| 'Why are you saying that to me': Chinese American reporter calls Trump out on his anti-China remarks and suggests he's singling her out Posted: 11 May 2020 03:26 PM PDT  CBS News' Weijia Jiang, an Asian American correspondent, was born in China and raised in West Virginia.
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| South Dakota tribes defy governor and maintain checkpoints in coronavirus fight Posted: 11 May 2020 03:36 PM PDT  "We have every legal right to do what we're doing," said Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe Chairman Harold Frazier. "We're just doing preventative action."
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| China berates New Zealand over support for Taiwan at WHO Posted: 11 May 2020 02:35 AM PDT |
| Guaidó advisers quit following bungled Venezuela raid Posted: 11 May 2020 10:36 AM PDT  Venezuelan opposition leader Juan Guaidó said Monday that two U.S.-based political advisers have resigned in the fallout from a failed incursion into the Caribbean nation led by a former-Green Beret aimed at capturing President Nicolás Maduro. Guaido said he accepted the resignations of Juan José Rendon and Sergio Vergara, who had signed an agreement for a mission to arrest Maduro with U.S. military veteran Jordan Goudreau. While that deal fell apart, Goudreau has taken responsibility for going ahead with a failed attack launched May 3 on a beach outside the capital, Caracas.
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| Coronavirus: Mexican jailed gang leader Escamilla dies Posted: 11 May 2020 06:04 AM PDT  Mexican Moisés Escamilla was serving a sentence for crimes including the decapitation of 12 people.
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| Texas Salon Owner Admits to ‘The View’ She Received PPP Funds Before Court Date Posted: 11 May 2020 10:10 AM PDT  Shelley Luther, the Texas hair salon owner who received national attention for defying orders to keep her shop temporarily closed during the coronavirus pandemic, admitted on Monday morning that she had received $18,000 in stimulus funds days before her fateful court appearance.Luther became a conservative hero when she was briefly jailed last week following her refusal to apologize to a Texas judge after she was found guilty of civil and criminal contempt for violating a temporary restraining order by keeping her shop open despite stay-at-home orders. Sentenced to seven days in jail and a $7,000 fine, Luther was quickly freed by Texas Gov. Greg Abbott and her fine was paid by Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick.Appearing on the popular ABC talk show The View, Luther was confronted on her previous claims that she violated the state's shelter-in-place orders because she and her shop's stylists were facing financial hardships."You applied for small business loans and unemployment, and you did receive some aid from the government," co-host Sunny Hostin noted. "You received $18,000 from the government.""So I understand why people feel so strongly about going back to work because they feel that the government isn't doing its job and taking care of people, but in this instance, two days before you went to court, the money went into your account," Hostin added. "So I'm troubled by that."Luther replied that she could understand why the View host "would be troubled" before claiming that she didn't know what to do with the money she applied for and received through the Paycheck Protection Program."What happened was I already had the court date, and I already had been open the entire time," the salon owner asserted. "There was $18,000 dropped in my bank account with no notice of what it was. So I get no instructions."Saying that she thinks the money is from "one of the loans," Luther went on to claim that she doesn't "know how I'm supposed to spend it," adding that she is aware that there are a number of regulations and guidelines that come with the funds."I didn't want to put myself in deeper debt by spending it the wrong way, you know, and also having to close the salon," Luther said. "So until I got further instruction on that, I didn't want to spend it.""And giving me $18,000 to spend when my stylists aren't actual employees of mine, they're actually subleasing," she concluded. "So I wasn't sure if I was even able to give them any of that money as employees because I don't pay them."Besides the widespread adulation she received from the right over her defiance of stay-at-home orders, which included praise from President Donald Trump and Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) flying in for a haircut at her salon, Luther was also the beneficiary of a GoFundMe campaign that raised more than $500,000 on her behalf.Texas Monthly, however, recently reported that the crowdfunding effort for Luther, which labeled her an "American hero," was actually created back on April 23, one day before she reopened her salon. The campaign organizer wrote that they "researched her and her cause" and decided that "we would approach her and offer to support her as our first patriot cause."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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| Flynn's Exoneration Was the Latest in a Life Full of Reversals Posted: 10 May 2020 09:11 AM PDT  WASHINGTON -- There have always been two sides to Michael Flynn. There was the rebellious teenager who surfed during hurricanes and spent a night in juvenile reformatory. Then there was the adult who buckled down, joined the Army and rose to become a three-star general.Flynn was a lifelong Democrat who served President Barack Obama as a top intelligence officer. He also called Obama a "liar" after being forced out of the job and reinvented himself as a Republican foreign policy adviser.Flynn criticized retired generals who used their stars "for themselves, for their businesses." He appeared to do the same thing as a consultant.But the two sides of Flynn were perhaps never so stark as in the criminal case against him that ended abruptly on Thursday to the astonishment of much of official Washington.After pleading guilty in 2017 to lying to federal investigators about his contacts with a Russian diplomat, Flynn cooperated with the special counsel, saying he was "being a good soldier" and earning prosecutors' praise. Then he recanted his confession and began what some allies saw as a reckless gamble to recast himself as an innocent victim of a justice system run amok.That gamble paid off this past week when, in an extraordinary reversal, the Justice Department abandoned his prosecution, saying he never should have been charged. Current and former federal law enforcement officials expressed disbelief and dismay, calling the move an unprecedented blow to the Justice Department's integrity and independence. Obama, in remarks to former members of his administration, said he feared that "not just institutional norms, but our basic understanding of rule of law is at risk."Flynn transformed his case into a political cause that resonated in the conservative echo chamber. Led by his lawyer, Sidney Powell, and Rep. Devin Nunes, R-Calif. and a close ally of the president's, Flynn's backers worked to wipe away the mistrust of some Republicans over his cooperation with law enforcement and turn him into a right-wing hero. Powell dug up documents she insisted showed that her client was as much of a victim of malfeasance by the FBI as Trump had been.Ultimately Attorney General William Barr joined the battle, granting Flynn another turnabout in a life filled with them.A maverick in the military Michael T. Flynn, 61, grew up in Middleton, Rhode Island, the sixth of nine children. His father was an Army sergeant who became a banker. His mother ran a secretarial school before