| New Fox News poll on impeachment contradicts its most loyal viewer — President Trump Posted: 15 Dec 2019 08:57 AM PST  A new Fox News poll on voter support for impeachment contradicted President Trump, who recently boasted major support in favor of "No Impeachment."
|
| Italian city evacuated as World War Two-era British bomb is defused Posted: 15 Dec 2019 11:09 AM PST  Italian authorities ordered the biggest peacetime evacuation in the country since World War Two on Sunday to defuse a massive unexploded British bomb that was partially damaged when discovered in the southern city of Brindisi. The historic evacuation displaced some 53,000 residents —more than half — of the coastal city on the Adriatic, due to the high risk that the 440-pound ordnance containing 40 kilograms of dynamite could explode. The chances of detonation were increased after the munition was damaged on November 2 by a bulldozer excavating for a remodel of a cinema.. The bomb is believed to have been dropped on the city in a 1941 air raid, during the period of World War Two when Italy was still allied with Germany and Royal Air Force bombers based in Malta were targeting Naples, Brindisi and Bari in order to disrupt Axis shipping lanes. According to the Italian defence department, it is just one of thousands of unexploded ordnances that still lie dormant and undiscovered throughout Italy. Earlier this month more than 10,000 Turin residents were evacuated for the deactivation of a similar British bomb, as were 4000 residents of the northern city of Bolzano in October. In the month and a half since the unexploded bomb was discovered in Brindisi, city officials put into place a strict evacuation plan with a 1,617 metre "red zone" around the damaged bomb, which was reinforced with an external structure last week. The city's airport, train station, hospitals and prison were shut down as part of the operation on Sunday. By mid-morning the bomb had been successfully defused by a team of more than a dozen Italian army explosives experts, who used a special metal key that was carefully turned with remote-controlled technology, as the mayor and other security officials watched drone footage of the operation from a nearby situation room. The bomb is expected to be set off tomorrow in a remote location outside the city.
|
| Battle of the Bulge: 75 Years Ago Hitler Tried to Make the Ultimate Comeback Posted: 15 Dec 2019 10:18 PM PST  The price of victory in the Battle of the Bulge for America was steep. About 19,000 U.S. troops died, 47,500 were wounded, and more than 23,000 were left missing. The British suffered 1,400 casualties with 200 killed, and the Germans had 100,000 soldiers killed, wounded, or captured.
|
| The role of race and gender in the 2020 presidential race - CBS News poll Posted: 16 Dec 2019 12:32 AM PST  Do Democrats think black or female nominees would have harder time beating Trump in 2020?
|
| Inmate's suicide shows need for reforms, advocates say Posted: 15 Dec 2019 07:43 AM PST  The final two months of Cachin Anderson's life in New York's prison system were filled with warnings he was a man in crisis. Prisoner advocates say Anderson's death and others illustrate how New York's prison system fails to ensure the safety of inmates who might hurt themselves if left alone in a cell. New York state prison inmates in solitary confinement or long-term "keeplock" units, in which inmates are isolated, were over five times more likely to kill themselves than prisoners in general confinement, according to a report from the Department of Corrections and Community Supervision.
|
| A flight bound for New York took off from Germany, flew for 8 hours, then landed 85 miles from where it started Posted: 16 Dec 2019 07:44 AM PST  Passengers flying from Frankfurt to New York endured an extremely frustrating day last week when they ended up turning back halfway over the Atlantic.
|
| Turkey sends armed drone to N.Cyprus amid gas dispute Posted: 15 Dec 2019 04:57 PM PST  A Turkish military drone was delivered to northern Cyprus on Monday amid growing tensions over Turkey's deal with Libya that extended its claims to the gas-rich eastern Mediterranean. The Bayraktar TB2 drone landed at Gecitkale Airport in Famagusta around 0700 GMT, an AFP correspondent said, after the breakaway northern Cyprus government approved the use of the airport for unmanned aerial vehicles. It followed a deal signed last month between Libya and Turkey that could prove crucial in the scramble for recently discovered gas reserves in the eastern Mediterranean.
|
| Zambia Wants U.S. Ambassador Out for Defending Gay Couple Posted: 15 Dec 2019 11:12 PM PST  (Bloomberg) -- Zambian President Edgar Lungu wants the U.S. ambassador to leave the country after the diplomat criticized the African state for sentencing a gay couple to 15 years behind bars for having a consensual relationship."We have complained officially to the American government, and we are waiting for their response because we don't want such people in our midst," Lungu said Sunday in comments broadcast on state-owned ZNBC TV. "We want him gone."U.S. Ambassador Daniel Foote said last month that he was "personally horrified" after the high court sentenced the two men and called on the government to reconsider laws that punish minority groups. The move was particularly disturbing as "government officials can steal millions of public dollars without prosecution," Foote said.The U.S. provides $500 million in aid to Zambia yearly, according to Foote."We are saying no to homosexuality," Lungu said in comments broadcast by Sky News earlier this month. "When you are tying it to aid, if that is how you are going to bring your aid, then I'm afraid the west can leave us alone in our poverty. And we'll continue scrounging and struggling."The State Department didn't immediately respond to an email seeking comment.Read More: U.S. Rebukes Zambia for Jailing Two Men for Homosexuality(Updates with envoy's comments from third paragraph)To contact the reporters on this story: Taonga Clifford Mitimingi in Lusaka at tmitimingi@bloomberg.net;Matthew Hill in Maputo at mhill58@bloomberg.netTo contact the editors responsible for this story: Sebastian Tong at stong41@bloomberg.net, Helen Nyambura, Eric OmbokFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
|
| 5 Italian men sentenced to jail for rape of tourist in popular holiday resort Posted: 15 Dec 2019 07:55 AM PST  Five Italian men have been jailed for the gang rape of a British tourist in the popular resort of Meta di Sorrento, south of Naples.
