| 2020 Vision Thursday: How a tough impeachment vote could threaten the GOP's Senate majority Posted: 03 Oct 2019 09:14 AM PDT  Reminder: There are 123 days until the Iowa caucuses and 397 days until the 2020 election. On Thursday, Need to Impeach, a group funded mainly by billionaire activist and Democratic presidential candidate Tom Steyer, will launch a $3.1 million ad blitz targeting four of the most vulnerable Republican senators up for reelection in 2020: Susan Collins of Maine, Joni Ernst of Iowa, Cory Gardner of Colorado and Martha McSally of Arizona.
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| Chris Collins' is still worth a staggering amount despite resignation, indictment charges Posted: 01 Oct 2019 11:32 AM PDT  Chris Collins is worth a hefty amount as he faces trial — even if the exact amount is still somewhat elusive.
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| Satellite images show activity around Iranian-flagged tanker Posted: 03 Oct 2019 01:04 AM PDT  Satellite images released on Thursday show that a once-detained Iranian-flagged oil tanker sitting off the coast of Syria has been approached by a smaller Iranian tanker, an indication the ship could be preparing to transfer its cargo. Images released by Maxar Technologies show the Jasmine alongside the Adrian Darya 1 on Wednesday, with mooring lines between them and a crane deployed on the larger vessel. The Adrian Darya 1, formerly named the Grace 1, was detained off the British overseas territory of Gibraltar in July while carrying $130 million in crude oil, on suspicion of breaking European Union sanctions by taking the oil to Syria.
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| Judge Pressures Prosecutors to Decide Whether to Pursue a Case Against McCabe Posted: 02 Oct 2019 05:00 AM PDT  WASHINGTON -- The Justice Department has come under increasing pressure in its investigation of the former deputy FBI director Andrew G. McCabe, as a federal judge threatened to release internal department records unless prosecutors decide whether to move forward with or abandon the politically charged case.Judge Reggie B. Walton of U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, who is presiding over a lawsuit over FBI documents related to McCabe's firing last year, said at a hearing on Monday that he would soon begin releasing them. The Justice Department has argued that the materials should stay confidential while prosecutors investigate McCabe over whether he lied to internal investigators about dealings with the news media."You all have got to cut and make your decision," Walton said, according to a transcript. "It's not a hard decision, and I think it needs to be made. If it's not made, I'm going to start ordering the release of information because I think our society, our public, does have a right to know what's going on."McCabe, long a target of President Donald Trump's, was the subject of a scathing report by the Justice Department inspector general's office that faulted him for violating media policy and repeatedly misleading its investigators. They were asking about an October 2016 Wall Street Journal article about an investigation into the Clinton Foundation. McCabe, working through the FBI press office, had authorized a spokesman and a bureau lawyer to speak to a reporter to rebut allegations that he had slowed the inquiry.McCabe was fired in March 2018, hours before retirement benefits would have kicked in, and the inspector general referred his findings to federal prosecutors in Washington a month later.Walton's stern warning came as prosecutors grappled with whether to bring charges in what is a seemingly straightforward case with a limited set of facts and witnesses that has been under investigation for 19 months."This matter is a high-profile matter," Walton said. He added that as long as prosecutors hold off on deciding how to proceed, they "undermine the credibility not only of the Justice Department because it's not making these hard decisions, but also the court."McCabe's lawyers have argued that the case is weak and that he is being singled out because of the president's disdain for him. Trump has relentlessly attacked McCabe, potentially complicating any prosecution. McCabe has said the president targeted him to undermine his standing as a witness to whether he obstructed justice in the Russia inquiry.In August, McCabe's lawyers met with Jeffrey A. Rosen, the deputy attorney general, to make a last-ditch appeal for prosecutors to drop the case. Their pleas were rebuffed, and an indictment appeared imminent. But the grand jury hearing the case reconvened last month after weeks without meeting but did not indict McCabe, raising questions about whether prosecutors delayed a vote by jurors to avoid a rare and embarrassing setback of their declining to hand up an indictment.Other setbacks have emerged for the government. One prosecutor on the case left the Justice Department and has said it lacked merit while another left on what seemed like the eve of a possible indictment.A key witness in the case -- Lisa Page, the former FBI lawyer whom McCabe authorized to speak to the Wall Street Journal reporter -- also told the grand jury that he was not motivated to lie about the episode because he was authorized to speak with reporters and thus did not violate media policy. Her sympathetic testimony to McCabe would most likely be a problem for prosecutors.Another important witness who testified before the grand jury, Michael Kortan, the spokesman involved in the episode, could not immediately remember how the leak unfolded.Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, a government watchdog group, sued in July 2018 for the records related to McCabe's dismissal. The organization is seeking access to investigators' notes taken during Kortan's interview, which could be exculpatory to McCabe, the group's lawyer, Anne Weismann, argued during the hearing."We're in dark times," she told the judge, saying that growing evidence showed that Trump was abusing his powers to go after perceived enemies in the intelligence and law enforcement communities. McCabe, she said, was "swept up in that."The judge seemed to acknowledge her point, noting that Trump was "going after the courts, too." He later added, "I totally appreciate what you just said and share many of the same concerns that you have expressed."This article originally appeared in The New York Times.(C) 2019 The New York Times Company
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| Shipwrecked Colombians clung to cocaine bales Posted: 01 Oct 2019 01:46 PM PDT  Three suspected drug smugglers survived in shark-infested Pacific waters by clinging for hours to floating bales of cocaine, Colombia's navy said Tuesday. The three Colombians are suspected of smuggling 1.2 tons of cocaine from Tumaco in Colombia when their boat was hit by a wave Saturday and capsized, Captain Jorge Maldonado of Colombia's Task Force Against Drug Trafficking told AFP. "The coastguard arrived and these three people were floating on a material that by its characteristics resembled drugs," said Maldonado.
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| 'This means war': anger and division at school of student shot by HK police Posted: 02 Oct 2019 05:09 AM PDT  Before he was battling police on the front lines of Hong Kong's democracy movement, Tony Tsang, 18, was best known to his peers as a school vice-captain, organising events for fellow students, friends said on Wednesday. Tsang is stable in hospital where he is under arrest. What started as protests over a now-withdrawn extradition bill that would have allowed people to be sent to mainland China for trial have evolved into calls for greater democracy, among other demands.
