| Michigan police officer on leave, probe launched after violent arrest Posted: 11 Nov 2020 08:21 PM PST  Video shows several police officers appearing to strike the 25-year-old during a combative arrest.
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| Disgruntled Mississippi lawmaker wants his state to secede. Fine with me. Bye! | Opinion Posted: 13 Nov 2020 01:40 PM PST  Dear Price Wallace:
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| Earthquake in Great Smoky Mountains felt up to 16 miles away, geologists say Posted: 12 Nov 2020 03:49 AM PST  People in Tennessee and North Carolina reported feeling the quake.
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| Sen. Amy Klobuchar, who could become Biden's attorney general, said breaking up Google should be 'on the table' Posted: 13 Nov 2020 03:57 AM PST  "In a serious monopolization action like this one, it's important that a breakup remedy be on the table," Sen. Amy Klobuchar said.
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| Passengers on First Cruise to Return to Caribbean Want Out After 7 People Get COVID Posted: 12 Nov 2020 03:01 PM PST  At least seven passengers aboard the first cruise ship to set sail in the Caribbean since the coronavirus pandemic began have tested positive, according to two passengers on the ship.Ben and David Hewitt-McDonald, who operate a YouTube channel and cruise blog about their sea travels, confirmed to The Daily Beast on Thursday that a ship-wide announcement went out saying five members of a family from the U.S. had been diagnosed with COVID-19 after being tested twice. A few hours later, they said a sixth person had tested positive and at least one person was taken to the hospital.On Friday morning, the ship's captain told passengers that the wife of a person who tested positive the night before had also been tested positive."The original passenger who tested positive had another two tests along with all family members," the British couple said. "We are anxious to get off to be honest, we would like to be somewhere with more fresh air and space, to stop any spread of the virus."The SeaDream Yacht Club's cruise ship received their first positive test result on Wednesday, prompting the captain to make an announcement for all guests to return to their rooms to quarantine. The vessel immediately headed back to Barbados from the Grenadines.> We've just received an announcement from the Captain that one person is feeling unwell and has tested positive for COVID. We have been asked to stay in our cabins and we are returning to Barbados. Hopefully it's a false positive but we are impressed with SeaDreams swift actions.. pic.twitter.com/wbOUlKsMsY> > — Cruise with Ben & David (@CruiseWithBD) November 11, 2020The news came just four days into the ship's seven-day trip. It departed from Barbados on Saturday before making several stops—including Saint Vincent, Canouan Island, Tobago Cays, and Union Island—before it was set to end on Saturday.Instead, all passengers are now stuck in their rooms as the crew and local authorities in Barbados figure out the best strategy to contain the virus."We are really upset because we really felt like the passengers, crew, and cruise line took COVID very seriously yet it still managed to get on board. SeaDream requires double the amount of the tests as the CDC will require going forward," said the couple, who have been aboard the ship for almost three weeks. "So we ask ourselves is testing the way forward if it can still get onboard such a small ship?"The trip was the first time SeaDream had resumed its West Indies route since the start of the pandemic, which has killed almost 240,000 Americans. It came after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued new cruise ship guidance to help an industry paralyzed by the pandemic to resume operations in a phased approach.In March, cruise ships were banned from sailing in U.S. waters after the CDC issued a no-sail order due to several outbreaks, including on the Diamond Princess and the Grand Princess, where 10 people died and more than 800 tested positive.The SeaDream had relaunched with extensive testing requirements. Every passenger had to test negative before boarding the ship—and again after boarding. The goal, SeaDream stated in September when announcing their upcoming 22 roundtrip sails from Barbados, was "to create a COVID-19 negative bubble, where guests can relax and enjoy the safety of the ship."But, in a Thursday statement issued when the first passenger tested positive, SeaDream Yacht Club stated the ship had paused its voyage "after a guests' tests for Covid-19 returned assumptive positive results.""The ship's medical staff has tested all crew members and all tests have come back negative. SeaDream is currently retesting all guests," the statement said.> Just as we posted the captain has updated us. We are still waiting for test results from Barbadian authorities, all remaining passengers will be tested at some point - when and how is not known yet, the company is actively working with the local authorities. Cruise Covid pic.twitter.com/KXF8hLT2iD> > — Cruise with Ben & David (@CruiseWithBD) November 12, 2020It's not the first time the SeaDream, which was one of the first cruise liners to resume service in Europe, has had a COVID-positive passenger. In August, the company said an asymptomatic passenger tested positive after disembarking from SeaDream I in Denmark.Despite the latest drama, three passengers who spoke to The Daily Beast on Thursday said the quarantine process had been surprisingly rigorous. Gene Sloan, a cruise writer for The Points Guy, stressed that the ship's crew had kept passengers informed of developments and had an "extensive" virus plan before the quarantine began.> Good morning from the port of @Barbados, where we have been docked since late yesterday evening. I am, unfortunately, on the side of the ship facing away from the dock, so I don't have a view of what's going on pierside. We have been told ... pic.twitter.com/6qrivrsVty> > — Gene Sloan (@CruiseLog) November 12, 2020"The first few days of the trip were pretty normal," Sloan said. "There were changes on the ship, like social distancing and discouraging passengers from mixing with one another, but overall everything was always sanitized and people were taking it seriously. The passengers on board were really excited to be back cruising."He said that everyone was tested multiple times during the trip, and the Hewitt-McDonalds said that there were three PCR rapid testing machines on board that could test nine people per hour. At each location stop, Sloan said passengers were instructed not to interact with locals and were shuttled to empty beaches and resorts.The Hewitt-McDonalds, who boarded the ship in Portsmouth and have been traveling with the ship on its various voyages, said that 40 new passengers, mostly from the U.S. and Canada, boarded on Saturday."We were very shocked with a positive test, after the rigorous pre-cruise actions we had to take we would have thought it almost impossible for COVID to get on the ship," the couple said."Before boarding, we were required to take a full COVID antigen test no longer than 72 hours before boarding. On boarding day in Portsmouth, U.K., the ship's doctor gave us another rapid PCR test. We also had our oxygen levels and temperature taken. There is hourly cleaning of the ship as well as daily temperature checks."Sloan did admit, however, that there was a controversy at the start of the voyage because the ship didn't require passengers to wear face masks on board. By Monday, after complaints from worried passengers, the policy was changed to include a mask-mandate."The ship assumed they could block COVID-19 at the door, you could say," Sloan added. "But people wanted to be extra careful."Read more at The Daily Beast.Get our top stories in your inbox every day. Sign up now!Daily Beast Membership: Beast Inside goes deeper on the stories that matter to you. Learn more.
