| Donald Trump Jr. accuses Democrats of hoping coronavirus 'kills millions of people' Posted: 28 Feb 2020 09:35 AM PST  Amid growing fears of a coronavirus outbreak in the United States, Donald Trump Jr. on Friday accused Democrats of hoping that the disease kills millions of Americans to thwart his father's chances of reelection.
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| Climate change could lead to global catastrophe, new report warns Posted: 27 Feb 2020 06:32 AM PST  As the Trump administration has downplayed climate change as a national priority, it has increasingly fallen to members of the military and intelligence establishment to argue to keep focus and resources on climate change.
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| A Chinese destroyer fired a weapons-grade laser at a US surveillance aircraft, US Navy says Posted: 27 Feb 2020 05:22 PM PST  "Weapons-grade lasers could potentially cause serious harm to aircrew and mariners," US Pacific Fleet said.
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| Missing Mennonite woman, 27, found dead 250 miles from home Posted: 27 Feb 2020 08:09 AM PST  Authorities quickly found the missing woman's vehicle at a church near her home, but she was nowhere to be found.
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| Buffalo diocese files for bankruptcy protection over hundreds of child sex abuse claims Posted: 28 Feb 2020 09:12 AM PST  The bulk of liabilities are judgments that the diocese expects to pay in child sexual abuse claims against its priests, nuns, brothers and deacons.
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| Tucker Carlson Turns to AOC Creepshot Guy for Coronavirus Expertise Posted: 27 Feb 2020 06:38 PM PST  Amid growing fears of a coronavirus outbreak and U.S. financial markets hitting a record drop on Thursday, Fox News host Tucker Carlson turned to a conservative columnist best known for taking creepy photos of Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) as his expert on the crisis on Thursday night.It should perhaps come as no surprise that Carlson's guest, Washington Examiner columnist Eddie Scarry, used his primetime cable news appearance to talk about the "Commie cough" and to claim that Chinese people eating skunks are responsible for the rise of the virus.In kicking off his Fox News program, Carlson argued that it is liberals' "attitude" towards diversity that has "left us vulnerable to the coronavirus" before welcoming on Scarry to enlighten viewers on the health crisis horrors caused by political correctness. "You spent a lot of time thinking about this mindset," the Fox News host asked Scarry. "Here we are facing what could become a pandemic. Thousands have died. Yet a certain segment of well-educated America is more concerned that people might say insensitive things. Explain the mindset."Scarry, who is hawking a new book that argues rape victims and trans people are the most privileged in American society, went on to praise Carlson for his monologue before saying the left cares "more about ideology" than what's happening with the virus."It turns out most people in America, even the Chinese, don't want the Commie cough but all we're hearing about who is the privileged and who is the victim," Scarry asserted. "In this case it's supposed to be — the victims are everyone else who is spreading this disease, where it's coming from, coming from China obviously. But we're the privileged so we're just supposed to accept it, we're just supposed to be okay with what's going on."Carlson, meanwhile, told Scarry that "everything" he said "is true," further asking him if he is surprised to see this attitude from liberals even when "facing a question of life and death." Scarry took that opportunity to bemoan Democrats calling on Americans to not "perpetuate racist stereotypes" amid coronavirus fears."We're worried about the racial implications of blaming this on anybody," the right-wing provocateur stated. "Well, no, I'm sorry. If it turns out, which I did read this time in The New York Times no less, this may have come from eating skunks in China. Maybe we should consider the idea that, all right, either food or something or somebody should not be coming from China."The Daily Beast was unable to find any reference in The New York Times to the disease being linked to Chinese people eating skunks. It would appear, however, that Scarry likely got his information from a fellow Examiner columnist's piece that cited a former Trump official's tweet claiming civet cats in China are skunks. (The Times' Maggie Haberman tweeted on Thursday that a top U.S. health official said the disease jumped from bats to civet cats, which are eaten by Chinese at feasts.)Scarry's primetime appearance appears to mark his first major return to the limelight after he sparked backlash and gained a reputation as a "creep" in Nov. 2018 after tweeting out a surreptitiously shot photo of Ocasio-Cortez. Scarry was moved from his position as media reporter to commentary by the Examiner. The paper claimed at the time that the move had been in the works prior to the infamous tweet.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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| Iran’s Incompetent Response to Coronavirus Threatens the Middle East and the World Posted: 26 Feb 2020 02:32 PM PST  The Iranian government has covered up an outbreak of coronavirus that now threatens the Middle East and has led to border closures and hospitalizations in five countries. Over the weekend of February 21, president Hassan Rouhani and other Iranian officials downplayed the growing crises as Iran's death toll from the virus climbed. It is now apparent that the regime, which has threatened the region with ballistic missiles, drones, naval mines, and militias over the last few years, has become a health threat as well, as it incubates a potential pandemic. The coronavirus has likely traveled from China to Iran's city of Qom along the same route that pilgrims and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps uses to travel, illustrating the regime's disregard for its own citizens and neighbors.It all began with Iran's wanting to show the world it had higher turnout at recent elections. Iranian member of parliament Mahmoud Sadeghi called on officials to take the coronavirus seriously during elections, and alleged