earning a law degree at age 63.The family was squeezed into a three-bedroom, one-bathroom oceanfront cottage. Finances were tight."I was one of those nasty tough kids, hellbent on breaking rules for the adrenaline high and hard-wired just enough not to care about the consequences," Flynn wrote in his 2016 book, "The Field of Fight." "Some serious and unlawful activity," he wrote, led to his arrest.He nearly flunked out of his freshman year at the University of Rhode Island, earning a 1.2 grade-point average. But the ROTC awarded him a three-year scholarship, and he found his calling in the military.For much of Flynn's career, former colleagues said, his mentors and superior officers let his talents flourish and kept his disruptive tendencies in check. In his book, he described himself as a rebel at heart. "I'm a maverick, an atypical square peg in a round hole," he wrote.As a young officer in 1983, he talked his way onto the military force that invaded Grenada. There, he dove off a 40-foot cliff to rescue two soldiers foundering in waters off the coast. He was scolded for the unauthorized rescue, but also earned respect.His boldness later translated into strategies that seemed fresh and welcome when the military was mired in wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. In Afghanistan, he championed new ways to fuse intelligence gathering and military operations.His partnership with Gen. Stanley McChrystal, the commander of American-led forces in Afghanistan at the time, shielded him from critics. McChrystal also acted as a brake, ensuring that Flynn's most outlandish ideas were confined to brainstorming sessions.By the time Flynn arrived at the Defense Intelligence Agency as a three-star general in 2012, cracks were beginning to show. Obama had fired McChrystal, a move that deeply distressed Flynn.He executed a reorganization of the agency that is still in effect. But his chaotic management style and increasingly hard-edged views about counterterrorism gave colleagues pause, and his superiors viewed him as insubordinate, former Pentagon officials said. His defenders said the Obama administration bristled at his tough line on Iran.His two-year term was not extended, thrusting him into the civilian world at age 55, an embittered man.Flynn had flourished with the special operation forces in Iraq where his colleagues could "tolerate, adjust, and manage what was functional and dysfunctional with Mike Flynn," said Douglas Wise, a former CIA officer who became Flynn's deputy at the Defense Intelligence Agency."In the political arena," Wise said, "he no longer had this kind of adult supervision."Pivoting to the rightAs a military man, Flynn seemed oblivious to wealth, un-self-consciously parking his 1986 Buick Park Avenue in a Pentagon parking lot dotted with Cadillacs and Lexuses.But as a civilian, he founded a consulting firm, Flynn Intel Group, that attracted high-paying clients. In a decision that appalled some friends, he agreed to give a speech in 2015 to RT, Russia's state-controlled television network, for about $45,000. He was seated at the head table next to President Vladimir Putin of Russia.The next year, he pulled in at least $1.8 million from private intelligence and security services, consulting and speeches. About $530,000 came for work to discredit an enemy of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey. Flynn did not register with the Justice Department as a foreign agent, as required under lobbying disclosure laws, until the following spring, when he was under federal scrutiny.Flynn's politics seemed to shift even more than his finances. He heavily criticized the Obama administration, especially over Iran policy.His pragmatic approach of old gave way in private conversations with reporters and students to almost hostile views to Islam. In his book, he called for the destruction of the Iranian government. Publicly, he sneered at Obama for avoiding the term "radical Islam"and implied that Obama was a secret Muslim."I'm not going to sit here and say he's Islamic," he told one of the country's largest anti-Muslim groups, ACT for America, in 2016. But, he said, the president "didn't grow up as an American kid," and held values "totally different than mine."Colin Powell, the former secretary of state, called Flynn "right-wing nutty." But his views resonated with Trump. Their initial mid-2015 meeting, scheduled for a half-hour, lasted 90 minutes and prompted Flynn to begin advising the campaign.He enthralled conservatives at the Republican National Convention in July 2016 when he led a chorus of "Lock her up!" chants against Hillary Clinton.Within weeks, Flynn became the subject of an FBI counterintelligence inquiry into the Trump campaign's links to Russia. His code name was "Razor."By January 2017, with Trump's inauguration imminent, the FBI had decided that insufficient evidence existed that Flynn conspired with the Russians, wittingly or unwittingly.But the FBI's interest was rekindled when agents learned that in late December during the presidential transition, Flynn had advised the Russian ambassador, Sergey Kislyak, that the Kremlin refrain from reacting to the Obama administration's imposition of sanctions for Russia's election interference. Flynn also asked that Russia delay or defeat an upcoming United Nations Security Council resolution condemning Israel.Those phone calls were problematic because Flynn was attempting to intervene in foreign policy as a private citizen, a potential violation of a federal law -- albeit one rarely enforced.Flynn also told the incoming vice president, Mike Pence, that he had not discussed sanctions with Russia. Pence repeated that assertion on television, raising concerns at the Justice Department that Flynn had lied to him and that the Russians could use the truth to blackmail Flynn.At the FBI, his file had lingered in abeyance, not yet formally closed. "Our utter incompetence actually helps us," Peter Strzok, an FBI counterintelligence agent, texted a bureau lawyer. Because of a bureaucratic oversight, agents would not have to justify a reopening of the inquiry.Four days after the inauguration, the FBI sent two agents to question Flynn at the White House. Caught off-guard, Justice Department officials "hit the roof" when they found out, one said.Flynn told the agents he had not asked Russia to act in any specific way in response to the U.N. resolution or the imposition of sanctions. Those denials did not save his job: He was soon forced to resign.Even then, Trump tried to protect him from further investigation. "I hope you can see your way clear to letting this go, to letting Flynn go," he told James Comey, then the FBI director whom Trump later fired.That December, Flynn pleaded guilty to lying to investigators about his conversations with the Russian official and pledged to cooperate with the inquiry by the special counsel, Robert Mueller, into Russia's 2016 election interference.Rebellion and resurrectionAbout a year later, Flynn had second thoughts. After a federal judge warned that he might not be sentenced to probation, he fired his legal team. His legal bills had amounted to nearly $3 million, forcing him to sell his Alexandria, Virginia, house and move to his Rhode Island homeIn a court filing, Flynn said he had only pleaded guilty because his lawyers advised him to. "One of the ways a person becomes a three-star general is by being a good soldier, taking orders, being part of a team and trusting people who provide information and support," he wrote.Even before she formally took over Flynn's defense last June, Powell put together a public relations and legal campaign to exonerate him, making the case on Capitol Hill and in conservative media.In appearances on Fox News, Powell linked her