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| Beijing furious over Pompeo's Taiwan comments, warns of action Posted: 13 Nov 2020 04:29 AM PST  China will strike back against any moves that undermine its core interests, its foreign ministry said on Friday, after U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said that Taiwan "has not been a part of China."
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| Law firm reportedly withdraws from representing Trump campaign in Pennsylvania lawsuit Posted: 13 Nov 2020 06:45 AM PST  A law firm that was representing President Trump's 2020 campaign as it challenged the election results in Pennsylvania has reportedly "abruptly" withdrawn from a lawsuit it filed just a few days ago.Porter Wright Morris & Arthur withdrew from a lawsuit filed on Monday in the Federal District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania on behalf of Trump's campaign over alleged "irregularities" in the presidential election, The New York Times reports."Plaintiffs and Porter Wright have reached a mutual agreement that plaintiffs will be best served if Porter Wright withdraws," Porter Wright Morris & Arthur reportedly said in a court filing.Pennsylvania was the key battleground state where a win for Joe Biden was projected by major news networks on Nov. 7, taking him over the threshold of 270 electoral votes and making him president-elect. Trump has yet to concede the election and has been mounting legal challenges in battleground states but has not provided evidence of widespread voter fraud that might result in a change in the outcome.The Times previously reported that lawyers at Porter Wright Morris & Arthur held meetings to voice "concerns" about the firm's work for Trump. In a statement on Wednesday, the firm said it has a "long history of election law work," which sometimes "calls for us to take on controversial cases." But according to the Times, some employees were "concerned that the firm was being used to undercut the integrity of the electoral process."More stories from theweek.com 7 scathingly funny cartoons about Trump's refusal to concede Trump is reportedly 'very aware' he lost the election but is putting up a fight as 'theater' Texas senator suggests it's too soon to declare Biden the winner because Puerto Rico is still counting votes
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| Mother of college student who died following pancake eating competition drops lawsuit Posted: 13 Nov 2020 10:49 AM PST  Caitlin Nelson's family blamed Sacred Heart university for allowing 2017 event
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| Joe Manchin Slams Fellow Dems’ ‘Crazy Socialist Agenda’ amid Intra-Party Battle: ‘Defund, My Butt’ Posted: 12 Nov 2020 12:52 PM PST  Senator Joe Manchin on Wednesday slammed efforts by progressive members of his party to slash police department budgets, saying the Democratic Party as he conceives of it does not have "some crazy socialist agenda.""Defund the police? Defund, my butt. I'm a proud West Virginia Democrat. We are the party of working men and women. We want to protect Americans' jobs & healthcare. We do not have some crazy socialist agenda, and we do not believe in defunding the police," Manchin wrote in a tweet Wednesday evening.Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, a New York progressive who has voiced support for cutting police budgets, responded to Manchin by tweeting a photo of herself during the State of the Union address in February offering what appears to be a glare in Manchin's direction.Manchin, one of the most moderate members of his party, could end up being the deciding vote on a number of issues should Senate control be split between Republicans and Democrats. Two Georgia Senate races headed for runoff elections in January are expected to decide the balance of power in the upper chamber. Republicans currently have 50 seats in the Senate to Democrats' 48 seats.Instead of defunding police departments, they should be given even more funding in order to better educate and protect officers, Manchin said in an interview with the Washington Examiner.The West Virginia Democrat also voiced his commitment to voting against packing the courts or nixing the legislative filibuster and criticized "Medicare for all" proposals, saying Democrats should attempt to get Republicans to work with them on a good healthcare bill."Under no circumstances would I support packing the court or ending the filibuster if there is a 50-50 tie," he said.Since the police custody death of George Floyd in May, progressive Democrats have called for stripping some or all funding from police departments as a step towards combating police brutality.