that the government was hiding the outbreak of the contagious virus last week. Instead, Iran's regime kept the extent of the spread of the virus under wraps, keeping it off the homepages of major local media. Turkish officials also warned last week that there were 750 coronavirus cases in Iran, and that it had spread from the religious city of Qom to other regions. Yet Iran's deputy health minister Iraj Harirchi downplayed fears on Monday, claiming rumors of 50 deaths were false. Now Haririchi and Sadeghi are both sick, and Iran's death toll is the second-worst for the virus, after China itself.Iran's failure to confront the health crises is not just due to the regime's authoritarianism. China has fought the virus with authoritarian quarantining of Wuhan. Instead, it is the regime's preexisting arrogance, conspiracy-minded behavior, and siege mentality that led to its discounting an emerging crisis and enabled Shi'ite pilgrims traveling to Qom from all over the world to continue praying together and traveling without checks, becoming incubators of the virus. People returning from Iran have spread the virus across the Gulf to Kuwait, Bahrain, and Oman. They have returned to Najaf, a holy city in Iraq, where dozens are now under observation.Iran couldn't have chosen a worse time in the Middle East to do this. Countries such as Iraq are beset by protests and uncertainty, with Iraq specifically lacking a new government and threatened by ISIS resurgence. The Gulf already has one crisis between Saudi Arabia and Qatar and is economically on edge due to serving as a transport hub linked to global trade amid all this. China's coronavirus has spooked markets, and Iran is adding to the disaster.The Iranian regime has mocked coronavirus as similar to the flu in recent comments. And it has weaponized the tragedy to use it against U.S. sanctions by claiming that, like the sanctions, it is overrated. Iran's government is using the Iranian people as a human shield, and their alleged lack of suffering from the virus as a propaganda tool. Yet ultimately, the virus may be more of a threat to Rouhani's government than he realizes. With officials sick, schools closed, and the military, police, and IRGC mobilized, the regime may find that propaganda won't cure this crisis. Iran's regime has survived using brutality, killing protesters last year, shooting down an airline this year, and blaming others for its problems while it seeks to attack Israel, Saudi Arabia, and the U.S. But Iran was unprepared for an epidemic, and its normal arsenal won't save it.Unfortunately for the Gulf, Iraq, and other countries, Iran's incubation is a threat to the world now. Its airlines, such as Mahan Air, have likely spread the virus to Lebanon and brought it from China. Mahan Air and other Iranian IRGC-linked firms have transported arms and operatives throughout the region. It wouldn't be a surprise if a similar route enabled the virus to spread unchecked. The regime's toxic blend of religion, militancy, and authoritarianism have come together in the worst possible way at the worst time in a fragile region.
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| US Supreme Court dismisses Washington sniper's freedom bid Posted: 26 Feb 2020 03:12 PM PST  The US Supreme Court officially dismissed a challenge Wednesday by "DC Sniper" Lee Boyd Malvo to his sentence of life without parole after a law came into effect offering the possibility of freedom for juvenile offenders who have served 20 years. Malvo got four life sentences without parole for three sniper-style murders committed in the state of Virginia with John Muhammad in 2002, when Malvo was 17. Malvo agreed to end his resentencing bid on Monday because he will be eligible for parole in two years in any case under the Virginia law that came into force on the same day.
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| 25 Glass Coffee Tables for Any and Every Living Room Posted: 28 Feb 2020 09:46 AM PST |
| Right-wing extremists killed 330 in the US in last decade, figures show Posted: 27 Feb 2020 02:33 PM PST  A new report shows that right-wing extremists were responsible for 330 murders in the United States in the past decade, or 76 percent of all domestic extremist-related murders in that time.The annual Murder and Extremism report published by the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) shows that out of the 42 extremist-related murders in the US in 2019, 38 were committed by individuals subscribing to various far-right ideologies, including white supremacy.
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| Laurene Powell Jobs says she won't pass down her and Steve Jobs' billions to their children: 'It ends with me' Posted: 28 Feb 2020 10:15 AM PST  Powell Jobs, who is worth an estimated $24 billion, said she believes a massive accumulation of wealth is "dangerous for a society."
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| Dubai's ruler loses appeal to stop publication of judgments in UK court battle with ex-wife Posted: 28 Feb 2020 04:18 AM PST  London's Court of Appeal ruled on Friday that two judgments in the legal battle between Dubai's ruler, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum, and his former wife over the wardship of their two children should be made public. Mohammed had said that the judgments of Andrew McFarlane, president of London's High Court Family Division, in the case involving Princess Haya bint al-Hussein, half-sister of Jordan's King Abdullah, were wrong in law and should not be publicized.
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| Virus adds to fears for targets of Muslim crackdown in China Posted: 26 Feb 2020 11:06 AM PST  The spread of a new virus in China has deepened fears about the targets of a mass crackdown on ethnic Muslims in the far west of the country, human rights advocates said Wednesday. The Uighur Human Rights Project released video and social media posts from China suggesting that many people are quarantined in their homes and unable to get food, creating a potential hunger crisis in a region under a government crackdown since April 2017. Members of the group also expressed alarm about the potential spread of the new corona virus among the mass detention camps where the State Department says more than a million Uighurs and other ethnic Muslims are held without charge.
