| CORRECTED-Germany must up defence spending, relying on U.S. "offensive" - U.S. envoy Posted: 09 Aug 2019 10:09 AM PDT ![CORRECTED-Germany must up defence spending, relying on U.S. "offensive" - U.S. envoy]( "CORRECTED-Germany must up defence spending, relying on U.S. \"offensive\" - U.S. envoy") Germany's reluctance to spend more on defence and its continued reliance on U.S. troops for protection is offensive, Richard Grenell, the U.S. Ambassador to Germany said on Friday. Grenell's comments signal U.S. President Donald Trump's impatience with Germany's failure to raise defence spending to 2% of economic output as mandated by the NATO military alliance. "It is offensive to assume that the U.S. taxpayers continue to pay for more than 50,000 Americans in Germany but the Germans get to spend their (budget) surplus on domestic programmes," Grenell told the dpa news agency.
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| Russia says five died in missile test explosion Posted: 10 Aug 2019 12:46 AM PDT  Russia's nuclear agency on Saturday said an explosion at an Arctic missile testing site had killed five of its staff after the military had put the toll at two. In a statement, Rosatom said the accident killed five of its staff and injured three, who suffered burns and other injuries. The statement came after authorities in a nearby city said the accident had caused a spike in radiation levels but the military had denied this.
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| Five years after Brown's death and Ferguson protests, America must commit to doing better Posted: 09 Aug 2019 06:22 AM PDT  More than 1,000 blacks have died at the hands of police since 2014. Protests, push for accountability show a nation still striving for change.
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| Elon Musk Says He Supports 2020 White House Hopeful Andrew Yang Posted: 10 Aug 2019 12:33 PM PDT ![Elon Musk Says He Supports 2020 White House Hopeful Andrew Yang]( "Elon Musk Says He Supports 2020 White House Hopeful Andrew Yang") (Bloomberg) -- Elon Musk supports Andrew Yang, the Tesla Inc. chief executive officer said in a tweet that could give the tech entrepreneur's 2020 White House bid a boost.Musk, who often interacts with some of his almost 28 million followers on Twitter, made the declaration while responding to political commentator Dan Carlin, who uses the handle @HardcoreHistory. Carlin's tweet had cited Yang's earlier tweet on leadership.Musk said in a separate tweet that universal basic income, an idea Yang supports, is "obviously needed."The CEO jokingly added that Yang would be the first "openly goth" U.S. president. Yang told Jezebel in April he wanted to be America's first ex-goth president. The comments came after Yang tweeted some pictures of his younger self and revealed his favorite bands were The Smiths and The Cure.Yang has qualified for the next round of presidential primary debates to be held next month in Houston, the ninth Democrat to do so."The country heard my message and is ready to talk about real solutions to gun violence, the new realities of the American economy, and how we measure our health and success as a nation," Yang said in a statement on Thursday. "I'm excited to have those conversations in Houston and throughout the 2020 election."To contact the reporter on this story: Maria Jose Valero in New York at mvalero3@bloomberg.netTo contact the editors responsible for this story: Polina Noskova at pnoskova@bloomberg.net, Virginia Van Natta, Ros KrasnyFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
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| Elderly couple found dead from murder-suicide after they couldn’t afford wife’s healthcare: ‘We will be in the front bedroom’ Posted: 10 Aug 2019 05:23 AM PDT  A man in Washington state has killed both himself and his wife after raising fears about struggling to pay medical expenses for her ongoing health conditions.The couple were identified by the Whatcom County Medical Examiner as Brian S Jones, 77, and Patricia Whitney-Jones, 76.Mr Jones, who lived near the city of Ferndale, called emergency services on Wednesday morning and said he was going to shoot himself, according to the Whatcom County Sheriff's Office. He said he had prepared a note for the sheriff which contained information and instructions. In spite of the operator's efforts to keep him on the line, Mr Jones is then said to have told the operator, "we will be in the front bedroom", before disconnecting the call.Police arrived around 15 minutes later and set up a perimeter around the house and attempted to intervene for about an hour with a crisis negotiator and loud hailer.But it was too late, as officials then used a robot-mounted camera to look inside the home and found the bodies of the married couple. Authorities said they believe Mr Jones shot his wife and then himself. They were found lying together.A statement from Whatcom Sheriff Bill Elfo said state officials are investigating the incident which is deemed to be a murder-suicide.According to the sheriff, Mr Jones told the operator: "I am going to shoot myself".Several notes were left in the home "citing severe ongoing medical problems with the wife and expressing concerns that the couple did not have sufficient resources to pay for medical care", according to the sheriff's statement."It is very tragic that one of our senior citizens would find himself in such desperate circumstances where he felt murder and suicide were the only option. Help is always available with a call to 911," Mr Elfo said in the post.Numerous firearms were seized and two dogs found in the house were taken to an animal shelter.Sherrie Schulteis, a neighbour of the couple, said she often spoke to Mr Jones and watched out for each other's homes but was totally unaware about the extent to which he was struggling mentally and financially."[Mr Jones and I] were always waving and talking about our yards or our flowers," she told The Lynden Tribune. "It's a little tiny community where we all know each other, but we don't really know each other."
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| A Russian military ammo depot that blew up earlier this week just exploded again Posted: 09 Aug 2019 12:16 PM PDT  The ammo depot, believed to house tens of thousands of artillery shells, exploded on Monday. It just exploded again, injuring at least ten more people.
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| Virginia transgender bathroom case: Judge favors ex-student Posted: 09 Aug 2019 05:06 PM PDT  A federal judge in Virginia ruled Friday that a school board's transgender bathroom ban discriminated against a former student, Gavin Grimm, the latest in a string of decisions nationwide that favor transgender students who faced similar policies. The order issued by U.S. District Judge Arenda Wright Allen in Norfolk is a major victory for the American Civil Liberties Union and for Grimm.