client's plight to other examples of what she saw as government overreach. She also stitched Flynn's story to conspiracy theories about career government officials' efforts to undermine Trump, both in court filings and conversations with journalists.Nunes, a longtime friend of Flynn and close ally of Trump, joined Powell in a full-throated defense. Together, they reoriented the view of Flynn on the right from an object of suspicion for cooperating with the special counsel into a conservative cause."Sidney Powell brilliantly shifted the narrative and shrewdly found new allies in the House Freedom Caucus and Fox News commentators," said Michael Pillsbury, an informal adviser to Trump and a scholar at the Hudson Institute.In a letter to Barr, Powell accused prosecutors and investigators of withholding documents, improperly leaking to the media and seeking to entrap her client.Her evidence included what Flynn's backers called a smoking gun: handwritten notes from Bill Priestap, then the head of FBI counterintelligence. "What is our goal?" he asked before the White House interview. "Truth/admission or to get him to lie, so we can prosecute him or get him fired?"The bureau's defenders said the notes proved the FBI's impartiality, not its bias. But they provoked a fresh wave of indignation from the right.The campaign shifted Trump's thinking, as well. Initially he seemed inclined to believe that Flynn had done something wrong -- at least by lying to Pence. More recently, he has privately voiced regrets about firing him.By the time the Justice Department dropped the charges against Flynn on Thursday, Trump was calling the investigators who pursued Flynn "human scum." The next day, he praised Nunes' relentless efforts to take them on."Devin Nunes, he wouldn't stop," Trump said. "He saw it before anybody."The president has begun musing about rehiring Flynn. But some advisers to Trump said they viewed Flynn as too much of a loose cannon for the campaign trail or the White House.In the end, that side of Flynn may prevent him from finding that final bit of redemption.This article originally appeared in The New York Times.(C) 2020 The New York Times Company
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| South Korea and China report new coronavirus cases after easing lockdown measures Posted: 10 May 2020 08:40 PM PDT  South Korea and China have reported fresh surges in coronavirus cases in the wake of both countries easing their lockdown measures. "The nation is at risk," Park Won-soon, the mayor of the South Korean capital, Seoul, said on Monday, warning that the next few days will be "critical" in preventing the spread of a virus from a cluster of cases linked to several of the city's nightclubs and bars. A total of 86 new infections have been reported so far in the new outbreak as officials race to track down thousands of others who may have come into contact with a 29-year-old man who visited the venues before testing positive for Covid-19. The scare will ring alarm bells for other governments eager to loosen lockdown restrictions. South Korea has won global praise for successfully controlling the virus with its efficient "test, track, treat" strategy, reducing new infections to a daily trickle of single digit figures. The sudden spike in cases has raised fears of a second coronavirus wave. The authorities have tested more than 2,450 people who went to the night spots in the Itaewon neighbourhood, but officials are still trying to track about 3,000 more with the help of phone records and credit card data.
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| Iran accidentally fires missile at its own military ship, killing 19 Posted: 11 May 2020 03:18 AM PDT  An Iranian ship fired a missile during a training exercise which accidentally struck another vessel, killing 19 sailors, state media reported.
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| Trump touts testing as "greatest capacity in the world" Posted: 11 May 2020 06:25 PM PDT  The president said he is the one requiring masks now at the White House.
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| Iran raises death toll in friendly fire missile strike to 19 Posted: 11 May 2020 03:38 AM PDT  The friendly fire incident happened on Sunday near the port of Jask, some 1,270 kilometers (790 miles) southeast of Tehran.
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| More than 90% of Tokyo hospital beds for COVID-19 patients filled: government Posted: 10 May 2020 08:59 AM PDT  More than 90 percent of hospital beds secured for COVID-19 patients in Tokyo have already been occupied, the Japanese Health Ministry said on Sunday, underscoring the pressing need to curb the further spread of the new coronavirus. The Tokyo Metropolitan government aims to boost the number of beds for COVID-19 patients to 4,000 eventually. About 5,000 people in Tokyo were confirmed to have been infected with the virus, representing nearly one-third of Japan's total infections of around 16,000, according to public broadcaster NHK.
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| New York City recorded 24,000 more deaths than normal over 2 months this spring. About 5,000 of those are still a mystery. Posted: 11 May 2020 02:05 PM PDT  Some of the unexplained deaths could still be attributed to the coronavirus, but public-health experts say we may never know for sure.
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| Violence Against Asian Americans Is on the Rise—But It’s Part of a Long History Posted: 11 May 2020 02:13 PM PDT  A new docuseries on PBS calls attention to how Asian Americans have often been violently scapegoated for larger societal issues
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| Not Feeling the iPhone? Consider One of These Android Phones Instead Posted: 11 May 2020 09:00 AM PDT |
| Pence would 'be happy' to see 'patriot' Michael Flynn in White House again Posted: 10 May 2020 08:58 AM PDT  Vice President Mike Pence seems ready for former National Security Adviser Michael Flynn to come back to the White House after the Justice Department moved last week to drop its criminal case against him, Axios reports.Flynn was a major player in former Special Counsel Robert Mueller's investigation into 2016 Russian election interference. He pleaded guilty in 2017 to lying to FBI agents about his conversations with former Russian Ambassador to the United States Sergey Kislyak, but the Justice Department on Thursday said the interview which contained Flynn's admission was "conducted without any legitimate investigative basis."There isn't any official indication that Flynn will find his way back to the White House, although Axios reports that some insiders wouldn't be surprised to see him on the campaign trail this year. Pence, at least, apparently wouldn't object to that. He described Flynn as "an American patriot" and said the Justice Department's decision "laid bare" what was "clearly prosecutorial abuse." > VP Mike Pence to AxiosOnHBO on the idea of Michael Flynn rejoining the administration: "I think General Michael Flynn is an American patriot...And for my part, I'd be happy to see Michael Flynn again."> > Watch the full episode Monday at 11pm ET/PT. pic.twitter.com/YkCTcRSUaT> > -- Axios (@axios) May 10, 2020More stories from theweek.com The dark decade ahead Trump angrily shuts down questions about coronavirus testing at press conference on coronavirus testing The making of a coronavirus conspiracy theory
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| The US needs masks to fight coronavirus, but supplies from China fell as demand rose Posted: 11 May 2020 01:48 PM PDT  Just as medical workers need face masks more than ever to fight coronavirus, imports dropped. Why can't America get enough?