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| Chancellor Hopefuls Clash in Duel for Post-Merkel Germany Posted: 26 Feb 2020 10:52 PM PST  (Bloomberg) -- Emotions were running high in an old brewery in the region where Chancellor Angela Merkel's party stumbled into its worst crisis in decades.In the town of Apolda in the eastern German state of Thuringia, supporters of the Christian Democratic Union shouted down local media, claiming reporters smeared the state chapter. With beer flowing freely, that anger quickly turned to wild cheers when Friedrich Merz appeared before some 1,300 sympathizers, a day after the race to lead Germany's most powerful party started.For the bulk in attendance, Merkel -- and not a rogue decision by local CDU lawmakers to ally with the far-right Alternative for Germany -- was the problem, and Merz is the answer.The long-time Merkel antagonist "is the only one in the CDU right now who has the courage" to stand up to the German leader, party member Bernhard Koegel said between speeches and folk music in Apolda. "He is the only one who will be able to stop Merkel."Crowd SizeAbout 170 miles west of Apolda, a crowd of about half the size of Merz's gathered to hear Armin Laschet, a moderate in Merkel's mold who's considered the clear front-runner. After officially announcing their respective candidacies to lead the CDU on Tuesday in Berlin, the two events were the first stops to woo the base.The eight-week contest will culminate in a special convention on April 25. The winner will have the inside track to succeed Merkel and set the trajectory for Europe's most powerful economy for years to come. The stakes are high for Germany and its partners.Merz has accused Laschet of representing "continuity," while pledging to be the only candidate who can take the CDU forward into a post-Merkel era.Health Minister Jens Spahn, who this week set aside his own leadership ambitions to back Laschet, took issue with Merz's accusation in a Wednesday night television interview. Spahn's decision not to run was a bid to unite his more conservative faction with Laschet's centrist backers and dealt a blow to Merz's chances."I also have a bit of change in me, certainly compared to Friedrich Merz," said the 39-year-old Spahn, who would be Laschet's deputy if he wins. He has repeatedly lamented the CDU's deepest-ever crisis and urged the party to reach out to voters leaked to the Greens and the AfD.At a barn-like clubhouse of a local rifle association in the remote village of Lennestadt-Kirchveischede, the contrast between the contenders was clear. It was Merz's fervor and promise of change versus Laschet's stability and his standing as head of Germany's largest state.At the Laschet event, Martin Solbach acknowledged that Merz still has strong support in the rolling hills of rural western Germany even after his long hiatus from politics. But the CDU councilman in the nearby town of Wenden said he supports the state premier of North Rhine-Westphalia.Laschet "can show he has done a lot, which is saying more than his opponent," who went into business after losing out in a power struggle with Merkel a decade ago, Solbach, 61, said as a traditional brass band played. "Laschet is closer to the base, but he needs to become a little more aggressive."In his first speech since announcing his candidacy, Laschet pulled his punches when it came to his CDU political rivals. At best, he indirectly took issue with Merz's criticism of Merkel's energy policy, saying any approach in the age of climate change is fraught.Political TraditionThe performance was unusually tepid for an Ash Wednesday speech, a tradition in German politics. The events, often held in locations off the beaten path, typically offer politicians a platform to address issues in a more emotional way, a departure from staid stump speeches.Accompanied by a traditional brass band, Laschet took to the stage amid moderate applause from the beer-drinking CDU locals spilled out over benches. Most of Laschet's attacks were reserved for the far-right AfD, who he said are trying to "break" the country and represent "everything the CDU is against."He also took aim at the Greens, criticizing the environmental party for seeking growth-sapping regulations and demonizing Germany's auto industry."Nobody would treat a key industry like the Germans do," Laschet said. He acknowledged the damage inflicted by the 2015 diesel-cheating scandal, "but that's not a reason to bad talk a whole industry."As a leader, Laschet said he wanted to talk less and deal less with regulation. "I just want to do it," he said to loud applause.Merz's TurfThe most aggressive aspect of the performance was its location in the rolling hills of Sauerland -- a traditional CDU stronghold that also happens to be where Merz is from.The former CDU caucus leader, meanwhile, went straight to the heart of the crisis in Thuringia. Cow bells rang, and the band played a march as Merz shook the hand of the leader of the state chapter, who's decision sparked national outrage. The gesture went over well, as did Merz's combative style."Things can't stay as they are," said Merz to the raucous crowd. "We have to transfer the enthusiasm here to the outside," he said, adding that he would welcome having Laschet part of his team.(Updates with Spahn comments from seventh paragraph)\--With assistance from Iain Rogers.To contact the reporters on this story: Arne Delfs in Apolda, Germany at adelfs@bloomberg.net;Patrick Donahue in Lennestadt-Kirchveischede, Germany at pdonahue1@bloomberg.netTo contact the editors responsible for this story: Ben Sills at bsills@bloomberg.net, Chris Reiter, Chad ThomasFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.comSubscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.©2020 Bloomberg L.P.
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| A Jewish president? Sanders, Bloomberg vie to bust US barrier Posted: 27 Feb 2020 06:16 PM PST  White House hopefuls Bernie Sanders and Michael Bloomberg could hardly be more different in their politics, but in one striking way they share a similarity marking a milestone in US presidential campaigning: both men are Jewish. Should Senator Sanders, the progressive torchbearer and current Democratic frontrunner, or centrist billionaire Bloomberg, who is polling in third, win the nomination and then the election against incumbent Donald Trump, America would have the first Jewish president in its history. The contest may have reached a peak Jewish cultural moment at a recent Democratic debate when Sanders and Bloomberg, both 78-year-olds either born or living in New York, compared their heart health on stage.
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| Coronavirus: How Fox News and other right-wing media endanger our health Posted: 27 Feb 2020 04:04 PM PST  Despite steady warnings from health organizations worldwide, right-wing media are clogging airwaves with conspiracy theories and inaccurate reporting.
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| Dear passwords: Forget you. Here's what is going to protect us instead Posted: 28 Feb 2020 06:39 AM PST  The world is going passwordless. Within five years, we will be logging into most of our online accounts without passwords. So what will replace them?
