| Why has the Tulsa Race Massacre been largely forgotten? Posted: 21 Dec 2019 08:47 AM PST  In 1921, as many as 300 black residents of Tulsa, Okla. were killed in one of the worst instances of racial violence in American history. Why is such a horrific event largely left out of U.S. history?
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| Inside impeachment: How an 'urgent' tip became 'high crimes' Posted: 22 Dec 2019 09:58 AM PST  The night before the whistleblower complaint that launched President Donald Trump's impeachment was made public, Democrats and Republicans on the House Intelligence Committee crammed into the same room to get a first look at the document. The House's drive toward impeachment ended last week with a party-line vote. A series of text message s from Kurt Volker, Trump's special envoy to Ukraine, stirred anxieties in both parties about work being done by Rudy Giuliani, Trump's personal lawyer, in the Eastern European country.
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| Jeff Van Drew reveals the moment he decided it was time to switch parties Posted: 22 Dec 2019 10:43 AM PST  Rep. Jeff Van Drew (R-N.J.) reached the point of no return when a local New Jersey county party chair told him he would face political consequences if he didn't vote in favor of impeachment.Van Drew, in an appearance on Fox News' Sunday Morning Futures on Sunday, told host Maria Bartiromo that when he heard that warning he decided it was time to switch parties. "It made me think for all the years that I've worked so hard and tried to give so much not only to the party but to everybody," the former Democratic congressman said. "It all boils down to that I have my own individual opinion on one vote and that's not going to be allowed, and I'm going to be punished for that, and that's when I knew."> Welcome to the GOP, @CongressmanJVD! pic.twitter.com/DBQLS67zJu> > — GOP (@GOP) December 22, 2019Van Drew, who went against the Democratic line and opposed impeachment from the beginning, officially announced he was crossing the aisle Thursday. He said he feels that he did "the honorable thing" and is sticking by his decision so far, even though there are questions about how he'll actually fit in with the GOP when it comes to non-impeachment voting. Read more at The Hill.More stories from theweek.com 6 powerful phrases every parent should use Let us pray for the brave men and women fighting in the War on Christmas 19 references and callbacks you may have missed in The Rise of Skywalker
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| Biden's press secretary diagnosed with cancer Posted: 22 Dec 2019 12:48 AM PST  "It was never a question whether I'd continue working during treatment — working for Joe Biden and this campaign has been the best, most important experience of my life," TJ Ducklo said.
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| Trump adviser: Expect more aggressive poll monitoring in 2020 Posted: 21 Dec 2019 11:52 AM PST  One of President Trump's top reelection advisers told influential Republicans in Wisconsin that the party has "traditionally" relied on voter suppression to compete in battleground states, according to an audio recording obtained by the Associated Press. The adviser said later that his remarks referred to accusations that Republicans use such tactics.
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| Australian man describes how he survived bushfire in makeshift shelter as inferno roared around him Posted: 22 Dec 2019 03:33 PM PST  An Australian man who became trapped by a bushfire has described how he survived the inferno as it tore through his property at the weekend. Steve Harrison decided to stay for as long as possible to defend his home in the New South Wales village of Balmoral, which was all but wiped out by the out-of-control fires on Saturday. "When it came, it came in like three or four minutes, just a big plume of black smoke and then ember fallout," recalled Mr Harrison. In an interview with ABC, the 67-year-old artist described how he frantically tried to turn on the sprinklers on buildings in his property but within minutes he found himself trapped, unable to escape. "My garden was already on fire here. And the driveway was on fire, and the road was on fire. So I realised I couldn't evacuate," Mr Harrison said. Steve Harrison is lucky to be alive. The potter hid in his 'makeshift kiln' for 20 mins as the Green Wattle Creek fire engulfed his property. He watched his beloved potting shed burn to the ground but thankfully his house is still standing. @abcsydney@abcnewspic.twitter.com/mG6o73MBLF— Lydia Feng (@LydiaLFeng) December 22, 2019 He said he had to turn to his plan B: Hiding in a small kiln, just the size of a coffin, that he had built the day before. It was just big enough for him to crawl inside, he said. "I hid in there for half an hour while the firestorm went over," he said. "It was huge, just glowing orange-red everywhere. Just scary. I was terrified." Mr Harrison said all his neighbours' homes had been destroyed, but his efforts to protect his home meant it was still standing. "I put a lot of money and effort and time into putting dedicated firefighting pumps just to run the sprinklers on the walls and roof," he told ABC News. "My wife and I spent the day wrapping [the house] up in aluminium foil to reflect the heat." Bushfires rage as Australian heatwave leads to hottest ever day, in pictures The village of Balmoral, southwest of Sydney, was devastated by the Green Wattle Creek firestorm that roared through the area twice in three days. Dozens of homes have been lost since Thursday in massive wildfires, including the Gospers Mountain blaze, which covered more than 460,000 hectares (1.1 million acres). Thirty firefighters from Canada and nine from the United States were among fresh crews set to join the battle against the fires on Sunday.
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| A 6-year-old girl found a disturbing hand-written note in a Christmas card that claimed foreign prisoners were being forced to work in China Posted: 22 Dec 2019 12:11 PM PST  The UK-based grocery chain Tesco is investigating a Chinese factory after the girl from London found the note in a pack of charity Christmas cards.
