| Barack Obama endorses Joe Biden for president after Democratic race comes to a close Posted: 14 Apr 2020 09:15 AM PDT  The former president announced he was backing Biden a day after Bernie Sanders did the same.
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| Florida inmate freed over COVID-19 fears killed man the next day, police say Posted: 14 Apr 2020 09:57 PM PDT  Edward Williams, 26, was released based on concerns over coronavirus but was eligible to be freed on bond.
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| Canadian care homes become coronavirus hotspots Posted: 13 Apr 2020 11:57 AM PDT  Health officials say nearly half of all known coronavirus deaths in Canada are linked to care homes.
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| Taiwan virus aid sparks calls to rename China Airlines Posted: 15 Apr 2020 02:58 AM PDT  Taiwan's aid shipments to countries battling the coronavirus have sparked a fierce debate on the island about whether it should rebrand its national carrier China Airlines. The self-ruled island has been held up as a model for tackling the virus with fewer than 400 confirmed cases despite its proximity to China. Much of that aid has been ferried on China Airlines jets, sparking some confusion on arrival -- and online -- over whether the largesse has come from Taiwan or China.
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| McDonald's apologized after a restaurant in Guangzhou, China, refused to service black customers Posted: 13 Apr 2020 12:15 PM PDT  Black residents of Guangzhou have faced increased racism as the country fears for a second wave of the coronavirus.
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| NHL player Colby Cave's widow says he complained of a headache days before dying Posted: 14 Apr 2020 09:53 AM PDT  Emily Cave shared a heartbreaking video of their wedding vows and said the Edmonton Oilers player complained of a headache just days before dying of a brain bleed.
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| My cruise was canceled due to coronavirus. Here's how experts say you should navigate refunds, credits Posted: 15 Apr 2020 07:22 AM PDT  I was scheduled to depart on my first cruise on May 10 on Royal Caribbean's Oasis Of The Seas. Until the coronavirus pandemic struck.
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| Governors respond to President Trump’s assertion that it’s up to him to decide when to loosen coronavirus restrictions Posted: 13 Apr 2020 12:45 PM PDT  At a press conference on Monday, six governors announced a council of states to coordinate the loosening of stay-at-home orders and other restrictions due to the coronavirus pandemic. Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf and New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo responded to questions about President Trump's assertion that it is up to him to decide when those orders are to be rolled back.
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| Trump's candidate loses in Wisconsin, despite help from courts Posted: 14 Apr 2020 12:18 PM PDT  The president floated conspiracies of voter fraud after a progressive challenger knocked off a conservative incumbent in the race for a state Supreme Court seat.
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| After Putin's bravado, COVID-19 is starting to hit Russia hard Posted: 14 Apr 2020 12:06 PM PDT  A month after Putin declared the situation "under control," Moscow's hospitals are running out of beds and ambulances are waiting hours to deposit the sick.
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| New York City revises coronavirus death toll to add 3,700 more deaths Posted: 14 Apr 2020 01:53 PM PDT  New York City has made a devastating revision to its already massive coronavirus death toll.On Tuesday, the city's health department released a revised COVID-19 death count that included those who were not tested but were presumed to have died from the disease. That added an additional 3,700 people, bumping the city's total count well over 10,000 coronavirus fatalities.New York City was already the epicenter of coronavirus spread both in the U.S. and the world, reporting well over 7,000 verified COVID-19 deaths on Monday. These 3,700 additional deaths mark a massive 17 percent increase to the national death toll, putting it over 26,000, The New York Times notes.The previous death count only included people who had tested positive for COVID-19, but New York City's health department had been recording presumptive cases, the Times reports. "In the heat of battle, our primary focus has been on saving lives," Mayor Bill de Blasio's press secretary said, but de Blasio moved to release the additional data after a series of weekend briefings. Connecticut, Delaware, Maryland, and Ohio have all recently moved to start reporting presumptive COVID-19 deaths.More stories from theweek.com The world's dominant ideology is breaking. What will replace it? The 4 Wisconsin justices who blocked the state's primary delay all voted absentee The new mysteries of coronavirus
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| Paris climate goals failure 'could cost world $600 tn' Posted: 14 Apr 2020 09:04 AM PDT  Nations' failure to fulfil the promises they made in the Paris climate agreement to make drastic emissions cuts could cost the global economy as much as $600 trillion this century, new analysis showed Tuesday. Under the landmark 2015 accord, countries pledged to voluntarily reduce greenhouse gas emissions from the burning of fossil fuels in order to limit global temperature rises to "well below" two degrees Celsius. The United Nations says that global emissions must fall by more than seven percent every year between now and 2030 to hit the 1.5C target.