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| Indiana police officer arrested for pretending to arrest 15-year-old son Posted: 27 Feb 2020 11:56 AM PST |
| Police rescue 24 babies, pregnant teens from Nigerian 'baby factory' Posted: 27 Feb 2020 10:35 AM PST  Nigerian police have rescued 24 babies and four expectant mothers from an illegal maternity home in the southern oil city of Port Harcourt, a spokesman said Thursday.
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| FEATURE-U.S. states move to ban LGBT+ 'panic defence' for crimes Posted: 27 Feb 2020 04:01 PM PST |
| At least 7 Iranian government officials have coronavirus Posted: 27 Feb 2020 06:37 PM PST  Masoumeh Ebtekar, Iran's vice president for women and family affairs, is the latest Iranian government official to contract the COVID-19 coronavirus.At least seven officials in the country have tested positive for the coronavirus. Ebtekar is the highest-ranking woman in Iran's government, and is now quarantined at home, her deputy announced on Thursday. She was photographed on Wednesday during a cabinet meeting, sitting just a few yards away from President Hassan Rouhani.The other infected officials are Iraj Harirchim, deputy health minister; Mojtaba Zolnour, a Parliament member from Qom and head of Parliament's national security and foreign policy committee; Mahmoud Sadeghi, a member of Parliament from Tehran; Morteza Rahmanzadeh, the mayor of a Tehran district; Dr. Mohamad Reza Ghadir, head of coronavirus management in Qom; and Hadi Khosroshahi, a major cleric and former ambassador to the Vatican. Iran's official media has reported that Khosroshahi, 81, has died.The first case of coronavirus in Iran was reported on Feb. 19 in Qom. Health Ministry officials on Thursday said there are 245 confirmed cases in the country, and at least 26 people have died from the virus. Health experts estimate there are many more COVID-19 cases in Iran, because the death rate is so high. Friday prayers have been canceled in Tehran and 22 other cities, and all schools and universities are closed until March 21.More stories from theweek.com 26 percent of Democrats think Obama has endorsed Bloomberg. He hasn't. The New Yorker wordlessly sums up Trump's coronavirus problem Harvard scientist predicts coronavirus will infect up to 70 percent of humanity
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| Congressman Threatens to Beat Up Trump Jr. for Claiming Democrats Want Coronavirus Pandemic Posted: 28 Feb 2020 08:12 AM PST  Rep. John Garamendi (D-CA) lashed out at presidential scion Donald Trump Jr. for claiming Democrats seemingly want the coronavirus to kill "millions of people" so they can end President Donald Trump's "streak of winning," threatening a "serious altercation" on Friday morning if the first son got near him.With financial markets tanking amid growing fears over the coronavirus, Team Trump and right-wing media have trained their attention on complaining about how Democrats and mainstream media have reacted to the Trump administration's disjointed response to the crisis. During a Friday morning Fox & Friends appearance, Trump Jr. insisted that Democrats were rooting for a massive disaster."For them to try to take a pandemic and seemingly hope that it comes here and kills millions of people so that they can end Donald Trump's streak of winning is a new level of sickness," he bellowed.Appearing on MSNBC shortly thereafter, Garamendi was asked by host Hallie Jackson to react to those remarks. He immediately puffed his chest."He should not be near me when he says that," the congressman seethed."Why not?" Jackson wondered aloud."There would be a serious altercation," the California Democrat replied. "That is just totally outrageous. I can assure you that there's not a Democrat or Republican in Congress that wants anybody to be sick."Garamendi went on to say explain his concerns about the administration's response to the viral outbreak, noting that the United States has been aware since December of the growing epidemic in China and that Americans have been exposed to it. After criticizing Team Trump's lack of preparation and planning, and referencing a whistleblower's recent complaint highlighting the lack of training and safeguards for HHS personnel serving coronavirus evacuees, Garamendi concluded with another warning to the president's eldest child."Don Jr. better not get close to me," the Democratic lawmaker fumed. "It would not be a healthy situation."Jimmy Kimmel Brutally Roasts Don Jr.'s All-Time Worst LooksRead more at The Daily Beast.Got a tip? Send it to The Daily Beast hereGet our top stories in your inbox every day. Sign up now!Daily Beast Membership: Beast Inside goes deeper on the stories that matter to you. Learn more.
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| 3 jailbreaks in 3 countries reveal ongoing problems in fight against Latin America's most powerful gangs Posted: 28 Feb 2020 06:46 AM PST  2020 is only two months old, but Latin America has already seen three jailbreaks by the region's most powerful criminal groups.
