| Danish ex-PM attacks Trump for comments on defense spending Posted: 22 Aug 2019 06:05 AM PDT  A former Danish prime minister on Thursday lashed out at U.S. President Donald Trump for his tweet about military spending, saying defense willingness is not just about the amount of money spent. Lars Loekke Rasmussen's comment is the latest in an escalating spat between the U.S. and Denmark after Trump scrapped a visit to the country, saying current Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen was "nasty" when she rejected his idea of buying Greenland as an absurdity. Loekke Rasmussen, who led the country until June, tweeted Thursday to Trump: "We have had (proportionally) exactly the same numbers of casualties in Afghanistan as US.
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| Former Manafort deputy Rick Gates testifies against Greg Craig Posted: 22 Aug 2019 05:38 AM PDT  Rick Gates was thrust into public view in August 2017 when he and Manafort were indicted in the first case publicly brought by Mueller's office.
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| Newt Gingrich says slavery needs to be put 'in context,' calls 1619 project a 'lie' Posted: 22 Aug 2019 08:53 AM PDT  "There were several hundred thousand white Americans who died in the Civil War in order to free the slaves," Gingrich argued.
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| Iran unveils home-grown missile defence system Posted: 22 Aug 2019 01:36 AM PDT  Iran unveiled its new home-grown air defence system on Thursday at a time of increased tensions with the United States. Iranian officials have previously called Bavar-373 the Islamic republic's first domestically produced long-range missile defence system. Tehran began making Bavar -- which means "believe" -- after the purchase of Russia's S-300 system was suspended in 2010 due to international sanctions.
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| 2020 Chevy Bolt EV Gets More Driving Range Posted: 22 Aug 2019 06:39 AM PDT  The Bolt goes from 238 miles to 259 and leapfrogs rival EVs from Tesla, Hyundai, and Kia.
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| 2016 Ford Mustang Roush Stage 3 Is A Wild Pony Posted: 21 Aug 2019 10:58 AM PDT  Here's your chance to get a babied, one-owner Roush Mustang at no reserve.Before Ford announced the return of the Shelby GT500 for the 2020 model year, the most performance you could squeeze out of a Mustang was from the aftermarket tuning world. The 2016 Ford Mustang Roush Stage 3 is a perfect example of how far the modern Mustang can be pushed, and this gorgeous, one-owner Roush Mustang will be auctioned off at no reserve by GAA Classic Cars.The highest of the Roush tuning levels, the Stage 3 transforms the Mustang into a track car. This starts by bolting a Roush supercharger atop the Mustang's 5.0-liter Coyote V8 resulting in 670 horsepower – a significant improvement over the 435 -horsepower Mustang GT. Roush also added an active performance exhaust system, adjustable coil-over suspension, extreme-duty half shafts and 20-inch wheels wrapped in high-performance tires.Roush made sure its tuned Mustangs wouldn't be confused with a factory Mustang by giving its car a distinctive, racecar-like appearance. Since all of the Roush Mustang tuning options (RS, Stage 1, Stage 2 and Stage 3) had similar styling modifications, that meant any unsuspecting Camaro or Challenger will get a big surprise from this 670-horsepower monster Mustang. The revised front end is far more menacing than the base Mustang GT, but these changes aren't just for style as the hood scoop, heat extractors and larger grille openings are all functional to improve the car's overall performance. Inside, the Stage 3 Roush Mustang gets billet foot pedals with the Roush logo and an eight-ball-style shift knob.This particular car is one of 28 Roush Stage 3 Mustang coupes painted in this dark gray hue, called Magnetic, and it is being auctioned off at no reserve as part of the George Shinn Collection on Saturday, November 9. The George Shinn Collection is owned by George Shinn, the former owner of the Charlotte/New Orleans Hornets who had started the NBA team and then moved it to New Orleans in 2002. Read More... * Rare 2010 Dodge Challenger Saleen In TorRed Goes To Auction * 1957 Chevrolet Bel Air Stock Car Being Auctioned At No Reserve
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| Climate change turns Arctic into strategic, economic hotspot Posted: 22 Aug 2019 03:16 PM PDT  From a helicopter, Greenland's brilliant white ice and dark mountains make the desolation seem to go on forever. When U.S. President Donald Trump floated the idea of buying Greenland, it was met with derision, seen as an awkward and inappropriate approach of an erstwhile ally. As melting ice opens shipping lanes and reveals incredible riches, the region is seen as a new geopolitical and economic asset, with the U.S., Russia, China and others wanting in.