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| Emergency room doctor, near death with coronavirus, saved after experimental treatment Posted: 13 Apr 2020 10:48 PM PDT  A Seattle emergency-room doctor contracted COVID-19 while treating patients infected by coronavirus. He owes his life to physicians who used an experimental treatment.
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| 21 Products to Set Up Your Bathroom Sanctuary Posted: 14 Apr 2020 03:07 PM PDT |
| Chicago man charged with murder after pushing Marine veteran into passing train, police say Posted: 14 Apr 2020 10:07 AM PDT  Ryan Munn of Chicago was charged with first-degree murder after pushing a Marine veteran into the path of a passing train, according to police.
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| Shale Giants Clash Over Oil-Supply Cut to Survive Crude Rout Posted: 15 Apr 2020 03:02 AM PDT  (Bloomberg) -- One of the biggest Texas shale explorers warned it will halt all drilling if the state imposes OPEC-style production caps, raising the stakes in a debate over a contentious proposal to arrest free-falling oil prices.The stark pronouncement from Diamondback Energy Inc.'s finance chief stunned observers of Tuesday's virtual hearing by the Texas Railroad Commission, which oversees oil output in the Lone Star state. At issue was whether the state should restrict crude output for the first time in roughly 50 years.The proposal has deeply divided an industry already grappling with a global oversupply, escalating financial losses and the demand-killing Covid-19 outbreak.Diamondback Chief Financial Officer Kaes Van't Hof said the company already is in the process of shutting down 30% of its drilling and would take it to zero if the state clamps down on production. Such a move would have dire consequences in the form of lost jobs and disrupted families, he said.In the event of quotas, "we'd let all our service providers go through the period of proration," Van't Hof said. "That turns that industry, the service industry, on to the same issues that the restaurant industry is facing today where they're completely shut down with zero revenue and zero employment."On a practical note, Railroad Commissioner Christi Craddick wondered whether the agency even retains the expertise to enforce a statewide output limit. "We don't even know how to do it any more," she said.Force MajeureMeanwhile, opponents of quotas insinuated that some drillers are supporting such restrictions for selfish reasons such as voiding contractual obligations.Without naming specific companies or executives, Enterprise Products Partners Co-CEO Jim Teague suggested that advocates of mandatory output cuts may be just asking for a government order that will allow them to negate contracts. Marathon Oil Corp.'s Lee Tillman voiced similar concerns.A state order to curtail oil output would presumably provide drillers with justification to declare force majeure, the so-called "act of God" provision in contracts that relieves a party of liability for events outside their control.Web of ContractsThe hearing began with executives from the biggest pro-quota companies: Pioneer Natural Resources Co. and Parsley Energy Inc. Chief executives from both firms urged the commission to cap production or risk deep and long-lasting damage to the industry and economy."Are they really trying to fix a problem?" Teague asked more than two hours into the marathon hearing. Oil explorers ensnared by the sudden slump in oil prices still must honor contracts with pipeline networks, storage operators and hard-hat contractors that drill and frack their wells.In-State Fields"Anyone who knows Pioneer will write off these comments as meaningless," Pioneer CEO Scott Sheffield said in an email. "Pioneer has the one of the strongest balance sheets in the industry and a robust hedging program."Parsley supports quotas because they will soften "the blow to the U.S. oil and gas industry, saving oil and gas jobs, supporting our national security, and perpetuating the Texas miracle," CEO Matt Gallagher said in an email.Marathon's Tillman warned that Texas caps would be unfair to companies that also drill in other states because it could force them to curtail output at fields that are more profitable than other parts of their portfolio. Pioneer and Parsley are focused almost exclusively on Texas drilling."When a vocal