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| Schumer calls on VA to explain use of unproven drug on vets Posted: 10 May 2020 06:15 AM PDT  The Senate's top Democrat on Sunday called on the Department of Veterans Affairs to explain why it allowed the use of an unproven drug on veterans for the coronavirus, saying patients may have been put at unnecessary risk. Sen. Charles Schumer of New York said the VA needs to provide Congress more information about a recent bulk order for $208,000 worth of hydroxychloroquine. President Donald Trump has heavily promoted the malaria drug, without evidence, as a treatment for COVID-19.
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| Israel govt swearing-in delayed a day by Pompeo visit: officials Posted: 11 May 2020 12:00 PM PDT  The swearing-in of Israel's new unity government has been postponed by one day to Thursday due to the upcoming visit of US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, officials said. A parliament spokesman said the joint administration of incumbent premier Benjamin Netanyahu and his former rival Benny Gantz would be inaugurated on Thursday instead of Wednesday. A spokesman for Netanyahu's right-wing Likud party told AFP the delay was "because of the visit" of the US top diplomat on Wednesday.
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| Russia's Putin orders gradual easing of coronavirus lockdown despite surge in cases Posted: 11 May 2020 01:40 AM PDT  Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday announced a gradual easing of coronavirus lockdown measures despite a new surge in infections which took Russia's tally past Italy's, making it the fourth highest in the world. Putin, in a televised nationwide address, said that from Tuesday he would start lifting restrictions that had forced many people to work from home and businesses to temporarily close. The Russian leader emphasised the lifting of restrictions would be gradual and that individual regions in the world's largest country would need to tailor their approach to varying local conditions.
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| Tesla is asking factory employees to go back to work despite a shelter-in-place order, and some workers are afraid that if they don't go they'll lose their job Posted: 11 May 2020 09:33 AM PDT  Elon Musk wants his California employees to go back to work this week despite a shelter-in-place order in Alameda county.
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| Pork Chops vs. People: Battling Coronavirus in an Iowa Meat Plant Posted: 10 May 2020 11:00 AM PDT  On April 10, Tony Thompson, the sheriff for Black Hawk County in Iowa, visited the giant Tyson Foods pork plant in Waterloo. What he saw, he said, "shook me to the core."Workers, many of them immigrants, were crowded elbow to elbow as they broke down hog carcasses zipping by on a conveyor belt. The few who had face coverings wore a motley assortment of bandannas, painters' masks or even sleep masks stretched around their mouths. Some had masks hanging around their necks.Thompson and other local officials, including from the county health department, lobbied Tyson to close the plant, worried about a coronavirus outbreak. But Tyson was "less than cooperative," said the sheriff, who supervises the county's coronavirus response, and Iowa's governor declined to shut the facility."Waterloo Tyson is running," the company said in a text message to employees April 17. "Thank you team members! WE ARE PROUD OF YOU!"Five days later, the plant was closed. Tyson said the reason was "worker absenteeism." As of Thursday, the county health department had recorded 1,031 coronavirus infections among Tyson employees -- more than one-third of the workforce. Some are on ventilators. Three have died, according to Tyson.The plant didn't stay closed for long. As meat shortages hit grocery stores and fast-food restaurants, political pressure built to get the dozens of plants across the country that had shut down because of virus outbreaks up and running again. After an executive order by President Donald Trump declared the meat supply "critical infrastructure" and shielded the companies from certain liability, Tyson reopened its Waterloo facility Thursday.New safety precautions have been added, like plexiglass barriers along the production line, infrared temperature scanners to detect fevers, and face shields and masks for the workers.Now the question is: Will America's appetite for meat be sated without sickening armies of low-wage workers, and their communities, in new waves of infection?Workers and their advocates say Tyson's actions -- and recent federal safety guidelines -- have come far too late. They point to lapses that Tyson made in the first three weeks of April as the virus tore largely unimpeded through the Waterloo plant.As high-level executives lobbied the White House to help protect Tyson from lawsuits, the company was failing to provide adequate safety equipment to Waterloo workers and refusing the requests of local officials to close the plant, according to more than two dozen interviews with plant employees, immigrant-rights advocates, doctors, lawyers and government officials.While Tyson began changing its policies on short-term disability benefits in late March to encourage sick workers to stay home, many employees were not certain of the rules, and some went to work sick to avoid losing pay. Rumors and misinformation spread among workers, many of whom are not native English speakers. As the workforce dwindled, fear gripped the plant.Steve Stouffer, head of Tyson's beef and pork operations, said in an interview that the company had made the best safety decisions it could in a rapidly evolving situation. But he acknowledged that the company might have done more."Looking at it in the rearview mirror, you can always be better," he said.Thompson said that he was thankful for the new safety precautions but that Tyson had been too slow to act."Which is more important?" he asked. "Your pork chops or the people that are contracting COVID, the people that are dying from it?"'A Time of Fear and Panic'A squat gray building branded with the slogan "A Cut Above the Rest," the Waterloo plant is Tyson's largest pork operation in the United States, responsible for almost 4% of the nation's pork supply. Before the pandemic, it operated around the clock, breaking down up to 19,500 hogs a day into cuts of meat that traveled on a fleet of trucks across the country.It is tough, demanding work, usually performed by workers standing close together.During a conference call March 9, union leaders in the meat industry discussed how to spread out workers in plants and take other precautions to prevent an outbreak. But at the time, the problem seemed a long way away from eastern Iowa, said Bob Waters, president of the local union for the Waterloo plant."We thought it might come, but we hoped it didn't," he said. Iowa, like several other Midwestern states, never issued a statewide stay-at-home order.By early April, however, the Black Hawk County emergency operation center had started getting complaints about dangerous conditions at the plant.Workers and their relatives reported a lack of protective gear and insufficient safety protocols and said employees were starting to test positive for the virus.Tyson had put some precautions in place. In March, it began checking workers for fevers as they entered the plant and relaxed its policies