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| Progressive Group That Backed AOC Takes Aim at Incumbents Across U.S. Posted: 22 Aug 2019 01:00 AM PDT  (Bloomberg) -- The atmosphere at Buunni Coffee in the Bronx is thick with the aroma of roasted Ethiopian beans and anti-establishment fervor.The shop is in the Riverdale neighborhood represented for more than 30 years in the House by Democrat Eliot Engel, a close ally of Speaker Nancy Pelosi. Wielding their personal laptops and cell phones, a crew of volunteers mostly in their 20s and 30s is trying to change that."Hello, I'm calling on behalf of Jamaal Bowman," begin most calls from a make-shift phone bank upstairs, introducing a progressive candidate few people in the district have ever heard of. A lot of the connections end abruptly. But occasionally, interest is piqued, and another potential voter's name is logged for the middle school principal endorsed by Justice Democrats, the progressive activist group that backed Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez in a neighboring district.The group is hoping to repeat Ocasio-Cortez's stunning 2018 Democratic primary victory over Joe Crowley, who was a member of House leadership and a 20-year incumbent. Energized by that upset, the Justice Democrats who has endorsed candidates in Massachusetts, Texas and Ohio to challenge Democratic incumbents they deem as too moderate to reflect the progressive energy animating voters in solidly blue districts.It's a major 2020 headache for Pelosi. She often reminds her caucus that their House majority depends on defending and flipping swing districts where middle-of-the-road voters are turned off by progressive causes like Medicare for All and the Green New Deal.Losing her incumbents to upstart challengers risks ceding crucial seats to Republicans and playing into President Donald Trump's attempt to present Ocasio-Cortez and her closest allies -- Ayanna Pressley of Massachusetts, Rashida Tlaib of Michigan and Ilhan Omar of Minnesota -- as the face of a Democratic Party trending towards socialism.EndorsementBowman, 43, an education-reform activist from Yonkers, is one of Engel's two leading primary challengers. Another is educator Andom Ghebreghiorgis, 33, of Mount Vernon. But it was Bowman who won the endorsement of Justice Democrats, a progressive badge of honor also sought by Ghebreghiorgis and about 10 others vying for the Democratic nomination in New York's 16th Congressional District.The district is heavily Democratic and Engel, 72, has been entrenched. He handily defeated three Democratic primary challengers in 2018 with 74 percent of the vote -- and didn't even have a Republican opponent in the general election.But for Bowman and other progressives, too many Democrats in such safe districts haven't changed with the times and don't reflect the more leftward tilt of their constituents."A corporate Democrat and a paper progressive," is how Bowman dismissively described Engel.The fight for Engel's seat is but one of the tests for whether Ocasio-Cortez's surprise 2018 victory was a template for efforts to yank the party further left, which aren't limited to Justice Democrats.Engel's fellow New Yorkers such as House Judiciary Chairman Jerrold Nadler, Carolyn Maloney, Nita Lowey, Kathleen Rice, and Yvette Clark, are among those facing primary challenges, as are Ways and Means Chairman Richard Neal of Massachusetts, Henry Cuellar in Texas and Minority Leader Steny Hoyer of Maryland.Engel's ConfidenceEngel said he wouldn't know Bowman "if I fell into him" and expressed confidence he won't lose the primary -- to anyone.He concedes that Justice Democrats "did catch lightning in a bottle" by backing the rise of Ocasio-Cortez in 2018. But he suggests the group is seriously miscalculating by "going around the country thinking they can catch lighting in a bottle again in many other places."Justice Democrats, which was founded by former staff members of the Bernie Sanders 2016 presidential campaign, is trying to do just that.Along with Bowman, the organization so far this year has endorsed Jessica Cisneros to challenge Cuellar in Texas; Holyoke Mayor Alex Morse in his Massachusetts primary bid against Neal; and Morgan Harper in an Ohio challenge to Representative Joyce Beatty. The group also endorsed candidates who lost their 2018 challenges to Representatives Dan Lipinski in Illinois, and William Lacy Clay in Missouri. Progressive Betsy Sweet has the group's backing in the primary vying to defeat Republican Senator Susan Collins, as well as Kara Eastman in her bid to unseat Nebraska Representative Don Bacon.'AOC' TiesThe Justice Democrats' website plays up its ties with Ocasio-Cortez and the rest of the squad, but the four freshmen aren't now openly or actively campaigning against their House colleagues. One page sells t-shirts, hoodies and tank tops touting "Ayanna & Ilhan & Rashida & Alexandria" and "Green New Deal.""We thought Jamaal had the best shot to take on someone who is difficult to beat," said Justice Democrat spokesman Waleed Shahid. He pointed to Bowman's background founding the Cornerstone Academy for Social Action, and his advocacy for equitable school funding and opposition to standardized school testing.Shahid said the group's assistance for Bowman is similar to how it is operating for other insurgent House campaigns -- aiding in his launch, helping find staff and making voter contacts. Justice Democrats will use its "pretty wide net" of small-donation contributors to provide support, he said.Bowman and Ghebreghiorgis acknowledge they have a steep, uphill battle to unseat Engel. Ghebreghiorgis said eventually one of them should drop out to prevent a split of the progressive vote.Both seize on election data reflecting that only about 7% of the district's registered voters showed up to cast ballots in the 2018 Democratic primary, and the Bronx portion of district -- which stretches to southern Westchester County -- is under-represented in the turnout.Untapped VotersThey say that suggests voters aren't engaged by Engel and that there's a lot untapped votes that could be won by a challenger."It tends to make you think there's actually a capacity to mobilize and bring people into the fold in the Bronx, who have historically not been voting," Ghebreghiorgis said.Out on the stump, Bowman touts what