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| Trump Pardon Won’t Erase Arpaio’s Criminal Past in Comeback Bid Posted: 27 Feb 2020 11:47 AM PST  (Bloomberg) -- Former Arizona sheriff Joe Arpaio will have to pursue his comeback with a guilty verdict on his resume.The U.S. Court of Appeals in San Francisco on Thursday refused to expunge the criminal contempt finding made against Arpaio for defying a judge's orders related to his crackdown on undocumented immigrants.The 87-year-old lawman -- once known as "America's toughest sheriff -- is again vying for the job that he held for 24 years in Maricopa County. He lost the 2016 election and was found guilty the following year. A month after the verdict, he became the first person to be pardoned by President Donald Trump.The three appellate judges, one who was appointed by Trump and two by George W. Bush, were unanimous that Arpaio's guilty verdict had no legal consequence because technically he was never convicted."Here, the issuing of a presidential pardon, and Arpaio's acceptance of the pardon, preempted his sentencing," the panel said. "Thus, there is no final judgment of conviction in this case."After he was pardoned, Arpaio asked the trial judge to set aside his guilty verdict. She refused -- a ruling that was upheld by the appeals court which said it could never be used against him in a future case.Arpaio's lawyer Jack Wilenchick declared victory, saying that has exactly the same effect as an order "vacating" the guilty finding."The court gave us exactly what we asked for, which is a finding that the guilty verdict is legally meaningless," Wilenchick said in a statement. "The trial judge's final order had said just the opposite; it had indicated that the guilty verdict may, or even should, be used against Arpaio in the future in a court of law."Arpaio made a name for himself targeting Latinos in the Phoenix area with traffic stops only on the suspicion they were undocumented immigrants. In 2017, a federal judge convicted him of criminal contempt of court for violating orders to stop.The case took an unusual turn after the U.S. Justice Department, which had started the proceedings against Arpaio under the Obama administration and secured his conviction, said it wouldn't fight Arpaio's appeal.That prompted groups of civil rights organizations, legal scholars and members of Congress to ask the court to appoint an independent prosecutor as well as to challenge the underlying validity of Arpaio's pardon.A judge found the pardon was valid, but Arpaio fought on to try to get his offense expunged from court records.Read More: 'America's Toughest Sheriff' Wants More From Trump PardonTo contact the reporter on this story: Edvard Pettersson in Los Angeles at epettersson@bloomberg.netTo contact the editors responsible for this story: Peter Blumberg at pblumberg1@bloomberg.net, Joe SchneiderFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.comSubscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.©2020 Bloomberg L.P.
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| Central Park Five's Kevin Richardson slams Bloomberg campaign Posted: 28 Feb 2020 08:58 AM PST  Kevin Richardson, a member of the Central Park Five, has hit out at Mayor Michael Bloomberg's presidential run and his blocking of a multimillion-dollar settlement over the group's wrongful persecution.Mr Richardson, one of the five teenagers wrongfully convicted for the shocking assault of Trishia Meili in 1989, was reported to have criticised Mr Bloomberg at an event outside his campaign office in Manhattan.
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| California Monitoring 8,400 People for Coronavirus, 33 Have Tested Positive Posted: 27 Feb 2020 11:54 AM PST  California is monitoring 8,400 people who arrived in the state on domestic commercial flights for the Wuhan coronavirus, Governor Gavin Newsom announced on Thursday.33 individuals have already tested positive for the virus, five of whom have been moved out of the state."We knew this was inevitable," Newsom said at a press conference. State officials remain in "constant contact with federal agencies," the governor stressed, adding that the state's top priority was obtaining more testing kits since current supplies are "inadequate.""We're not just preparing — we've been actively participating in addressing this issue for many months, aggressively," Newsom said.The announcement came after other locales in the U.S. have announced similar monitoring efforts, though none as extensive as in California. 608 people were being monitored under self-quarantine in Massachusetts, with 377 of those released without symptoms. Meanwhile, a Seattle high school announced it would close until Friday after a staffer self-quarantined following an international trip.The CDC on Wednesday confirmed a coronavirus case in central California with unknown origins, days after the agency initially refused to test the patient because they "did not fit the existing CDC criteria.""At this time, the patient's exposure is unknown," the CDC said in a statement. "It's possible this could be an instance of community spread of COVID-19, which would be the first time this has happened in the United States."
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| Turkey loses 33 soldiers in attack, Russia deploys warships to Syria coast Posted: 28 Feb 2020 03:28 AM PST  Turkish President Recep Erdogan is looking West for support, and at his country's request NATO will be holding a meeting on the situation.
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| Pope cancels second day of engagements after falling ill Posted: 27 Feb 2020 06:44 AM PST  Pope Francis has cancelled official audiences for a second day in succession after being taken ill. The Vatican said the 83-year-old had celebrated morning Mass as usual and greeted participants at the end. He planned to keep his private meeting schedule as planned but decided to cancel official audiences. It did not reveal what the pontiff is suffering from, but he was coughing and blowing his nose during Ash Wednesday Mass this week. On Thursday, he cancelled a planned trip across the city to celebrate Mass with Rome priests. His illness comes amid an outbreak of coronavirus which has infected 650 people in Italy and caused disruption across the north of the country. Rome has had three cases, but all three people have recovered. On Thursday, Vatican officials refused to comment on whether Pope Francis has been tested for coronavirus, confirming only that he had missed a planned Mass for the start of Lent due to a slight illness. "This morning, the pontiff did not go to St. John Lateran basilica for the Penitential Mass with Roman clergy," Vatican spokesman Matteo Bruni said in a statement to The Telegraph. "Due to a light indisposition, he preferred to stay near [his Vatican residence] Santa Marta. Other duties are proceeding regularly."
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| Anger as Somali rapist and murderer pays 75 camels to escape death Posted: 27 Feb 2020 08:49 AM PST |
| Shocking: China and the CIA Both Helped Saudi Arabia Get Their Own Ballistic Missiles Posted: 28 Feb 2020 06:20 AM PST  Well that was a bad idea.