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| It just got harder for immigrants: the U.S. naturalization test is about to change Posted: 13 Nov 2020 12:59 PM PST  U.S. legal permanent residents who apply for citizenship through naturalization on or after Dec. 1, 2020, will face a more challenging test — in which immigrants must prove they can read, write and speak basic English, and have essential knowledge of U.S. history and government.
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| Prosecutor reads racist messages by Ahmaud Arbery's killer Posted: 11 Nov 2020 10:06 PM PST  The man who fatally shot Ahmaud Arbery had previously used racial slurs in a text message and on social media, a prosecutor said Thursday as a judge weighed whether to grant bond for the defendant and his father. Travis McMichael and his father, Gregory McMichael, have been jailed since their arrests in May, more than two months after Arbery was slain. The McMichaels, who are white, chased and fatally shot the 25-year-old Black man after they spotted him running in their neighborhood just outside the port city of Brunswick.
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| The Wolverine Watchmen plot to kidnap Michigan Gov. Whitmer also included a plan to burn down the state Capitol building, officials say Posted: 13 Nov 2020 09:22 AM PST  According to the Michigan Attorney General's Office, the group had also considered storming the Capitol to "take hostages" and "execute tyrants."
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| Rand Paul says coronavirus survivors should ‘throw away their masks’ while falsely claiming they’re immune Posted: 13 Nov 2020 09:01 AM PST  There is no evidence to indicate coronavirus survivors are immune to the disease caused by the novel virus
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| Letters to the Editor: Joe Biden should read the L.A. Times before appointing Eric Garcetti to his Cabinet Posted: 13 Nov 2020 03:00 AM PST  Eric Garcetti has been an ineffectual mayor of Los Angeles, readers say, making him a poor pick for Joe Biden's Cabinet.
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| Iron Dome batteries activated to fill cruise missile defense gap Posted: 13 Nov 2020 11:36 AM PST  The units that will operate the Army's interim cruise missile defense capability — Israel's Iron Dome system — are activated.
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| U.S. judge dismisses Trump campaign libel lawsuit against CNN Posted: 12 Nov 2020 12:24 PM PST  A U.S. judge on Thursday dismissed a libel lawsuit filed by President Donald Trump's re-election campaign against CNN over a 2019 opinion piece which it said suggested the campaign would be open to Russian interference, according to a court document. The campaign sued CNN, which is owned by AT&T Inc, in March over the June 13, 2019, piece by Larry Noble, a CNN contributor and former general counsel of the Federal Election Commission. U.S. District Judge Michael Brown said the campaign had failed to prove the piece was maliciously published.
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| Map: State-by-state breakdown of coronavirus travel restrictions Posted: 13 Nov 2020 01:37 PM PST  U.S. states and territories are making new rules for travelers. Find which ones across the United States have implemented travel restrictions to curb the spread of COVID-19.
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| Could COVID-19 get as bad as the 1918 Spanish flu? Fauci, others see similarities Posted: 13 Nov 2020 10:56 AM PST  "History is kind of repeating itself 102 years later."
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| Typhoon causes major flooding in Philippine capital Posted: 11 Nov 2020 06:52 PM PST  The third typhoon to hit the storm-battered Philippines in as many weeks caused major flooding in Manila on Thursday, trapping some people on rooftops and claiming at least one life in another part of the country.
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| Police, county attorney's office hide 738,000 records in Kentucky sex abuse case Posted: 12 Nov 2020 09:24 AM PST  Louisville police and the county attorney's office claimed sexual abuse records were turned over to the FBI. But an email indicates that's not true.
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| Prince Harry is accused of 'trying to steal headlines' after his visit to US troop cemetery Posted: 13 Nov 2020 10:00 AM PST  But despite the angry comments, Prince Harry has a deep connection with military forces, including American troops.
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| Pro-Trump senator says Covid survivors should throw away their masks and ‘celebrate’ as he falsely claims they are immune Posted: 12 Nov 2020 09:07 PM PST  US has recorded more than 100,000 Covid-19 cases every day for the last week
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| Three MSNBC contributors leaving network to join Biden administration Posted: 11 Nov 2020 06:35 PM PST  Jon Meacham, one of the contributors failed to mention that he was already working with Biden. Biden was able to snag four MSNBC contributors. On Wednesday, the network confirmed to The Hill that health expert Ezekiel Emanuel, legal analyst Barbara McQuade, political analyst Richard Stengel and historian Jon Meacham will no longer be paid by the network.