is becoming a familiar progressive agenda. He is for Medicare for All, free public college tuition, overhauling the criminal justice system and the Green New Deal."My opponent voted for an unjust war in Iraq, deregulating Wall Street, school privatization and building more prisons," Bowman said in his launch video. "While the very few at the top continue to build their wealth and power, the majority of us continue to struggle."At a picnic by the grassroots "Indivisible" group that began in opposition to Trump's 2016 election, Engel made a point to highlight that he has joined the call for an impeachment inquiry, which now roughly half of the 235 House Democrats want to pursue.The incumbent congressman does have some progressive bona fides and a record of liberal achievements. Kenneth Jenkins, the Westchester deputy county executive, and former president of the Yonkers branch of the NAACP, said he's been an Engel supporter for years, dating from their work together on desegregation and housing issues."People forget that Eliot was the rabble-rouser of his time," Jenkins said. "He was the renegade and the liberal."When Engel first ran for the state Assembly in a 1977 special election, he was the insurgent liberal nominee who defeated both the Democratic and Republican candidates. And in his first race for a U.S. House seat, in 1988, he beat a 10-term congressman, Mario Biaggi, who had already resigned his seat after being convicted on racketeering charges, but remained on the primary ballot.At Buunni Coffee, some of the volunteers said they hadn't met Bowman yet. But nearly all were aware he'd gotten the backing of Justice Democrats, the group famous for backing Ocasio-Cortez's 2018 candidacy.Jatnna De La Cruz, 20, a City College of New York political science student, said that "overlap with the Justice Democrats and AOC" played some role in her wanting to canvass for Bowman, but it was not the only reason.Asked what she knew about Engel, she said, "I know is he has been in Congress for 30 years."When Bowman himself arrived, he was clearly happy to find such a crew of canvassers. He said he's proud of his endorsement from the Justice Democrats: "It comes up and I bring it up, I mention it because I want people to know our ideology and where we are coming up."He also recognizes a campaign to topple an incumbent won't be built overnight."It's still early," Bowman said. "We're just working. We have our heads down. We're grinding."To contact the reporter on this story: Billy House in Washington at bhouse5@bloomberg.netTo contact the editors responsible for this story: Joe Sobczyk at jsobczyk@bloomberg.net, Anna EdgertonFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
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| Yale failed to stop professor who sexually assaulted students over decades, report says Posted: 21 Aug 2019 08:46 PM PDT ![Yale failed to stop professor who sexually assaulted students over decades, report says]( "Yale failed to stop professor who sexually assaulted students over decades, report says") A report commissioned by Yale says a professor assaulted at least five students, and an investigation in 1994 failed to stop him.
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| Farmer's threat prompts U.S. Agriculture Department to pull staff from crop tour Posted: 21 Aug 2019 07:09 PM PDT  CORALVILLE, Iowa/CHICAGO (Reuters) - The U.S. Agriculture Department said on Wednesday it had pulled all staff from an annual crop tour after an employee was threatened, and three sources said the threat of violence was made during a phone call from an angry farmer. U.S. farmers have complained this month that a government crop report did not reflect damage from historic flooding this spring. Lance Honig, crops chief at the USDA's National Agricultural Statistics Service, was among the USDA staffers who had to leave the privately-run Pro Farmer tour, three sources with knowledge of the situation said.
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| Overstock CEO resigns over relationship with Russian 'spy' Posted: 22 Aug 2019 03:53 PM PDT  The chief executive of the e-commerce firm Overstock.com stepped down Thursday over his relationship with an alleged Russian intelligence operative jailed for meddling in US politics. Patrick Byrne only recently admitted that he had a close relationship with Maria Butina for three years, during the period when she beguiled top Republican and National Rifle Association officials with talk of strengthening Moscow-Washington relations and her flair with guns.
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| L.L. Bean's Huge End-of-Summer Sale Is Taking Up to 70% Off Posted: 22 Aug 2019 11:17 AM PDT |
| North Dakota court overturns life term in cut from womb case Posted: 22 Aug 2019 04:09 PM PDT  A judge overstepped by giving a life prison sentence to a man whose girlfriend cut the baby from the womb of an unsuspecting neighbor, the North Dakota Supreme Court ruled Thursday, ordering that the man be resentenced. William Hoehn, of Fargo, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit kidnapping in the August 2017 attack on Savanna Greywind, who died of her injuries but whose baby survived. Hoehn's girlfriend, Brooke Crews, admitted that she sliced Greywind's baby from her womb.
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| Trump dismisses criticism of his dual loyalty comments: 'It's only anti-Semitic in your head' Posted: 21 Aug 2019 11:16 AM PDT  President Trump Wednesday expanded on his views about how Jews who vote for Democrats are "disloyal" and dismissed any criticism of his comments.
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| Beto O’Rourke: As president, I’d institute a mandatory buyback of assault weapons Posted: 22 Aug 2019 04:17 PM PDT  Only America has more guns than people. Follow the lead of moms demanding action and students marching for their lives, writes candidate Beto O'Rourke
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| The 10 Least Expensive New Compact SUVs to Own Posted: 21 Aug 2019 12:52 PM PDT |
| 5 men, 85-year-old woman accused of lewd, sexual activity in Connecticut woods Posted: 22 Aug 2019 07:03 AM PDT  Police say the six people, five men and an 85-year-old woman, were involved in lewd and sexual activity in the woods in Connecticut.