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| Alan Dershowitz: Unsealed Email and Manuscript Show Epstein Accuser Lied About Sex With Me Posted: 10 Aug 2019 01:39 AM PDT  John Lamparski/GettyLawyer Alan Dershowitz claims an email buried in a mountain of just-unsealed court documents proves that one of Jeffrey Epstein's accusers lied when she said she was farmed out for sex with him as a teenager."I've been waiting for these emails to come out for months and they conclusively prove my innocence," Dershowitz told The Daily Beast on Friday, adding that he is now asking federal prosecutors to investigate the accuser's high-profile legal team.Virginia Roberts Giuffre, who claims Epstein made her a sex slave when she was just 16 years old, has also alleged that she was loaned out for sex with Dershowitz—saying in a 2016 deposition that she had once performed oral sex on the Harvard Law professor in a limo in Massachusetts, alongside Epstein and a young girl."The first time I recall having sex with Professor Dershowitz was in New York," she testified at one point in that deposition. "The last time I remember having sex with him… I believe it was on an airplane."The Biggest Bombshells in Newly Unsealed Epstein DocumentsDershowitz—who helped broker Epstein's 2007 sweetheart plea deal—has vehemently denied sexual contact with Giuffre, waged a public war with her attorney David Boies, and insisted that he would be cleared when the court documents were unsealed.That unsealing happened Friday morning when a tranche of filings from a defamation lawsuit Giuffre had filed against Epstein crony Ghislaine Maxwell was made public.The pile of paperwork contained bad news for a raft of high-profile men, from former New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson to New York billionaire Glenn Dubin, who were named by Giuffre as being involved in Epstein's alleged sex-trafficking ring; they deny it.But Dershowitz claims one document in particular also poses a problem for Giuffre: a 2011 email exchange between her and a British tabloid reporter who had interviewed her about her years under Epstein's sway.In the email, Giuffre told the Mail on Sunday reporter, Sharon Churcher, she was racing to meet a deadline for a draft of what she would later describe as a "fictionalized account" of what happened to her."Just wondering if you have any information on you from when you and I were doing interviews about the J.E. story," Giuffre wrote Churcher."I wanted to put the names of some of the assholes, oops, I meant to say, pedo's, that J.E. sent me to. With everything going on, my brain feels like mush and it would be a great deal of help!" Giuffre added.The emails in the court file shows Churcher responded: "Don't forget Alan Dershowitz… J.E.'s buddy and lawyer...good name for your pitch as he repped Claus von Bulow and a movie was made about that case… title was Reversal of Fortune. We all suspect Alan is a pedo and tho no proof of that, you probably met him when he was hanging out with JE."Giuffre's reply contained no reference to Dershowitz, just a simple, "Thanks again Shazza, I'm bringing down the house with this book!!"Churcher, who no longer works at the Mail on Sunday, declined to comment.Dershowitz noted that when Giuffre finished her manuscript, there was no mention of sex with him—although Giuffre did write that Dershowitz had a taste for young, beautiful women and that he once walked into a room where Epstein had just molested her.Court papers filed by Giuffre's legal team say she began writing the manuscript on the advice of her mental-health counselor as a way to work through her trauma. She explored the idea of selling it but ultimately decided not to publish it, they said.To Dershowitz, desperately trying to rescue his reputation as the Epstein scandal continues to intensify, the absence of allegations even in what Giuffre has described as fiction amounts to a smoking gun."If she had sex with me, I'd be highlighted," he said."This is completely exculpatory and completely consistent with what I've been saying," Dershowitz said. "She made it up when she met her lawyers and heard there was a pot of gold at the end of the rainbow."Asked about Dershowitz's claim that the email shows Giuffre had failed to accuse him of sexual misconduct before she filed her lawsuit, Boies' firm sent a statement from his co-counsel, Sigrid McCawley, that did not directly address the issue."The denials of those accused of participating in Jeffrey Epstein's horrific sex trafficking operation are predictable and have long been anticipated," McCawley said. "The truth will have the final word."It continued: "The body of evidence amassed in the case against Ghislaine Maxwell—Jeffrey Epstein's recruiter-in-chief, trainer, and sometimes, co-abuser—is powerful. Some of it was unsealed by the Second Circuit; we are hopeful more will come out. "The documents and exhibits should be carefully examined for the vivid, detailed and tragic story they tell in the face of cursory, bumper-sticker like statements by those accused. Virginia Roberts Giuffre is a survivor and a woman to be believed. She believes a reckoning of inevitable accountability has begun."Epstein Accuser Sues Alan Dershowitz Over Alleged Sex RingDershowitz—who is being sued by Giuffre for defamation—said that when he was first accused he went to federal prosecutors and complained but could not provide them with the Churcher email chain because it had already been sealed by the court.Now that the document is public, he said, his attorneys plan to speak with prosecutors on Monday and ask them to investigate Giuffre's lawyers for "pressuring her into falsely accusing me."Dershowitz also said he has no idea if Giuffre was telling the truth when she claimed his former client recruited underage girls for sex with his famous friends, like Prince Andrew and modeling agent Jean-Luc Brunel."I just know she made up stories about me," he said.Jeffrey Epstein Accuser Names Powerful Men in Alleged Sex RingRead more at The Daily Beast.Get our top stories in your inbox every day. 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| U.S. service member killed in Iraq: coalition statement Posted: 10 Aug 2019 08:11 AM PDT ![U.S. service member killed in Iraq: coalition statement]( "U.S. service member killed in Iraq: coalition statement") A United States service member advising Iraqi security forces on a mission was killed on Saturday in the northern Nineveh province, the U.S.-led international coalition fighting Islamic State said in a statement. "One U.S. service member died today during an Iraqi Security Force mission in Ninewah province, Iraq, while advising and accompanying the (Iraqi security forces) during a planned operation, the statement said. It added that the name of the service member would be withheld until next of kin have been notified.
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| See the 2020 Chevy Corvette in Every Color Available Posted: 09 Aug 2019 08:42 AM PDT |
| 'She should be shot': Ohio man charged after Facebook threat against Ocasio-Cortez Posted: 10 Aug 2019 09:04 AM PDT  "She should be shot," the man had written on Facebook, along with a link to a story about Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.