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| Death toll in Europe from storm hits nine Posted: 22 Dec 2019 06:00 AM PST  The death toll from storms that have battered Spain, Portugal and France rose to nine on Sunday as the region braced for more violent winds and heavy rain. Storms Elsa and Fabien have flooded rivers, brought down power lines, uprooted trees and disrupted rail and air travel across the region, leaving more than 118,000 households without electricity. Two people have so far died in Portugal and seven have now been killed in Spain, the worst affected country, after a fisherman was swept off rocks into the sea in Catalonia.
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| Syrian state media says Israel is firing missiles into Syria Posted: 22 Dec 2019 01:30 PM PST ![Syrian state media says Israel is firing missiles into Syria]( "Syrian state media says Israel is firing missiles into Syria") Syrian air defenses opened fire Sunday night on missiles fired from inside Israel, state media reported. Syrian state TV gave no further details but residents of Damascus said explosions could be heard near the capital. State TV said one of the Israeli missiles was shot down near the Damascus suburb of Aqraba.
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| A California teacher was placed on leave after allegedly telling students she wants to 'bring back slavery' Posted: 22 Dec 2019 10:32 AM PST  The unnamed educator, who works at a school composed of predominately black and Latino students, is allegedly a supporter of President Donald Trump.
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| Death toll climbs in India protests against citizenship law Posted: 21 Dec 2019 08:53 PM PST  Nine people died on Saturday during clashes between demonstrators and police in northern India.
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| Military Nightmare: Is the United States Being Outmatched by Russia and China? Posted: 21 Dec 2019 11:45 PM PST  America may not be able to compete in future wars.
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| ‘You have a terribly homosexual face’: Brazil’s president launches homophobic attack on journalist Posted: 21 Dec 2019 04:55 AM PST  Brazil's president has launched a homophobic attack on a journalist in a likely attempt to detract from a criminal investigation into his son's alleged corruption.Jair Bolsonaro, who was elected on a ticket to purge the political class of corruption, railed against media scrutiny of his racism and apparent disdain for the environment, accusing the press of bias against him and his son Flavio Bolsonaro.
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| UK's Johnson says he will keep pressing U.S. over fatal crash Posted: 21 Dec 2019 05:39 AM PST  British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said on Saturday he would carry on trying to help the family of 19-year-old Briton Harry Dunn, killed in a road collision with a U.S. diplomat's wife who then left the country. "The law should take its course and we will obviously be following that case with keen interest and continuing to make representations on behalf of Harry Dunn's family in the U.S. at every level," Johnson said. British prosecutors said on Friday they would charge Anne Sacoolas with causing death by dangerous driving and seek her extradition over the crash in August in which Dunn was killed while riding his motorbike.
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| Romanians pay tribute to victims of 1989 revolution Posted: 22 Dec 2019 04:35 PM PST  Thousands of people marched in the Romanian capital Bucharest on Sunday to remember those who lost their lives in the revolution 30 years ago that ended the communist dictatorship of Nicolae Ceausescu. President Klaus Iohannis and several ministers from his centre-right administration laid commemorative wreaths and lit candles in front of a monument to the victims. "We want to know the truth about December 1989," Iohannis said a few hours earlier, as he opened an exhibition on the revolution.
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| American Airlines begins offering non-binary gender options during booking process Posted: 21 Dec 2019 11:35 AM PST  American Airlines has quietly rolled out non-binary gender options during the booking process, where people can designate "U" or "X" for their gender.
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| Pair from Alabama face 9 murder counts in Illinois shooting Posted: 21 Dec 2019 03:44 PM PST ![Pair from Alabama face 9 murder counts in Illinois shooting]( "Pair from Alabama face 9 murder counts in Illinois shooting") A man and woman from Alabama who were already suspected of murder, kidnapping and other violent crimes in two states were charged Saturday with killing three people in a home in southwest Illinois, authorities said. Brian Koberna, deputy commander of the Major Case Squad of Greater St. Louis, announced nine counts of first-degree murder against Brady Witcher, 41, and Brittany McMillan, 28. Police in Bethalto, about 20 miles (32 kilometers) northeast of St. Louis, discovered the bodies Thursday night after being asked to perform a well-being check.