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| It's a girl! Florida deputy pulls over speeding car, helps deliver baby Posted: 02 Oct 2019 05:29 PM PDT  Deputy Robert Pounds ran back to his patrol car, got a pair of latex gloves and a fresh blanket, and delivered the baby almost immediately.
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| Barr Went to Rome to Hear a Secret Tape from Joseph Mifsud, the Professor Who Helped Ignite the Russia Probe Posted: 01 Oct 2019 01:58 PM PDT  Mandel Ngan/GettyROME–When Attorney General William Barr showed up at the U.S. embassy's Palazzo Margherita on Rome's tony Via Veneto last week, he had two primary requests. He needed a conference room to meet high level Italian security agents where he could be sure no one was listening in. And he needed an extra chair for U.S. Attorney John Durham of Connecticut who would be sitting at his right hand side. Barr was in Rome on an under-the-radar mission that was only planned a few days in advance. An official with the embassy confirmed to The Daily Beast that they had to scramble to accommodate Barr's sudden arrival. He had been in Italy before, but not with such a clear motive. Barr and Durham are looking into the events that led to Robert Mueller's Russia investigation, and suddenly all roads were leading to Rome. The Daily Beast has learned that Barr and Durham were especially interested in what the Italian secret service knew about Joseph Mifsud, the erstwhile professor from Malta who had allegedly promised then candidate Donald Trump's campaign aide George Papadopoulos he could deliver Russian "dirt" on Hillary Clinton. The Italian Justice Ministry public records show that Mifsud had applied for police protection in Italy after disappearing from Link University where he worked and, in doing so, had given a taped deposition to explain just why people might want to harm him. A source in the Italian Ministry of Justice, speaking on the condition of anonymity, told The Daily Beast that Barr and Durham were played the tape. A second source within the Italian government also confirmed to The Daily Beast that Barr and Durham were shown other evidence the Italians had on Mifsud. Ever since Robert Mueller concluded his probe in March 2019, Barr has worked to blunt its impact—and investigate the investigators behind it. Barr assigned Durham to look into the Mueller probe's origins. And the Attorney General's name is listed in the whistleblower complaint about the July 25 call Trump made to the Ukrainian president to pressure him into investigating political rival Joe Biden. According to the complaint, Barr was directly involved in the president's attempt to "solicit interference from a foreign country in the 2020 U.S. election." The minutiae of his involvement are feeding a scandal gripping Washington that changes by the nano-second. Inside the Call: How Trump Pushed Ukraine to Probe BidenThe U.S. Department of Justice did not return numerous emails and calls for clarification about Barr, Durham, and Mifsud. But they did issue a statement on Monday confirming that the American legal team had been in the eternal city. "As the Department of Justice has previously announced, a team led by U.S. Attorney John Durham is investigating the origins of the U.S. counterintelligence probe of the Trump 2016 presidential campaign," Kerri Kupec, the Justice Department spokesperson said in a statement. "Mr. Durham is gathering information from numerous sources, including a number of foreign countries. At Attorney General Barr's request, the President has contacted other countries to ask them to introduce the Attorney General and Mr. Durham to appropriate officials." The Italian intelligence community had Mifsud on their radar for some years before he got involved in the Trump campaign's troubles. His affiliations with both the Link University of Rome and London Center of International Law Practice—both often affiliated with western diplomacy and foreign intelligence agencies—made him an easy target. So did the slew of apartments he owned in Malta that are allegedly tied to a racket involving Russians buying Maltese passports for cheap. Rich Russians Still Buying Passports in Racket Daphne Caruana Galizia Died ExposingWhat Mifsud did or didn't know about Clinton's emails is still murky; what Barr and Durham were privy to is even less clear. Papadopoulos has distanced himself from the professor, tweeting just this week that he "exposed Mifsud's connections to Italian intelligence" even though the Italians were watching him long before they parted ways.Mifsud met Papadopoulos through his Italian wife Simona Mangiante, a lawyer and part-time lingerie model who had hoped to launch her acting career with a role playing French femme fatale Brigitte Bardot in an American film. Mangiante told The Daily Beast last year that she met the professor doing some legal consulting for one of his classes. His ties to Russia seemed potentially useful to her husband, who was then an integral part of the Trump campaign's foreign policy advisory panel at the time. Before he disappeared, Mifsud said he had met Papadopoulos "three or four times," helping to facilitate connections between "official and unofficial sources" in Italy, Russia, and Ukraine. He denied any wrongdoing but went into hiding–either on his own or through the Italian protective services—in 2017 and has only been seen in sporadic photos since. Several mainstream Italian newspapers on Tuesday reported that Mifsud is cooperating with Barr and Durham's investigation and some even suggested he met them in person in Rome last week. The Daily Beast reached Stephan Roh, Mifsud's Swiss lawyer, by phone Tuesday who said he hadn't seen his client "for quite some time" but that he "doubted" he would show his face in Rome. The sources in Rome who confirmed that Barr and Durham came to learn more about Mifsud also told The Daily Beast that they expected Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to meet the same intelligence agencies on his state visit that began Tuesday. Pompeo is meeting the Italian president, the prime minister, and the Pope while in Rome. His official mandate is to discuss Libya, China trade, and sanctions on Russia, which Italy does not support. Pompeo will also be spending time with the U.S. Ambassador to the Vatican Callista Gingrich and her husband Newt. The Secretary of State is giving a keynote address at one of the ambassador's events on religious freedom at the Vatican, and has arranged some free time for a private viewing of the ancient Roman colosseum. He will briefly visit the Umbrian hamlet of Valle Peligna, where his grandfather is from and where, perhaps coincidentally, Madonna's Italian family also has roots. He is then heading to Montenegro, North Macedonia, and Greece before returning to Washington. Read more at The Daily Beast.Get our top stories in your inbox every day. Sign up now!Daily Beast Membership: Beast Inside goes deeper on the stories that matter to you. Learn more.