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| Baltimore teen gets life in prison in police officer slaying Posted: 21 Aug 2019 04:59 PM PDT  A Baltimore teenager was sentenced to life in prison Wednesday, more than a year after he accelerated a stolen Jeep and fatally struck a Maryland police officer in a suburban cul-de-sac. Dawnta Harris, 17, was tried as an adult earlier this year and convicted of felony murder in the slaying of Baltimore County police Officer Amy Caprio. A judge in the suburban county that surrounds the city of Baltimore also sentenced Harris to 20 years in prison for burglary.
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| Experts say there is still a clear route for Trump to win reelection in 2020 even if a recession strikes Posted: 22 Aug 2019 07:13 AM PDT  Many analysts believe that a recession would tank US President Donald Trump's chances of reelection in 2020, but that's not necessarily the case.
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| Lone Analyst Who Cut Cathay to Sell Says He Faces Huge Pressure Posted: 22 Aug 2019 02:00 PM PDT  (Bloomberg) -- The analyst who issued a report warning investors to dump shares of embattled Cathay Pacific Airways Ltd. before they tumble to their lowest levels since 1998, is getting a lot of blowback after his controversial call."Never before in my 12 years of investment analyst career have I received this much pressure on a particular stock rating," Zhao Dongchen, who last week issued his inaugural report on Cathay with a "strong sell," said in an emailed response to Bloomberg queries. "Never before in my 36 years of life am I under such heavy pressure."Zhao, who's head of equity research at the investment-banking arm of state-run giant Industrial & Commercial Bank of China Ltd., issued his report as Cathay was under fire from China and facing boycotts from government-run businesses because the carrier's employees joined the anti-Beijing protests in Hong Kong. No other analyst is advising investors to sell Cathay and Zhao's HK$6 target price is more than 40% below the stock's current price."We have one of China's biggest state banks issuing an especially bearish and unusual sell recommendation on a private company in H.K. that is already the target of the Chinese state," said George Magnus, a former UBS Group AG chief economist and author of "Red Flags: Why Xi's China Is in Jeopardy." "You don't have to try hard to conclude that the interests of Chinese state banking institutions and the government are closely aligned."Since Zhao's report, which preceded the abrupt resignation of Cathay's chief executive officer, shares of Hong Kong's flag carrier have rebounded 6.1%, making it the fifth-best-performer among 64 listed global airlines tracked by Bloomberg.Meanwhile, Zhao has been facing pressure to cancel or delay interviews, change his rating or target price, and refrain from issuing research updates on Cathay since his Aug. 13 report, he said. "A lot of people" tried to persuade him to "go easy" on the company, Zhao said.Still, nobody influenced the report or its timing, and he stands by the call, Zhao said. He said that his research was independent and that people shouldn't unfairly single out Chinese banks for having state ties because so do lenders in places like the U.K. and Singapore.In his report, entitled "Less Deserved to Fly," Zhao criticized the Hong Kong carrier for potentially causing "irreversible damage" to the company's brand because of "poor crisis management" in relation to the protests. The report said that a large-scale management reshuffle would be an "upside risk" for the company."My strong sell rating is based on the difference between Cathay's stock price and our target price," he said. "Simple as that." He said he won't shy away from a "shock rating" as he believes contrarian reports to be more helpful to investors.Zhao said Cathay currently trades at a premium to other airlines in Asia, which he believes will "evaporate" because of factors ranging from the unrest in Hong Kong to the effects of the U.S.-China trade war on global commerce.Also, the airline's management team has shown a "severe lack of composure" in dealing with crises, including a recent data breach and problems with the Chinese regulator, Zhao said.So what's Zhao's advice for Cathay now?"Be a better company," he said.Cathay Pacific declined to comment.Zhao, who typically focuses on raw materials research, runs a team of 21 equity analysts covering 8 sectors at Hong Kong-based ICBC International.Zhao's primary expertise lies away from airlines, with the analyst voted number one for China energy research by Institutional Investor this year, according to ICBC. He started covering Cathay for ICBC International only in March, though he said he has kept a close watch on industries such as transportation.In 2006, when he first started out in a mutual fund, Zhao said he covered airlines for about three months. "To me, the airlines sector has never been a stranger," he said.Yet Zhao stands alone among his peers in his bearish view of Cathay. Of the 19 analysts tracked by Bloomberg, 13 have the equivalent of a buy rating and 5 have holds."Strong sell is the wrong rating on the stock at the moment," said Mark Webb, an analyst at GMT Research in London who previously covered the stock for 18 years at HSBC Holdings Plc. "Only a significant deterioration in the situation in Hong Kong would make it go significantly lower from here."Asked why Zhao appears to only assign his harshest ratings to foreign companies such as Rio Tinto Plc, Vale SA and BHP Group Ltd, while only giving buy ratings for Chinese companies such as Shandong Gold Mining Co., Zhao said:"I did just issue a strong sell rating on Cathay Pacific, didn't I? That's a Hong Kong-incorporated company, not a foreign one."To contact Bloomberg News staff for this story: Evelyn Yu in Shanghai at yyu263@bloomberg.net;Gregor Stuart Hunter in Hong Kong at ghunter21@bloomberg.netTo contact the editors responsible for this story: Young-Sam Cho at ycho2@bloomberg.net, ;Christopher Anstey at canstey@bloomberg.net, Christopher JasperFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
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| Interpol issues red notice for former Colombian guerrilla leader Posted: 22 Aug 2019 08:06 AM PDT  Interpol on Thursday issued a red notice for a fugitive Colombian lawmaker and former FARC rebel commander who the United States wants extradited for alleged conspiracy to export 10 tonnes of cocaine. Seuxis Paucias Hernandez - known best by his guerrilla nom de guerre Jesus Santrich - was indicted in 2017 by a U.S. grand jury, setting off a legal saga that has seen him twice arrested and released. Hernandez has denied the U.S. allegations.