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| Doomsday Mom Told Her Husband’s Kids Their Dad Was Dead Via Text Message Posted: 27 Feb 2020 11:57 AM PST  The saga of doomsday couple Lori Vallow and Chad Daybell—from the missing kids to the dead spouses—has been one strange twist after another. But even those who have been following along may be shocked by a series of newly emerged text messages.The messages, obtained by East Idaho News, start with Vallow informing her then-husband Charles' grown children that their father had "passed away" the day before.Of course, Charles Vallow had not simply passed away. He was shot dead on July 11 by Lori's brother, Alex Cox, who told police it was a case of self-defense. But Lori refused to tell her stepsons that, or provide them with any useful information, the text messages reveal."Hi boys. I have very sad news," she wrote. "Your dad passed away yesterday. I'm working on making arrangements and I'll keep you informed with what's going on. Im still not sure how to handle things. Just want you to know I love you and so did your dad!!"The sons pressed for more information over the course of the afternoon, but received nothing in response."Lori it's been 3 hours. You're not that busy. I don't care what you're doing," one wrote.She replied, "I'm sorry you are so upset. I'm so upset too... I'm waiting to hear back from the Medical examiner to make sense out of all this for myself. Please be patient with me. It's a crushing situation all around."It's not clear why she would have needed to hear from the medical examiner to make sense of Charles' death; police have said she was there when Cox shot her husband, in front of 17-year-old Tylee and 7-year-old J.J.—Lori's two children who are now missing.Doomsday Writer Claimed Dead Wife Helped Him Find New OneThe increasingly exasperated sons pressed for funeral arrangements and explanations. None came. "Okay Lori. It's been 3 days. You let us know our father passed away over a text message," one wrote to her. "We need any information you have. What happened, when did it happen, how did it happen. Where is he now. Are there any funeral plans and can [we] be a part of it..."This isn't a nonchalant topic you can just throw a text at and be done with it."Lori's response was that "these are your dads wishes.""He and I discussed this a lot over the years we have been together. My plan is to have him cremated as he wished and then take all 5 of you kids to Hawaii to spread his ashes. He did not want a funeral. He wants a celebration of his life," she wrote.One of the sons told East Idaho News that he and his brother figured out which mortuary had their father's body and just showed up, but the funeral director was just as tight-lipped as their stepmother."He was very shaky and nervous. We asked him for information, and he said something like, 'I can't tell you that. It was requested that I tell you nothing,'" the son said.Idaho Doomsday Couple Found in Hawaii—Without Missing KidsThe sons arranged a memorial service for their dad. Lori didn't show up.At the time Charles was shot dead, he and Lori were estranged. She had begun reading the writings of Chad Daybell, a prolific Idaho-based author of apocalyptic novels for Mormon audiences, and she got involved with Preparing a People, a community of doomsday preppers where Daybell was a prominent voice.According to a divorce petition Charles Vallow filed in February 2019 and later withdrew, she had become "obsessive about near-death experiences and spiritual visions" and claimed to be "a god assigned to carry out the work of the 144,000 at Christ's second coming in July 2020." He also claimed she threatened to kill him if he interfered with her plans.By July, Charles was living in Texas and Lori was in Arizona with Tylee and J.J., who was adopted and autistic. Charles traveled to see the children and, according to Lori, got into a physical confrontation with her, forcing Cox to rush to her rescue and shoot him.After Charles was killed, Lori moved with Tylee and J.J. to Idaho, where Daybell lived with his wife of nearly 30 years, Tammy. By October, Tammy was dead, too.Doomsday Writer Claimed Dead Wife Helped Him Find New OneDaybell said she felt sick, went to bed and never woke up. He declined an autopsy, and authorities listed the cause of death as natural. Two weeks later, he married Lori in Hawaii—where she had once lived with Charles and where she supposedly had planned to scatter his ashes.It does not appear that Tylee and J.J. were at the wedding. In fact, no one has seen Tylee since a family trip to Yellowstone National Park in early September, and J.J. has not been seen or heard from since Sept. 23.He stopped going to school, Lori got rid of his service animal, and some of the children's belongings were put in a storage bin. According to Idaho police, Lori and Chad lied to neighbors about whether she even had children, or where they were.Alerted by extended family, police in Rexburg, Idaho turned up in December to check on the children. A police narrative included in court documents says Lori claimed J.J. was with a friend in Arizona and then called the friend in an unsuccessful effort to get her to lie.When cops returned the next day to probe further, Lori and Chad were gone. After they surfaced in Hawaii, an Idaho judge issued a court order demanding Lori return within a few days and produce the children.She didn't show, and the judge signed an arrest warrant—allowing Hawaii police to take her into custody. Held on $5 million bail, she agreed Wednesday to waive extradition and return to Idaho to face charges of child desertion, contempt of court, and promoting criminal behavior.Through their Idaho attorney, both Vallow and Daybell have denied wrongdoing. In court in Hawaii on Wednesday, Vallow's lawyer said the only reason she didn't comply with the court order was because the judge planned to put the children in foster case—though he also provided no details about their whereabouts.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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| Korean Air flight attendant with coronavirus reportedly serviced 400-seat aircraft that flew between South Korea and US twice —here's the list of the known routes she flew Posted: 27 Feb 2020 04:38 AM PST  The employee returned to Seoul and reportedly worked flights to the US after working a flight to Israel that was later linked to cases of the virus.
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| Trump meets with black supporters, vows equal opportunity Posted: 27 Feb 2020 05:54 PM PST  President Donald Trump on Thursday cited low unemployment rates for African Americans and passage of a criminal justice bill providing earlier release for thousands of federal drug offenders as examples of how he's helping the black community.
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| Malaysian king hits back at Mahathir amid crisis Posted: 28 Feb 2020 02:20 AM PST  Malaysia's king struck down Friday a power play by 94-year-old Mahathir Mohamad aimed at seizing momentum in a political crisis, capping a week of turmoil that has left the country effectively leaderless. Old foes Mahathir and Anwar Ibrahim are locked in a power struggle sparked by the elderly leader's resignation and their ruling coalition's collapse, following a failed bid to push out leader-in-waiting Anwar. Mahathir, currently interim leader, earlier announced the parliament session would take place Monday and the monarch, who appoints the premier, agreed with the decision.