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| Why the Japan-South Korea Trade War Is Worrying for the World Posted: 03 Oct 2019 03:20 AM PDT  The U.S.-China trade war is inflicting the most damage to the global economy, but it's Japan and South Korea's spat that's more concerning.
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| Prosecutor: ‘El Chapo’ gave $1M to Honduras leader’s brother Posted: 02 Oct 2019 12:13 PM PDT  Prosecutors alleged Wednesday that convicted Mexican drug lord JoaquÃn "El Chapo" Guzmán personally gave $1 million in bribes to the brother of Honduras' president to pass on to the Central American leader, who swiftly denied wrongdoing. Prosecutor Jason Richman revealed the allegation in a federal court in Manhattan where Juan Antonio "Tony" Hernández, 41, is accused of using his government connections to smuggle U.S.-bound cocaine through Honduras. In opening statements, Richman described Hernández as "untouchable" in Honduras and confident he would never face justice because of his powerful sibling.
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| Democratic Mega-Donor Ed Buck Indicted in Two Overdose Deaths Posted: 03 Oct 2019 06:48 AM PDT  Democratic donor Ed Buck was indicted by a federal grand jury Wednesday for the death of the second man who overdosed at his West Hollywood apartment.According to the indictment, Buck, 65, provided methamphetamine to Timothy Dean, 55, which Dean fatally overdosed on in January. Dean was found with copious amounts of alcohol in his system as well as devices attached to his genitals.Last month, Buck was hit with the same charge in connection with the death of Gemmel Moore, 26, who fatally overdosed at Buck's apartment in 2017.The grand jury said Buck engaged in a pattern of soliciting men to take drugs that he provided and to perform sexual acts at his apartment, often targeting the most vulnerable men, who he coerced into taking large quantities of drugs with the promise of payment. He found his victims through social media, a recruiter, and various other means and solicited them for what he called "party and play" sessions, during which Buck sometimes himself injected victims with drugs without their consent."Buck exerted power over his victims, often targeting vulnerable individuals who were destitute, homeless, and/or struggled with drug addiction, in order to exploit the relative wealth and power imbalance between them," the indictment reads.The charges relating to the two deaths carry a sentence of life in prison without parole. Buck was also charged Wednesday on three additional counts of distributing methamphetamine.The millionaire Democratic fundraiser and LGBT activist was arrested in September and is in federal custody. Prosecutors believe he victimized at least 11 people in the past two years, most of whom were black, including both of the men who died.Buck is a "serious threat to public safety," U.S. Attorney Nicola T. Hanna said.
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| Warren gets ‘dramatic shift’ in support from black voters Posted: 02 Oct 2019 06:34 AM PDT  One element of Elizabeth Warren's surge in the polls is likely to strike fear in her top Democratic rivals — her rising support among African-Americans. After struggling to win over black voters in the early stages of the primary, the Massachusetts senator appears to be gaining ground with a demographic that will play a pivotal role in determining the nomination. A Quinnipiac University national poll last week showed Warren winning 19 percent of the African-American vote — a nine-point jump over the poll's August results.
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| Hong Kong set to ban face masks in bid to curb violence: media Posted: 03 Oct 2019 12:56 AM PDT  Hong Kong is set to enact an emergency law to ban face masks at rallies, media reported on Thursday, as authorities grapple with nearly four months of anti-government protests. Many demonstrators wear face masks to hide their identities and shield themselves from tear gas. Demonstrators threw petrol bombs and police responded with tear gas.
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| Fairfax County, Va., cop suspended for turning individual over to ICE Posted: 02 Oct 2019 01:14 PM PDT  The Fairfax County, Va., Police Department has suspended an officer for detaining and turning the driver in an accident over to Immigration and Customs Enforcement on Saturday in violation of the department's policy not to assist ICE with civil enforcement.
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| Bangladesh troops accused of raping Rohingya girl Posted: 02 Oct 2019 05:41 PM PDT  The Bangladesh military said Thursday it has ordered an investigation after a Rohingya family in a refugee camp accused army troops of raping a 12-year-old girl. The inquiry comes as around a million Rohingya in vast camps in Bangladesh face increasing hostility two years after fleeing a military offensive in Myanmar. Mohammad Osman, an elder brother of the alleged victim, said three soldiers entered their shanty at the Nayapara Rohingya camp on Sunday evening and sexually assaulted his sister.
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| More than 132,000 Sephardi Jews apply for Spanish citizenship as deadline expires Posted: 02 Oct 2019 09:34 AM PDT  More than 132,000 Jews have applied for Spanish citizenship since the government offered residence to relatives of those expelled during the Inquisition more than 500 years ago. The deadline has now passed for Sephardi Jews - hailing from the Iberian peninsula - to claim rights to citizenship after the window for applications closed. Most have applied from South America. But in Britain the rules have created an unexpected opportunity for some members of the Jewish community to avoid the impact of Brexit by gaining a European passport. The total number of Jews applying to return is not far off the estimated 200,000 who are thought to have fled in the 1490 after facing the option of converting to Catholicism or being burned at the stake. The initiative in Spain has been coupled by a similar offer by the Portuguese government to atone for the persecution of Jews. Meanwhile in Austria last month the parliament ratified a law extending citizenship to descendants of Nazi victims who fled during and after Hitler's Third Reich. Figures from Spain's justice ministry show that by the end of August, one month before the September 30 deadline, 117 British Jews had applied for Spanish citizenship under the scheme introduced in 2015. It remains unclear how many more British Jews have applied in the final rush to meet the Spanish deadline that saw 72,000 applications flood in last month alone, more than in the previous four years combined. "Most of them were from citizens in Latin American countries, mainly Mexico, Colombia and Venezuela," Spain's justice ministry said. But more than 420 British Sephardic Jews have been granted Portuguese passports under that country's citizenship initiative, also launched in 2015. In 1492 the Catholic monarchs of Spain, King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella, ordered the country's approximately 200,000 Jews to convert to Christianity under the aegis of the Inquisition. Unknown thousands opted for exile, some entering Portugal, which also imposed compulsory conversion or exile by the end of the 15th century. "It was a pragmatic decision," Londoner Adam Perry told the Jewish Telegraphic Agency of his decision to apply for Portuguese citizenship, adding that it was "also a form of protest action against Brexit, with which I deeply disagree". "The Spanish government's law helps Sephardic Jews to close a circle, healing a wound that was opened more than five centuries ago," Marcelo Benveniste told The Telegraph about his decision to apply in 2015. All four of Mr Benveniste's grandparents moved to Argentina from the Greek island of Rhodes, where they had continued to speak Ladino, a language also known as Judaeo-Spanish. Spain asks Sephardic Jews wishing to gain citizenship to show that they can speak Spanish, as well as proving their hereditary connections.