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| Democrats Sparred Over a Wine Cave Fundraiser. The Cave's Billionaire Owners Aren't Pleased. Posted: 21 Dec 2019 07:02 AM PST  RUTHERFORD, Calif. -- To reach the wine cave that set off a firestorm in this week's Democratic presidential debate, visitors must navigate a hillside shrouded in mossy oak trees and walk down a brick-and-limestone hallway lined with wine barrels. Inside the room, a strikingly long table made of wood and onyx sits below a raindrop chandelier with 1,500 Swarovski crystals.The furnishings drew the ire of Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts on Thursday when she chastised Pete Buttigieg for holding a recent fundraiser in a wine cave "full of crystals" where, she said, guests were served $900 bottles of wine."Billionaires in wine caves should not pick the next president of the United States," she said. Andrew Yang, a former tech executive, added that candidates should not have to "shake the money tree in the wine cave."On Friday, the billionaire couple who owns the wine cave -- wine is often stored underground because of the cool, stable temperatures -- said they were frustrated that their property had set off one of the fiercest back-and-forths of the debate. Watching the contentious moment on television, they grew frustrated as Warren and other candidates used their winery as a symbol of opulence and the wealthy's influence on politics."I'm just a pawn here," said Craig Hall, who owns Hall Wines, which is known for its cabernet sauvignon, with his wife, Kathryn Walt Hall. "They're making me out to be something that's not true. And they picked the wrong pawn. It's just not fair."Craig Hall said that he had not settled on a favorite Democratic candidate but that Buttigieg, mayor of South Bend, Indiana, was a leading contender. His positions on climate change, gun safety and immigration appealed to the couple, said Craig Hall, who added that he wanted it to be easier for middle-class Americans to start successful businesses.The Halls have given at least $2.4 million to Democratic candidates, committees and PACs since the 1980s, according to Federal Election Commission records. They have donated to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Sen. Kamala Harris of California before she ran for president.But in this election cycle, some Democratic candidates have criticized the spending of wealthy donors like the Halls, arguing that their large contributions can lead to outsize influence on policy -- or even jobs in a future administration. Warren and Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont, in particular, have harped on other candidates for soliciting wealthy donors and traveling from coast to coast to attend fundraisers.For the Halls, the scrutiny has felt personal. Craig Hall said that during the debate, Kathryn Walt Hall turned to him and jokingly said she might go buy something for herself instead of contributing to another political campaign.Craig Hall, 69, made much of his fortune in the real estate industry and said he started a business at 18 with $4,000 from his savings account. Kathryn Walt Hall, a lawyer and businesswoman, served as the U.S. ambassador to Austria under President Bill Clinton after donating to his reelection campaign. Her family has worked in the wine industry since the 1970s.As chairman of the Hall Group, which is based in Dallas, Craig Hall oversees a financial services company, wineries, art exhibits and a luxury hotel. He said that in Texas, he is often seen as the most liberal among friends and business colleagues, part of why he felt unfairly targeted during the debate."These people don't know who they're talking about when they throw me in the class that they did," Craig Hall said of the presidential candidates. "As much as it's frustrating, it's more disappointing to me that Democrats are fighting with each other when we have a common goal, which is to get back to the White House."On the debate stage, Buttigieg responded to the attacks by arguing that the views of donors would not influence his positions and saying that his net worth was one one-hundredth of Warren's.Buttigieg said accepting the contributions of all donors was necessary to "build a campaign ready for the fight of our lives," referring to the general election faceoff against President Donald Trump.Warren's comments also did not sit well with some local residents, who are accustomed to encountering politicians and their high-end contributors. Pelosi and Gov. Gavin Newsom of California each own a valuable vineyard nearby."It connoted something snobbish, which it really isn't," said Carl Myers, a retired general contractor who lives in St. Helena, California.Wine is stored in caves around the world, and Craig Hall noted that the Romans followed the practice. Storing wine underground saves money on climate control and humidification, said Jonathan Ruppert, the general manager of Gary's Wine & Marketplace in St. Helena."Caves are a necessity," Ruppert said. "It's the green way to keep wine and preserve it for aging."Although the wine cave at Hall Wines is occasionally used for fundraising events, it typically serves as a private tasting room. But the winery was closed Friday for the employee Christmas party and, in a sign of the times, active shooter training.High-dollar donors have visited his wine cave, but Craig Hall emphasized that his wineries do not sell a $900 bottle of wine -- or, at least, not a regularly sized one. The $900 bottle they do sell is 3 liters, he said, which holds as much wine as about four normal bottles. Most of the company's wines cost between $45 and $65.Craig Hall said he intended to support any Democratic nominee in the general election, but he admitted it would be hard to back Warren or Sanders."I hope I don't face that question," Craig Hall said. "It may be difficult. But I really want to support whoever the nominee is, and I plan to, but there may be some holding my nose."This article originally appeared in The New York Times.(C) 2019 The New York Times Company
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| Atmospheric river expected to slam West Coast Posted: 20 Dec 2019 10:58 PM PST  For most, dreams of a white Christmas will remain just that.
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| Mexico’s Renewable Power Suppliers Face Risks Under Grid Proposal Posted: 22 Dec 2019 03:11 PM PST  (Bloomberg) -- Mexico's Federal Electricity Commission is proposing to cancel some contracts and eliminate discounts on transmission costs for power generators to use its network, dealing the latest blow to Mexico's budding private renewable energy market.CFE, as the state utility is known, is seeking to eliminate 50% discounts on transmission costs for so-called legacy permits granting vested rights to projects holding a power permit or an application filed with the Energy Regulatory Commission, or CRE, before the enactment of Mexico's 2014 electricity reforms, according to the draft proposal from the CFE obtained by Bloomberg. It also looks to cancel some self-supply power contracts that allow companies to generate electricity for their own businesses, using mostly solar energy or natural gas. CFE did not immediately respond to a request for comment outside of the normal business week.A draft proposal seeking to increase transmission costs for private companies and give the CFE preference over private generation when electricity is dispatched into the national grid was first reported by the Financial Times on Saturday. The elimination of incentives for the private sector could significantly hamper investment in renewable energy and raise