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| Beijing hits back after Trudeau vows to stand up to China Posted: 22 Aug 2019 02:38 AM PDT  Beijing on Thursday accused Ottawa of worsening bilateral relations after Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau vowed to stand up to China amid deepening diplomatic and trade disputes. The two countries have been locked in a feud since last December, when Canada detained top Huawei executive Meng Wanzhou and -- in apparent retaliation -- China detained two Canadian nationals over espionage-linked accusations. On Wednesday, Trudeau pushed back against Beijing in a speech that promised to "always defend Canadians and Canadian interests" and to not "back down".
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| Hispanic Journalism Group Boots Fox News Over Immigrant ‘Invasion’ Rhetoric Posted: 22 Aug 2019 11:25 AM PDT  Kevin HagenA major organization for Hispanic journalists on Thursday gave Fox News the boot from its upcoming conference in response to the network's use "invasion" rhetoric when discussing immigration.Fox News was set to appear as a sponsor at the National Association of Hispanic Journalists' confab next month in San Antonio, but in a letter to the group's members, NAHJ President Hugo Balta said that invitation has been revoked."The line between commentary and journalism was crossed long ago by Fox News and is no longer even in sight," wrote Balta, who is currently an MSNBC senior producer. "To accept financial support from an entity that perpetuates the spread of disinformation to the public about the Hispanic and Latino community risks the integrity and credibility of NAHJ's 35 year mission."As such, the NAHJ head wrote, the journalist org will return $16,666 in sponsorship funds back to Fox News."It is unfortunate the country's main organization for Hispanic journalists has chosen to exclude FOX News from their upcoming convention," Marsheila Hayes, Fox News's vice president of diversity and inclusion, wrote in a statement. "As the leading news network in the country, we are committed to fostering a diverse and collaborative workplace environment, and have been recognized in the industry for our advancement in this area, most notably with our multimedia reporter program. We are proud of our inclusive team and their achievements in journalism."Balta explained that the final straw was a recent segment in which Todd Starnes, a Fox News pundit with a lengthy history of racist and anti-gay comments, described immigrants as a "rampaging horde of illegal aliens" and compared them to Nazis.Balta noted that Starnes' comments closely resembled rhetoric used in a racist manifesto written by the suspected gunman who killed more than 22 people earlier this month in El Paso, Texas."Starnes brazen language is symptomatic of a culture that provides a megaphone for disinformation by those in power with agendas, including the Trump administration at the cost of the most vulnerable – immigrant communities," Balta said.Although the organization singled out Starnes, Balta said Fox News was ultimately responsible for such rhetoric. Fox News management "accorded Starnes the license to use his program to sustain and cultivate fear," Balta wrote, adding that the NAHJ repeatedly met with and talked to Fox News about segments the organization found alarming and offensive. "The latest 'regret' by Fox News is one of many where the immigrant community and by association, all Hispanics and Latinos, have been demonized by voices with high visibility due to there being little to no consequences by management," Balta said.Though Fox News will no longer appear as a sponsor at the NAHJ event, Thursday's statement said the organization would continue to engage network brass, and will revisit future sponsorship should they "demonstrate real change and a true sincerity for their partnership with our association."NAHJ joins a number of other organizations who have shunned Fox News over its pervasive anti-immigrant rhetoric. Many advertisers have boycotted purchasing time during Tucker Carlson's primetime show over xenophobic comments he has made in the past year, including describing immigrants as making America "poorer and dirtier."Fox Host Compares Migrants to Nazis: 'We've Been Invaded by a Horde'Read more at The Daily Beast.Got a tip? Send it to The Daily Beast hereGet 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.
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| Dog owner charged with second-degree murder in Detroit 9-year-old's mauling death Posted: 22 Aug 2019 03:42 PM PDT  Pierre Cleveland, 33, of Detroit will face charges of second-degree murder, involuntary manslaughter and having a dangerous animal causing death
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| The Latest: UK says officials can't contact consulate worker Posted: 22 Aug 2019 06:13 AM PDT  The British government says officials and family members have not been able to speak with a Hong Kong consulate employee who has been detained by mainland Chinese authorities. Cheng's friends believe he was detained at a Hong Kong high-speed railway station that has been the focus of controversy because passengers go through Chinese immigration and customs inside it. The British government said it continues to "urgently seek further information" about the case.
