davidsons Still Prowl Cuba Like their four-wheeled cousins, Cuba's fleet of ancient Harleys is kept running with bubblegum, baling wire, and sheer passion Harley-Davidson is not a name typically associated with Cuba. The
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| Spurs Coach Says U.S. Needs Black History Month Because 'We Live In A Racist Country' Posted: 13 Feb 2018 01:13 PM PST  San Antonio Spurs Coach Gregg Popovich gave a blistering criticism of racism in the United States on Monday.
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| Police investigate complaint after father accused of chopping off daughter's hair for getting highlights Posted: 13 Feb 2018 01:21 PM PST  Ohio authorities are investigating after a mother's Facebook complaint that her ex-husband cut their daughter's hair as punishment for getting highlights went viral. Tens of thousands of people have seen and shared Christin Johnson's Facebook post, which features three photos: one of a smiling young woman with long hair, and then two of a short-haired person hiding her face. The Haskins Police Department has confirmed it investigated Ms Johnson's complaint alleging that the daughter's father and stepmother forcibly cut her hair.
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| Opioid makers paid millions to advocacy groups: U.S. Senate report Posted: 12 Feb 2018 07:28 PM PST  Five opioid manufacturers including OxyContin maker Purdue Pharma LP have paid more than $10 million to advocacy groups and doctors tied to them, many of whom amplified industry messages supporting the use of the painkillers, a U.S. Senate report said on Monday. The report, released by Democratic Senator Claire McCaskill, said groups who received the donations aligned themselves with industry goals and may have played a role in an epidemic that in 2016 led to 42,000 opioid overdose deaths. The report released by McCaskill, the U.S. Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee's ranking Democrat, said the groups issued guidance promoting opioids for chronic pain and lobbied against laws to curb their use.
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| Do You Like Paying Tolls? You're Gonna Love Trump's Infrastructure Plan Posted: 12 Feb 2018 10:57 AM PST  WASHINGTON ― If you like paying tolls, you're going to love Donald Trump's infrastructure plan.
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