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| Trump Considers Founding Digital Media Outlet to ‘Wreck’ Fox News: Report Posted: 12 Nov 2020 06:16 AM PST  President Trump is considering founding a digital media company to compete with Fox News, Axios reported on Thursday.Trump has complained vociferously in recent months about Fox polls showing he would lose the presidency, and he was furious after the network projected Joe Biden as the winner of Arizona's electoral votes. Because establishing a cable news alternative to Fox would be expensive and logistically challenging, the president could attempt to found a digital media outlet and try to siphon away Fox subscribers."He plans to wreck Fox. No doubt about it," a source with knowledge of the plans told Axios.The president currently claims that Democrats have "stolen" the election for Joe Biden, and may use rallies to amplify claims of voter fraud. At those rallies, the source said, Trump is "going to spend a lot of time slamming Fox."Trump engaged in a Twitter tirade on Thursday morning that lent credence to the Axios report, retweeting messages in which users renounced their support for Fox over the network's alleged support for Democrats.> The president just went through the replies of a four day old @greggutfeld tweet and retweeted all of these replies slamming Fox News and praising @newsmax and @OANN. pic.twitter.com/Q2O5Z3UKrR> > -- Yashar Ali �� (@yashar) November 12, 2020If it is established, Trump's new media company could be used as one way to retain influence among Republican voters after Biden is inaugurated in January. The Trump campaign confirmed reports that the president is planning to found a leadership PAC, which would allow Trump to funnel donations toward particular political candidates."The president always planned to do this, win or lose, so he can support candidates and issues he cares about, such as combating voter fraud," campaign spokesman Tim Murtaugh told the New York Times.Trump has not conceded an election loss to Biden, but is "very aware there is not a path to victory," a top White House aide told NBC reporter Peter Alexander on Thursday. However, the president is continuing to contest the results as a kind of "theater" because he thinks his supporters "deserve a fight," the aide said.
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| Trump law firm withdraws from Pennsylvania case challenging election Posted: 13 Nov 2020 10:10 AM PST  The abrupt withdrawal overnight is a blow to the president's efforts to overturn the result of the vote in court * US politics – live updates0A major law firm withdrew overnight from a Trump campaign case in Pennsylvania seeking to have mail-in ballots thrown out, in the latest blow to the president's efforts to challenge the 2020 election result in court.The Ohio-based Porter Wright Morris & Arthur firm, which brought a suit on Monday alleging that the use of mail-in ballots had created "an illegal two-tiered voting system" in the state, abruptly withdrew from that case in a memo to the court."Plaintiffs and Porter Wright have reached a mutual agreement that plaintiffs will be best served if Porter Wright withdraws," the memo said. The lead lawyer in the case, the Pittsburgh-based Ronald L Hicks Jr, did not immediately reply to a request for comment. The news was first reported by the New York Times.Separately, lawyers for the Trump campaign withdrew a lawsuit in Arizona, conceding that the case would not move enough votes to change the election result in the state. "Since the close of yesterday's hearing, the tabulation of votes statewide has rendered unnecessary a judicial ruling as to the presidential electors," Trump lawyer Kory Langhofer told an Arizona state court, in news first reported by the Wall Street Journal.And in Michigan, a judge refused to halt the certification of Detroit-area election results. It was the third time a judge has declined to intervene in the Michigan count.Unlike most lawsuits brought by the Trump campaign, which targeted small pools of votes whose exclusion would not change the election result, the Porter Wright suit in Pennsylvania challenged nearly 2.65m votes that were cast by mail, the majority by Democrats.It accused the secretary of the commonwealth, Kathy Boockvar, of "arbitrary and illegal actions" and sought an emergency order prohibiting the certification of the Pennsylvania election result.With that lawsuit stalled, certification in Pennsylvania – and the formal election of Joe Biden as president – drew a step closer. By law the state's result must be certified by 23 November.The news came as a coalition of US federal and state officials said they had no evidence that votes were compromised or altered in last week's presidential election, rejecting unsubstantiated claims of widespread fraud advanced by Trump and many of his supporters.The statement from cybersecurity experts trumpeted the 3 November election as the most secure in American history.The Trump campaign has been using lawsuits trying to prevent or delay states in which Trump lost from certifying their election results, an essential step to translating state popular-vote results into a national electoral college result.Biden has opened up a lead of 5.3m popular votes and counting, and he is on track to win the electoral college 306-232.Dozens of lawsuits brought by the Trump campaign in six states to challenge the election result have gained little traction. The campaign has won minor court victories, such as requiring Pennsylvania to set aside ballots received after election day in case they are later ruled invalid.But that pool of ballots and others targeted in Trump lawsuits is not large enough to overcome Biden's lead in Pennsylvania, where he is up almost 60,000 votes and counting, and in other states.Porter Wright is representing the Trump campaign and the Republican party in other Pennsylvania lawsuits, including one seeking to throw out mail-in ballots for which missing voter identification information was not provided by 9 November. The disposition of that lawsuit, which Hicks was also leading, is unclear.Porter Wright and a second large law firm, the Ohio-based Jones Day, representing Republicans in 2020 election lawsuits have come under pressure for acting as perceived accomplices in Trump's effort to cancel the election result.The legal news site law.com called it a "public relations nightmare" for the firms. At least one lawyer at Porter Wright resigned over the firm's decision to carry Trump's lawsuits forward, the NYT reported.The Lincoln Project anti-Trump Republican group has attacked the firms on Twitter, asking, "do you believe your law firms should be attempting to overturn the will of the American people?" The group was suspended from Twitter for publishing the names and office contact information of the lawyers.While legal actions by the Trump campaign are proceeding in multiple states, more than a dozen cases have been thrown out of court, and there is not a single case in which substantial evidence of election fraud has emerged.Instead, Trump lawyers have had to admit to judges that they have no evidence of fraud – in sharp contrast with the message the president is spreading on Twitter.In a case in Maricopa county, Arizona, accusing poll workers of misconduct – the case that was withdrawn on Friday afternoon – Trump lawyer Langhofer told a judge that the plaintiffs were "not alleging fraud" or "that anyone is stealing the election" but raising concerns about "good faith errors".In a case in Montgomery county, Pennsylvania, the lawyer Jonathan Goldstein, who has his own law firm, was attempting to have 592 mail-in ballots thrown out because of "irregularities" with the ballots' outer envelopes.A judge pressed Goldstein on whether he was alleging voter fraud."I am asking you a specific question, and I am looking for a specific answer," the judge said. "Are you claiming that there is any fraud in connection with these 592 disputed ballots?""To my knowledge at present, no," Goldstein said."Are you claiming that there is any undue or improper influence upon the elector with respect to these 592 ballots?" asked the judge.Goldstein replied: "To my knowledge at present, no."