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| The Gift Guide for the Sophisticated Geek Posted: 02 Oct 2019 02:37 PM PDT |
| Trump Is 'Last Hope for White People,' Said Police Chief on Trial Posted: 02 Oct 2019 05:02 AM PDT  A former police chief in New Jersey who is on trial on a federal hate-crime charge after he allegedly slammed a black teenager's head into a doorjamb, once called President Donald Trump "the last hope for white people," according to a recording recently played for jurors.In the 2016 recording, which federal officials shared with The New York Times, Frank Nucera Jr., the former chief, can be heard saying that Trump was the last hope because "Hillary will give it to all the minorities to get a vote. That's the truth! I'm telling you."The Trump comment was surreptitiously recorded by a Police Department colleague just months before the 2016 presidential election.The recording was played in court last week by prosecutors in an effort to show that the alleged attack in September 2016 by the former chief on a guest -- an 18-year-old black man -- at a Ramada Hotel in Bordentown, New Jersey, was motivated by Nucera's "intense racial animus."In 2015, Nucera had told a colleague that African Americans were "like ISIS, they have no value," according to a criminal complaint filed in U.S. District Court in New Jersey. "They should line them all up and mow 'em down," he said, according to the complaint.Nucera's lawyer, Rocco Cipparone, said that his client did not commit a hate crime, although he acknowledged that Nucera made the Trump remark and has used "inappropriate language, including derogatory racial terms" in the past."These are embarrassing, ugly words, but if Frank Nucera did not strike this man, then the words are equally irrelevant," Cipparone said. "It is not a crime, even for a police officer, to use that language. It's not socially acceptable, it's not appropriate, but it's not criminal."The U.S. attorney's office for the District of New Jersey declined to comment on the case.As a result of the episode, Nucera, 62, resigned in 2017 from the Police Department in Bordentown, a township about 60 miles southwest of New York City. Aside from the hate crime charge, Nucera is charged with depriving a suspect's rights and making false statements to the FBI, according to the criminal complaint.If convicted, Nucera faces up to 20 years in prison.On Tuesday, prosecutors rested their case, and Nucera told the judge that he would not take the stand. A verdict in the three-week trial could come this week.According to court papers, a manager at the hotel had called the police to report that two guests -- the 18 year-old man and a 16-year-old girl, who is also black -- who did not pay for their room the night before were swimming in the hotel pool. When the police arrived, according to court papers, the girl, who was not identified because she is a minor, and the man, identified at trial as Timothy Stroye, resisted arrest.Stroye was eventually handcuffed, the complaint said, and an officer began walking him to a police car. Nucera then approached them from behind and pushed Stroye's head into a metal doorjamb that separated the hallway from the stairwell at the hotel.Hours later, Nucera, using a racial slur, suggested to a colleague, who was recording the conversation, that Stroye and the girl were from Trenton, according to the complaint. Bordentown, which is about a 15-minute drive south of Trenton, has about 12,000 residents, most of whom are white, census data shows. The nearly 84,000 residents in Trenton are mostly black.Stroye could not be reached for comment.Michael Theokas, a spokesman for Bordentown Township, would not say whether Nucera had been disciplined by the Police Department as a result of his actions on that night.This article originally appeared in The New York Times.(C) 2019 The New York Times Company
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| Lawyer: Uber driver killed passenger in self-defense Posted: 01 Oct 2019 04:36 PM PDT  An Uber driver charged with first-degree murder in the death of a passenger shot the man in self-defense after he touched, punched and pulled his hair as he was speeding down an interstate, his lawyer told jurors Tuesday. In opening arguments in Michael Hancock's trial, Johnna Stuart said Hancock asked a driver who stopped to help to call 911 and then urged a dispatcher to send help to save Hyun (Huhn) Kim, 45, after shooting him on Interstate 25 in June 2018.
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| Mexico’s Government Should Sell Marijuana, Key Lawmaker Proposes Posted: 01 Oct 2019 01:20 PM PDT  (Bloomberg) -- Mexico's government shouldn't only regulate pot, it should be the main bulk buyer and seller of the drug, lower house majority leader Mario Delgado proposed in a new bill.A public company named Cannsalud would be authorized exclusively to acquire cannabis from growers with permits and then sell the drug to franchises authorized to sell small amounts to the public, according to the bill."This way the cannabis market wouldn't be left to the autonomous regulation by individuals, but would involve the state as a permanent supervisor and controller of activity involving this substance within a legal framework that would guarantee benefits for all," the bill states.Delgado's ruling Morena party holds majorities in both house of congress, and his intention to push for state involvement in the marijuana trade is in line with President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador's pledge to increase government presence in the private sector. Lopez Obrador has said regulation of some drugs like marijuana is possible under his administration, but it's unclear if he'd support a government company running the trade.Individuals would be able to grow as many as six plants for personal use without permits, but Cannsalud would be the exclusive seller of marijuana to the pharmaceutical industry, according to the bill.Foreign Minister Marcelo Ebrard has said Mexico should promote other story lines beyond television shows that portray it as overrun by narcos.To contact the reporter on this story: Nacha Cattan in Mexico City at ncattan@bloomberg.netTo contact the editors responsible for this story: Juan Pablo Spinetto at jspinetto@bloomberg.net, Robert JamesonFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
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| Warren’s Poll Numbers Surge with Rising Support Among Black Voters Posted: 02 Oct 2019 11:49 AM PDT  Elizabeth Warren's polling numbers continue to surge among African Americans, an important demographic in the race for the Democratic nomination, according to the most recent Morning Consult poll released on Wednesday.The poll indicated Warren is up by five points among black voters since August, a shift confirmed by the latest Quinnipiac national poll, which showed the Massachusetts senator winning 19 percent of the African-American vote — a nine-point jump over earlier polling.In the RealClear Politics national polling average, Warren has cut former Vice President Joe Biden's overall lead to a mere 1.7 percent."It's certainly a dramatic shift that had to be noticed by the Biden campaign — and also Sanders, Harris and Buttigieg," Tim Malloy, Quinnipiac's polling analyst, told Politico. "Other [candidates] aren't moving. And if they are, it's in the wrong direction."While Joe Biden still maintains a strong lead among African American voters, polling steady at around 40 percent, Warren's increased efforts on the campaign trail to reach black voters have helped. Patrick Murray, director of the Monmouth University Polling Institute, told Politico that the gradual broadening of Warren's base has played a significant role in her rise."If you're African-American, Warren may not have been someone you knew very well," Murray said. "You knew Joe Biden, sure, but now you're paying more attention."Warren's next challenge is performing well in South Carolina, the fourth state on the primary trail, where more than 60 percent of primary voters are African American. While a recent CNN poll put her at only 4 percent of the black vote in South Carolina, compared to Biden's 45, Warren has not dedicated significant time and resources to the state; she is ranked 12th overall among the Democratic pool in attending South Carolina events, with only 13 public appearances so far, per the Charleston Post and Courier.