|
| Brian Kilmeade ‘Stunned’ by Fox News Poll Differing From What ‘Fox & Friends’ Pushes About Impeachment Posted: 16 Dec 2019 07:57 AM PST  Fox & Friends co-host Brian Kilmeade confessed Monday that the latest Fox News poll, showing more than half of Americans supporting impeachment, left him "stunned"—seeing as it doesn't support his preferred narrative that sentiments are "trending away" from impeachment.In a survey released on Sunday, Fox News found that 50 percent of voters want the president impeachment and removed from office, with an additional 4 percentage points of responders supporting impeachment but not removal. This represented a slight uptick from the network's poll in late October when 49 percent supported impeachment and removal.Discussing the upcoming House impeachment vote on Fox & Friends Monday morning, the overtly pro-Trump morning crew framed the process as completely partisan, prompting Kilmeade to note that a handful of House Democrats may vote against impeachment."There were 31 Democrats who voted for Republicans against Bill Clinton," Kilmeade declared. "Now you have zero Republicans and you are looking at how many Democrats [switching]? Everyone is choosing to bury that part of this story—that's how weak this impeachment case is!"After the hosts insisted that dozens of House Democrats are in peril of losing their seats over impeachment, Kilmeade then turned to the poll results, expressing shock that the numbers flew in the face of everything they've been peddling lately."The Fox News poll came out, and I was stunned by this, it says 50 percent of the country want the president impeached," he exclaimed. (The survey, in fact, says half of the public wants Trump impeachment and removed.)"I was stunned to see that that's the number," Kilmeade added, "because I thought that things were trending away, although the president's approval rating did tick up in the same poll, so it's almost like a split personality." The president's approval rating did indeed see a bump in the latest poll, rising from 42 percent in October to 45 percent.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.
|
| Police search for missing Texas mother and her newborn girl Posted: 15 Dec 2019 08:51 PM PST  Police in Austin are searching for Heide Broussard and her 2-week-old child, Margot Carey
|
| Sri Lanka arrests Swiss Embassy worker who claimed abduction Posted: 16 Dec 2019 06:56 AM PST  Sri Lankan police arrested a Swiss Embassy employee on Monday who said she was abducted and was threatened to disclose embassy-related information. Police said they arrested Gania Banister Francis on suspicion that she made statements that caused disaffection toward the government and fabricated evidence in her abduction claim. The Swiss foreign ministry has called the Nov. 25 incident a "very serious and unacceptable attack" and summoned Sri Lanka's ambassador to demand an investigation.
|
| 75 years after the Battle of the Bulge, members of the Army's 101st Airborne share their personal ties to that brutal fight Posted: 16 Dec 2019 06:07 AM PST  Seventy-five years ago, the Battle of the Bulge began with a massive Germans advance into Belgium, sending US troops reeling.
|
| U.S. envoy arrives in South Korea as Pyongyang ramps up pressure Posted: 14 Dec 2019 11:56 PM PST  Stephen Biegun, the U.S. special envoy for North Korea, arrived in South Korea on Sunday as Pyongyang stepped up pressure on Washington to make concessions to revive stalled denuclearization talks ahead of a year-end deadline. Biegun's arrival came a day after North Korea said it made another "crucial test" at a rocket launch site to develop a strategic weapon to deter U.S. nuclear threats. Analysts said such tests could help North Korea build more reliable intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs) capable of reaching the United States.
|
| Six dead in protests against Indian citizenship law Posted: 15 Dec 2019 09:48 AM PST  Angry protesters in northeast India vowed Sunday to keep demonstrating against a contentious citizenship law as the death toll from bloody clashes sparked by the bill rose to six. Tension remained high at the epicentre of the unrest in Assam state's biggest city, Guwahati, with troops patrolling the streets. Some 5,000 people took part in a fresh demonstration Sunday in Guwahati, with hundreds of police watching as they sang, chanted and carried banners with the words "Long live Assam".
|
| British Museum to display 'world's first single-use cup' fashioned by Minoans 3500 years ago Posted: 15 Dec 2019 04:01 PM PST  The world's first single-use cup is to be displayed by the British Museum, as the curator says it is "not invention of modern consumerist society". A 3,500-year-old vessel, which once contained wine, was made by the Minoans, one of the first advanced civilisations in Europe. It will go on display later this month as part of a new exhibition called "Rubbish And Us" at the British Museum. "People may be very surprised to know that disposable, single-use cups are not the invention of our modern consumerist society, but in fact can be traced back thousands of years," said Julia Farley, who is a curator at the British Museum. "The elite were showing off their wealth and status by throwing these great big parties, feasts and festivals. People were getting together in large groups and much like today, nobody wants to do the washing up." Minoans gathered at the palace for parties, feasts and gatherings such as bull-leaping festivals - a "more risky" version of "hurdles". Thousands of the handleless, conical clay cups have been discovered on archeological sites on the island of Crete and at the palace Knossos. The civilisation is thought to have collapsed after the Minoans rapidly exhausted resources on the small island and because of a then "natural fluctuation" of climate change. The 3,500-year-old vessel, which once contained wine, was made by the Minoans As well as being convenient, the cup was a means of showing off wealth because of all the resources poured into making it. The British Museum has come under pressure over environment-related issues including over its sponsorship deal with the oil giant BP, which has been the museum's corporate partner since 1996 and its current deal runs until 2023. Ms Farley said she hoped the display would make visitors think creatively about reducing waste, instead of just feeling guilty. "Human beings have always produced rubbish. Making some rubbish is an unavoidable by-product of being human." she said. "We are tool-using animals. We wear clothes. Nothing lasts forever. It's in the very nature of our existence that we make rubbish." But she said: "This is a sobering message about scale and consumption and I think we need to find that balance, which humans have never been very good at finding." The ancient cup will be shown alongside a waxed paper cup from the early 1990s, made at around the same time modern disposable cups were taking off. Other objects will include a yellow fishing basket made from plastic wrapping and photographs from across the Pacific, showing the extent of the plastic problem. An ancient disposable cup, next to plastic items washed up on a Pacific beach "We have thousands of these Minoan, disposable cups and that's a lot. But today we are making over 300 billion papers cups globally every year," Ms Farley said. "The Minoan civilisation is tiny compared to the global consumerist economy that we have now. Now we are doing what human beings have always done but we are doing it on an unprecedented scale with materials that are going to take hundreds, if not thousands of years, to biodegrade. "We think of ancient people being in touch with their environment but if you cut down trees to make charcoal and burn it to fire clay that's releasing a lot of carbon dioxide." The Museum said it is "striving to lessen its environmental impact", with all waste being either recycled or burned and converted to electricity. Over 90 per cent of the display materials, such as plinths and cases, in the exhibition have been repurposed and recycled from the British Museum's recent Manga exhibition.