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| Seattle Is Socialism’s Laboratory, and It’s Not Pretty Posted: 27 Feb 2020 05:16 AM PST  Democratic socialists are in the middle of a hostile takeover of the Democratic Party. Led by the Bernie Sanders presidential campaign and the "squad" of newly elected congresswomen, the hard-left coalition has laid out an ambitious agenda to transform the United States into a democratic socialist nation. While many commentators have dismissed the rhetoric around the Green New Deal, Housing for All, and End Cash Bail as pie-in-the-sky abstraction, in Seattle, the socialist coalition is quickly translating this agenda into a political reality.After the socialist Left's stunning victory over business-backed moderates in last year's municipal elections, Seattle has effectively become the nation's laboratory for socialist policies. Since the beginning of the year, the socialist faction on the Seattle City Council has proposed a range of policies on taxes, housing, homelessness, and criminal justice that put into practice the national democratic-socialist agenda. In the most recent session, socialist councilwoman Kshama Sawant and her allies have proposed massive new taxes on corporations, unprecedented regulations on landlords (including rent control and a ban on "winter evictions"), the mandated construction of homeless encampments, and the gradual dismantling of the criminal justice system, beginning with the end of cash bail.Seattle's socialists have established a narrative that provides the rhetorical basis for their policies. They argue that the corporate-technological elite, led by companies such as Amazon, has hoarded the rewards of the digital economy and created widespread misery for workers, renters, and people of color. As Seattle-based commentator and Marxist theoretician Charles Mudede has written: "We are in the 21st century. We are in one of the richest cities on earth. And yet, the old war between those who employ labor and those who sell their labor is still very much with us."In the socialist vision, the "new class war" is now entering a more direct phase of conflict. They have launched a political campaign to dramatically curtail the power of corporations, landlords, and traditional neighborhood interests, and to build a coalition of socialists, progressives, unions, and the dispossessed that is capable of achieving power. In short, the solution to the class war is to win the class war.While conservatives and moderates have typically dismissed the socialist movement as a "big-city problem," the new socialist agenda is no longer confined to the municipal boundaries of places such as Seattle, San Francisco, and New York. Increasingly, the hard-left coalition has turned these cities into "laboratories for socialism," with the goal of eventually commercializing their policies through the national Democratic Party. Already, Bernie Sanders, the current front-runner in the Democratic primary, has proposed a nationalized version of the Seattle agenda: Tax Amazon, enact national rent control, construct public housing, and end cash bail.But Seattle's socialists have gone one step further. In order to consolidate their newfound power, the progressive-socialists have begun to manipulate the democratic process in their own favor: first, by providing all Seattle voters with $100 in taxpayer-funded "democracy vouchers," which are easily collected by unions, activists, and socialist groups; and second, by implementing a ban on corporate spending in local elections by companies like Amazon. At the same time, black-bloc activists and Antifa militants intimidate any potential opposition by disrupting events, vandalizing homes, and even orchestrating death threats against political adversaries.What can opponents of socialism do? First, recognize that it must be fought on all fronts. While the socialists form a small minority of the national electorate, they have demonstrated the capability of seizing power in America's major cities, which are home to much of the digital "means of production" in tech, media, advertising, entertainment, and research. The business sector in cities such as Seattle must recognize that the progressive-socialists are no longer interested in gaining reasonable concessions; they intend to overthrow capitalism itself.Over the past decade, the dominant corporate strategy has been to quietly advocate for neoliberal economic policies, while pandering to the cultural mandates of "diversity and inclusion." That era is now over. As the experience in Seattle reveals, the socialist Left cannot be appeased on cultural issues — they are fighting a war against capital and they intend to win it.If the business sector wants to protect its own interests, it must rapidly adapt to this new reality. It's no longer enough for local Chambers of Commerce to drop leaflets before local elections; they must build a permanent counterbalance to the progressive-socialists. They must begin by commissioning original policy research, funding local neighborhood groups, and building a political alliance of conservatives, moderates, and old-line liberals. In other words, they must reestablish a balance of power in America's cities.If nothing is done, the laboratories of socialism in America's cities will become a national problem. It's time to shut them down.
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| 'He fought us every single step of the way': How Bloomberg embraced stop-and-frisk as mayor Posted: 27 Feb 2020 12:50 PM PST  "He dug in and fought us all the way to his last day in office," an activist who opposed stop-and-frisk recalled.
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| New Zealand's PM says Australia's deportation policy is 'corrosive' Posted: 27 Feb 2020 08:47 PM PST  Australia's deportation policy is so "corrosive" that it has soured its bilateral relationship with New Zealand, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said on Friday, a rare bust-up between the two historic allies. Australia's conservative government has in recent months moved to deport thousands of foreigners convicted of crimes as part of an immigration crackdown that can also strip dual-nationals of their Australian citizenship. The move has seen hundreds of people deported to New Zealand, a country that some left when just children and have few ties to.
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| Betsy DeVos orders probe after USA TODAY finds college evidently without faculty, students Posted: 27 Feb 2020 10:29 AM PST  Betsy DeVos has launched an Education Department investigation after a USA TODAY report showed a college apparently had no faculty or students.