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| Man believes Trump 'ordered him' to attack child for ‘disrespecting’ national anthem by keeping hat on, lawyer says Posted: 09 Aug 2019 06:25 AM PDT A man suspected of attacking a child who was wearing a hat during the US National Anthem believed he was encouraged by Donald Trump to carry out the assault, according to his lawyer. Curt Brockway, a 39-year-old US Army veteran who was charged on Monday in the assault, suffered a traumatic brain injury in a vehicle crash in 2000 that has affected his decision making, attorney Lance Jasper told the Missoulian. The lawyer said he will seek a mental health evaluation for Mr Brockway, who seemingly became caught up in the heightened animosity and rhetoric gripping the nation, and convinced himself that he was following the president's orders."His commander in chief is telling people that if they kneel, they should be fired, or if they burn a flag, they should be punished," Mr Jasper said.He added that Mr Brockway "certainly didn't understand it was a crime."Mr Brockway told a sheriff's deputy that he asked the boy to remove his hat out of respect for the national anthem before the start of the county rodeo, Mineral County Attorney Ellen Donohue wrote in the document describing the attack.The boy reportedly cursed at Mr Brockway in response, and the man grabbed him by the throat, "lifted him into the air and slammed the boy into the ground," Ms Donohue wrote.Mr Jasper's comments arrived as prosecutors formally charged Mr Brockway with assault on a minor, a felony that carries a maximum five-year prison sentence and a $50,000 (£41,183) fine upon conviction.Prosecutors said the boy was airlifted to a hospital for a possible concussion and skull fracture. His condition was not immediately known.Conduct during the playing of the national anthem has been an issue in recent years, with some NFL players kneeling to protest police brutality. Mr Trump once called for NFL owners to fire players who kneel or engage in other acts of protest during the anthem."Trump never necessarily says go hurt somebody, but the message is absolutely clear," Mr Jasper said. "I am certain of the fact that (Brockway) was doing what he believed he was told to do, essentially, by the president. ... Everyone should learn to dial it down a little bit, from the president to Mineral County."The Associated Press contributed to this report
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| Biden Says He Was Vice President During Parkland Shooting Posted: 10 Aug 2019 03:53 PM PDT  (Bloomberg) -- Joe Biden said he was vice president when the deadly high school shooting in Parkland, Florida, took place. Except, it happened in 2018, more than a year after he left office -- the latest gaffe by the Democratic presidential front-runner.Biden told reporters in Iowa on Saturday that "those kids in Parkland came up to see me when I was vice president." But when they visited Capitol Hill to talk with members of Congress, lawmakers were "basically cowering, not wanting to see them. They did not want to face it on camera."The former vice president was making a point about the changing conversation around gun violence in this country, and how as more and more ordinary people are touched by mass shootings, they are more likely to call for action.An official with the Biden campaign said the former vice president was thinking of the mass shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut, when he misspoke. That attack, in which 20 children between six and seven years old were killed along with six staff members, was in December 2012.Survivors of the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooting in Parkland, Florida, made national headlines for their demonstrations and calls for action, including visits by some students to the nation's capital. The shooting, the deadliest high school killing spree in U.S. history, occurred on Feb. 14, 2018, and left 17 dead and injured more than a dozen others. The assailant was an expelled student.Biden, along with former Representative Gabrielle Giffords, an Arizona Democrat who was shot in the head during an event with constituents in Tucson in 2011, met with Stoneman students in Washington days after the 2018 incident.The statement was the latest in a string of gaffes that have plagued Biden on the campaign trail. On Thursday, Biden, 76, told a group of Asian and Hispanic voters that "poor kids are just as bright" as white children. And last week he referred to mass shootings in El Paso, Texas and Dayton, Ohio, as having taken place in Houston and Michigan.In both cases he quickly caught himself. And on Saturday Biden told reporters he misspoke on his "poor kids" comment but said that overall, people understood the point he was trying to make."I don't think anybody thinks I meant anything other than what I said I meant," Biden said.President Donald Trump, who's spending the weekend at his golf club in Bedminster, New Jersey, was quick to seize on Biden's blunder. He said on Twitter that the former vice president "doesn't have a clue." (Updates with Trump tweet in final paragraph.)To contact the reporter on this story: Emma Kinery in Washington at ekinery@bloomberg.netTo contact the editors responsible for this story: Wendy Benjaminson at wbenjaminson@bloomberg.net, Ros Krasny, Ian FisherFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
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| Israeli army kills 4 militants trying to cross Gaza fence Posted: 10 Aug 2019 12:06 PM PDT ![Israeli army kills 4 militants trying to cross Gaza fence]( "Israeli army kills 4 militants trying to cross Gaza fence") Israeli troops killed four Palestinian militants who attempted to cross through the perimeter fence from the Gaza Strip on Saturday, and in the West Bank arrested members of a Palestinian cell suspected in the killing of an off-duty soldier this week. The army said in a statement that militants who killed Dvir Sorek, 18, outside a settlement near Hebron were arrested and the car they used in the attack was seized. Israel's Channel 13 TV reported that the suspects included two brothers from Hebron.
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| Family sues Glenview nursing home over video of aides taunting woman, 91, with dementia; aides charged and fired Posted: 10 Aug 2019 07:23 AM PDT  Two nursing home aides in north suburban Glenview have been fired and charged after a Snapchat video showed them taunting a 91-year-old woman with dementia. Her family is now taking legal action.