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| Shadowy Iran commander gives interview on 2006 Israel-Hezbollah war Posted: 01 Oct 2019 01:11 PM PDT  The shadowy head of Iran's elite Quds Force, Qassem Soleimani, gave an insight on his role in Lebanon during the 2006 Israel-Hezbollah war, in a rare interview broadcast Tuesday on state television. The 90-minute interview was presented as the first of its kind with Soleimani, top commander of the Revolutionary Guards branch that runs foreign operations. Soleimani said he spent almost the entire duration of the 34-day conflict in Lebanon, which he entered from Syria alongside Imad Moughnieh, a commander of the Iran-backed Shiite movement Hezbollah who was assassinated in 2008.
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| China's Robot Submarines Could Be the Ultimate Underwater Spy Posted: 02 Oct 2019 11:45 PM PDT  How worried should Asia and America be?
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| Teenager shot by Hong Kong police is charged with rioting and assault Posted: 03 Oct 2019 01:54 AM PDT  A teenager who was shot by the Hong Kong police on Tuesday has been charged with rioting and assault as the city reels from this week's heightened aggression. The city is also expected to ban face masks under a colonial-era emergency law that has not been used in half a century, media reported. Many people taking part in the protests wear face masks to hide their identities and shield themselves from tear gas, meaning the ban on masks could have a deterring effect on demonstrations. It came as the city loosened guidelines on the use of force by police as it struggles to stamp out anti-government protests that have rocked the Asian financial hub for nearly four months, according to documents seen by Reuters. The loosening of restrictions on the use of force came into effect shortly before some of the most violent turmoil seen in the protests on Tuesday, with police firing about 1,400 rounds of tear gas, 900 rubber bullets and six live rounds, as protesters threw petrol bombs and wielded sticks. The charges against the 18-year-old protester are likely to inflame tensions further in a city already reeling that an officer from the once publicly feted Hong Kong police force fired a live shot at close range. Taxis drive down a road occupied by protesters in the Causeway Bay district on Wednesday night Credit: Chan Long Hei/Bloomberg The protester was armed only with a makeshift shield made from what appeared to be a boogie board, and a white pole. Rioting is considered a serious offence in Hong Kong, punishable by up to ten years in prison. The case was immediately heard in the Sha Tin court on Thursday afternoon where Mr Tsang, 18, who is still critical in hospital, was represented by his lawyer. Hundreds of students gathered outside in a show of support. The teenager took a bullet to the upper left-hand side of his body after a violent confrontation between protesters and riot officers in the Tsuen Wan district during the widespread chaos that broke out on China's National Day. Stephen Lo, the Hong Kong police commissioner, was quick to defend the officer's actions, saying that he feared for his life. "The police officers had given warnings but to no avail. The police officers' lives were seriously endangered and were forced to use a firearm to stop the violent attacks," he told a press conference. "The approach was reasonable and lawful." Pro-democracy protests have been raging in Hong Kong for four months Credit: Kin Cheung/AP Viral footage which was filmed at multiple angles by journalists at the scene shows a group of demonstrators with bars and umbrellas fighting with outnumbered police officers. An officer runs in to back up his colleagues with his handgun already drawn. As Mr Tsang swings his pole a shot rings out and he slowly staggers backwards to the ground. A friend who rushes to help is tackled by another officer and a group of protesters throw a petrol bomb, landing at the feet of the riot police. The teenager, who later underwent surgery, suffered the first injury from live ammunition in four months of escalating political unrest. It is not clear from the footage why the officer did not reach for non-lethal protection, including pepper spray. According to police, 1,400 rounds of tear gas were fired on Tuesday, along with 900 rubber bullets and six live rounds. But it is the single gunshot injury which has stunned a city now increasingly used to clouds of teargas on in its main shopping and residential districts, and the incident threatens to further widen the gulf of mistrust that already exists between large sectors of the public and the police. The pro-democracy camp has insisted that this shooting, and the firing of a non-lethal projectile at an Indonesian journalist which blinded her right eye, are egregious examples of the excessive force increasingly being deployed by the police. Some protesters have begun to add a sixth entry to their list of demands – disband the police force. The police, who have been deployed to tackle the crisis in the absence of a political solution, have in turn urged the government to issue curfew orders or adopt measures under a tough colonial-era emergency law to empower their thinly stretched force. At least 30 officers were injured during Tuesday's street violence. Protesters have rallied to support the teenager who was shot Credit: Athit Perawongmetha/AFP The Junior Police Officers' Association (JPOA) complained this week that Carrie Lam, the city's embattled leader, had left them alone, with no concrete solutions, reported the South China Morning Post. Lam Chi-wai, the JPOA chairman, said the government had failed to do its part while police were fighting a "war" on the streets and enduring attacks, bullying and a smear campaign. "We are only an enforcement agency with limited power under the law. In the face of such a massive series of rioting incidents, we cannot work alone without appropriate measures and support from the top level," he said in the statement. The authorities may decide at a special meeting on Friday to use their emergency ordinance powers for the first time in more than a half a century in order to ban face masks at public gatherings, local news channel TVB reported. The use of a law first passed by the British government in 1922 to quell a seamen's strike in Hong Kong harbour, would mark a dramatic escalation by Ms Lam's government, and risks a fresh wave of international condemnation and pushback from demonstrators. Protest leaders have previously denounced invoking of the Emergency Regulations Ordinance as a form of martial law which would give the government greater leeway to arrest citizens, censor publications, shut off communications and conduct searches without warrants.