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| View Photos of the 2020 Honda Civic Si Posted: 21 Aug 2019 07:27 AM PDT |
| Immigration lawyers: We saw what's happening at the US-Mexico border. It's a tragic farce. Posted: 21 Aug 2019 05:29 PM PDT  There is no due process in Mexico for asylum seekers, just endless obstacles to staying alive, finding an attorney and communicating with authorities.
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| Trump's roller coaster week of insults, denials, and bungled messaging paints a damaging portrait of a White House in chaos Posted: 22 Aug 2019 06:34 AM PDT  It has been a hell of a week for President Donald Trump, even by his own standards, and the week isn't over.
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| Former India Finance Minister Arrested on Corruption Allegations Posted: 22 Aug 2019 06:47 AM PDT  (Bloomberg) -- India's former finance minister and a senior leader of the main opposition Congress party, Palaniappan Chidambaram, was sent to the custody of the country's federal investigative agency for four days by a local court on Thursday following his arrest by for alleged corruption during his tenure.Ajay Kumar Kuhar, a special judge appointed to the case, allowed the Central Bureau of Investigation custody of Chidambaram until Aug. 26. He will be allowed regular medical examinations and permission to meet family and lawyers, the court said.Chidambaram was taken Wednesday night from his residence in New Delhi, soon after he appeared at Congress party offices to address reporters, saying he had not been hiding for the past 24 hours -- as many believed -- but seeking protection of the law.Flanked by party colleagues and senior lawyers he said no charge had been filed in a court by the investigating agencies. "Yet, there is a widespread impression that grave offences have been committed and my son and I have committed those offences," said Chidambaram. "Nothing can be further from the truth."When Chidambaram returned to his residence after addressing the media, a team from the CBI arrived and whisked him away.A lawyer with a degree from Harvard Business School, Chidambaram is one of the most prominent members of the Congress party and is a lawmaker in the upper house of parliament.He's been facing allegations since May 2017, when the CBI registered a case against his son and unknown officials from the finance ministry for corruption in an overseas investment approval when Chidambaram was the finance minister in 2007. Since then, the Enforcement Directorate, which investigates financial crimes, has also begun investigating a case of alleged money laundering.Chidambaram had sought interim protection in both cases, however the Delhi High Court on Tuesday refused to grant him bail, saying he appeared to be the "kingpin" and "key conspirator" of the alleged scam. The Supreme Court will hear his plea on Friday seeking a stay of the High Court order.Now 73, Chidambaram was finance minister for more than six years in Manmohan Singh's Congress-led coalition government until 2014 and was also the country's home minister following the November 2008 terrorist attacks in Mumbai.Chidambaram has denied all the allegations and earlier said the government was intimidating him to silence his criticisms of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's administration. The Congress party has accused the Modi government of targeting opposition leaders, calling the action a "political vendetta.""This is quite unusual, unprecedented," said Ajoy Bose, a Delhi-based independent political analyst, adding it's difficult to understand whether the custodial interrogation of Chidambaram was necessary when he was already appearing before an investigating agency. "Obviously questions will be raised about whether this is just or if there is some political angle to it."(Updates with court order in first and second paragraphs.)To contact the reporters on this story: Bibhudatta Pradhan in New Delhi at bpradhan@bloomberg.net;Upmanyu Trivedi in New Delhi at utrivedi2@bloomberg.netTo contact the editors responsible for this story: Ruth Pollard at rpollard2@bloomberg.net, Abhay Singh, Tuhin KarFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
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| Hannity: There has never been a better friend and ally to the state of Israel than Donald J. Trump Posted: 21 Aug 2019 07:00 PM PDT  Sean Hannity weighs in on President Trump's relationship with Israel and 'the Squad's' feud.
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| Giant panda Bei Bei, soon to go bye-bye, turns four in US Posted: 22 Aug 2019 09:12 AM PDT  The birthday celebration for Bei Bei -- his name is pronounced "Bay Bay" -- could be viewed live thanks to the zoo's "Panda Cam," which broadcasts scenes of the four-year-old and his siblings and parents from their enclosure round-the-clock. Bei Bei will soon be returned to China, under terms of the agreement that brought him to the US zoo on loan. Under the loan agreement, the zoo pays China $500,000 a year to support conservation efforts there, and any panda cubs born at the zoo may stay until age four, according to the Smithsonian website.