so workers who tested positive or were feeling unwell would be paid a portion of their salary even if they stayed home.But workers were still crowded together on the factory floor, in the cafeteria and in the locker room, and most did not wear masks. Tyson said it offered cloth bandannas to workers who asked, but by the time it tried to buy protective gear, supplies were scarce.At least one employee vomited while working on the production line, and several left the facility with soaring temperatures, according to a worker, who spoke on the condition of anonymity for fear of losing his job, and local advocates who have spoken with workers at the plant.Because of patient privacy laws, Tyson and the union had difficulty obtaining information from state officials about which workers had tested positive -- hampering their efforts to isolate colleagues in close contact with them.Older employees, as well as those with asthma or diabetes, became increasingly afraid of entering the plant."It was really a time of fear and panic," said state Rep. Timi Brown-Powers, who works at a coronavirus clinic in Waterloo. "They had not slowed the line down. They were not practicing any sort of social distancing."On the night of April 12, she said, nearly two dozen Tyson employees were admitted to the emergency room at a hospital, MercyOne.Tyson employed interpreters to communicate with its diverse workforce, which includes immigrants from Bosnia, Mexico, Myanmar and the Republic of Congo. But misinformation and distrust spread.One worker who died had taken Tylenol before entering the plant to lower her temperature enough to pass the screening, afraid that missing work would mean forgoing a bonus, said a person who knows the worker's family and who spoke on the condition of anonymity to protect their privacy.Workers at the plant were confused about why so many colleagues seemed to be getting sick and missing work. Supervisors told them that it was the flu, some said, or warned them not to talk about the virus at work.In an emailed statement, Tyson said it had "worked with the information available to us at the time to help keep our team members safe." The company said earlier information from the Black Hawk County Health Department would have helped its decision-making.Dr. Nafissa Cisse Egbuonye, director of the Black Hawk County Health Department, said that before the state changed the rules on April 14 to help speed public health investigations, she was legally prevented from sharing the names of employees who had tested positive with the company. But she said that she had been in constant communication with the plant and shared her concerns."I think they had enough information," she said, "to take the necessary measures."A Vulnerable WorkforceIowa, an overwhelmingly white state, has long had a complicated relationship with meatpacking plants. While the industry is an engine of the state's economy and the country's food supply, it also employs many immigrants, who have faced periodic raids to enforce immigration laws.Even with union representation, immigrants at the plant say they are afraid to raise concerns about working conditions."The narrative is shifting the blame to the workers instead of focusing on the true incompetence, in my opinion, of the government -- not just the governor, but also leaders here at Tyson," said Nilvia Reyes Rodriguez, president of the Waterloo chapter of the League of United Latin American Citizens. "It was their responsibility to protect their workers."She added, "Because of the population in those industries, I think there is a disregard for those communities."Tyson said in a statement that it took pride in its diversity and that its immigrant workers have advanced to management positions, including at the Waterloo plant. But some of those tensions simmered as local politicians became locked in a struggle with the state and then the federal government over closing the plant.After Thompson's visit, he and other local politicians began lobbying Tyson and Gov. Kim Reynolds for a shutdown. The governor sided with Tyson. She issued an executive order April 16 stating that only the state government, not local governments, had the authority to close businesses in northeast Iowa, including the Waterloo plant."We're making sure that the workforce is protected and, most importantly, that we're keeping that food supply chain moving," Reynolds said.But the number of infections continued to increase. After Tyson closed the plant, the company invited workers back for coronavirus testing. But that process may have infected more workers, said Christine Kemp, chief executive of a local health clinic. Employees bunched together outside the plant and crowded the stairwells. Some left without being tested, afraid they would catch the virus in line.The virus had already spread through the community, including to a nursing home where several workers are married to Tyson employees. The Tyson employees who have died included a Bosnian refugee, survived by a grieving husband, and a man with three daughters. The mother died from cancer last year, and the oldest daughter, 19, will take guardianship of her sisters.A maintenance worker at the plant, Jose Ayala, 44, is lying unresponsive on a ventilator. Zach Medhaug, 39, a fellow worker, has been calling him to talk to him and play his favorite music.Medhaug also caught the coronavirus but has recovered and said he was ready to return to work. "But I'm also in a different position than some other people are," he said. "I'm over COVID. For other people, it's very scary."Reopening the PlantThe political stakes of the reopening in Waterloo are high.With meat supplies disrupted nationwide, the White House has pushed Tyson and other meat companies to continue operating. And Tyson officials have had plenty of chances to air concerns, dining at the White House and participating in several calls with the president and vice president in recent months.Since he issued the executive order April 28, Trump has been quick to declare that the supply chain is back on track.Asked Wednesday about a hamburger shortage at Wendy's, he turned to the secretary of agriculture, Sonny Perdue. "Basically, you're saying, in a week and a half, you think everything is going to be good, or sooner?" the president asked."Yes. These plants are opening as we speak," Perdue said."You're going to have to push them," the president replied. "Push them more."But the reopening may have to proceed in fits and starts. Tyson executives cautioned that it would take time to return to normal. The Waterloo plant reopened Thursday at about 50% capacity. And ramping back up could take weeks as workers return from quarantine.Stouffer, the Tyson executive, said he hoped the worst was over. But health officials warn that a rush to full production could cause a second wave of infections."History will be the judge, eventually," Stouffer said. "But we have attempted very hard -- our entire team, our entire organization, from the chairman of the board on down -- to do the right thing."This article originally appeared in The New York Times.(C) 2020 The New York Times Company