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| Airbus hopes its $6.5 billion German Eurofighter sale will shine for Switzerland, Finland Posted: 13 Nov 2020 08:48 AM PST  The European defense giant inked a deal with the German Air Force this week after the country's parliament, the Bundestag, approved the budget earlier this month.
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| How police handled a DC stabbing is yet another sign of how law enforcement favors extremist group Proud Boys Posted: 13 Nov 2020 02:48 PM PST  The far-right Proud Boys brag they're close with police. Last week, Washington, D.C., police echoed their claim about a stabbing, only to retract it.
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| Here's which airlines are blocking middle seats for Thanksgiving travel Posted: 13 Nov 2020 10:16 AM PST  Airlines are slowly starting to ditch blocking the middle seat as new scientific studies show it's not as effective asmasks and air filters on airplanes.
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| Another man charged in 'Sweetie Pie's' murder-for-hire case Posted: 12 Nov 2020 07:51 PM PST  James Timothy Norman, who has already been charged, is the uncle of the person killed and both appeared on the show "Welcome to Sweetie Pie's."
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| Korean girl group's panda stunt prompts anger in China Posted: 13 Nov 2020 01:29 AM PST  A publicity stunt involving South Korean girl group Blackpink and a cuddly baby panda has prompted outraged comments and calls for an apology from some in China. The endangered animals are native only to China, which claims ownership over all pandas loaned to foreign zoos, including those born abroad. The outrage over a video of group members cuddling the baby panda in Everland Zoo near Seoul may also reflect a growing awareness of animal welfare, with the China Wildlife Conservation Association among those raising their voices.
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| Nowhere to go: Displaced Iraqis desperate as camps close Posted: 12 Nov 2020 02:48 AM PST  Iraq has started closing camps housing tens of thousands of people, including many who fled their homes during the final battle against Islamic State, but aid groups warn this could create a second wave of displacement with dire consequences. Among those having to leave are 50-year-old Umm Ahmed and her two sons, who have lived at the Hammam al-Alil camp since 2017 when their house in Mosul was destroyed in an air strike by the U.S.-led coalition as it battled to retake the city from Islamic State. Islamic State upended the lives of millions of Iraqis when they took swathes of the country in 2014 and imposed a brutal rule that in some places like Mosul would last three years.
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| Hundreds of Ethiopians 'hacked to death' as civil conflict spirals out of control Posted: 13 Nov 2020 03:58 AM PST  Hundreds of civilians have been killed this week in a gruesome massacre in Ethiopia's Tigray region, according to Amnesty International, in an act that the UN said could amount to war crimes. On Monday evening in the small town of Mai-Kadra, a few kilometers from the Sudanese border, "scores, and likely hundreds" of people were stabbed or hacked to death, Amnesty said, based on verified photos and videos the scene and interviews with witnesses. "We have confirmed the massacre of a very large number of civilians, who appear to have been day labourers in no way involved in the ongoing military offensive," said Deprose Muchena, Amnesty International's director for East and Southern Africa. The UN Human Rights chief, Michelle Bachelet has called for an inquiry, expressing concerns that the situation could "spiral totally out of control". "If confirmed as having been deliberately carried out by a party to the current fighting, these killings of civilians would of course amount to war crimes," she said. Amnesty said it had not been able to independently verify who was responsible for the killing, although several witnesses had pointed to forces loyal to the Tigrayan leaders. Tigray's leader Debretsion Gebremichael, who chairs the TPLF, said his troops had not been involved in the massacre. Hundreds were already feared dead amid heavy fighting and fighter jet airstrikes. Nearly 15,000 refugees have fled to Sudan since the fighting started, with the speed of new arrivals "overwhelming the current capacity to provide aid", according to UNHCR. Ethiopia's Nobel Peace Prize-winning prime minister, Abiy Ahmed, ordered the army into Tigray last week after an alleged attack on a military base by the ruling Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF). The TPLF is the ruling party in the semi-autonomous region of five million people which borders Eritrea and Sudan. The Tigrayan minority was the dominant force in government until Mr Abiy came into power in 2018 and has since complained of being persecuted. This week, the TPLF declared a state of emergency in the region against an "invasion by outsiders." The federal government says it is trying to liberate the region from the TPLF, which it has accused of atrocities during the fighting. Concerns are growing that the conflict could turn the country's large array of ethnic groups against one another. On Friday, reports emerged that Ethiopian police had visited an office of the U.N. World Food Programme to request a list of ethnic Tigrayan staff. The local police chief informed them of "the order of identifying ethnic Tigrayans from all government agencies and NGOs," according to an internal UN report seen by Reuters.