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| Fox News Reporter Publicly Rebukes Tucker Carlson: ‘White Supremacy Is Real’ Posted: 09 Aug 2019 11:35 AM PDT  Chip SomodevillaThree days after Fox News host Tucker Carlson declared on-air that white supremacy is a "hoax," his colleague, Fox News reporter Cristina Corbin, tweeted out a rebuke of the primetime star's comments, noting that his views do not represent hers."White supremacy is real, as evidenced by fact," she wrote on Friday. "Claims that it is a 'hoax' do not represent my views."Corbin is currently listed on Fox News' website as "an investigative reporter and producer based in New York." Her bio page was still active as of this article's publication. Her most recent article with Fox News, a report on Canadian murder suspects, was published on July 31.Corbin's public pushback on Carlson is reminiscent of another recent episode in which a lower-level Fox News employee publicly took a stand against a right-wing host on the network. In March, after weekend host Jeanine Pirro drew outrage for suggesting Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) didn't believe in the Constitution because she wears a hijab, several Fox employees publicly blasted the pro-Trump host. Pirro would eventually be suspended for two weeks for her on-air comments.During his Tuesday night broadcast, Carlson dismissed the notion that white supremacy is an "real problem in America," calling concerns about it a "hoax" and a "conspiracy theory" despite this past weekend's mass shooting in El Paso before which the shooter allegedly posted a white-supremacist manifesto targeting Hispanic immigrants. Carlson's remarks were swiftly met with outrage and backlash, prompting renewed calls for advertisers to drop his show and for Fox News to fire the conservative host.The network has yet to give any official comment or statement on Carlson's inflammatory remarks. The primetime host, meanwhile, announced Wednesday that he will be on vacation until Aug. 19. Fox News quickly noted that Carlson's break was pre-planned, though—perhaps coincidentally—there has long been a pattern of other Fox hosts taking "pre-planned" vacations following controversy over their on-air comments. Fox News did not immediately respond to request for comment on Corbin's tweet about Carlson.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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| Mexico detains migrant children in cramped holding center despite court ruling Posted: 09 Aug 2019 01:40 PM PDT ![Mexico detains migrant children in cramped holding center despite court ruling]( "Mexico detains migrant children in cramped holding center despite court ruling") Overcrowding, prison-like conditions, bed bugs and illness are among the complaints of migrants in a Mexico City detention center that holds dozens of minors two months after a court ruled it was unconstitutional. Under the threat of economic sanctions from U.S. President Donald Trump, Mexico has stepped up migrant detentions this year to stem a surge in asylum-seekers from Central America. Known as Las Agujas, the Mexico City holding center enclosed by spike-topped walls in the eastern district of Iztapalapa held about 108 minors as of this week, some of whom are unaccompanied, said Jesus Quintana, who monitors the station for the Mexican human rights ombudsman's office (CNDH).
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| 'Unreal scene': Police say shooting melee on Houston highway likely drug-related Posted: 09 Aug 2019 11:05 AM PDT  Two people were killed in a shooting on Interstate 10 in Texas on Thursday evening, Houston Police said.
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| Bull, meet China shop: Trump's foreign policy in Asia is disastrous Posted: 09 Aug 2019 03:00 AM PDT  Crippling challenges threaten Asia's bright future – and the US is not helping 'The future of Asia remains bright, but a crippling array of challenges threatens to upend its potential – and could have an immense impact on the US.' Photograph: Kevin Lamarque/ReutersAsia's historical, political and economic landmines are increasingly blowing up, and Donald Trump seems intent on accelerating the damage in ways that could threaten US national security and prosperity.Things didn't always seem so bleak. Analysts have long heralded the coming of the "Asian century". Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, Indonesia and others have transformed from autocracies to democratic members of the G20. Today, nations across Asia are innovative economies, flourishing democracies and contributors to global security. Any measurement of GDP size, military might or population illustrate how Asia could be the most important region in the world in the 21st century.The future of Asia remains bright, but a crippling array of challenges threatens to upend its potential – and could have an immense impact on the US.Two of the most successful democracies in the region – South Korea and Japan, which are also US allies – are in the midst of a diplomatic brawl. The tensions are being driven by the legacy of Japan's occupation of South Korea in the first half of the 20th century – which remains a devastatingly potent political issue in both countries – and starkly divergent approaches to the region from the two current leaders. The countries' militaries have brushed up against one another, a trade war is under way, and South Korean president Moon Jae-in recently, ominously, said: "We will never again lose to Japan."While the US would usually attempt to patch things up, the Trump administration has been mostly absent. A too little, too late effort by the secretary of state, Mike Pompeo, during a trilateral meeting with the Japanese and South Korean foreign ministers reportedly went so poorly that the two foreign ministers canceled their own bilateral meetings with Pompeo. South Korea is now reportedly considering withdrawing from a trilateral intelligence sharing agreement that was the product of intense diplomacy by previous US administrations. Close coordination with Seoul and Tokyo is essential to dealing with North Korea, and this rift could undermine the prospects for diplomacy with and deterrence against North Korea.That is especially concerning because North Korea has resumed missile testing, sending a reminder of how little recent diplomacy has achieved. And while diplomacy is the only way to address the threat from North Korea, Trump is so invested in the process – and his own narrative that it has been a success – that he can't even bring himself to criticize Kim Jong-un or the missile tests. In fact, Trump bends over backwards to defend his ongoing bromance with Kim each time the North Korean leader sends another missile message. Meanwhile, North Korea continues building nuclear weapons and advancing its missile technology.Like with most dictators, Trump also spares his "friend", China's president, Xi Jinping, from any criticism, even while escalating a trade war. The trade war, meanwhile, hurts American workers and the US economy, according to the Chairman of the Federal Reserve. If the next round of US tariffs is implemented, some estimate they could cost American families between $700 and $1,270 a year. The incoherence of Trump's approach on China undercuts American prosperity and has done nothing to advance our goals in addressing genuine problems with China.Trump also makes clear his willingness to ignore human rights in the hopes of smoothing the way for a trade deal. The people of Hong Kong are standing up for their democratic rights against growing repression from Beijing, and the People's Liberation Army (PLA) is reportedly massing its forces along the border with Hong Kong while the PLA's Hong Kong garrison sends threatening messages in what could be a deterrent to protesters or even a prelude to a Tiananmen-like crackdown.