electricity costs for consumers, the report said.The government of Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador has sought to dial back reforms from the previous center-right administration and consolidate power in the hands of Mexico's state-owned energy companies CFE and Petroleos Mexicanos.The CFE proposal addressed to the CRE, the National Energy Control Center known as CENACE, the Energy Ministry and the Finance Ministry identified 80 areas to strengthen the state utility by adjusting regulations and agreements without affecting the law. Of these, 14 "strategic issues" require "immediate attention" including giving CFE more control over tariffs that today are set by the regulator, according to the document. If approved, the measures could affect hundreds of contracts with local and international power generators including Iberdrola SA, Enel SpA and Acciona SA, among others.On Saturday, Lopez Obrador said that the state utility would take over 70% of the electricity market if private companies didn't invest enough before the end of his administrative in 2024, national newspaper Milenio reported.Lopez Obrador has been criticized for failing to prioritize the environment when it conflicts with his energy goals. Last month, his government sought to change rules for clean-energy credits, allowing aging hydroelectric dams operated by Mexico's state-owned utility to qualify. But the rule was suspended by a federal judge in December following injunctions from private power companies. Last week, Petroleos Mexicanos was granted a five-year extension on meeting a nationwide requirement to sell ultra-low-sulfur diesel, a move that may worsen air pollution in parts of the country.To contact the reporter on this story: Amy Stillman in Mexico City at astillman7@bloomberg.netTo contact the editors responsible for this story: David Marino at dmarino4@bloomberg.net, Dale Quinn, James LuddenFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
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| Berlin outraged after Donald Trump hits gas pipeline project with sanctions Posted: 21 Dec 2019 03:35 AM PST  Berlin has accused Washington of interfering in German internal affairs, after Donald Trump signed off on US sanctions against companies building a Russian natural gas pipeline to Germany. "The Federal Government rejects such extraterritorial sanctions," Ulrike Demmer, a spokeswoman, said in Berlin on Saturday. "They affect German and European companies and constitute an interference in our domestic affairs." The US is an outspoken opponent of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline, which will transport natural gas about 750 miles from Russia, through the Baltic Sea and into Germany. The sanctions will hit any company working with Russia's state-owned Gazprom to complete the project. On Saturday, Switzerland-based Allseas, which operates ships laying sections of the undersea pipeline, said it was suspending work on the £8.5 billion project, which is well advanced. Washington and Eastern European countries oppose the project because it will increase the EU's heavy dependence on Russian gas imports. The pipeline will double Russian energy imports into Germany and, the US fears, give the Kremlin leverage over the EU and its leading economy. Nord Stream gas pipeline The project also bypasses Ukraine, raising fears it would cost the country valuable gas transit fees it currently receives from Moscow. Ms Demmer said the US measures were "particularly incomprehensible" because Russia and Ukraine reached an agreement in principle Thursday on the future transit of Russian gas through Ukrainian territory. The German-Russian Chamber of Commerce insisted last week that the pipeline was important for energy security and urged retaliatory sanctions against the United States if the bill passes. Chancellor Angela Merkel has admitted she would not retaliate. She said on Wednesday, "I see no alternative to conducting talks, though very firm talks, (to show that) we do not approve of this practice." The European Commission said it would carefully examine the sanctions to see how they affected EU companies. "In principle, the EU rejects sanctions against EU companies that do legitimate business," a spokesman said. Both houses of Congress overwhelmingly approved the sanctions, with the Senate voting Tuesday to send the measure to Trump's desk. Iran, Malaysia, Turkey and Qatar are considering trading among themselves in gold and through a barter system as a hedge against any future economic sanctions on them, Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad said on Saturday. At the end of an Islamic summit in Malaysia, Mahathir praised Iran and Qatar for withstanding economic embargoes and said it was important for the Muslim world to be self-reliant to face future threats.
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| Man who used narwhal tusk to help subdue extremist identified Posted: 21 Dec 2019 09:03 AM PST  A mysterious person who used a narwhal tusk to help subdue a knife-wielding extremist on London Bridge last month has been identified as a civil servant in Britain's Justice Ministry.
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| Riot police break up Hong Kong rally for China's Uighurs Posted: 22 Dec 2019 03:12 AM PST  Hong Kong riot police broke up a solidarity rally for China's Uighurs on Sunday -- with one officer drawing a pistol -- as the city's pro-democracy movement likened their plight to that of the oppressed Muslim minority. The initially peaceful rally descended into chaos when a small group of protesters removed a Chinese flag from a nearby government building and tried to burn it, an AFP reporter on the scene said. Organisers stopped the flag being burned but riot police then swooped in with pepper spray, sparking anger from the crowd who threw water bottles.
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| Deaths in custody. Sexual violence. Hunger strikes. What we uncovered inside ICE facilities across the US Posted: 22 Dec 2019 02:13 PM PST  A USA TODAY Network investigation revealed sex assaults, routine use of physical force, poor medical care and deaths at facilities overseen by ICE.
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| Pakistani professor gets death sentence in blasphemy case Posted: 21 Dec 2019 12:23 AM PST  A Pakistani court on Saturday convicted a Muslim professor of blasphemy, sentencing him to death for allegedly spreading anti-Islamic ideas. Junaid Hafeez has been held for six years awaiting trial. Due to security concerns, Saturday's trial was held inside the jail where Hafeez is being held.
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| Democrats urged to fix process 'shutting out' candidates of colour from presidential race Posted: 21 Dec 2019 11:11 AM PST  The Democratic Party has been urged to reform the way it selects its presidential candidates, amid claims it is shutting out people of colour.This week at the party's sixth debate in Los Angeles, entrepreneur Andrew Yang was the only person of colour on the stage. Other candidates of colour, including Cory Booker, Julian Castro and Deval Patrick, are still contesting, but did not qualify for the debate stage.
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| Almanac: Baldness Posted: 21 Dec 2019 11:48 PM PST  On December 22, 1997, the FDA approved Propecia, a once-a-day pill for combating the genetic condition known as male pattern baldness
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| FACT: 10 U.S. Military Bases are Named After Confederate Generals Posted: 22 Dec 2019 05:30 AM PST  The Fort Hood military base in Killeen, Texas.