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| Interpol issues red notice for US diplomat's wife charged with killing Harry Dunn Posted: 11 May 2020 08:49 AM PDT  Interpol have issued a red notice for the wife of a US diplomat charged with killing Harry Dunn, as police told his parents she was "wanted internationally". British prosecutors charged Anne Sacoolas with causing death by dangerous driving after a car crash that knocked the 19-year-old off his motorbike outside a US military base in Northamptonshire last year. It is alleged the 42-year-old suspect had been driving on the wrong side of the road before the crash. Ms Sacoolas is the wife of a US intelligence official based at RAF Croughton and claimed diplomatic immunity to allow her to return to America, sparking an international row. An extradition request submitted by the Home Office was rejected by the US secretary of state Mike Pompeo in January. In a significant escalation of Britain's stance on the issue, it emerged on Monday that Interpol had issued a request to police forces worldwide to locate and provisionally arrest Ms Sacoolas if she crossed their borders. Number 10 said the refusal by the US to extradite Ms Sacoolas, who was charged in December, amounted to a "denial of justice". Red notices are issued by the international policing organisation - of which both the UK and US are members - at the request of a member country. They are distinct, however, from an international arrest warrant and Interpol cannot compel police in any country to arrest someone who is the subject of a red notice. In an email sent by Northamptonshire Police, the 19-year-old's parents were told the suspect is "wanted internationally" and "should she leave the USA the wanted circulations should be enacted". Reacting to the development, Harry Dunn's mother Charlotte Charles said: "It's been a terrible time for us. "We are utterly bereft and heartbroken and miss our Harry every minute of every single day. "This is important news that (our spokesman) has just passed on to us and we are in pieces. "I just want to urge Mrs Sacoolas to come back to the UK and do the right thing. Face justice and maybe then our two families can come together after the tragedy and build a bridge." A spokeswoman for the US state Department last reiterated its position on April 30, saying that, at the time of the accident and for the duration of her time in the UK, the driver had immunity from criminal jurisdiction. Mr Dunn's parents had separately written to Donald Trump, the US President, asking him to review the decision to block the extradition request. News of the Interpol notice came just hours after the head of the armed forces told the grieving family that he will make representations to his US colleagues about setting up a meeting after claims of "near misses" involving American military staff. General Sir Nick Carter penned a letter to Charlotte Charles and Tim Dunn promising to raise the matter - saying "I am very supportive of positive engagement between you and the US base commander". His parents had issued a plea to arrange a meeting with the base following claims of "three near misses" involving their staff since the teenager's death.
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| IS regional leader Sheikh Khorasani 'arrested in Afghanistan' Posted: 11 May 2020 08:12 AM PDT  Sheikh Omar Khorasani is reportedly captured with two other IS leaders in a special operation in Kabul.
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| Sioux tribe rejects governor's request to remove checkpoints Posted: 10 May 2020 02:51 PM PDT  "I absolutely agree that we need to work together during this time of crisis, however you continuing to interfere in our efforts to do what science and facts dictate seriously undermine our ability to protect everyone on the reservation," Chairman Harold Frazier said in a statement.
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| Fact check: Convicted 1980s abortion clinic bomber attended anti-lockdown protests in Ohio Posted: 10 May 2020 06:29 PM PDT  John Brockhoeft was convicted of planning to bomb the Pensacola The Ladies Center in 1988 and served 26 months in federal prison.
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| A woman who accused Biden of inappropriate touching says she supports him as the 'obvious choice' to defeat Trump Posted: 10 May 2020 07:30 PM PDT  Amy Lappos accused Biden of touching her inappropriately at a political fundraiser in 2009. She says he is the "obvious choice" over Donald Trump.
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| Italian woman returns home after 18-month African kidnapping Posted: 10 May 2020 07:31 AM PDT  Wearing a surgical mask, disposable gloves and booties to guard against COVID-19, a young Italian woman returned to her homeland Sunday after 18 months as a hostage in eastern Africa. Silvia Romano lowered her mask briefly to display a broad smile after she stepped off an Italian government plane at Rome-Ciampino International Airport. Italian Premier Giuseppe Conte has thanked the Italian intelligence agents who worked for her release, which took place Friday in Somalia.
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| Pandemics have 2 endings, says historians Posted: 11 May 2020 10:29 AM PDT  When will the COVID-19 pandemic end? And how? According to historians, pandemics typically have two types of endings: the medical, which occurs when the incidence and death rates plummet, and the social, when the epidemic of fear about the disease wanes.
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| This Home Beautifully Blends Traditional and Modern Japanese Architecture Posted: 11 May 2020 04:01 PM PDT |
| North Korea outbreak fear as Chinese border city locked down Posted: 11 May 2020 02:02 AM PDT  China has enforced a lockdown on a city bordering North Korea, raising suspicions about a coronavirus outbreak in the isolated country. Residential compounds have been closed and transportation shut down in Shulan, a city of 700,000 in the north-eastern province of Jilin, state broadcaster China Central Television reported on Sunday. Students who already had returned to school, were sent back home again to study, and the city's threat level has been raised from medium to high risk. As of Saturday, Jilin province had reported a total of 105 locally transmitted Covid-19 cases and 19 imported ones. There were 11 new coronavirus cases in Shulan on Saturday, local health authorities said. North Korea closed its borders in January when Covid-19 first began to take hold in China, and has consistently stated that nobody inside the country has been infected.
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| 3 nurses who were sisters have been strangled to death in Mexico as the country's health care workers face rising abuse linked to the coronavirus Posted: 10 May 2020 06:18 AM PDT  A triple murder is the latest in a series of attacks on medical personnel in the country, who are being falsely accused of spreading the coronavirus.
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| China's ground zero reports virus infections Posted: 11 May 2020 12:30 AM PDT  China reported a new cluster of coronavirus cases in Wuhan Monday after a month without fresh infections at the pandemic's global epicentre, as a northeastern city was placed under lockdown. The cases added to fears China could be facing a new wave of infections, even as restrictions continued to ease in some other parts of the country. Five new infections were confirmed in one residential district of Wuhan, the central Chinese city where the virus was initially detected late last year and which emerged from its own lockdown roughly four weeks ago, following dramatically dwindling numbers.