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| Brown bear that is killing livestock and startling hikers in Italy's Dolomites is wanted, dead or alive Posted: 22 Aug 2019 09:13 AM PDT  A bear that is raiding beehives, attacking livestock and startling hikers in the Dolomite mountains of Italy is now wanted dead or alive. The brown bear is known to scientists as M49 but was nicknamed Papillon, after the Henri Charrière novel about escaping from Devil's Island in French Guiana, when it managed to climb over a 16ft-high fence and flee an enclosure last month. It had been captured just a few hours before after being identified as a problem bear which posed a threat to farm animals. Since escaping the enclosure in a wildlife sanctuary in the province of Trentino on July 15, it has been slowly moving northwards, disemboweling a cow and encountering hikers. The province of South Tyrol has now issued an order which calls for the capture or, if necessary, the killing of the 140kg, three-year-old bear. It is normally illegal to kill or capture Italy's bears, which were introduced from Slovenia in the 1990s. The order was signed on Wednesday by Arno Kompatscher, the president of the autonomous, German-speaking province, which was part of the Austro-Hungarian empire until the end of the First World War when it passed to Italy. "We want to capture the bear in order to protect other bears, and also wolves, because if it continues to be a nuisance, then bears and wolves will never be accepted by the population," said Arnold Schuler, the deputy president of the province. The bear is roaming the Dolomites in northern Italy, between the provinces of Trentino and South Tyrol The authorities say the bear poses a risk to humans. In the last few days, it was seen snuffling around a caravan used by shepherds in a remote mountain spot, looking for discarded food. Two national park rangers fired shots into the air to scare it away. The bear was encountered this week by a hiker on a mountain trail near the Bletterbach Canyon in South Tyrol. "My legs were shaking," the 64-year-old man told a local newspaper. "People joke about meeting a bear in the wild, but when you really do encounter one, you're no longer laughing." Carlo Groff, an expert on large carnivores from Italy's Forestry Corps, says rangers are trying to keep track of the bear's movements and hope to tranquilise and capture it. "The safety of humans comes before the bear," he told La Stampa newspaper. Conservation organisations and animal rights groups have threatened to take legal action against the authorities if the bear comes to any harm. "The bear is simply living its normal life. It has never been dangerous to humans. It has caused a few thousand euros' worth of damage, and it is right that compensation should be paid, but we need to learn to value bears as an asset, not a threat," said Isabella Pratesi of WWF Italy. While the autonomous provincial government has called for the bear's capture or, if necessary, killing, Sergio Costa, the environment minister, has called for the bear to be spared.
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| Why are Jason Momoa and other Native Hawaiians protesting a telescope on Mauna Kea? What's at stake? Posted: 21 Aug 2019 05:55 PM PDT  Protests against the Thirty Meter Telescope at Mauna Kea on Hawaii's Big Island have elevated issues of Native Hawaiian rights and conservation.
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| Federal judge rules that immigration law is unconstitutional Posted: 22 Aug 2019 11:56 AM PDT  A federal judge in Kansas has ruled that a law making it a crime to "encourage" or "induce" immigrants to enter or live in the country illegally is unconstitutional. KCUR-FM reports that U.S. District Judge Carlos Murguia issued his ruling from the bench Wednesday before throwing out the convictions of Jose Felipe Hernandez-Calvillo and Mauro Papalotzi. Kansas isn't governed by the Ninth Circuit, but Murguia found the argument persuasive.
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| UPDATE 3-Employee of Britain's Hong Kong mission held in China over prostitution -report Posted: 22 Aug 2019 02:33 AM PDT ![UPDATE 3-Employee of Britain's Hong Kong mission held in China over prostitution -report]( "UPDATE 3-Employee of Britain's Hong Kong mission held in China over prostitution -report") An employee of the British consulate in Hong Kong has been detained in China for involvement in prostitution, the state-backed Global Times newspaper said on Thursday, as Britain said it continued to urgently seek information. China's foreign ministry confirmed on Wednesday that the employee, Simon Cheng, had been detained in the border city of Shenzhen neighbouring Hong Kong. In a report on its English-language website, the paper, published by the ruling Communist Party's official People's Daily, cited Shenzhen police as saying Cheng had been detained for 15 days for "solicitation of prostitution".
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| A couple who ran a religious conversion therapy program have been charged with trafficking underage boys Posted: 21 Aug 2019 05:34 PM PDT  Gary and Meghann Wiggins were arrested in Alabama, and remain in custody at the Burnet County Jail in Texas on a $100,000 bond.
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| The NRA's Wayne LaPierre: Washington's all-powerful gun man Posted: 21 Aug 2019 09:48 PM PDT  After a surge in mass shootings and reports of scandalous spending on his own luxury needs, Wayne LaPierre's time as Washington's preeminent power-broker appeared to be up. After two shocking massacres at the beginning of August, Trump initially promised tougher gun controls, a pledge which quickly melted away after he spoke on the phone Tuesday with LaPierre. Suddenly, Trump was again a hardliner defending the most absolutist interpretation of the US Constitution's Second Amendment guarantee of firearms ownership.
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| Dem. N.C. Governor Vetoes Bill Requiring Local, State Cops to Cooperate with ICE Posted: 22 Aug 2019 08:43 AM PDT  North Carolina's Democratic governor, Roy Cooper, vetoed a bill Wednesday that would have required local and state police to cooperate with federal immigration authorities.Under the legislation, which passed the state House along party lines on Tuesday, local and state police would be required to detain illegal immigrants in their custody until Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents could retrieve them."This legislation is simply about scoring partisan political points and using fear to divide North Carolina," Cooper said in a Wednesday statement. "This bill, in addition to being unconstitutional, weakens law enforcement in North Carolina by mandating sheriffs to do the job of federal agents."Republican state senator Chuck Edwards accused Cooper of prioritizing the interests of illegal immigrants over the safety of North Carolinians in response to the veto."Law-enforcement officers have a sworn responsibility to protect their citizens -- and that includes cooperating with federal authorities," Edwards told the Raleigh News & Observer. "Unlike Governor Cooper, who prefers to pander to his far-left supporters, we will protect North Carolinians and plan to override his irresponsible veto."Edwards went on to cite a recent case in which the Mecklenburg County Sheriff's Office, whose jurisdiction includes the city of Charlotte, ignored an ICE detainer request for a Honduran man who was arrested on rape and child-sex-abuse charges.Republicans enjoy a majority in both the state Senate and state House but they would require the cooperation of a few Democrats to override Cooper's veto.