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| Delta smelt: the tiny fish caught in California's war with Trump Posted: 21 Dec 2019 10:00 PM PST  Harbingers of a diminishing ecosystem, the smelt are almost extinct. Now, forces within the Trump administration could usher them into oblivionOn a warm November morning, John Durand squints over the stern of a small research boat, and gestures toward gray-blue water, and the chaotic tangles of tube-like tule reeds."Cache Slough right here had been known as a hotspot for delta smelt," he says. But it's been four years since Durand and his team of researchers from the University of California, Davis, have found the finger-length fish that gleam golden and "smell kind of like cucumber" in the brackish streams and sloughs of northern California's bay delta.Does he think we'll see any today? Durand chuckles and combs his fingers through his white goatee."It's funny, because the smelt are a small fish, and now they're a rare fish, but they still loom large over all our environmental and water policies," he adds. "It's a lot to put on a little fish."For conservationists and ecologists like Durand, the delta smelt are harbingers, their diminishing numbers a signal that the delta's ecosystem is dangerously close to collapse. For California farmers with thousands of acres to irrigate and millions of dollars on the lines, the smelt are in the way – the state listed the species as endangered in 2009, and in effect constrained how much water can be pulled from the delta.Now, the creatures caught in the crossfire of the state's water wars have all but disappeared, and biologists worry that newly empowered forces within the Trump administration could usher them into oblivion. A delicate balanceFrom the deck of the research boat, gliding down Cache Slough, it's easy enough to imagine how the Sacramento-San Joaquin delta used to look – before the Gold Rush, before colonial settlers built their farms and ranches, before they constrained the marsh with levees and cut its flow with dams and diversions, before massive pumps began sucking it dry, before all the infrastructure drove native wildlife to the brink of extinction.Leaning back in the boat, Durand watches his crew of students and research assistants toss a cone-shaped net off the stern, arc through the air and splash into the water. "The whole process is just beautiful," he says.At the helm, Christopher Jasper, a graduate student, motors forward, dragging the trawl down the slough for five minutes. Then the crew lifts the net up, splashes the contents into a bucket."All right, what have we got?" Jaspar positions his pen over a clipboard. "American shad, 67mm," yells Caroline Newell, her indigo hair exploding out of the back of her UC Davis baseball cap. "Oh, you're looking a little stressed there, buddy," she says, struggling to lay a flailing Sacramento splittail flat so she can measure it, before tossing it overboard.photo collageOver the course of the day, they count a total of 78 fish, including some native species, like the splittail, and some invasive ones, including a massive catfish. But no smelt.Soon after UC Davis researchers first began sampling in the delta, nearly 40 years ago, the delta smelt populations suffered a huge blow: their numbers had suddenly declined by more than 80%. Their numbers dipped even lower after a period of extended drought in the late 80s and early 90s, then lower still during California's most recent drought, which lasted from 2012 through 2016. During these dry spells, California's cities and farms needed to pump more and more delta water – leaving these fish without enough fresh, cold water to survive.Because most Delta smelt live for just one year, even temporary environmental changes can decimate the population. It's not just the overpumping, but the pumps themselves that have strained the smelt. The smelt are poor swimmers, and they're drawn to cloudy, turbid patches of water, where they like to hide and feed. The trouble is, the behemoth pumps run by the state and federal government, which can draw up to 10,000 and 5,500 cubic feet of water per second, respectively, can cause rivers to run backward, sucking smelt and other fish into their system.In an attempt to engineer their way out of problems borne from an over-engineered ecosystem, the US Bureau of Reclamation built a "fish collection facility" a couple of miles north of the pumps. Fish headed toward the machinery are corralled with nets and redirected to collection tanks, where they're catalogued before being trucked back into other parts of the estuary."The problem is, while they're going through that system of canals, or waiting in a truck, they're exposed to all these other fish, all these predators that are happily snacking on them the whole time," says Jon Rosenfield, a fish biologist at San Francisco Baykeeper, an environmental watchdog group.Those that make it through the labyrinth, face hordes of bass who swarm the spots where trucks release their bounty. "It's like the bass have been trained to show up at certain times to feed," Rosenfield says. And after all of that, the smelt may still die from the stress of the whole ordeal, or they may get caught up in the pumps again – rinse and repeat. A 2012 study found that the whole system was, ultimately, inefficient, though the reclamation bureau says the program has been tweaked to separate predators and make the experience more comfortable for the fish.All the while, Delta smelt have also been coping with the encroachment of invasive species. Invasive overbite clams and Asian clams have been leaving the smelt with less to eat. The striped bass and largemouth bass are invaders, as are Mississippi silversides, which feed on smelt eggs and young – though scientists have contested that these predators are responsible for smelt declines.Underlying many of these issues is the climate crisis, which has fueled extended periods of drought and heat waves that have made the waters uncomfortably warm for smelt, and other species struggling to survive in a shifting Delta ecosystem.It's unclear how many smelt are left in the estuary. The last time the UC Davis researchers caught one was in 2016. Surveyors from the California fish and wildlife department netted two in 2017, and none since. Based on data collected in early 2017, US Fish and Wildlife extrapolated that about 48,000 were still surfing the sloughs, but researchers say it's unclear how many Delta smelt still exist in the wild. "I'd guess at least a thousand or more, but we have no way of actually knowing," Durand says. "At this point, they barely register in the ecosystem."So, why do they still get so many Californians so riled up? Water warsEven Donald Trump has an opinion on the Delta smelt. At a March 2016 campaign rally in