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| Fox News Hosts: Americans Need ‘Military Mindset’ to ‘Reopen Right Now’ Posted: 11 May 2020 08:59 AM PDT  A few days after Fox News host Pete Hegseth called on "healthy people" to muster up the "courage" to go get infected with coronavirus in order to achieve "herd immunity," Hegseth agreed with Fox & Friends co-host Brian Kilmeade on Monday that Americans need to take on a "military mindset" and enter public spaces.Promoting his latest military-themed special on Fox Nation, the network's online streaming service, Hegseth was asked by the Fox & Friends crew if there was a similarity between military combat and the current pandemic that has killed roughly 80,000 Americans."I was going to say, all of you guys in the special, you're used to fighting an enemy who you can see coming at you, but this is so different because it's invisible," co-host Steve Doocy noted.After Hegseth said that his "Modern Warriors" special shows the need for people to "have some courage to be out and get open and be responsible," Kilmeade explicitly asked if the American public could learn a lesson from soldiers in terms of confronting the disease as states rush to reopen businesses."About 78,000 are dead, we understand how many got the virus and will. I get it," Kilmeade stated. "But at the same time, can you get the military mindset with the masses of, take on the enemy because we have no choice—sitting on the sideline will destroy the country. How do you get the military mindset for the everyday American?"Hegseth, an informal adviser of President Donald Trump who was once under consideration to run the VA administration, responded that the "military mindset is a patriotic mindset.""It's what forged and founded this country," he continued. "It is courage. We can be responsible, we can follow guidelines—while also reopening. We have to reopen, guys, right now, even in some of the more difficult places, or the livelihoods of people is going to crush more folks, or as many—I'm not talking in a statistical sense—as the actual virus itself."Hegseth's remarks come on the heels of him calling for healthy Americans to embrace the "American spirit" and help open back up the economy by willingly going out in public and risking infection."Now that we are learning more, herd immunity is our friend," he declared last week. "Healthy people getting out there—they are going to have to have some courage!"The vast majority of the public, meanwhile, still believe it is too soon for the nation to be reopened, feeling it will result in a higher death toll. Current models now project a sharp upturn in deaths after taking into account the relaxation of social distancing guidelines and increased mobility.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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| Trump tweets more than 100 times in one day as coronavirus death toll nears 80,000 Posted: 10 May 2020 12:50 PM PDT  Donald Trump sent more than 100 tweets and retweets on Sunday, most of which promoted unsubstantiated claims about the investigation into collusion between his campaign and Russia.
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| After controversy, parole grant in officer's slaying delayed Posted: 10 May 2020 10:04 PM PDT |
| Australia's biggest state to ease coronavirus lockdown from May 15 Posted: 09 May 2020 07:27 PM PDT  Australia's most populous state, home to Sydney, will allow restaurants, playgrounds and outdoor pools to reopen on Friday as extensive testing has shown the spread of the coronavirus has slowed sharply, New South Wales state's premier said on Sunday. The state has been worst hit by the coronavirus in Australia, with about 45% of the country's confirmed cases and deaths. From May 15, New South Wales will allow cafes and restaurants to seat 10 patrons at a time, permit outdoor gatherings of up to 10 people, and visits of up to five people to a household.
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| House punts return until Friday at the earliest Posted: 11 May 2020 08:04 AM PDT  Some Democrats predict a vote on the next coronavirus package may slip into next week.
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| A tooth offers evidence modern humans reached Europe earlier than previously thought Posted: 11 May 2020 08:00 AM PDT  New research pushes back the date of the arrival of our species in Europe — and highlights questions about the Neanderthals already there.
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| UK Brexit negotiators to tell EU that fisheries cannot be part of free trade agreement Posted: 11 May 2020 06:34 AM PDT  British Brexit negotiators will tell the European Union that a new fisheries agreement cannot be part of a free trade deal with Brussels during divisive talks that risk derailing the delicate negotiations this week. The UK will rebuff EU demands that the fisheries agreement, which both sides pledged to do their best to seal by July, be subject to the same governance mechanism that would police and enforce commitments in the free trade agreement. The British position sets David Frost, the UK's top Brexit official, on a collision course with Michel Barnier as three days of talks over continued access to British waters for the EU fleet begin on Tuesday. British officials have submitted a legal negotiating text setting out its vision for a Norway style fishing agreement with catch limits agreed on an annual basis. Michel Barnier accused the UK of wasting time after the last round of talks ended in bad-tempered frustration. "Our position on fish is reasonable and straightforward. We want a separate fisheries framework agreement which reflects our rights under international law and which provides for access and sharing opportunities based on the scientific principle of zonal attachment, with sustainability at its core," a UK official said. The Norway-style agreement risks infuriating Mr Barnier, The EU negotiator has warned Brussels will not agree a free trade deal without a fisheries agreement. Mr Barnier is also adamant that any fishing agreement cannot be renegotiated every year and must be for the long-term. Annual negotiations on fish alone would give the UK more leverage in talks than it would have in the trade negotiations. France has called for the fisheries agreement to last for up to 25 years. The EU has demanded continued reciprocal access to UK waters under "existing conditions". UK sources close to the negotiations reject that as simply continuing the Common Fisheries Policy. The CFP is based on historic catch shares that date back to the 1970s and 1980s, which disadvantage British fishermen. More fish are now in UK waters because of climate change and zonal attachment more accurately represents that than the historic catch system. The British insistence that the legal text not be shared with EU member states has angered ambassadors, as have warnings from London that the UK could walk away from the talks in July, unless the EU caves on its demands. EU ambassadors instructed Mr Barnier to hold firm at a meeting in Brussels last week. UK officials believe that the EU is in breach of the Political Declaration, the non-binding aspirational document that sets out the terms of the negotiations, which is an accusation regularly levelled at the British by Brussels. "The Political Declaration clearly sets out that an agreement on fish should be in force by July - just over two months away," a UK spokesman said. "Yet the EU continues to push for one single overarching agreement, despite that clearly being at odds with the Political Declaration, which envisages a separate agreement on fisheries." EU sources said that the Political Declaration was clear the fisheries deal would be part of an overarching economic partnership. British negotiators are pinning their hopes on the EU's national leaders, such as Angela Merkel and Emmanuel Macron, to intervene in the deadlocked talks in June and break the impasse. EU diplomats warned that no such political intervention would be forthcoming. A high level meeting is planned for June by both sides where progress towards the agreement, which must be finished by the end of the year unless the transition period is extended, will be evaluated. Downing Street insists that the transition period will not be extended under any circumstances, despite the coronavirus pandemic slowing negotiations and forcing them online. Failure to reach a deal in time will mean the UK and EU trading on far less advantageous WTO terms and, according to the Withdrawal Agreement, an extension of up to two years can only be asked for until July.