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| Melissa McCarthy Apologizes for Backing Anti-Abortion Group in Charity Drive: ‘We Blew It’ Posted: 13 Nov 2020 08:41 AM PST  Melissa McCarthy and HBO Max have announced that they're pulling their support for the evangelical nonprofit Exodus Cry as part of their "20 Days of Kindness" fundraising campaign."There's no other way to say it: We blew it," McCarthy said in a video posted to Instagram Thursday night. "We made a mistake and we backed a charity that upon further vetting stands for everything that we do not.""I want to thank everyone on social media who said, 'What are you doing? Are you sure you want to back this?'" McCarthy continued. "Because the answer is, 'No, we do not.'"> View this post on Instagram> > A post shared by Melissa McCarthy (@melissamccarthy)HBO Max launched "20 Days of Kindness" on Tuesday, tying it to World Kindness Day on Friday and the upcoming Thanksgiving release of McCarthy's new movie Superintelligence. But Exodus Cry stuck out from the other charities. The Daily Beast's Tarpley Hitt exclusively reported on Thursday that Exodus Cry frames itself as an anti-sex-trafficking group but in reality works to abolish sex work entirely. Its founder, Benjamin Nolot, has called abortion a "holocaust" and homosexuality "an unspeakable offense to God," Hitt noted. The group has spent years lobbying to criminalize the purchase of sex and recently launched a campaign to shutter Pornhub.Why Are HBO and Melissa McCarthy Raising Money for an Anti-Abortion Group?In its own statement, HBO Max said they'd axed Exodus Cry from the fundraiser's roster: "We were made aware of the issues surrounding Exodus Cry and have removed them from the list of partners associated with the 20 Days of Kindness campaign," a rep for the streamer told Entertainment Tonight. Exodus Cry, meanwhile, now has an extensive "Myths vs. Truths" page on its website. It includes a statement from Nolot, who claims that his outlook on queer people has evolved. "In the past I did not adequately recognize the impact of anti-marriage legislation on sexual minorities and I deeply regret the pain and offense that has caused," he wrote, in part. "I love, respect and advocate for the right of all people to be free from all forms of oppression... I want to make clear that I fully embrace the LGBTQ community as a group that deserves all of the rights that protect their dignity, safety and equality."As she concluded her video, McCarthy said she hopes that "20 Days of Kindness"' previous affiliation with Exodus Cry will not affect the other charities involved in the campaign."We are so incredibly grateful for you ringing the bell and helping us be better," McCarthy said. "We're sorry for our mistake. Oh boy, are we sorry for it—can't believe that we missed it. And that's it... Let the kindness continue, and thank you. Thanks for your help. We really needed it."Read more at The Daily Beast.Get our top stories in your inbox every day. Sign up now!Daily Beast Membership: Beast Inside goes deeper on the stories that matter to you. Learn more.
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| Kentucky couple receives racist letters, bullets in mail months after neighbor allegedly painted swastika on their driveway Posted: 13 Nov 2020 11:34 AM PST  A couple with five children in Louisville has had their property vandalized with racist slurs repeatedly over the past several months.