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| Police Drone Finds Fugitive Who's Been Living in a Cave for 17 Years Posted: 02 Oct 2019 10:26 AM PDT  The man lived in the wilderness for the past 17 years.
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| Former NC GOP head pleads guilty to lying in bribery case Posted: 02 Oct 2019 09:15 AM PDT  The former chairman of North Carolina's Republican Party admitted Wednesday that he broke the law by lying to federal agents about his role in an alleged effort to bribe the state's top insurance regulator to help a major GOP donor. Robin Hayes, 74, pleaded guilty to making a false statement in August 2018 to FBI agents conducting the bribery investigation. Hayes, a former congressman, was initially also charged with conspiracy and bribery.
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| New whistleblower comes forward regarding Trump’s tax audit Posted: 02 Oct 2019 07:31 AM PDT  A new whistleblower complaint alleges that "possible misconduct" occurred in an effort to influence the audit of President Trump's taxes.
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| GLOBAL MARKETS-Asian stocks tumble after U.S. announces tariffs on Europe Posted: 02 Oct 2019 05:43 PM PDT ![GLOBAL MARKETS-Asian stocks tumble after U.S. announces tariffs on Europe]( "GLOBAL MARKETS-Asian stocks tumble after U.S. announces tariffs on Europe") Asian stocks, already under pressure from growing global growth fears, tumbled on Thursday after New York markets slumped overnight because the United States opened a new trade war front by saying it will impose tariffs on $7.5 billion of goods from the European Union. The two-year yield fell to 1.4760%, close to a two-year low of 1.4280%, after a weak U.S. private sector jobs report depressed boosted expectations that the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates this month.
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| Beto O’Rourke: Buttigieg Opposes Gun Confiscation Because He’s ‘Afraid to Do the Right Thing’ Posted: 03 Oct 2019 05:50 AM PDT  Democratic presidential candidates Beto O'Rourke and Pete Buttigieg sparred over the merits of mandatory gun confiscation during a gun control advocacy event in Las Vegas on Wednesday.During a one-on-one with Today Show anchor Craig Melvin, Buttigieg, the mayor of South Bend, Ind., was asked a question about mandatory assault weapon "buybacks," to which he responded that "as a policy, it's had mixed results. It's a healthy debate to have, but we've got to do something now." Buttigieg went on to say the issue could potentially distract Democrats from areas where they could make real advances in gun control.Buttigieg has called for a ban on the sale of certain semi-automatic rifles, but has joined the rest of the Democratic primary field in resisting O'Rourke's call for a "mandatory buyback," which would require gun owners to sell their semi-automatic rifles to the government and hold those who refuse criminally liable.Later in the event, Beto O'Rourke, who has made past headlines with his outspoken support of mandatory gun confiscation, challenged Buttigieg as a candidate "worried about the polls" and who "probably wants to get to the right place, but is afraid of doing the right thing right now."After the event in a news conference with reporters, O'Rourke went further."What Pete has been saying is that a mandatory buyback is the 'shiny object' that is distracting us. How in the world can you say that to March for Our Lives? How can you say that to survivors of mass shootings across this country?" O'Rourke stated. "How can you say that to the majority of Hispanics in America, certainly in Texas, who fear that they will be the victims of a mass shooting inspired by racism and hatred that has been welcomed into the open by this president, and has been armed with weapons of war."I was really offended by [Buttigieg's] comments. I think he represents a kind of politics that is focused on poll testing and focus group driving, and triangulating, and listening to consultants before you arrive at a position," he continued. "I think our politics has to be about doing the right thing, saying the right thing."According to the latest RealClear Politics national polling average, Buttigieg leads O'Rourke by just over three percentage points.
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| See Photos of the 2020 BMW 840i Gran Coupe Posted: 02 Oct 2019 09:59 AM PDT |
| Students and staff at the University of Florida slam 'ignorant and shameful' decision by student body to use $50,000 in student fees to pay Donald Trump Jr. and Kim Guilfoyle for a speaking engagement Posted: 03 Oct 2019 08:28 AM PDT  "It disgusts me that student fees will be used to pay Donald Trump Jr. $50,000," one University of Florida student told Business Insider.
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| Taiwan warns Chinese could be barred entry over anti-HK violence Posted: 02 Oct 2019 05:31 PM PDT  Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen warned Thursday that mainland Chinese who attacked Hong Kongers or damaged "Lennon Walls" could be barred from the island following a recent spate of such incidents. The walls plastered in colourful sticky-notes, posters and slogans that have sprung up across Hong Kong have also been set up in Taiwan, mostly in university campuses. Taiwan held a Hong Kong solidarity rally last weekend which was largely peaceful, although Hong Kong popstar Denise Ho -- a staunch democracy advocate -- had red paint thrown at her by an unidentified assailant as she spoke to local media.
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| Should sex work be decriminalized? Posted: 02 Oct 2019 10:29 AM PDT  Outside of a handful of counties in Nevada, prostitution is illegal in the U.S., but a movement is now gaining traction to decriminalize sex work. The Washington, D.C., City Council and the New York state Legislature are considering separate decriminalization bills. If passed, the selling and buying of sex would still be illegal but would carry no criminal penalties. The push for change has largely been led by sex workers themselves, who say current laws make them vulnerable to violence and harassment while doing nothing to curb the demand for buying sex. Others make the case that sex work is a legitimate profession that should be afforded the rights and protections given to all other jobs.