Fresno, California – in the state's agricultural heartland – then presidential candidate Trump mocked the environmentalists who were desperate "to protect a certain kind of three-inch fish"."They have farms here and they don't get water," he said, as the crowd, holding up green "Farmers for Trump" signs booed. "It is so ridiculous they're taking the water and shoving it out to sea." That night, Trump promised the farmers more water. Ever since then, his administration has been making moves to make good on that pledge.Last fall, Trump signed a memorandum directing federal agencies to review and roll back environmental standards slowing down the flow of water to farms in the central valley. In February this year, the president nominated David Bernhardt to serve as his interior secretary.Prior to joining the administration, Bernhardt worked as a lobbyist and lawyer for the Westlands Water District, the nation's largest agricultural water contractor. The agency serves some of California's wealthiest, most powerful farmers – delivering up to 1.19m acre-feet of irrigation water from the delta each year.In 2014, Bernhardt represented Westlands in an appeals case challenging Endangered Species Act protections for Delta smelt. Upon taking office, he named the water district in his ethics recusal letter, promising not to "participate personally and substantially" in policy issues that could affect his former clients, unless he obtained a waiver.Watchdog groups say Bernhardt hasn't quite kept his word. Even as he oversaw a board effort to weaken Endangered Species Act protections to ease conditions for the oil and logging industries, he delivered a huge victory to Westlands, rolling back protections for the Delta smelt and the endangered Chinook salmon and paving the way for more pumping.When scientists from the marine fisheries service in July submitted a thousand-page report warning that more pumping would jeopardize several species including endangered winter-run Chinook salmon and the Southern Resident killer whales that eat salmon, the Interior Department pulled the document.New reports, called biological opinions, released in October and overseen by the department's Fish and Wildlife Service found that the salmon wouldn't be imperiled, and a separate Delta smelt opinion similarly concluded that the fish would be just fine. The agency touted "smarter delta operations through real-time adaptive management and greater management oversight of delta pumping operations informed by updated science," to help the smelt and other endangered species recover even as the mammoth state and federal pumps drained more water out of the ecosystem.On Thursday, the Trump administration released its final environmental impact statement on the pumping plan, which claims to manage water in an "environmentally and economically sound manner".That's much easier said than done, Rosenfield says. "The 'real-time management' part especially has some huge air quotes around it." The idea is that federal scientists will monitor the water, and signal for the pumps to be turned down. But it's pretty hard to know where exactly the smelt are – after all, they've eluded researchers for years."It's ecological sampling – not surveillance," Rosenfield says. "They don't have little ankle bracelets on them, we can't track every single fish."Even if they could, turning down the pumps isn't quite as easy as shutting off a faucet. The multi-story state and federal pumping plants operate in tandem and are powerful enough to make rivers flow backward. By the time the two agencies coordinate with each other and taper down the pumping, "these fish are already dying", Rosenfield says.Paul Souza, the US Fish and Wildlife official who oversaw the drafting of the biological opinions, says, "there's absolutely no connection" between Bernhardt's past work with Westlands and the results presented in the biological opinion. He and other officials who drafted the reports "are career professionals," Souza said in a statement to the Guardian. "We have led this effort with our teams over the past year and this is a career conservation professional documentation."Westlands contests that the biological opinion benefits them in any way. "I'm not sure that the new biological opinions will produce a single drop of additional water for Westlands," says Tom Birmingham, the agency's general manager. "What the new biological opinions do is provide a degree of operational flexibility," he says, allowing the pumps to take more water when more is available."I have confidence in the ability of the agencies to conduct real-time monitoring, and to adjust operations of the project based on real-time monitoring," he says, noting that federal and state operations are already using these techniques to scan the estuary for turbid conditions that could attract smelt.Shortly after the new biological opinions were released, Westlands concluded negotiations to permanently lock in its water service contract, which entitles them to 1.15m acre-feet of water per year – about twice what the city of Los Angeles uses annually. Birmingham points out that the provision to convert its contract is courtesy of a 2016 law, which was approved by a bipartisan Congress and signed into law by Barack Obama.Westlands, he says, is being unfairly antagonized by environmental groups. "I read the criticisms of the new biological opinions," he says. "And I have to ask myself, have the people expressing those criticisms read the same document?" California fighting wordsBack on the research boat, as an afternoon of sampling winds down, and the weather warms and mellows and stills, it's impossible not to notice the spicy scent of dung and fertilizer in the air. Durand points at a group of cows, sleepily grazing and dumping at the banks of Cache Slough. "As biologists, we call those ecosystem inputs," he says with a laugh. Dung from these cows, and runoff from the nut orchards and fruit farms a few yards inland infuse nutrients into the water that triggers algal blooms. Sometimes, too many nutrients in the water cause plants and algae to overgrow, die and drain the system of oxygen. But this time of year, the system could use a bit of nutrient infusion to feed the delta's fish.Agriculture and nature can work together, Durand says, so long as people are willing to let them. "Everybody wants to be the good guy, and do right by the environment," he says. "I believe that, having talked to some of the local farmers and ranchers in this area."The trouble is, once environmental groups and government officials start talking about reallocating water rights and rationing, "those are triggers, those are fighting words in California," he says. "Revolutions are expensive, I guess, and no one wants to be the one to pay for them."In response to the