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| Half of Venezuela's Oil Rigs May Disappear If U.S. Waivers Lapse Posted: 22 Aug 2019 12:19 PM PDT  (Bloomberg) -- A looming U.S. sanctions deadline is threatening to clobber Venezuela's dwindling oil-rig fleet and hamper energy production in the nation with the world's largest crude reserves.Almost half the rigs operating in Venezuela will shut down by Oct. 25 if the Trump administration doesn't extend a 90-day waiver from its sanctions, according to data compiled from consultancy Caracas Capital Markets. That could further cripple the OPEC member's production because the structures are needed to drill new wells crucial for even maintaining output, which is already near the lowest level since the 1940s.A shutdown in the rigs will also put pressure on Nicolas Maduro's administration, which counts oil revenues as its main lifeline. The U.S. is betting on increased economic pressure to oust the regime and bring fresh elections to the crisis-torn nation, a founding member of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries and Latin America's biggest crude exporter until recent years.Venezuela had 23 oil rigs drilling in July, down from 49 just two years ago, data compiled by Baker Hughes show. Ten of those are exposed to U.S. sanctions, according to calculations by Caracas Capital Markets. The Treasury Department extended waivers in July for service providers to continue for three more months, less than the six months the companies had sought.Most other government agencies involved in the deliberations opposed any extension, a senior administration official said last month, adding that another reprieve will be harder to come by."Almost half the rigs are being run by the Yanks, and if the window shuts down on this in two months, then that's really going to hurt Venezuela unless the Russians and the Chinese come in," said Russ Dallen, a Miami-based managing partner at Caracas Capital Markets.Output RiskA U.S. Treasury official said the department doesn't generally comment on possible sanctions actions.More than 200,000 barrels a day of output at four projects Chevron Corp. is keeping afloat could shut if the waivers aren't renewed. That would be debilitating to Maduro because the U.S. company, as a minority partner, only gets about 40,000 barrels a day of that production.The departure of the American oil service providers would hurt other projects in the Orinoco region, where operators need to constantly drill wells just to keep output from declining. The U.S.-based companies are also involved in state-controlled Petroleos de Venezuela SA's joint ventures in other regions such as Lake Maracaibo.Limiting ExposureHalliburton Co., Schlumberger Ltd. and Weatherford International Ltd. have reduced staff and are limiting their exposure to the risk of non-payment in the country, according to people familiar with the situation. The three companies have written down a total of at least $1.4 billion since 2018 in charges related to operations in Venezuela, according to financial filings. Baker Hughes had also scaled back before additional sanctions were announced earlier this year, the people said.Schlumberger, Baker Hughes, Weatherford, PDVSA and Venezuela's oil ministry all declined to comment.Halliburton has adjusted its Venezuela operations to customer activity, and continues operating all of its product service lines at its operational bases, including in the Orinoco Belt, it said in an emailed response to questions. It works directly with several of PDVSA's joint ventures, and timely payments from customers are in accordance with U.S. regulations, it said.Hamilton, Bermuda-based Nabors Industries Ltd. has three drilling rigs in Venezuela that can operate for a client until the sanctions expire in October, Chief Executive Officer Anthony Petrello said in a July 30 conference call, without naming the client.The sanctions carry geopolitical risks for the U.S. If Maduro manages to hang on, American companies would lose a foothold in Venezuela, giving Russian competitors such as Rosneft Oil Co. a chance to fill the void. Chinese companies could also benefit. Even if the waivers get extended, the uncertainty hinders any long-term planning or investments in the nation by the exposed companies.Rosneft's press office didn't respond to phone calls and emails seeking comment on operations in Venezuela.\--With assistance from David Wethe and Debjit Chakraborty.To contact the reporters on this story: Peter Millard in Rio de Janeiro at pmillard1@bloomberg.net;Fabiola Zerpa in Caracas Office at fzerpa@bloomberg.netTo contact the editors responsible for this story: Tina Davis at tinadavis@bloomberg.net, Pratish Narayanan, Joe RyanFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
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| Court: Electoral College members not bound by popular vote Posted: 21 Aug 2019 04:53 PM PDT  A U.S. appeals court in Denver said Electoral College members can vote for the presidential candidate of their choice and aren't bound by the popular vote in their states. The 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled Tuesday that the Colorado secretary of state violated the Constitution in 2016 when he removed an elector and nullified his vote because the elector refused to cast his ballot for Democrat Hillary Clinton, who won the popular vote. The ruling applies only to Colorado and five other states in the 10th Circuit: Kansas, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Utah and Wyoming.
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