> America's alliances, partnerships and moral authority in the region are frayingBut after talking about the prospects of a trade deal with China, Trump made clear that he doesn't care about what happens in Hong Kong: "Somebody said that at some point they are going to want to stop [the riots]. But that's between Hong Kong and that's between China, because Hong Kong is a part of China … they don't need advice." The message to Xi Jinping was loud and clear: All Trump cares about is trade, and he won't lift a finger if Xi violently cracks down on protesters.The list goes on. Not long after Trump claimed (falsely) to Pakistan's prime minister, Imran Khan, that the Indian prime minister, Narendra Modi, asked Trump to mediate the India-Pakistan dispute over Kashmir (the claim itself became a major diplomatic embarrassment for India) the government of India revoked Kashmir's special autonomous status, raising tensions between the two nuclear-armed neighbors. As the US withdrew from the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) treaty, the US secretary of defense, Mark Esper, stoked new concerns of an arms race in Asia when he suggested the US could deploy new ground-based missiles there. Pompeo recently praised the military-run government of Thailand as "returning" to democracy because it held sham elections. And Trump seems unaware of the atrocities being committed against the Rohingya in Myanmar or the Uyghurs in China. America's alliances, partnerships and moral authority in the region are fraying.Trump is an expert at stepping into controversy and making bad situations even worse, and his engagement in Asia is no exception. If these situations continue to spiral out of control, any one of the simmering problems from North Korea to Hong Kong to Kashmir could explode. And that could spell serious trouble for US prosperity and national security. * Michael H Fuchs is a senior fellow at the Center for American Progress, and a former deputy assistant secretary of state for east Asian and Pacific affairs
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| View 2020 Mercedes-AMG CLA45 S Photos Posted: 09 Aug 2019 04:59 PM PDT |
| The Latest: Congress party says people dying in Kashmir Posted: 10 Aug 2019 11:47 AM PDT  India's main opposition leader Rahul Gandhi has demanded a statement from Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the situation in Kashmir, saying there are reports of violence and people dying. Pakistan says that with the support of China, it will take up India's unilateral actions in the disputed region of Kashmir with the U.N. Security Council and may approach the U.N. Human Rights Commission over what it says is the "genocide" of the Kashmiri people. Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi made the comment Saturday after meeting in Beijing with his Chinese counterpart and other top leaders.
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| Biden in Iowa Says ‘Poor Kids’ Are Just as Smart as ‘White Kids’ Posted: 09 Aug 2019 08:07 AM PDT  (Bloomberg) -- Joe Biden told a group of mostly Asian and Hispanic voters in Iowa on Thursday that "poor kids are just as bright" as white children.The former vice president, known for his verbal gaffes, made the remarks to the Asian & Latino Coalition in Des Moines, Iowa, where he's on a four-day campaign swing for the Democratic presidential nomination."We should challenge students in these schools and have advanced placement programs in these schools," Biden said. "We have this notion that somehow if you're poor, you cannot do it. Poor kids are just as bright and just as talented, as white kids." He quickly added, "Wealthy kids, black kids, Asian kids, no I really mean it, but think how we think about it.""We think how we're going to dumb it down. They can do anything anybody else can do given a shot."Biden, 76, has been criticized for his tendency to say awkward, sometimes surprising, things. When his future boss, Barack Obama, was running for president, Biden once remarked that Obama was "clean" and "articulate," a remark that raised eyebrows.The re-election campaign of President Donald Trump, under a barrage of criticism from Biden and other Democrats for what they term racist rhetoric, posted video of Biden's remark.Kate Bedingfield, Biden's deputy campaign manager, said in a statement on Friday that Biden "misspoke and immediately corrected himself during a refrain he often uses," namely how to level the playing field for low-income students.She also said, incorrectly, that the video only contained the first part of Biden's sentence. She added, "And it's no coincidence this comes days after Joe Biden laid out how this president emboldens white nationalism and embraces racism."(Updates with new details about Trump video and Biden aide quote in seventh paragraph.)To contact the reporter on this story: Emma Kinery in Washington at ekinery@bloomberg.netTo contact the editors responsible for this story: Wendy Benjaminson at wbenjaminson@bloomberg.net, Steve GeimannFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
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| VIDEO: Danny Trejo rushes in to rescue child in Sylmar car crash Posted: 09 Aug 2019 12:19 AM PDT  New surveillance video shows actor Danny Trejo rushing in to help a child after a car crash in Sylmar.
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| Scandal-ridden NRA head LaPierre digs in against gun control Posted: 09 Aug 2019 06:55 AM PDT  In the aftermath of the back-to-back shooting massacres in Texas and Ohio, the debate over gun control has returned to the National Rifle Association and its immense power to stymie any significant legislation on the issue. The man largely responsible for the NRA's uncompromising stance is its decades-long CEO, Wayne LaPierre, who has been engulfed in turmoil and legal issues as he orchestrates the group's latest effort to push back against gun control measures. Law enforcement authorities are investigating the NRA's finances, and the gun group has ousted top officials and traded lawsuits with the longtime marketing firm credited with helping to shape LaPierre's and the NRA's image.
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| Israel navy seeks to raise profile with multi-national drill Posted: 09 Aug 2019 02:59 AM PDT  A huge earthquake hits northern Israel, killing thousands and knocking out infrastructure -- this doomsday scenario was the premise for a multi-national naval drill this week. Sailors from France, Greece and the United States arrived on their vessels and were joined by the Israelis off the Israeli port city of Haifa for the four-day exercise, called Mighty Waves. It was the first time Israel hosted and organised a drill of such scope, said Lieutenant Colonel Liav Zilberman.
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| Should Walmart, Kroger and other retailers ban carrying guns in stores? Posted: 09 Aug 2019 07:45 AM PDT  After shootings at Walmart, Kroger, Waffle House, Macy's and others, are you comfortable visiting a business where patrons can bring their weapons?