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| New York City will test children for coronavirus antibodies after 38 developed a mysterious inflammatory illness Posted: 11 May 2020 09:19 AM PDT  Three young New Yorkers have been killed by the rare multi-system "inflammatory syndrome," Mayor Bill de Blasio said Sunday.
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| Yazidi girl returns home to Iraq after years of IS captivity Posted: 10 May 2020 01:22 PM PDT  A Yazidi girl abducted by the Islamic State group returned to Iraq Sunday to be reunited with her family after the coronavirus lockdown in Syria delayed her homecoming, a community member said. Layla Eido, 17, was among dozens of women and girls from Iraq's minority Yazidi community who were abducted by IS from their ancestral home of Sinjar in 2014. The women were enslaved, systematically raped, or married off by force to jihadists, but for Eido the nightmare came to an end when the jihadist group's so-called "caliphate" collapsed last year.
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| China warns of countermeasures to new U.S. rule for Chinese journalists Posted: 11 May 2020 10:57 AM PDT  China warned on Monday that it will take countermeasures in response to a U.S. decision to tighten visa terms for Chinese journalists and urged the United States to immediately "correct its mistake."
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| Ahmaud Arbery: Atlanta mayor accuses Trump of inciting racist acts Posted: 10 May 2020 06:36 PM PDT  * Keisha Lance Bottoms decries 'lynching' of 25-year-old man * Georgia AG formally requests Department of Justice investigate handling of killingThe Democratic mayor of Atlanta has called the death of Ahmaud Arbery, who was shot and killed by two white men in February, a "lynching".Keisha Lance Bottoms also accused Donald Trump of inciting overt acts of racism.Speaking to CNN's State of the Union on Sunday, the rising star within the Democratic party said the killing of Arbery, 25, was "heartbreaking".The two white men, father and son Gregory and Travis McMichael, were charged with murder and aggravated assault on Thursday after video of a confrontation involving an unarmed Arbery, who was African American, was made public.Asked if the former county police officer and his son would have been charged had the video not been posted online, Bottoms said: "Had we not seen that video I don't think they would have been charged."She went on: "It's 2020 and this was a lynching of an African American man."The Guardian has disclosed that police in Glynn county, Georgia, where Arbery was killed while out jogging in a quiet suburban street, failed to conduct a thorough investigation.The idea that the incident was a lynching has also been expressed by the dead man's father, Marcus Arbery Sr, in an interview with the Guardian.Bottoms' words carry added weight because she is seen as an increasingly prominent voice in Georgia. As the black mayor of the state's largest city, she has been talked about as a possible vice-presidential candidate for Joe Biden.On Sunday, Bottoms was sharply critical of Trump and the US justice department under his leadership."With the rhetoric we hearing coming out of the White House in so many ways, I think that many who are prone to being racist are given permission to do it in an overt way we otherwise would not see in 2020," she said.When local police forces failed to take action against alleged racial killings in the past, she said, there used to be the justice department as a "backstop" ensuring appropriate prosecutions."We don't have that leadership at the top right now. It's disheartening."Trump has commented on Arbery's death, telling Fox News: "My heart goes out to the parents and the family and friends.""Justice getting done is the thing that solves that problem," the president added, saying Georgia governor Brian Kemp and state law enforcement would look at the case "very strongly".On Sunday, Georgia's attorney general formally requested that the US department of justice investigate the handling of the killing. Arbery's parents welcomed the move."There are far too many questions about how this case was handled and why it took 74 days for two of the killers to be arrested and charged," a statement from their lawyers said. "Those who were responsible for this travesty of justice must be held accountable."The FBI has said it is assisting with the investigation. At a briefing on Friday, White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany did not rule out justice department involvement in the case.On Sunday, Bottoms gave a personal twist on her excoriating comments when she talked about her four children, three of whom are boys."They are angry and afraid," she said. "It speaks to the need to have leadership at the top that cares about all our communities, not just in words but in deeds as well."
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| Biggest US solar project approved in Nevada despite critics Posted: 11 May 2020 03:57 PM PDT  The Trump administration announced final approval Monday of the largest solar energy project in the U.S. and one of the biggest in the world despite objections from conservationists who say it will destroy thousands of acres of habitat critical to the survival of the threatened Mojave desert tortoise in Nevada. The $1 billion Gemini solar and battery storage project about 30 miles (48 kilometers) northeast of Las Vegas is expected to produce 690 megawatts of electricity — enough to power 260,000 households — and annually offset greenhouse emissions of about 83,000 cars. It will create about 2,000 direct and indirect jobs and inject an estimated $712.5 million in the economy as the nation tries to recover from the downturn brought on by the coronavirus outbreak, Interior Secretary David Bernhardt said.
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| NYC deaths from non-COVID causes rise over 5,000 above normal rate: CDC Posted: 11 May 2020 10:26 AM PDT  The deaths could be due to several factors, the CDC said https://bit.ly/2WNQpjc, including delays in seeking or getting life-saving care for fear of exposure to the coronavirus. Tracking excess mortality is vital in understanding the contribution to the death rate of both COVID-19 and poor availability of care for people with non-COVID conditions, noted researchers, who reported their findings in the CDC's Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR). The CDC used data from the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, which has an electronic reporting system with a near complete count of all deaths in the city.
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| Pennsylvania just became the third state to ban child marriage Posted: 11 May 2020 05:31 AM PDT  Only Delaware and New Jersey also have bans child marriage.
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| Asia latest: China's ground zero reports new cases, virus pauses long-running cartoon Posted: 11 May 2020 03:51 AM PDT  China reported a new cluster of coronavirus cases in the city of Wuhan. Five new infections were confirmed in one district of Wuhan, the city believed to be ground zero for the global pandemic. Officials reported 35 new infections, taking the total to 10,909, after recording only single-digit increases for eight of the preceding 12 days.
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