|
| Democrats Offer Jobs to Rebel Member’s Aides: Impeachment Update Posted: 16 Dec 2019 08:43 AM PST  (Bloomberg) -- The full House is expected to vote Wednesday on whether to adopt the two articles approved by the Judiciary Committee and make President Donald Trump only the third president in U.S. history to be impeached.Here are the latest developments:Democrats Offer Jobs to Rebel Member's Aides (11:39 a.m.)The chairwoman of the House Democrats' campaign committee offered jobs to aides of Representative Jeff Van Drew who left his office following news reports that the freshman New Jersey lawmaker plans to quit his party and become a Republican."It's right before the holidays and these staffers just quit their jobs to stand up for their Democratic values. We'll bring them and others who leave on with the @dccc until they land new jobs that align with their values," Chairwoman Cheri Bustos of Illinois wrote on Twitter. She also asked for donations to keep Van Drew's district in Democratic hands.Van Drew is one of just two House Democrats who voted against opening the impeachment inquiry in October. He won a vacant seat in 2018, though election analyst David Wasserman of the Cook Political Report said his southern New Jersey district is "trending towards" Trump and Republicans. He said Van Drew "was just about the only Democrat capable of winning" there.Five Van Drew staffers announced their resignations in a letter dated Sunday. They said they "are deeply saddened and disappointed" by his reported decision to join the GOP — which he has not publicly announced — and "can no longer in good conscience continue" to work for him. The aides are Javier Gamboa, Edward Kaczmarski, Justin O'Leary, Mackenzie Lucas and Caroline Wood.Judiciary Panel Releases Report (9:21 a.m.)The House Judiciary Committee released a 169-page report spelling out Democrats' grounds for two articles of impeachment, arguing that Trump poses "a threat to the Constitution if allowed to remain in office."The two articles allege the president abused the power of his office by soliciting Ukraine to interfere in the 2020 election and then obstructing Congress during its investigation.The report is meant to support an impeachment resolution the House Rules Committee will consider Tuesday in what's expected to be a marathon hearing setting the terms for floor debate ahead of a full House vote on Wednesday.The Judiciary Committee "does not lightly conclude that President Trump acted with corrupt motives," the report states, calling that conclusion "inescapable."The report accuses Trump of using his official powers "to solicit and pressure" Ukraine to launch investigations into former Vice President Joe Biden, a 2020 rival.It also criticizes the White House's resistance to cooperating with the probe."No president before this one has declared himself and his entire branch of government exempt from subpoenas issued by the House under its 'sole power of Impeachment'," the panel's Democrats wrote.Committee Republicans filed a separate dissenting report that said "the paltry record on which the majority relies is an affront to the constitutional process of impeachment and will have grave consequences for future presidents."The Republicans described as "hyperbolic and untrue" Democratic claims that the 2020 election is at risk and the national interest is in jeopardy unless action is taken against Trump."The quicker the majority report and the majority's actions are forgotten, the better," they stated.Catch Up on Impeachment CoverageKey EventsThe House Judiciary Committee on Friday approved the two articles of impeachment on 23-17 party-line votes.The House impeachment resolution is H.Res. 755. The Intelligence Committee Democrats' impeachment report is here.Gordon Sondland's transcript is here and here; Kurt Volker's transcript is here and here. Former U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine Marie Yovanovitch's transcript is here and here; the transcript of Michael McKinley, former senior adviser to the secretary of State, is here. The transcript of Holmes, a Foreign Service officer in Kyiv, is here.The transcript of William Taylor, the top U.S. envoy to Ukraine, is here and here. State Department official George Kent's testimony is here and here. Testimony by Alexander Vindman can be found here, and the Fiona Hill transcript is here. Laura Cooper's transcript is here; Christopher Anderson's is here and Catherine Croft's is here. Jennifer Williams' transcript is here and Timothy Morrison's is here. The Philip Reeker transcript is here. Mark Sandy's is here.To contact the reporter on this story: Billy House in Washington at bhouse5@bloomberg.netTo contact the editors responsible for this story: Joe Sobczyk at jsobczyk@bloomberg.net, Kathleen Hunter, Laurie AsséoFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
|
| Whoopi Goldberg Tears Into Meghan McCain: ‘Girl, Please Stop Talking!’ Posted: 16 Dec 2019 08:58 AM PST  Whoopi Goldberg on Monday morning seemingly had enough of Meghan McCain's antics on The View.During yet another heated exchange about impeachment on the popular ABC talk show, liberal co-host Joy Behar battled with McCain and fellow conservative panelist Abby Huntsman over the difference between Trump officials refusing to testify in the impeachment proceedings and former Vice President Joe Biden saying he would not go under oath either.This prompted co-host Sunny Hostin to bring up Bill Clinton's impeachment and bash the Republicans who voted to convict Clinton on perjury but will now turn around and acquit President Donald Trump for abusing power."That is the height of hypocrisy for this Republican-led Senate!" Hostin shouted as the audience cheered.McCain, meanwhile, insisted that her job on the show was not to "litigate the ethics" of impeachment but to analyze the politics of the situation as "an ABC political analyst." Hostin, for her part, said she wasn't talking about McCain but instead about the GOP senators."Let me talk," McCain demanded. "I let you talk, let me finish."Whoopi Goldberg Scolds 'The View' Audience for Cheering ImpeachmentAs Goldberg attempted to interject to toss the show to a commercial break, McCain continued to grouse, complaining that it didn't appear they "wanted a conservative perspective on this show ever.""Girl, please stop talking!" Goldberg snapped as McCain's jaw dropped. "Please stop talking now!""No problem," McCain huffed. "I won't talk the rest of the show.""I'm OK with that," Goldberg responded as the audience gasped. "I'm OK with that. If you are going to behave like this."McCain, meanwhile, insisted she was not behaving poorly and was merely trying to "show conservative perspective" but that Hostin wouldn't let her talk. Goldberg, however, shot back that McCain had been talking over people. Whoopi eventually gave up and tossed the show to a commercial break.Meghan McCain: Greta Thunberg Didn't 'Earn' Person of the YearRead 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.