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| Former Dallas cop sentenced to 10 years in prison for shooting her unarmed black neighbor to death in his own apartment Posted: 02 Oct 2019 02:21 PM PDT  Amber Guyger, 31, had faced the possibility of 99 years in prison, though the judge told the jury they could sentence her to as few as two years.
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| The Latest: Iraqi official says 6 protesters killed in south Posted: 03 Oct 2019 02:02 AM PDT  An Iraqi medical official says at least six protesters have been shot and killed in the southern city of Nasiriyah, south of the capital Baghdad, during anti-government rallies. The official told The Associated Press the bodies of the protesters were brought to the local hospital after sunset Thursday. The protesters had defied a curfew imposed in the city, about 320 kilometers, or 200 miles, southeast of the capital, Baghdad.
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| The B-2 Bomber Has More Firepower Than an Aircraft Carrier Posted: 03 Oct 2019 12:50 AM PDT  Could the B-2 stealth bomber be the most dangerous plane ever built?
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| Mexico’s AMLO Says Pemex PMI Turnover Is Effort to Clean Unit Posted: 03 Oct 2019 07:53 AM PDT  (Bloomberg) -- Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador said that the replacement of 10 executives at the Petroleos Mexicanos arm that sets and monitors prices was an effort to end decades-long questionable practices."There was an instruction to clean Pemex International," AMLO, as the leftist president is known, said at his morning news conference on Thursday. "Some people had been there for almost 30 years. It was converted into a limited partnership."AMLO said that the people who were in charge of PMI had been buying and selling a million barrels of oil a day and distanced themselves from government supervision using as excuses their own technical expertise. He repeated the frequent promise that his government isn't going to tolerate corruption.Pemex in a shakeup on Friday announced that it had replaced the head of PMI and the head of crude trading, among other new appointments. The moves followed a clash between the former PMI management and Pemex's new leadership team headed by Chief Executive Officer Octavio Romero over new formulas created to price oil sales to refiners in the U.S. and elsewhere, according to people familiar with the matter.Romero, a longtime Lopez Obrador ally, had called for an external review because he had questions about the marketing of Mexico's crude, while the head of trading opposed his decision to launch an external review of the formula.To contact the reporters on this story: Eric Martin in Mexico City at emartin21@bloomberg.net;Cyntia Barrera Diaz in Mexico City at cbarrerad@bloomberg.netTo contact the editors responsible for this story: Juan Pablo Spinetto at jspinetto@bloomberg.net, Cyntia Barrera DiazFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
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| Unkempt? Presidential spokesman tells critics Duterte smells "refreshing" Posted: 03 Oct 2019 01:55 AM PDT ![Unkempt? Presidential spokesman tells critics Duterte smells "refreshing"]( "Unkempt? Presidential spokesman tells critics Duterte smells \"refreshing\"") Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte's spokesman defended him against critics who described him as looking unkempt when he met with Russia's prime minister, saying he is "very hygienic" and that "his body emits a refreshing scent". Salvador Panelo, who is travelling with Duterte in Russia, challenged "kibitzers" to try to be close to the president to find out how he smells. "That's what ladies tell me when they kiss PRRD, that he smells good", Panelo said, referring to President Rodrigo Roa Duterte, who is in Russia for a working visit.
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| 'Gigantic' iceberg breaks away from ice shelf in Antarctica Posted: 02 Oct 2019 01:38 PM PDT  A colossal iceberg roughly the size of Los Angeles or Sydney, Australia, and weighing an estimated 347 billion tons broke off from the Amery Ice Shelf in Antarctica last week.The 630-square-mile iceberg, named D28, separated from the ice shelf on September 26, next to a location scientists had been watching for nearly 20 years. The area was known as the "Loose Tooth," because it appeared to be barely hanging on to the ice shelf in recent years."We first noticed a rift at the front of the ice shelf in the early 2000s and predicted a large iceberg would break off between 2010-2015," said Helen Amanda Fricker, one of the lead researchers on the team studying D28, said in a statement from the Australian government's Antarctic division.The Antarctic division also released stunning aerial footage showing the "gigantic" hunk of ice that until last week had been hanging on by a thread. Below is a video animation made from satellite imagery showing the moment the break-away iceberg split from the Amery Ice Shelf.> A 1600 km² iceberg broke off Amery Ice Shelf, as seen in @CopernicusEU Sentinel-1 radar images. This part, coined the "Loose Tooth" by @helenafricker and colleagues, has been hanging by a thread since 2002 (https://t.co/IUhXDCWOFF) and finally gave way last week.@sentinel_hub pic.twitter.com/GG60Sk52GB> > -- Bert Wouters (@bert_polar) September 30, 2019The GIF shows the iceberg rotating westward, apparently pushed by the prevailing easterly winds, which reached speeds of 40 mph, according to AccuWeather meteorologist Jim Andrews."The calving will not directly affect sea level, because the ice shelf was already floating, much like an ice cube in a glass of water," Dr. Galton-Fenzi said in the statement released by the Australian Arctic division.However, Fenzi said scientists are interested to see if the loss of ice will influence the ocean melting under the remaining ice shelf and the speed at which the ice flows off the continent.Amery is the third-largest ice shelf in Antarctica, and is a key drainage channel for the east of the continent -- a closely-watched piece of real estate that researchers have been studying since the 1960s.Currently, there are instruments deployed on the ice measuring the impact of ocean melt and ice flow. "We don't think this event is linked to climate change, it's part of the ice shelf's normal cycle, where we see major calving events every 60 to 70 years," Fricker said.If the calving isn't linked to climate change, then what should people make of it? "I like to think of it as being akin to our fingernails -- they grow and break off -- at least if we don't keep them clipped," Andrews said.