federal government's chipping away of protections for endangered fish, environmental and fishing industry groups have banded together to sue the federal government, as well, alleging that fewer protections for smelt, steelhead trout, and Chinook salmon will devastate the delta ecosystem and commercial fisheries will be the collateral.California's state government has joined the morass as well: California's governor Gavin Newsom declared that the state is drafting litigation as well. "As stewards of this state's remarkable natural resources, we must do everything in our power to protect them," Newsom announced. "The next generations of Californians deserve nothing less."In response, the federal reclamation commissioner Brenda Burman derided Newsom's preference "to have judges dictate these important projects instead of the career professionals at the federal and state levels who have developed a plan based on the best science and significant input from the public." If Californians want a legal fight, she said in a statement to the Guardian, "that's their choice, we'll see them in court".Westlands has reportedly threatened to walk away from state efforts to broker water-sharing deals if Newsom sues.It could take years for the full effects of the new policy and litigation to become apparent. "In the meantime, know what's ironic?" says Rosenfield. "Even if the smelt disappeared, and we no longer had to worry about protecting them, it's not like we could get much more water out of the system."A 2019 study by Rosenfield and his colleagues at the San Francisco Bay Institute and the Nature Conservancy found that the amount of water the pumps could pull was most often limited by the need to keep saltwater at bay. If enough fresh water isn't, to paraphrase Donald Trump, shoved out to sea, the sea will shove into shore, flooding the estuary with salt water. "And, no one wants salt water," Rosenfield says. "You cannot apply saltwater to farmland. That's what the Romans did to punish their enemies." In most years between 2011 and 2018 – at peak drought – maintenance issues, and a lack of storage capacity limited pumping more than the smelt did, as did protections for other threatened and endangered fish. "The smelt are just a scapegoat," Rosenfield says.Durand says he's sick of talking about Delta smelt. "At the end of the day, sure, it's just a crummy little fish and there aren't a lot of them left," he says. "But then, every time we lose a species it's just a sign that there are more losses to come."If the Delta smelt go, California may be able to pump some more. But then their cousins, the longfin smelt, could disappear next, and then the steelhead trout, and then the various populations of Chinook salmon. "Where do we draw the line?" Durand says. "I don't know how much more stress the system can take."
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| Iran's Rouhani welcomes Japan opt-out of U.S.-led naval mission in Gulf Posted: 21 Dec 2019 06:48 AM PST  Iranian President Hassan Rouhani on Saturday welcomed Japan's decision not to join a U.S.-led naval mission in the Gulf and said he had discussions on ways of "breaking" U.S. sanctions on a trip to Tokyo. Friction between Tehran and Washington has increased since last year when U.S. President Donald Trump pulled the United States out of Iran's 2015 nuclear deal with six nations and re-imposed sanctions on the country, crippling its economy. Washington proposed the naval mission after several attacks in May and June on international merchant vessels, including Saudi tankers, in Gulf waters which the United States blamed on Iran.
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| The White House didn't always celebrate Hanukkah — here's how the tradition began Posted: 22 Dec 2019 08:12 AM PST  Christmas celebrations at the White House date back to 1800, but Hanukkah wasn't acknowledged until much later.
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| Death toll from New Zealand volcano eruption rises to 19 Posted: 22 Dec 2019 02:36 PM PST  The death toll from a volcanic eruption in New Zealand earlier this month has risen to 19 after police said Monday another person died at an Auckland hospital overnight. There were 47 people visiting the tourist destination of White Island when the volcano erupted Dec. 9, killing 13 people initially and leaving more than two dozen others hospitalized with severe burns. The latest victim is the sixth person to die in hospitals in New Zealand and Australia in the two weeks since the eruption.
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| At least 18 prisoners dead in clash at Honduras jail Posted: 21 Dec 2019 06:56 PM PST  At least 18 inmates died and 16 were injured in overnight clashes between prisoners in Honduras after fighting erupted at a jail in the northern port town of Tela, prison officials said Saturday. The National Penitentiary Institute said 17 prisoners had died at the facility in Tela, about 120 miles (200 kilometers) from the capital Tegucigalpa, and another died in hospital, with local media describing the unrest as gang violence. A prison spokesperson, Digna Aguilar, said authorities had to enter the area carefully "for fear of being among the victims" because several inmates carried firearms.
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| India's Modi defends citizenship law Posted: 22 Dec 2019 07:59 AM PST  Amid nationwide protests, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is refusing to give way.Modi on Sunday defended his Hindu nationalist government's recently passed citizenship law that has sparked protests across the country as nothing less than a humanitarian gesture. The law allows illegal immigrants from Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Bangladesh to claim Indian citizenship if they can show they were victims of religious persecution. But it only extends to non-Muslims and has been criticized for breaching India's secular constitution and for attempting to marginalize Muslims.Speaking at a political rally in New Delhi, Modi said he "must assure Muslim citizens of India that this law will not change anything for them" and that his government operates without religious bias. "People who are trying to spread lies and fear, look at my work," he said.To date, 23 people have reportedly been killed during the nationwide protests, which continued Sunday. Read more at Al Jazeera and BBC.More stories from theweek.com 6 powerful phrases every parent should use Jeff Van Drew reveals the moment he decided it was time to switch parties Let us pray for the brave men and women fighting in the War on Christmas
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| In the 1860s, France And America Almost Went To War Over Mexico Posted: 22 Dec 2019 06:00 AM PST  A close call.