|
| NATO Nightmare: A Russian Invasion of Iceland? Posted: 15 Dec 2019 06:22 AM PST  You've got to be kidding (but we're not).
|
| Body of 6-year-old girl swept away in flood waters has been found after 2-week search Posted: 14 Dec 2019 11:37 AM PST  The body of 6-year-old Willa Rawlings, who was swept away in the swollen creek waters two weeks ago along with two other children, has been found.
|
| Man whose info found on Jersey shooter nabbed on gun charge Posted: 15 Dec 2019 07:40 AM PST  A New Jersey man whose number was found in the back pocket of one of the perpetrators of last week's fatal attack on a Jewish market has been arrested for illegally possessing a weapon, federal authorities said. A-Hady hasn't been charged with providing any of the weapons used in Tuesday's bloody rampage in Jersey City. David Anderson and Francine Graham killed Jersey City Police Det.
|
| Greta Thunberg clapped back at Deutsche Bahn after it appeared to accuse her of staging a picture of her sitting on the floor of an 'overcrowded' train Posted: 16 Dec 2019 02:39 AM PST  The 16-year-old Thunberg was traveling home from Madrid by train after attending the UN climate conference.
|
| Qatar FM says early talks with Saudi Arabia have broken stalemate Posted: 16 Dec 2019 12:44 AM PST  RIYADH/DOHA (Reuters) - Qatar's foreign minister said recent talks have broken a protracted stalemate with Saudi Arabia and that Doha would study demands by its Gulf rivals but not turn its back on ally Turkey. The 2-1/2-year row between U.S.-allied Arab states saw Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Egypt cut diplomatic and trade links with Qatar over claims it backs terrorism. Doha denies the charge and says the embargo undermines its sovereignty.
|
| India protests rage over 'anti-Muslim' law Posted: 16 Dec 2019 09:43 AM PST  Fresh protests rocked India on Monday as anger grew over new citizenship legislation slammed as anti-Muslim, after six people died in the northeast and as many as 200 were injured in New Delhi. Critics say it is part of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Hindu nationalist agenda to marginalise the 200-million strong Islamic minority. Modi denies this, tweeting Monday that the new law "does not affect any citizen of India of any religion", while accusing "vested interest groups" of stoking the "deeply distressing" unrest.
|
| Brexit Bulletin: Power Politics Posted: 16 Dec 2019 08:26 AM PST  Days to Brexit Deadline: 46(Bloomberg) -- Sign up here to get the Brexit Bulletin in your inbox every weekday.What's Happening? Boris Johnson is flexing his muscles on Brexit already.A majority of 80 changes everything. For the first time, a U.K. prime minister has control over Brexit. He's already wielding that power.Before the election, ministers trying to win votes on Johnson's Brexit deal agreed to give lawmakers a vote on whether to extend the transition period — the 11 months, starting on Feb. 1, that Britain will get to adjust to life outside the European Union and, crucially, reach a trade deal with the bloc. We now know that when the Withdrawal Agreement Bill goes back before MPs on Friday, that concession will be nowhere to be seen. The government now has — in the prime minister's words — a "stonking mandate." Sops to the anti-no-deal brigade are no longer necessary.Downing Street's modus operandi hasn't changed, even if the circumstances have. Preparations for a no-deal Brexit will continue as the country hurtles toward another apparently immutable deadline: If Britain doesn't have a trade deal by the end of 2020, it could still crash out of the EU's orbit in what would look very much like a no-deal Brexit. The threat is more realistic now because Parliament won't have a veto.Even so, Johnson has left himself room for maneuver. He will still be able to extend the transition if a trade deal with the EU is judged to be in sight. We know he can adapt his positions: After all, this is a man who said he would rather "die in a ditch" than delay Brexit.Whichever course he pursues, it shows how much political freedom a majority can buy at home. What currency it has in Brussels, though, is far less clear. For the EU officials anxious that a trade deal can't be inked in 11 months, the bigger question remains: What deal does Johnson actually want?Today's Must-ReadsWho will be the next Labour leader? With Jeremy Corbyn heading for the history books, Bloomberg reporters run the rule over some of the potential candidates to fill his shoes. Corbyn's failed Brexit strategy sealed Labour's fate, Caroline Flint, who lost her Don Valley seat on Thursday, writes in the Guardian. Meanwhile, there is "no deep bond" between the Conservatives and the northern voters who abandoned Labour last week, says Rachel Wolf, a co-author of the Tory election manifesto. "One must be forged."Brexit in BriefFlintstorm | Infighting has broken out in Labour before a leadership contest is even properly underway, after defeated former MP Caroline Flint accused the party's foreign affairs spokeswoman, Emily Thornberry, of calling voters "stupid." Thornberry denies making the remark, and said on Monday she's taking legal action against Flint. Unlucky Seven | U.K. manufacturing production suffered its worst month in more than seven years in December, increasing the chances that the economy as a whole will contract this quarter. Johnson's decisive victory does remove some near-term concerns, though if Brexit undermines growth it could impact his plans to both increase spending and keep control of the deficit.Dismantling | U.K. stocks have been on the rise since the election result became clear, but JPMorgan Chase & Co. thinks the post-landslide rally may be on its last legs. That contradicts the views of several other leading Wall Street banks, which have suggested there is more headroom for stocks. Onward and Upwards? | U.K. house prices should rise by 2% next year on the back of Boris Johnson's election win, according to property website operator Rightmove. Home values in London will probably increase by 1%, the first gain since 2016, Rightmove said.Want to keep up with Brexit?You can follow us @Brexit on Twitter, and listen to Bloomberg Westminster every weekday. It's live at midday on Bloomberg Radio and is available as a podcast too. Share the Brexit Bulletin: Colleagues, friends and family can sign up here. For full EU coverage, try the Brussels Edition.For even more: Subscribe to Bloomberg All Access for our unmatched global news coverage and two in-depth daily newsletters, The Bloomberg Open and The Bloomberg Close.To contact the author of this story: Edward Evans in London at eevans3@bloomberg.netTo contact the editor responsible for this story: Adam Blenford at ablenford@bloomberg.net, Caitlin MorrisonFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
|
| Fox News poll on impeachment contradicts President Trump Posted: 15 Dec 2019 10:20 AM PST  A new Fox News poll on voter support for impeachment contradicted President Trump, who recently boasted major support in favor of "No Impeachment."