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| North Korea launches missile 'from submarine' towards Japan days before nuclear talks with US Posted: 01 Oct 2019 06:51 PM PDT  North Korea on Wednesday fired a projectile toward its eastern sea, possibly from a submarine, South Korea's military said, in an apparent display of its expanding military capabilities ahead of planned nuclear negotiations with the United States this weekend. A few hours after the launch, South Korea's National Security Council expressed "strong concern" that North Korea may have tested a submarine-launched ballistic missile (SLBM). In connection with North Korea's firing of a projectile earlier in the day, the NSC is placing "weight on the possibility" that it was a SLBM test, the presidential office said, according to Yonhap. Seoul said it was likely a Pukguksong-class weapon, as the North's earlier submarine-launched ballistic missiles (SLBM) were known, that is under development. A preliminary assessment by the South's Joint Chiefs of Staff found that the missile flew 450km and reached a height of 910 km, which, analysts pointed out, is the longest range test since 2017. Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga initially said the North fired two ballistic missiles from the country's east coast, and one of them appeared to have landed inside Japan's exclusive economic zone off northwestern coast. North Korean leader Kim Jong Un attended the testing of a 'super-large multiple rocket launcher' last month Credit: AFP This early assessment was later revised by the defence missile from two missiles down to one. There were no reports of damage to Japanese vessels or aircraft travelling in the area. Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe strongly condemned the launch and said it was a violation of United Nations resolutions. The launches, which were the North's ninth round of weapons tests since late July, came hours after a senior North Korean diplomat on Tuesday evening announced that North Korea and the United States have agreed to resume working-level nuclear negotiations this weekend. North Korean missile ranges After supervising a testing firing of what the North described as a "newly developed super-large multiple rocket launcher" last month, North Korean leader Kim Jong-un was quoted by state media as saying that the system would require a "running fire test" to complete its development. North Korea could also be demonstrating its displeasure over South Korea displaying some of its newly purchased US-made F-35 stealth fighter jets for the first time during its Armed Forces Day ceremony on Tuesday. The North has sharply reacted to the F-35 purchases, calling them a grave provocation that violate recent inter-Korean agreements aimed at lowering military tensions. Ankit Panda, an adjunct senior fellow at the Federation of American Scientists, suggested that additional factors may have prompted the launch, including an attempt at gaining leverage before this weekend's talks, and a show of force against Japan's new Aegis Ashore missile defence system. "On September 23, 24, and 28, North Korean media featured articles slamming Japan over Aegis Ashore. That's part of the context here too," he tweeted. "Japanese MoD also made an announcement on Aegis Ashore deployment plans last week. Between the Moon F-35A inspection and this, seems like Kim has enough in-theater to merit signaling-by-missile again." Nuclear negotiations have been at a standstill for months following a February summit between Kim and President Donald Trump in Hanoi, Vietnam. Those talks broke down after the US rejected North Korean demands for broad sanctions relief in exchange for partially surrendering its nuclear capabilities. North Korea followed the summit with belligerent rhetoric and conducted a slew of short-range weapons tests in recent weeks that were widely seen as an attempt to gain leverage ahead of a possible resumption of negotiations. In a statement released through state media, Choe Son Hui, North Korea's first vice minister of foreign affairs, said the two nations will have preliminary contact on Friday before holding working-level talks on Saturday. She expressed optimism over the outcome of the meeting but did not say where it would take place. US President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un take a walk after their first meeting at the Sofitel Legend Metropole Hanoi hotel in Hanoi Credit: AP "It is my expectation that the working-level negotiations would accelerate the positive development of the DPRK-U.S. relations," Choe said in the statement, using an abbreviation for North Korea's formal name, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea. The US confirmed the talks. "I can confirm that US and DPRK officials plan to meet within the next week. I do not have further details to share on the meeting," said State Department spokeswoman Morgan Ortagus, who is travelling with Secretary of State Mike Pompeo in Rome. Choe's announcement came after North Korea praised Mr Trump last month for suggesting that Washington may pursue an unspecified "new method" in nuclear negotiations with the North. North Korea also has welcomed Mr Trump's decision to fire hawkish former National Security Adviser John Bolton, who advocated a "Libya model" of unilateral denuclearisation as a template for North Korea. The 2004 disarmament of Libya is seen by North Korea as a deeply provocative comparison because Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi was killed following US-supported military action in his country seven years after giving up a rudimentary nuclear programme that was far less advanced than North Korea's. North Korea take aim at defence gap | 2 The office of South Korean President Moon Jae-in, who lobbied hard to set up the first summit between Kim and Mr Trump last year in Singapore, welcomed Choe's announcement and expressed hope that the resumed talks would result in "substantial progress" in denuclearisation and stabilisation of peace. That could be a tall order. In the high-stakes diplomacy between Mr Trump and Kim, which has been driven chiefly by the personalities of the leaders rather than an established diplomatic process, working-level meetings have been useful for fleshing out the logistics of summits but unproductive in hammering out the details of a nuclear deal that has eluded the countries for decades. The stalemate of past months has revealed fundamental differences between the two sides. North Korea says it will never unilaterally surrender its nuclear weapons and missiles and insists that US-led sanctions against it should be lifted first before any progress in negotiations. The Trump administration has vowed to maintain robust economic pressure until North Korea takes real steps toward fully and verifiably relinquishing its nuclear programme. There are doubts about whether Kim would ever voluntarily deal away an arsenal that he may see as his strongest guarantee of survival. After their Singapore summit in June 2018, Mr Trump and Kim issued a vague statement calling for a nuclear-free Korean Peninsula without describing how or when it would occur. The lack of substance and fruitless working-level talks set up the failure in Hanoi, which the Americans blamed on what they said were excessive North Korean demands for sanctions relief in exchange for dismantling an aging nuclear facility in Yongbyon. Mr Trump and Kim met for the third time at the inter-Korean border on June 30 and agreed that working-level talks between the countries should resume.
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| The ocean on Saturn's moon Enceladus contains the building blocks of life, NASA data reveals Posted: 02 Oct 2019 02:07 PM PDT  NASA data revealed the most basic ingredients of life in bursts from an ocean on Saturn's moon Enceladus.
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| Because of Larry Nassar, Michigan State has the most rapes reported in a year in campus safety report Posted: 03 Oct 2019 10:04 AM PDT  The annual Clery Act report, which is mandated by the federal government, includes more than 1,000 rapes – most attributed to Larry Nassar.
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