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| Armed Trump supporter detained with gun and knife outside immigrant centre in El Paso Posted: 09 Aug 2019 08:11 AM PDT  An armed Trump supporter sparked a security alert at an immigrant community centre in El Paso when he was spotted "brandishing" a knife outside.Thomas Bartram, 21, was detained by police following reports of a suspicious man parked in front of the building, four days after 22 people were killed in a mass shooting in the city.Mr Bartram, who was legally carrying a gun, was questioned by officers but was released after they decided he had not committed any criminal offence.Photographs and video footage posted online showed Mr Bartram being arrested next to a truck bearing a mocked up image of the US president as Rambo wielding a rocket launcher.Staff at the Casa Carmelita criticised the decision by the El Paso police department, claiming that the man had "clear intent to conduct an armed assault" on the day of Mr Trump's visit."He was sitting in his truck wearing blue latex gloves, and brandishing a knife," they posted on the organisation's Facebook page."Police recovered a loaded gun, ammo, and a bag of white powder from his person. This happens just as Trump departs El Paso and follows a pattern of local organisers being targeted and increased violence and hate crimes." Organisers also claimed the Trump supporter's presence outside the centre caused women to start "fleeing down the street, warning neighbours as they ran away."The El Paso police department tweeted that "officers responded to a suspicious subject at the 900 block of Stanton near Casa Carmelita" at 7pm on 7 July."The subject was detained, interviewed and released after it was determined that no criminal offence had been committed," it added.A police spokesman confirmed the detained man was carrying a firearm legally.Mr Bartram had previously been photographed wearing plastic safety goggles while visiting a vigil for the victims of the shooting in El Paso.He claimed he drove to the city from Houston to "come out and support" Mr Trump and denied allegations he was brandishing the weapons.Asked about the knife and the gloves, he told NBC News: "I was eating prickly pears." The "white powder" was a protein supplement, he said. Mr Bartram added: "I'm definitely not a white supremacist."Seven of the victims of the El Paso shooting carried out by a suspected white supremacist were Mexican citizens. Thirteen were US citizens, one was German and one remains unknown.
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| Southern separatists overrun barracks in Yemen's Aden Posted: 09 Aug 2019 05:22 PM PDT  Southern separatists gained ground across Yemen's second city Aden on Saturday and surrounded the presidential palace as they fought fierce battles with loyalist forces, military and security sources said. Deadly fighting raging in Aden since Wednesday is pitting unionist forces loyal to the internationally recognised government against a force that supports it but is dominated by fighters seeking renewed independence for the south. The force, known as the Security Belt, overran three military barracks belonging to unionist forces and were surrounding the presidential palace, sources close to the Security Belt said.
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| London teen missing in Malaysia isn't independent: parents Posted: 10 Aug 2019 03:03 AM PDT  The parents of a 15-year-old London girl who mysteriously disappeared from a Malaysian resort a week ago said Saturday that she wasn't independent and had difficulty walking, in new details to support their conviction that she was abducted. A massive search operation has been underway for Nora Anne Quoirin, who was discovered missing by her family last Sunday morning from the Dusun eco-resort in southern Negeri Sembilan state.
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| Here's the Story Behind That Controversial 'Backless Seats' Photo Posted: 09 Aug 2019 12:50 PM PDT  EasyJet told TIME that the flight departed with five spare seats
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| New Democratic Unity Can Overpower the NRA Posted: 10 Aug 2019 10:44 AM PDT  (Bloomberg Opinion) -- The following is an adaptation of remarks delivered at a candidate forum on gun safety in Des Moines, Iowa. The forum was sponsored by Mike Bloomberg's Everytown for Gun Safety Action Fund, Moms Demand Action and Students Demand Action.This has been a tragically sad week in America.But we are ending the week on a hopeful note — because all of you are here today. You're here because you know America can answer this challenge and because you refuse to settle for thoughts and prayers when we need actions and laws.The fact is, 30 Americans are murdered with guns every day. Very few of those murders make national news.But think about it: That's the equivalent to multiple mass shootings every 24 hours. And, on top of that, another 61 people commit suicide with guns every day.We can save so many of those lives — but only if we organize and demand action.It says a lot about how much you've accomplished that so many presidential candidates are here. As I'm sure many of you remember, it used to be that lots of Democratic candidates would say: Yes, we agree with you, but we can't touch the issue — because the National Rifle Association will come after us.Back then, the NRA had the field to itself — in both parties. But then you showed up, and times have changed.This reflects something that's very important and very powerful. There has never been more unity on gun safety across so many Democratic presidential candidates — and across the entire Democratic Party — as there is today. Now we've got to take the unity we've built and translate it into action in Washington.So let's say this in a voice loud enough that they will hear us in Congress and the White House: We are demanding that the Senate pass, and that the president sign, strong background-check laws and other gun-safety legislation without delay.If they don't, we will hold them accountable. And we'll make sure every voter in America understands that in 2020 they have a choice between candidates who stand up for a family's safety — and those who bow down to special interests.The big reason for the historic unity in the Democratic Party is that we've built a grassroots army with 6 million supporters. In the 2018 elections — unlike in years past — candidates all over the country ran and won on gun safety. In fact, in the races where we got involved, we replaced 19 members of Congress who had "A" ratings from the NRA with 19 "gun sense" candidates.Once they got into office, these candidates kept their promise to take action. Thanks to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's strong leadership, the House passed a comprehensive background-check bill. It also voted to close the "Charleston loophole," which allows people to buy guns before a background check is completed.It was the first time in 25 years that either house of Congress passed a major gun-safety bill, no matter which party was in charge.So the good news is: We have historic unity in the Democratic Party on guns.But we're only halfway there.In the Republican Party, we still have a lot of work to do. Republicans in the Senate have refused to act on the House bills — and on a "red flag" bill that would help keep guns out of the hands of those with a serious mental illness.This week, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said that he was willing to consider those issues. In Washington, that counts as progress. But saying and doing are two very different things.Just look at President Donald Trump. This week, he said he supported stronger background checks. Unfortunately, after the Parkland shooting 18 months ago, he said exactly same thing. And then the NRA told him to drop it, so he did — immediately. He didn't have the guts to oppose the NRA then, and now he faces the same choice.Earlier this week, Wayne LaPierre, who runs the NRA, spoke to the president and told