|
| The Warship-Busting B-25G Bomber Had a Killer Cannon from a Sherman Tank In Its Nose Posted: 16 Dec 2019 02:43 AM PST  The canon-armed bomber?
|
| Andrew Yang has defied expectations. Can he turn that into a 2020 win? Posted: 15 Dec 2019 06:27 PM PST  Yang has honed in on a message of the Fourth Industrial Revolution, touted a universal basic income and boasted that he can reach disaffected voters.
|
| Mexico: 50 bodies among remains at farm outside Guadalajara Posted: 15 Dec 2019 02:31 PM PST ![Mexico: 50 bodies among remains at farm outside Guadalajara]( "Mexico: 50 bodies among remains at farm outside Guadalajara") Human remains discovered last month at a farm outside the city of Guadalajara have been confirmed as belonging to at least 50 people, authorities in Mexico's west-central state of Jalisco reported. Jalisco state prosecutors said recovery work at the farm in Tlajomulco de Zuniga, which began Nov. 22 after the initial discovery, concluded Friday as experts determined there was no more evidence to be gathered from the scene. The state is home to Jalisco New Generation, one of Mexico's bloodiest and most ruthless drug cartels.
|
| Trump said China would more than double its agricultural purchases from the US. Farmers are skeptical. Posted: 15 Dec 2019 10:44 AM PST  At a press conference Friday night in Beijing, China declined to confirm a farm purchase quota touted by the White House.
|
| Burglars nab jewellery worth $64 million from British model Tamara Ecclestone Posted: 16 Dec 2019 12:56 AM PST  Tamara Ecclestone, the daughter of former Formula One boss Bernie Ecclestone, has had an estimated 50 million pounds ($64 million)-worth of jewellery stolen in an audacious raid from her west London home. A spokesman said the 35-year-old had been left "angry and shaken" after the burglars apparently evaded both the 24-hour security teams that patrol the street known as "Billionaire Row" and Ecclestone's own internal security officers.
|
| Holocaust architect's grave dug up in Berlin Posted: 16 Dec 2019 05:42 AM PST  The grave of a top Nazi who helped plan the Holocaust and was assassinated by British-trained agents during World War II has been dug up in Berlin, German police said on Monday. The grave of Reinhard Heydrich was "dug up in the night between Wednesday and Thursday" and an investigation has been opened on charges of disturbing a burial site, a police spokeswoman told AFP. Heydrich was the powerful head of Hitler's Reich Security Office, which included the Gestapo.
|
| U.S. planned to separate 26,000 migrant families in 2018 Posted: 16 Dec 2019 12:03 AM PST  The estimate was revealed by a watchdog report, which also found the U.S. can't calculate how many families it separated due to unreliable data.
|
| Zimbabwe Vice President’s Wife Charged With Attempted Murder Posted: 16 Dec 2019 03:19 AM PST  (Bloomberg) -- Sign up to our Next Africa newsletter and follow Bloomberg Africa on TwitterThe wife of Zimbabwean Vice President Constantino Chiwenga, who was arrested during the weekend over alleged fraud and money laundering, now faces an additional charge of attempted murder.Prosecutors accused Marry Mubaiwa of deliberately denying the vice president medical attention at the height of his illness and unlawfully interfering with medical procedures when he finally got to a hospital."On 23 June 2019, the accused kept on denying the complainant access to medical treatment and the security team had to force their way to take the complainant to Netcare Hospital," according to charges read out by Prosecutor Michael Reza in the capital, Harare.The Magistrate Court ordered Mubaiwa detained until Dec. 30 She was not required to take a plea during Monday's session.Chiwenga, a possible challenger to President Emmerson Mnangagwa, returned to Harare in November after spending months in South Africa, China and India seeking treatment for an undisclosed illness. The retired general orchestrated the army intervention that toppled former President Robert Mugabe and brought Mnangagwa to power.To contact the reporter on this story: Desmond Kumbuka in Harare at dkumbuka@bloomberg.netTo contact the editors responsible for this story: Gordon Bell at gbell16@bloomberg.net, Helen Nyambura, Dulue MbachuFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
|
| Pablo Picasso masterpiece up for grabs for the price of a raffle ticket Posted: 14 Dec 2019 10:00 PM PST  Becoming an artist was the gamble of a lifetime for Pablo Picasso, who in the early days poverty and obscurity was forced to burn his own paintings just to stay warm. But the Spanish genius rose from provincial penury to be the doyen of the Parisian art world, and ultimately harnessed his talent and international fame to aid the oppressed. His family are now calling on the British people to also take a risk and, with their famed love of a flutter, gamble on the chance to win one of the great painter's £1 million works for the cost of a raffle ticket. The Cubist pioneer's descendants hope a Picasso could hang in a UK living room following a new prize draw, which seeks to raise almost £20 million for charity this Christmas. Anyone who can front the cost of a £80 (€100) ticket could win a signed painting donated for the draw, and Picasso's family are counting on the UK show solidarity with the painter, and indulge in a bet. Top 10 | Most expensive Picasso paintings sold at auction "People are able to spend one million, ten million, or one hundred million," the artist's grandson Olivier Picasso told The Daily Telegraph. "It's the price of an emotion, it's really