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| Mom Enlisted Son to Murder Husband, Daughter for Insurance Money: Prosecutors Posted: 27 Feb 2020 01:08 PM PST  A New Jersey woman faces murder charges after allegedly enlisting her son and his friend to brutally kill her daughter and husband 25 years ago by promising them a cut of his life-insurance policy. Dolores Morgan, 66, and her 47-year-old son, Ted Connors, were indicted by a grand jury Wednesday evening on seven counts, including murder and conspiracy, in relation to the 1994 stabbing death of Ana Mejia and the fatal shooting of Nicholas Connors in May 1995, the Monmouth County Prosecutor's Office told The Daily Beast.Prosecutors allege that while Connors murdered his father and sister with his best friend, Jose Carrero, Morgan was the true mastermind behind the scheme. After her husband was killed, Morgan allegedly collected a $200,000 life-insurance policy and moved to Florida with her son.Suspect in New Jersey Family's Torching Is Brother and Business Partner to Victim"Killing for money and drugs, the state's position, you cannot get more violent," prosecutor Meghan Doyle said at the pair's detention hearing after their original arrest in January. "[Morgan] has done nothing but hide her involvement and manipulate the system to ensure she was protected."Last week, Carrero, 48, pleaded guilty to two counts of conspiracy to commit murder, admitting that both murder plots were hatched on Morgan's New Jersey kitchen table and that he had witnessed both of the slayings. He is expected to be sentenced to up to 20 years in state prison for his role in the gruesome schemes and has agreed to testify against his former accomplices.Carrero told Superior Court Judge Ellen Torregrossa-O'Connor in February that Morgan offered him up to $3,000 to kill her daughter, Meija, because she believed the 24-year-old had alerted police about her drug dealing, according to the Asbury Park Press. The 48-year-old admitted he held Mejia down and covered her face with his hand, while Connors stabbed his sister to death. Her two children, ages 3 and 1 at the time, were present at the apartment but were left unharmed.Mejia, 24, was found dead inside her Long Branch apartment on Dec. 8, 1994, where she had been stabbed 23 times, authorities said. A white substance was found smeared across her mouth and nose—which was eventually determined to be baby formula, prosecutors said.Estranged Husband, Girlfriend of Missing NYC Teacher Charged With MurderFive months later, Carrero said Morgan asked for his help again: to help her son murder her husband so they collect his life-insurance policy. Prosecutors said that Nicolas Connors, 51, was found dead on a sofa in his Long Branch home with "multiple gunshot wounds to the head" on May 14, 1995. According to Carrero, Conners retrieved a gun and cut a hole through the screen door to make the crime look like a robbery gone wrong. "Dolores Connors wanted him killed for insurance purposes,"' Carrero said.After the murder, Morgan allegedly cashed the $200,000 insurance policy—which Carrero said she originally believed was worth $1 million—and moved with her son to Florida. Morgan, Connors, and his then-girlfriend traveled to the Dominican Republic after the second murder, prosecutors said. During the trip, Connors' ex-girlfriend told authorities that Morgan said, "We already have two deaths on our hands. We can't afford another. We can't afford the police snooping around our house again."Morgan's attorney, Jason Seidman, told The Daily Beast on Thursday his client has been cooperative with police "to help capture the killer or killers who took her husband and daughter" and maintains "her innocence as she has for over 25 years.""She has waited for 25 years to have those responsible brought to justice," he said, noting that while he normally does not comment on ongoing cases, the state's decision to put "every moment of this case before the media thus far" has compelled him to speak out. Seidman insisted that Carrero's "completely inconsistent" confession does not accurately state the chain of events."They have chosen to run with his story, and turn a blind eye to facts and reason," he said. "There are no less than 8 people who had either greater motive or better opportunity to commit these murders, including several drug dealers who were out large amounts of money or drugs, based upon the actions of the victim and her boyfriend one week prior to her murder." Read more at The Daily Beast.Got a tip? Send it to The Daily Beast hereGet our top stories in your inbox every day. Sign up now!Daily Beast Membership: Beast Inside goes deeper on the stories that matter to you. Learn more.
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| People can get the coronavirus more than once, experts warn — recovering does not necessarily make you immune Posted: 27 Feb 2020 11:51 AM PST  People who have gotten the coronavirus before could still get it again. This happened to a tour guide in Japan.
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| Critic Says Trump Is 'Ignorant' and 'Incoherent' On Coronavirus. Others Call It 'Trump' Virus. Posted: 27 Feb 2020 08:44 AM PST  Can President Trump keep the American people prepared but not panicked?
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| The Senate Sits on Commonsense Gun Reform While Americans Die Posted: 27 Feb 2020 10:57 AM PST  An estimated 38,000 Americans have died in gun related deaths since the House passed a bill on gun reform. Why won't the Senate act?
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| WHO raises global virus risk to maximum level Posted: 28 Feb 2020 09:35 AM PST  The World Health Organization on Friday raised its global risk assessment of the new coronavirus to its highest level after the epidemic spread to sub-Saharan Africa and caused financial markets to plunge. WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the risk was being raised to "very high" because of the continued increase in cases and the number of new countries affected in recent days. Switzerland became the latest country to announce drastic measures on Friday, saying all events with more than 1,000 participants would be suspended until March 15.
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| Bloomberg offered running mate spot to Andrew Yang, report claims Posted: 27 Feb 2020 12:40 PM PST  Michael Bloomberg is reportedly trying to convince entreprenuer and former presidential candidate Andrew Yang to join his campaign as his running mate.According to individuals with knowledge of the discussion, aides working with the former New York City mayor reportedly reached out to Mr Yang to discuss how the businessmen could join forces in Mr Bloomberg's quest for the Democratic nomination.
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