him to drop his support for stronger background checks. So now the president can either find the backbone to stand up to the NRA or, once again, he can bow down to the NRA and kiss Wayne's ring.I hope the president gets the courage to work with both houses of Congress to pass stronger laws, but I'll believe it when I see it.In politics, breaking with your allies isn't easy. I know. But standing up to special interests is what leadership is all about. There's only one person who gets to sit at the desk in the Oval Office. And if he or she isn't strong enough to make executive decisions based on what's right, then we should vote that person out and get someone who is.In this case, however, it shouldn't even be a hard political decision. Polling shows that the vast majority of NRA members support stronger background checks. And at the same time, the NRA is in shambles. We've all seen reports about the infighting and investigations into corruption and illegal activity.Which is why the president should be afraid — but not of the NRA. He should be afraid of the American people. Because in 2020, we are going to show how strong our movement has grown, and we are going to elect a president who will lead on gun safety instead of making lame excuses.Blaming video games and the internet is just the usual dodge. Every country has them. But only in America do we have the mass slaughter of innocent people with guns every single day. The president referred to "American carnage" in his inauguration speech. Well, that carnage is being inflicted with guns — and we have to hold him accountable for stopping it.This time has to be different.Now, I've devoted a lot of my life — and a lot of money — to this work.When I was mayor of New York City, I saw the tragic consequences of guns up close and personal. Telling parents that their child is not coming home is about the hardest thing you can do in life. And it never gets easier. No parent should ever have to bury a child.All I could do in delivering a eulogy was tell those parents — or the spouse, or the family — that my administration and I would do everything we could to try to save others from suffering their grief.And we did. We cut murders in half while also cutting the number of people behind bars by 36 percent. And we went after irresponsible out-of-state gun dealers and won court orders that forced them to follow the law.Since I've left office, I've expanded our national work, and thanks to all of you, we've made a lot of progress. More than 20 states have strengthened their gun laws over the past two years, and that includes 11 states with Republican governors who signed those bills and deserve credit for bucking the gun lobby.Our message is breaking through. However, the reality we face today is more lethal and complicated. It's not just criminals and psychopaths who are gunning down people — it's white supremacists trying to mass-murder African Americans; it's xenophobes trying to mass-murder Latinos; it's Islamophobes trying to mass-murder Muslims; it's homophobes trying to mass-murder the LGBTQ community; it's anti-Semites trying to mass-murder Jews; and it's other hate-filled people who see automatic weapons as a way to advance their poisonous ideology.There's been a lot of discussion about whether President Trump bears some responsibility for what happened in El Paso. Of course he does. Words matter. Words have consequences. And the more you ramp up the hateful and extreme rhetoric, the more hateful and extreme behavior you get.Being a leader comes with responsibility. People notice how you comport yourself. They listen to what you say. If you are duplicitous, it sends a signal that being duplicitous is OK. If you say things that are racist, it sends a signal that being racist is OK.If, however, you explain to people that we're all in this together, and you work to unite people around common goals, then you can bridge divisions and heal tensions.Here in this room, and around the nation, we are united together in saying: No guns without background checks. No guns for terrorists or criminals or domestic abusers. No guns for minors or those who are a danger to themselves or others. And no votes for candidates who stand in the way.Most of the candidates running for president are here today. I can't say I agree with all of them on every issue — and you probably don't, either. But I think we'd agree that all of them are better than the alternative.Make no mistake: This is not going to be an easy election. In order to win in 15 months — and in order to get a bill through the Senate — we need to keep demanding that candidates put this issue front and center. We have to make sure that the historic unity we've achieved on guns produces real action in Congress. And if doesn't, we have to make sure that all of those who stood in the way face the consequences on Nov. 3, 2020.To contact the editor responsible for this story: David Shipley at davidshipley@bloomberg.netMichael R. Bloomberg, the former mayor of New York City, is the founder and majority owner of Bloomberg LP, the parent company of Bloomberg News. He is the UN secretary-general's special envoy for climate action.For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com/opinion©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
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| Explosion at interracial couple's home treated as hate crime after swastika painted on garage Posted: 09 Aug 2019 12:14 PM PDT  An explosion which destroyed the home of an interracial couple after a swastika and a racial slur were found painted on the garage, is being investigated by the FBI.The suspected arson attack on the house of Brad and Angela Frase in the township of Sterling in Wayne County, Ohio, as a hate crime, investigators said. Police were called to the scene by a neighbour who reported a blast and fire at the building in the early hours of Wednesday morning. Firefighters managed to extinguish the flames but the house – which was not occupied at the time – was severely damaged."What makes this case worse is that it appears that this case was racially motivated," said captain Doug Hunter, of the Wayne County Sheriff's Office. "The couple that lived in the home – a white man and a black woman – lived there for many years without any type of problems but when the fire was set the perpetrators felt the need to write racial slurs on a nearby garage."A video taken by police at the scene showed an attempt at the n-word and a swastika daubed on a garage next to the smoking remains of the house.Racial slurs were also found painted on several vehicles parked nearby, according to the Ohio fire marshal.Ms Frase told the local ABC 5 News channel that she hoped the people responsible were caught."It's sickening to do this to somebody's home and not even know if they're home or not," she said. "We could've been in there."Ms Frase and her husband were not living at the house at the time because repairs were being carried out following an electrical fire a month earlier.The day before the explosion, the repair company alerted the gas company to the smell of natural gas inside the property.Engineers discovered one of the burners on a stove had been left on but the pilot light was not lit, and the meter was removed to prevent further leaks.A $5,000 (£4,100) reward is being offered for information about the attack."We are going to spare no expense when it comes to calling in resources to track down individuals that are accountable for this crime," said captain Doug Hunter. "It is totally out of character for Wayne County to have racial crimes like this, yes they have happened in the past but only a couple of times as far as I am aware."
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| Trump says students returning to school have 'nothing to worry about' after the recent mass shootings Posted: 09 Aug 2019 12:29 PM PDT  President Donald Trump on Friday assured students going back to school that they "have nothing to worry about," as the nation continues to reel after numerous mass shootings.