something that you can feel when you are facing an artwork, in a museum or an art gallery. "But this time maybe it's a chance to have it in your living room." The Frenchman explained the temptation of this prospect to British art lovers: "Gambling is your national sport." Peri Cochin believes the prize draw is revolutionary Credit: Patrick Gaillardin /Patrick Gaillardin The vast canvass of Guernica was toured around the world to highlight an atrocity in the Spanish Civil War, as Picasso belatedly politicised his genius to help others. It is hoped that his paintings can again be put to use outside elegant galleries, this time for the impoverished communities of Africa A 1921 work, titled Nature Morte, featuring an obscured newspaper, has been selected for this task. The painting, valued at £1 million, will be the prize for the charity draw, which anyone can enter for the cost of a ticket. Proceeds will be invested in securing clean water. "My grandfather was very concerned about helping people," said his grandson, the child of the painter's daughter Maya. "He was very poor when he left Spain to come to Paris. He was obliged to burn some paintings just to put something in the fireplace. Nature Morte be raffled off "I think he would have been very happy, I hope he would have been proud." Olivier's uncle Claude Picasso called the Christmas project: "A way for our family to continue Picasso's own commitment to the poor." The 1 Picasso for 100 Euros project is set to become an annual event, which inverts the soaring prices of the painter's work, making them accessible, and wedded to charity. "I think it's quite revolutionary," organiser Peri Cochin said in the Picasso Museum in Paris, where the prize painting currently hangs. It is hoped British generosity could see it travel across the Channel. Philippe Leveque, managing director of Care France, believes people can stand in charitable solidarity with Picasso. Credit: Patrick Gaillardin /Patrick Gaillardin Ms Cochin said: "It's in their genes: if they can do something nice, I'm sure they can do it." She added on British tastes: "They bet on everything. Who's going to win the football, everything. "Here you have the generosity, and the chance to win a great piece from a great painter." It is hoped that the 200,000 available raffle tickets will be sold to generate almost £20 million for Care, which with numeric neatness with help 200,000 people in Cameroon, Madagascar and Morocco. Philippe Leveque, managing director of Care France, believes people can stand in charitable comradeship with the great artist. "This is a chain of solidarity with Picasso," he said. The draw for the competition will take place at Christie's in Paris on January 6. Entrants for the draw can apply online.
|
| This Means Drama: Indian Missile Defense Is Raising Tensions With Pakistan Posted: 14 Dec 2019 11:15 PM PST  A defensive effort that is making war more likely.
|
| Five things you should know about guns lost by G4S, the largest security company in the world Posted: 16 Dec 2019 09:04 AM PST  Guns that were supposed to be secured by G4S have been bought by children, stolen by criminals and used in murders, rapes and robberies across the U.S.
|
| Israel welcomes Belgian parade's removal from UNESCO list Posted: 14 Dec 2019 11:35 AM PST ![Israel welcomes Belgian parade's removal from UNESCO list]( "Israel welcomes Belgian parade's removal from UNESCO list") Israel on Saturday welcomed a decision by the U.N.'s educational, scientific and cultural agency to drop a famous Belgian carnival off its heritage list after protests over displays of anti-Semitism. Israel's rare appreciation of UNESCO came a day after the organization removed the Aalst carnival from its Intangible Cultural Heritage list.
|
| U.S. plans to buy 22 aging fighter jets from Switzerland Posted: 16 Dec 2019 08:13 AM PST  The U.S. is expected to buy 22 aging fighter jets from Switzerland, a country that's struggling to modernize its own air force. U.S. Navy representatives and the Swiss defense procurement agency discussed the deal in July, an agency spokesman said on Sunday. The contract is expected to be signed once U.S. lawmakers approve the fiscal 2020 defense budget, he said.
|
| Trump on track to become third U.S. president to be impeached Posted: 16 Dec 2019 03:01 AM PST  Republican Donald Trump is this week likely to become the third U.S. president to be impeached when the Democratic-led House of Representatives votes on charges stemming from his effort to pressure Ukraine to investigate political rival Joe Biden. Trump faces one charge of abusing his power by asking Ukraine to investigate Biden, a leading Democratic contender to oppose him in the 2020 U.S. presidential election, and one of obstructing Congress' investigation into the matter. The president has denied wrongdoing and accused Democrats of a baseless and politically-motivated bid to oust him from power.
|
| Rappler journalist Ressa launches defence in Philippine libel case Posted: 15 Dec 2019 11:58 PM PST  Philippine journalist Maria Ressa said Monday she would not be silenced as she launched her defence against a libel charge that press advocates call an attempt to curb her news site's critical coverage of President Rodrigo Duterte. "I can go to jail for 12 years for this (case), that is the maximum sentence," she told reporters outside court after the hearing, noting government investigators had initially dismissed the case. "From track record you can see the political goals to shut Rappler up... but we haven't shut up yet," said Ressa, who is free on bail.