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| Amy Coney Barrett sizes up 30-year-old precedent balancing religious freedom with rule of law Posted: 13 Nov 2020 05:40 AM PST  Justice Amy Coney Barrett's first week as an active Supreme Court justice began on Nov. 2 and almost immediately included a case that could test her credentials as a religious conservative. On the surface, Fulton v. City of Philadelphia, which was argued in front of the court on Nov. 4, concerns whether the state can require organizations it partners with to accept same-sex couples as foster parents.But underneath are questions about how Barrett and her fellow justices will deal with a decades-old Supreme Court ruling that could have wider implications for religious liberty cases. Foster careThe case in front of the justices concerns how Philadelphia partners with private organizations – both religious and secular – to find homes for children in foster care. In 2018, Philadelphia learned that two organizations, Catholic Social Services and Bethany Christian Services, had religiously motivated policies against placing children with same-sex couples in violation of Philadelphia's Fair Practices Ordinance.Philadelphia stopped sending foster care placement requests to these organizations as a result, prompting Catholic Social Services to sue.Lawyers for Catholic Social Services argue that Philadelphia's response violates First Amendment protections of religion and speech. Two lower federal courts ruled in Philadelphia's favor. It is now up to the Supreme Court to decide whether the lower courts got it right.Based on the questions asked during oral arguments, Fulton could well be decided on technical grounds over whether Catholic Social Services is a contractor or licensee of Philadelphia. But from my perspective as an attorney and First Amendment scholar, Barrett's questions during oral arguments are of significant interest in considering the future of First Amendment law as it pertains to religious freedom.Specifically, they suggest that Barrett is examining a key piece of First Amendment precedent: Employment Division v. Smith. Neutral and generalIn Employment Division v. Smith, decided in 1990, the Supreme Court held that Oregon was not required to create an exception to its drug laws to permit the use of the hallucinogenic peyote in religious rituals. Central to the case was how to balance religious freedom with the rule of law. In writing the court's opinion in favor of the state, Justice Antonin Scalia recognized that without some kind of limit on the Constitution's religious free exercise clause, laws could become meaningless. He held that the Constitution does not allow religious adherents to violate a "neutral law of general applicability," by which he meant a law that applies to everyone and does not favor or disfavor people based on their religion or lack thereof. Because Oregon's law was neutral and generally applicable, the state's refusal to exempt religious peyote use from its drug laws was deemed constitutional.The Smith ruling has always been controversial, and many conservatives have long wanted the decision overturned.But the Smith ruling has never been simply a left-versus-right issue. After all, its author was conservative stalwart Scalia, whom Barrett worked for as a law clerk. And even before her appointment, the Supreme Court's conservative wing had the numbers to overturn Smith – if they so chose.In addition, now that Smith has been precedent for over 30 years, justices who disagree with its reasoning face the issue of "stare decisis" – the well-established legal principle advocating against overruling past decisions whenever possible.Notably, limitations on stare decisis were a reoccurring topic in Barrett's scholarly writing during her time as a law professor. Replacing Smith?The lawyers for Catholic Social Services have argued that the Smith ruling should be overruled. In Nov. 4's proceedings, Barrett gave substantial attention to this line of argument in her questions.In questioning one of Catholic Social Services' lawyers, Barrett asked, "What would you replace Smith with?" This question might suggest that Barrett views the arguments for overturning Smith as worth taking seriously.Barrett also made the following remarks while questioning Catholic Social Services' lawyer:"You argue in your brief that Smith should be overruled. But you also say that you win even under Smith because this policy is neither generally applicable nor neutral. So, if you're right about that, why should we even entertain the question whether to overrule Smith?"These comments are important. Judges generally prefer to avoid overruling past decisions when a case can be decided for other reasons. Thus, even if Barrett were to think Smith is bad law, she might not advocate overruling it in Fulton if she thinks that Catholic Social Services can win on other grounds.Barrett wasn't alone in picking up on the Smith argument. Justice Stephen Breyer spoke in favor of Smith at the Nov. 4 hearing, saying it was "a solution to a problem that nobody could figure out how to answer." This indicates that Breyer sees Smith as striking the right balance between religious freedom and the rule of law and that he is unlikely to support overruling it. Thinking aheadIt is unlikely that Smith would need to be overruled in order for the court to overturn the lower court decisions and side with Catholic Social Services. Still, some think that Barrett and her conservative colleagues may be willing to overrule Smith at some point.[Deep knowledge, daily. Sign up for The Conversation's newsletter.]After all, Justice Barrett herself has written that "stare decisis must be flexible in fact, not just in theory."If Smith is someday overruled, it would likely increase the ability of courts to provide religious organizations with exemptions that allow them to discriminate against LGBTQ people. But as I believe oral arguments in the Fulton case suggest, that may be the outcome even with Smith left in place.This article is republished from The Conversation, a nonprofit news site dedicated to sharing ideas from academic experts. It was written by: Mark Satta, Wayne State University.Read more: * The Supreme Court just expanded the 'ministerial exception' shielding religious employers from anti-bias laws * Religious identity and Supreme Court justices – a brief historyMark Satta does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.
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| Video shows gigantic gator at Florida golf club amid Tropical Storm Eta Posted: 12 Nov 2020 04:12 PM PST  Alligators are not a uncommon sight in the state of Florida, but this particular one gained attention for its prehistoric appearance.
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| China says removal of Hong Kong lawmakers was 'right medicine' Posted: 12 Nov 2020 08:02 PM PST  The ousting of four pro-democracy lawmakers from Hong Kong's legislature was "the right medicine" for the city, China said, telling foreign governments the issue was none of their business.