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| Record rain, darkness: Seattle braces for floods, mudslides Posted: 21 Dec 2019 12:05 PM PST ![Record rain, darkness: Seattle braces for floods, mudslides]( "Record rain, darkness: Seattle braces for floods, mudslides") Record rainfall and darkness has hit Seattle as a major storm begins to lift across western Washington on the first day of winter, though the region is still at risk for flooding, mudslides and avalanches. Friday became the wettest day in Seattle in the past 10 years, and the most rain recorded for Dec. 20 since record-keeping at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport began in 1945. The National Weather Service said the airport recorded 3.25 inches (8.25 centimeters) of rain Friday, making it also the fifth rainiest day in city history.
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| Hong Kong police sued by journalist who lost eye after being hit with a rubber bullet Posted: 22 Dec 2019 01:00 AM PST  A journalist who lost her eye filming protests in Hong Kong has launched a legal bid to unmask the police officer who shot her with a rubber bullet. Veby Mega Indah was blinded in one eye while live streaming for Indonesian-language publication Suara from the frontline of the Hong Kong protests earlier this year. But she claims police have refused to investigate. She has now submitted a private bid to sue the officer for negligence. But her case cannot progress without knowing the identity of her shooter. She has now applied to the high court to reveal his details. It is the latest damaging case against the Hong Kong police force, which has been accused of heavy-handed tactics. A panel of foreign experts overseeing an investigation into allegations of excessive force resigned earlier this month in protest at slow progress. Veby Mega Indah receives emergency aid after being hit by a rubber bullet Credit: Isaac Lawrence/AFP Ms Indah, 39, is convinced the police are delaying because the evidence is so clear-cut. Despite her efforts, any meeting with the police investigators has yet to materialise, with the only visits coming from police public relations teams. "I'm really offended, this is criminal misconduct. They changed my life and they're treating this as public relations," Indah stressed. She was shot while covering clashes between protesters and police in the district of Wan Chai. She was wearing full press gear including press identification, a helmet, gasmask, a luminous high visual press-vest and eye-goggles. Ms Indah was recording the unfolding events at the time with a group of journalists. As space was tight on the bridge, protesters, press and police were all squeezed close to each other. Hong Kong protests "At one point I heard a fellow journalist shouting 'don't aim at us', in Cantonese," she said. "Then I heard two bangs… loud bangs, then white smoke from the stairs and I saw something coming towards my right eye. It hits me and I staggered as another journalist hugged me, not breaking my fall. I couldn't open my eyes, people were screaming and panicking and the footbridge was trembling," Indah told The Telegraph. First-aiders arrived quickly, as Indah lay on the ground she was in a state of shock. "I was so confused – why would they shoot me? I thought it was going to be my end." Despite the protective wear, the impact of the projectile was so strong it ruptured her eye beyond repair. "When I got to the hospital, a doctor cursed. That's when I knew it was bad. At that point, my main focus was to stay alive. They've told me they cannot improve my vision," she said, holding back the tears. Ms Indah says she has been taking painkillers to ease the pain, whilst she has recently been diagnosed with post-traumatic stress order.
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| France kills 33 militants in Mali raid: president Posted: 21 Dec 2019 06:17 AM PST  ABIDJAN/BAMAKO (Reuters) - French forces killed 33 Islamist militants in Mali on Saturday using attack helicopters, ground troops and a drone, near the border with Mauritania where a group linked to al Qaeda operates, French authorities said. The raid about 150 km (90 miles) northwest of Mopti in Mali targeted the same forest area where France wrongly claimed last year it had killed Amadou Koufa, one of the most senior Islamist militants being hunted by French forces in the Sahel.
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| Google insiders have a weird reaction to executive changes, and FedEx's war with Amazon rages on Posted: 22 Dec 2019 07:18 AM PST  Google insiders seem to be completely unphased about management changes going on at the company.
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| Sen. Graham: Pelosi 'taking a wrecking ball' to the Constitution Posted: 22 Dec 2019 07:45 AM PST  Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham accuses House Speaker Nancy Pelosi of denying the president his day in court in the Senate on impeachment and reacts to the latest on the FISA report fallout on 'Sunday Morning Futures.'
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| Judge revokes grazing permit for ranchers pardoned by Trump Posted: 20 Dec 2019 07:29 PM PST  A judge on Friday revoked the grazing permit of two ranchers who were pardoned last year by President Donald Trump on an arson conviction for setting fire to federal lands. U.S. District Judge Michael Simon ruled in the long-running case after hearing arguments from the U.S. Bureau of Land Management, which granted a 10-year grazing permit to Dwight and Steven Hammond after Trump's July 2018 pardon.
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| Man accidentally shoots himself while trying to steal puppy Posted: 22 Dec 2019 11:23 AM PST  An armed robber accidentally shot himself in the leg while trying to steal a puppy from its owner.The owner had arranged to sell the nine-week-old American bulldog, named Tarzan, to a man through who made contact through a buying-and-selling website.
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| ‘Olive hasn’t been raised’: After praying for miracle, girl's family now plans memorial Posted: 21 Dec 2019 05:10 PM PST  A press release from the Bethel Church says Olive's parents, Andrew and Kalley Heiligenthal, are now planning a memorial service.
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| Pakistan Cannot Get Enough Of America's F-16 Fighting Falcon Posted: 21 Dec 2019 07:30 AM PST  Pakistan operates around sixty-six F-16A/Bs and nineteen F-16C/Ds in four active squadrons.
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