|
| A black woman faces prison because of a Jim Crow-era plan to ‘protect white voters’ Posted: 16 Dec 2019 03:00 AM PST  Lanisha Bratcher voted in the 2016 presidential election. Three years later she was arrested because she had broken a law she didn't know about. Lanisha Bratcher was finishing breakfast at home one morning at the end of July when there was a knock on her door. She had been discharged from the hospital the night before following a miscarriage that left her mourning the loss of her child.Her partner opened the door – it was the police. They burst into their North Carolina home "like the Dukes of Hazzard", Bratcher said. There was a warrant out for her arrest, they told her. Bratcher had no idea what for.Her crime? Voting in the 2016 presidential election.Bratcher faces up to 19 months in prison because she did not realize she had actually been stripped of the right to vote. Her lawyer says she's being punished based on a Jim Crow-era law that was intended to disenfranchise African Americans.Bratcher was on probation after being convicted of assault and North Carolina law mandates that people convicted of felonies can only vote once they complete their criminal sentences, including probation and parole, entirely.Documents obtained by the Guardian show that a prosecutor brought charges against Bratcher even though state officials said she may have illegally voted unintentionally. The decision also came after a report in which state officials recognized there were serious problems in the system in place to inform convicted felons of their voting rights.The state's policy of banning people convicted of felonies from voting is rooted in a late 19th century effort by North Carolina Democrats to limit voting power of newly-enfranchised African Americans as whole. In 1898, the North Carolina Democratic party spoke of the need "to rescue the white people of the east from the curse of negro domination".Since then, North Carolina lawmakers have tweaked the law, but its core – stripping felons of their voting rights while they serve criminal sentences – remains in place.John Carella, Bratcher's lawyer, noted the vast majority of the people caught up in the law are African American. "A law that is intended to racially discriminate against a group is unconstitutional," he said. "We also know it continues to work that way in its modern application to the 2016 election."Carella argues that the goal is to dissuade black voters from going to the polls. That could make a big difference in North Carolina, a fiercely politically competitive state expected to play a key role in the 2020 election.In Bratcher's case, it seems to have worked. She's not sure if she'll ever vote again, even once she's legally allowed to."It seems really dangerous," she said. 'Strict liability'Bratcher grew up in Hoke county, where she readily acknowledges she had a rocky past, sometimes getting in trouble with law enforcement. In 2013, she and her sister got into a fight with some other people and Bratcher was charged with assault with a deadly weapon.She had since been working hard to turn a page – moving to Wake county with her husband and two daughters and trying to get a promotion at work.During the March 2016 primary, Bratcher registered to vote, according to election records. She said that at that time, nobody had told her she couldn't vote. Later that year, her church had an event where they hosted a dinner and took people to the polls. So Bratcher went with her mother to vote during the early voting period before election day."I had no intention to trick anybody or be malicious or any kind of way," she said. "If you expect us to know that we should know we should not do something, then we should not be on the list or even allowed to do it."Americans lose the right to vote if they are convicted of a felony in 48 of the 50 states. But each of those states has widely different policies on when and if felons can vote again.If someone votes while they are serving a criminal sentence, it is a so-called "strict liability" felony in North Carolina. That means that prosecutors don't have to prove Bratcher and other people convicted of felonies intended to vote illegally in order to convict them.This statute was designed after the civil war as a reaction to growing African American political power in the state, said Gary Freeze, a history and American studies professor at Catawba College in North Carolina."White supremacists did not want [another] reform effort – hence the severe penalty for those who could be proven to be voting with a criminal background," he wrote in an email.When lawmakers passed the felon-voting law, they were open about their racial intent. The 1898 Democratic handbook in the state talked about voting restrictions necessary "to protect the white voters of the State against having their honest votes off-set by illegally and fraudulently registered negro votes". One cartoon in a local newspaper featured a picture of a "white supremacy plum", with a caption encouraging voters to "pluck it" on election day in 1898. Another cartoon featured a vampire flying over North Carolina with the words "negro rule" on its wings.And in 1903, Charles Aycock, then governor of the state, openly spoke about how disenfranchisement was part of solving the "negro problem". "I am inclined to give you our solution of this problem. It is, first, as far as possible, under the fifteenth amendment, to disfranchise him; after that, let him alone; quit writing about him; quit talking about him," he said.Carella argues the discriminatory law is still at work – of 441 people investigated for possibly voting with a felony in the 2016 election, 68% were black.That high number exceeds both the percentage of African Americans registered to vote and the proportion on probation and parole. At the end of 2016, African Americans made up about 46% of convicted felons on parole or probation in the state. They made up about 22% of all registered voters.The North Carolina felon voting law has not only been discriminatory, but also confusing. A little over four months after the 2016 election, the state board of elections released a report finding there wasn't a standardized process for informing people on probation they couldn't vote.Officials have since updated the state voter registration form to make it clearer that people can't vote on probation or parole. They also updated a pamphlet people receive when they are released from prison. In its letter to Bratcher's prosecutor, the state board said it didn't have the resources to investigate the particular circumstances of Bratcher's case."I've never heard of a judge informing a convicted individual of the loss of voting rights or the process by which these can be restored," said Marc Mauer, executive director of the Sentencing Project, a criminal justice advocacy group. He called the many cases in which people get prosecuted for unintentionally voting illegally "disturbing".More than 400 convicted felons were suspected of voting in North Carolina in the 2016 elections. District attorneys have the discretion on whether to advance the prosecution, and are either reviewing charges or pursuing them in about half of the cases, according to state-level data obtained by The Guardian.Bratcher is among four people with felonies in her county – all of whom are black – who have been indicted for illegally voting in 2016.Kristy Newton, the district attorney in Hoke county, declined to comment on the case because it was still pending. Life upendedBratcher's case isn't the first time a voter fraud case like this has come under scrutiny in North Carolina. In 2018, 12 people with felony convictions in the state were prosecuted for illegal voting. The decision to prosecute the group – which came to be known as the Alamance 12 – drew national outrage because they also said they didn't know they were ineligible.Civil rights groups are also challenging the state's felon voting law, saying it unconstitutionally disenfranchises nearly 70,000 people in the state who are on parole or probation for a felony. Roy Cooper, a Democrat, won the state's 2016 gubernatorial election by a little over 10,000 votes.Getting charged with voter fraud upended Bratcher's life. It took an hour and a half to drive each way for court appearances. Even though she was on the verge of advancing at her factory job for Burt's Bees, the court appearances caused her to miss work. She eventually left her job, and said the pending criminal charge against her made it harder for her to find a new one, she said.There was also the embarrassment of dealing with a new criminal charge. She has two daughters, aged 12 and seven, and she doesn't want them to know about her voter fraud case. But after she was arrested, the Hoke county sheriff's office announced the voter fraud charges on Facebook and mugshots of Bratcher and her co-defendants appeared in the local news. Family and friends and people from her church began calling her asking what she had done."I was at a better place in my life. I had a different mindset. I don't have any barriers, I don't have any borders, I don't have any walls up. I'm free and now I can be able to meet my full potential," she recalls feeling at the time. "But then the walls came tumbling down."She likened the experience to a bucket of crabs – when one crab tries to escape, she said, another one will pull it back in. "I fought so hard to try and come from under that," she said. A racist legacyCarella argued in court documents filed earlier this year that Bratcher's case should be thrown out because the law she is being prosecuted under is discriminatory against African Americans. He said the statute remains as racist as it was at the turn of the 20th century.The judge in Bratcher's case could agree with Carella and throw out the case. If not, it will move towards a criminal trial.Torris Jones, Bratcher's husband, said he understands her new apprehension about voting, but sees it differently."If you don't vote again, then the law would have done exactly what it was supposed to do, which is to suppress your vote," he said. "If they've got you afraid, then the law did what it's supposed to do."