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| Longest-serving Senate Republican joins call for Biden to receive briefings Posted: 12 Nov 2020 11:20 AM PST  Grassley says president-elect should have access to briefings as Ohio governor says Biden's victory should be recognized * US politics – live updatesThe longest-serving Republican in the Senate has joined the call for Joe Biden to receive daily intelligence briefings, with those briefings currently withheld from the president-elect because the Trump administration refuses to acknowledge Biden's victory in the election.Senator Chuck Grassley of Iowa was asked by CNN whether Biden should have access to classified briefings. "I would think – especially on classified briefings – the answer is yes," Grassley said.The comment came after the Republican governor of Ohio, Mike DeWine, said that Biden's victory should be recognized. "We need to consider the former vice-president as president-elect. Joe Biden is the president-elect,"DeWine told CNN on Thursday morning.Even senator Lindsey Graham, a staunch Trump ally who has publicly told the president "do not concede", agreed with the idea that Biden should get presidential-level security briefings."I think so," Graham told reporters at the Capitol.As basic acknowledgements of reality, the comments from DeWine, Graham and Grassley were not notable – but as practical concessions of victory to Biden they were exceptional.Most Republicans have refused to state the fact of Biden's win plainly, instead treating Donald Trump's effort to erode faith in the election result, with baseless accusations of voter fraud as a legitimate legal inquiry.The Biden camp has not waited for Trump's blessing to put the presidential transition into gear. The Democrat has appointed a coronavirus taskforce and named longtime aide Ron Klain as his incoming White House chief of staff.Biden has also reached out to foreign allies and signaled that the US withdrawal from multilateral alliances to fight everything from the climate crisis to the coronavirus – a retraction Trump made under the banner of "America first" – would be reversed.Trump, meanwhile, remained bunkered in the White House. He has not made a public statement, apart from on Twitter, since he inaccurately declared victory in the election one week ago. Trump has celebrated victories in states that were recently called –North Carolina and Alaska – while insisting that earlier calls of states he lost were invalid.In addition to floating dozens of fruitless lawsuits, Trump's team is applying pressure behind the scenes to get Republican state legislatures to take action to slow the certification of results in key states. The move is a long-shot plot to sabotage the electoral college system that scholars have called a coup attempt while judging it to have an extremely small, but not zero, chance of payoff.Democrats decried the Republicans' failure to defend the election and condemned what they called Republican inaction on a coronavirus relief bill as the US set a ghastly record of 143,231 new daily confirmed infections."Stop the circus and get to work on what really matters to the American people," the House speaker, Nancy Pelosi, said on Thursday. "It's like the house is burning down, and they refuse to throw water on it."Republicans in Congress are under visible pressure not to break the wall of silence about Biden's election win. A second Republican senator backpedaled on Twitter Wednesday night after telling a local Oklahoma radio station he would "step in" if Biden did not begin receiving the intelligence briefings by the end of the week.In an interview with local KRMG, first picked up by the Hill, the Oklahoma senator James Lankford was asked what he thought of the refusal by the office of the director of national intelligence to brief the president-elect until another arm of the bureaucracy certified Biden's victory."There is no loss from him getting the briefings, and to be able to do that," said Lankford. "And if that's not occurring by Friday, I will step in as well, and to be able to push and to say this needs to occur, so that regardless of the outcome of the election ... people can be ready for that actual task."In his suggestion that the "outcome of the election" was still in doubt, Lankford made himself an ally to Donald Trump's cause of overturning the election or, failing that, spoiling public faith in it, as a means of weakening Biden.Republicans have been unable to produce any evidence of voter fraud in any state, despite the lieutenant governor of Texas offering $1m out of campaign coffers to anyone who can provide such evidence.A postal worker who signed an affidavit alleging voter fraud retracted the accusation after it was revealed that he was the beneficiary of a GoFundMe account established by Republican donors and filled with more than $130,000.The presidential transition process is stalled, meanwhile, with Biden aides shut out of office space, vetting of Biden appointees unable to begin and Biden himself excluded from the presidential daily briefing.It has been the custom of the White House to share the presidential daily briefing with the president-elect during the transition period ever since the advent of the briefing in the 1960s, David Priess, the author of a book on presidential briefings, told NPR. The briefing contain intelligence findings and analysis of potential threats and opportunities.Trump himself began to receive daily intelligence briefings soon after the 2016 election, but then revealed he usually skipped them, believing he did not need them, explaining on Fox News: "You know, I'm, like, a smart person."An open letter signed by four former homeland security secretaries from both parties warned on Wednesday that delaying the presidential transition endangered the country."At this period of heightened risk for our nation, we do not have a single day to spare to begin the transition," the letter said. "For the good of the nation, we must start now."Former House intelligence committee chair Mike Rogers, a Republican from Michigan, echoed the warning."Our adversaries aren't waiting for the transition to take place," Rogers tweeted. "Joe Biden should receive the President's Daily Brief (PDB) starting today. He needs to know what the latest threats are & begin to plan accordingly. This isn't about politics; this is about national security."
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| Chris Wallace: Republican-controlled Senate would give Biden excuse to pushback on progressives Posted: 13 Nov 2020 07:26 AM PST  'Fox News Sunday' anchor Chris Wallace lays out the stakes of the upcoming Senate runoffs in Georgia.
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| Trump campaign surveys supporters over perceived attack by Fox News Posted: 12 Nov 2020 02:36 PM PST  Trump has complained about being treated unfairly by the news division of the network for months, even as Fox's opinion hosts support the president's demand to investigate potential voter fraud. Fox Corp shares were down 6% Thursday.
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| Teen facing death penalty after being accused of murdering five relatives has shown ‘no remorse’ Posted: 13 Nov 2020 03:55 PM PST  'He has not shown any sign of remorse. While in detention, he has not talked about his family at all,' probation officer says
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| 3 legendary leaders who made America's special-operations units into the elite forces they are today Posted: 12 Nov 2020 04:14 PM PST  The US military's special operators have had many storied leaders. These three have left their mark on the shadowy warriors they commanded.
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