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| Pakistan court remands opposition leader to custody on graft charges Posted: 09 Aug 2019 04:37 AM PDT  Some supporters of Pakistan's largest opposition party threw punches on Friday in clashes with police as a top leader, Maryam Nawaz, was remanded to custody on corruption charges filed by a national anti-graft agency. Maryam, daughter of former prime minister Nawaz Sharif and a scion of the family that dominated politics for three decades, was arrested over fraud accusations at a sugar mill her family runs, one of several cases it says are politically motivated. "I knew that it would be a tough situation for me to launch a political struggle but I will not budge," Maryam told reporters shortly before she appeared in court in the city of Lahore, to be denied bail and remanded until August 21.
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| Rare baby panda twins born at Belgian zoo Posted: 08 Aug 2019 05:38 PM PDT  A Belgian zoo announced Friday the "extremely rare" birth of twin baby giant pandas, three years after the arrival of a young male, which was a first for Belgium at the time. The Pairi Daiza zoo said the safe delivery of the twins, one male and one female, on Thursday represented a "new hope" for the charismatic black and white bear, of which fewer than 2,000 now live in the wild, according to the World Wildlife Fund. The mother Hao Hao showed signs of going into labour on Wednesday evening and gave birth to the 160-gram male baby on Thursday afternoon, under careful monitoring by Belgian and Chinese experts, followed by the female, weighing 150 grams, two hours later.
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| Man who alleged police locked him in closet awarded $50M Posted: 10 Aug 2019 12:50 PM PDT ![Man who alleged police locked him in closet awarded $50M]( "Man who alleged police locked him in closet awarded $50M") A jury in Cleveland on Friday awarded $50 million to a man who claimed police beat him while he was handcuffed and locked him in a storage closet for four days with no toilet and nothing to eat or drink but a carton of milk. A different Cuyahoga County jury awarded Black $22 million in June 2016 during a three-day trial where no attorneys representing East Cleveland attended. The city subsequently appealed, and the lawsuit was sent back to Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court for another trial.
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| Fukushima nuclear plant out of space for radioactive water Posted: 09 Aug 2019 07:39 AM PDT  The utility company operating Fukushima's tsunami-devastated nuclear power plant said Friday it will run out of space to store massive amounts of contaminated water in three years, adding pressure on the government and the public to reach a consensus on what to do with it. Three reactors at the Fukushima Dai-ichi plant suffered meltdowns in a massive 2011 earthquake and tsunami that devastated northeastern Japan. Radioactive water has leaked from the damaged reactors and mixed with groundwater and rainwater at the plant.
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| Police: Florida man drives golf cart into Walmart, attempts to run over people Posted: 09 Aug 2019 03:02 AM PDT  A Florida man is facing charges for driving a golf cart through a crowded Walmart.
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| Mexico Considers Banning Cash for Gasoline Purchases, Highway Tolls Posted: 09 Aug 2019 02:17 PM PDT ![Mexico Considers Banning Cash for Gasoline Purchases, Highway Tolls]( "Mexico Considers Banning Cash for Gasoline Purchases, Highway Tolls") (Bloomberg) -- Mexico is considering a ban on the use of cash for purchasing gasoline and to pay for tolls as a way to fight tax evasion and money laundering, according to people with direct knowledge of the discussions.The plan, which has been discussed between the banking industry and the government, hasn't been fully approved. A final decision may not be taken until after the central bank rolls out its digital payments platform known as CoDi next month which is part of a broader government program to push more Mexicans into the banking system and cut down on cash, said the people who asked not to be named, since the plan isn't public.Mexico is awash in cash from the informal economy of street merchants and the illicit drug trade. Cash is used for between 80% to 90% of transactions in Mexico, Finance Minister Arturo Herrera said in March, when he was still deputy minister. At a time of a slowing economy, the plan could also help widen Mexico's tax base.Mexico's Finance Ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The country's banking association declined to comment.In addition, the move will help identify gas stations that are buying stolen fuel by tracking their sales electronically, both people said. President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador has made a crackdown on fuel theft from state-owned oil company Petroleos Mexicanos a cornerstone of his drive to root out widespread corruption.For banks, the plan to push for more cashless transactions -- albeit without fees -- could be a boon for expanding their client base and open opportunities to provide more Mexicans with cards, loans and mortgages. The CoDi system -- which relies on QR codes with mobile phones -- and a ban on gasoline and tolls, could increase digital payments tenfold, one of the people said.Only around two-fifths of Mexicans have bank accounts, World Bank data shows, and Mexico has the lowest tax take as a share of its economy among members of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development.AMLO, as the leftist president is known, surprised Mexico's bankers by embracing a cashless strategy which his predecessors had previously shunned. The ambitious project gels with his anti-graft campaign as well as a wish to to achieve greater financial inclusion in remote parts of the country of 125 million. To be sure, challenges abound to weaning Mexicans off cash, including poor connectivity for both mobile networks and internet service outside of major urban areas.With the need to give consumers time to prepare for a cash ban on goods like gasoline and highway tolls, the enforcement of such a policy may take some time. Other areas that could be pushed into digital payments include public transportation, school tuition, electricity bills and passport fees, the people said.India instated an even broader cash ban in 2016 - one that prohibited high-denomination currency notes. While it didn't weed out illicit cash use altogether, it did widen the country's tax base and increase digital payments.(Updates with response from bank association in fourth paragraph.)To contact the reporters on this story: Michael O'Boyle in Mexico City at moboyle7@bloomberg.net;Nacha Cattan in Mexico City at ncattan@bloomberg.netTo contact the editors responsible for this story: Daniel Cancel at dcancel@bloomberg.net, Richard RichtmyerFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
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| The El Paso shooting has reignited a debate over whether the federal government has a double-standard when it comes to white nationalist terrorism Posted: 10 Aug 2019 06:17 AM PDT  The government has been unable to address homegrown extremism because of civil liberties concerns and because the US has no domestic terrorism law.
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