|
| Russia Seeks to Lift Ban on ‘Blood Diamonds’ From African Ally Posted: 15 Dec 2019 12:00 AM PST ![Russia Seeks to Lift Ban on 'Blood Diamonds' From African Ally]( "Russia Seeks to Lift Ban on 'Blood Diamonds' From African Ally") (Bloomberg) -- Russia is proposing to move toward ending the ban on selling so-called blood diamonds from the Central African Republic, a former French colony that's struck recent military and commercial ties with Moscow, amid resistance from the U.S. and Europe.The CAR, which is mired in civil conflict, should be granted a "road map" outlining the steps it needs to take to get the suspension of diamond sales lifted, Russian Deputy Finance Minister Alexei Moiseev said in an interview in Moscow."We need to ensure that illicitly traded diamonds move to the legal marketplace, bringing income for people and taxes for the state," Moiseev said. "The situation in CAR isn't getting any better, and we can't delay this any more."Russia's pressing for action as President Vladimir Putin seeks to challenge the U.S. and other major powers in a new push to restore Soviet-era influence in the resource-rich African continent. He hosted more than 50 African leaders in the first Russia-Africa summit in October and his ally Yevgeny Prigozhin's mercenary venture is active in about a dozen countries, including the CAR.Russia next year takes over the rotating chair of the Kimberley Process, a group of countries and non-governmental organizations that monitors the trade in diamonds to avoid illegal armed groups benefiting from it. The CAR was blacklisted in 2013, though the embargo was eased slightly three years later with the establishment of government-run "green zones" where the precious stones are mined.Russia argues that the full export of CAR diamonds, whose registered sales have slumped to 39,000 carats a year from 300,000 carats prior to the ban, would benefit the impoverished nation of 5 million, where residents continue to be involved in the illicit diamond trade. They have no other choice and "they get very little money for their work" as the smuggled gems fetch much lower prices, said Moiseev.'First Step'The Indian-chaired plenary of the Kimberley Process in New Delhi last month agreed to grant the CAR government the right to issue certificates for the export of rough diamonds from the green zones. Previously, the precious stones could be exported only after approval from the international group's monitoring team. The Russian Finance Ministry called this a "first step" toward the legalization of CAR diamonds."Our proposals don't reflect commercial interests," Moiseev said. "I know certain participants are starting to introduce politics into the discussion of this issue. Particularly now, when diamonds are being smuggled from the CAR, there are many benefiting from the situation."The CAR is "very much in agreement" with Russia's proposal, Communications Minister Ange-Maxime Kazagui said by phone. "We think the embargo should be lifted across our nation."The European Union won't support the lifting of the restrictions without a "convincing" indication, including by United Nations experts, that gems are mined in conflict-free zones and that the CAR authorities can guarantee full control over exports, the EU said in an emailed statement. "This is not currently the case," it added.Russian activities in the CAR appear to seek to "exploit the country's fragile institutions and weak rule of law rather than supporting good governance, transparency and sound economic growth," the U.S. State Department said by email.Neither the EU nor the U.S. responded to a request for comment on the specific Russian proposal for a "road map" enabling the CAR to meet the criteria for lifting the embargo.Putin's ChefRussia deployed military personnel in the CAR after obtaining a UN waiver early last year to arm and defend the government, which appealed for help after France ended a three-year peacekeeping mission. Putin's ally Prigozhin has also dispatched contract fighters to the country and appointed an associate as official security adviser to President Faustin Archange-Touadera, according to Russian media reports. Prigozhin didn't respond to an emailed request for comment via his Concord catering company.In return for assistance, Prigozhin secured gold and diamond concessions in the CAR, the reports say. Three Russian journalists murdered in the CAR in mid-2018 were investigating Prigozhin's activities, according to exiled tycoon Mikhail Khodorkovsky, who funded their trip.While Russia seems unlikely to swing opinion within the Kimberley Process behind lifting the embargo on the CAR, which would require a consensus, the initiative marks a crisis for the legitimacy of the international mechanism to keep the trade in diamonds clean, according to activists."Russia is effectively saying the process has failed completely and is no longer of use," said Joanne Lebert, executive director of Impact, a Canada-based NGO that quit the Kimberley Process in 2017, arguing the certification process gave consumers false confidence that diamonds are coming from non-conflict areas.Russia's trying to bring the CAR's exports into line with the Kimberley Process, which aims to help the country "start trading diamonds legally" rather than outlaw sales permanently, the Finance Ministry's press service said in a phone message.\--With assistance from Pauline Bax, Mahmoud Habboush, Swansy Afonso and Yuliya Fedorinova.To contact the reporters on this story: Evgenia Pismennaya in Moscow at epismennaya@bloomberg.net;Henry Meyer in Moscow at hmeyer4@bloomberg.netTo contact the editors responsible for this story: Gregory L. White at gwhite64@bloomberg.net, Tony Halpin, Karl MaierFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
|
| A 29-year-old mayor is giving his city's poorest residents $500 a month. He thinks his policy could work on a national scale. Posted: 15 Dec 2019 05:19 AM PST  Mayor Michael Tubbs doesn't support a basic-income program that would replace poor people's existing benefits and is critical of Andrew Yang's plan.
|
| Was America's M16 Rifle a Bad Weapon to Fight North Vietnam? Posted: 16 Dec 2019 01:40 AM PST  A history lesson.
|
| 7 do's and don'ts for travelers when weather threatens your flight or strands you at the airport Posted: 16 Dec 2019 04:00 AM PST  Few words in travel are as maddening as "Your flight's been canceled.'' Here's a guide to making weather delays and cancellations less stressful.
|
| Germany set to agree higher CO2 price for transport, heating Posted: 16 Dec 2019 04:11 AM PST  Germany's parliament is poised to more than double the price at which the transport and heating industries are charged to emit carbon dioxide when a new system is introduced in 2021. German news agency dpa reported Monday that a deal was reached after overnight talks to get a package of measures for tackling climate change through both houses of parliament. While Germany is part of an EU-wide carbon market for CO2 emissions from the energy sector and heavy industry, transport and heating are currently not included in that trading system.
|
No comments:
Post a Comment