minority takes a position in favor of artificial market manipulation, that is so far removed from the consensus of a vast majority of operators, one can only surmise that their motives and objectives are primarily company-specific, as opposed to broadly industry-supported," Tillman said during the hearing.Pioneer's Sheffield told the three-person commission that mandatory cuts are needed to prevent large swathes of U.S. shale from going under. They could also be used as leverage to squeeze additional curbs from the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries and the Group of 20 nations.Free MarketTillman and a bevy of anti-quota executive argued that such market intervention would create a dangerous precedent that would undermine the entire industry."The best solution to our current crisis is to get the world healthy and back to work while not abandoning the free market principles that have created U.S. energy independence," Tillman said.Sheffield has been the leading voice advocating for state-imposed cuts, even as the biggest players in the sector -- Exxon Mobil Corp. and Chevron Corp. -- staunchly oppose the proposal. Still, the fact that the idea is even on the table in a state that prides itself on self reliance and unhindered trade is a measure of the swift and startling plunge in oil prices.At current prices, 80% of the U.S. shale industry will go bankrupt, Sheffield estimated. Oil-storage capacity across the country will be full in a matter of weeks, and that will create a backup effect that will force drillers to shut wells, he said.OPEC+The OPEC+ agreement this past weekend to cut 9.7 million barrels of daily output won't make a notable impact on prices given the stark impact the Covid-19 contagion is having on energy demand, Sheffield argued.Texas should start with a 20% cut, which would amount to more than 1 million barrels a day, he said. Parsley's Gallagher agreed."If we slam into a train wreck at full speed at a peak rate that we can predict, then it's going to be much worse," Gallagher said.For 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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| New York City hospitals cancel temporary workers as coronavirus cases stabilize Posted: 14 Apr 2020 05:25 PM PDT  The trend, coupled with a flattening in the number of New Yorkers hospitalized with coronavirus infection, reinforces the sense that New York may have reached the peak of the health crisis. "We have had to reassign some of our travelers who were going to New York," San Diego-based staffing firm Aya Healthcare said in an emailed statement. Demand for "travel nurses" jumped during March and early April in cities like New Orleans, and especially New York, which saw the nation's largest spike in cases of COVID-19, the deadly respiratory disease caused by the novel coronavirus.
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| Trump chides Cuomo for seeking 'independence' in coronavirus response Posted: 14 Apr 2020 08:52 AM PDT  The president continued to assert his absolute in authority in reopening the country following the shutdown to slow the spread of coronavirus.
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| Drew Barrymore says she's cried 'every day, all day long' since having to homeschool her kids Posted: 15 Apr 2020 04:30 AM PDT  Barrymore, whose children are seven and five years old, said: "I didn't think I needed to respect and appreciate teachers any more than I did."
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| US military chief: 'Weight of evidence' that Covid-19 did not originate in a lab Posted: 14 Apr 2020 01:33 PM PDT  * Chair of joints chiefs says 'natural' origin more likely * 2018 cable expressed concern about Wuhan laboratory * Coronavirus – latest US updates * Coronavirus – latest global updates * See all our coronavirus coverageThe Pentagon's top general has said that US intelligence has looked into the possibility that the coronavirus outbreak could have started in a Chinese laboratory, but that the "weight of evidence" so far pointed towards "natural" origins.The chairman of the joint chiefs of staff, Gen Mark Milley, was speaking on the day of a Washington Post report about state department cables in 2018 in which US diplomats raised safety concerns about the Wuhan Institute of Virology (WIV) which was conducting studies of coronavirus from bats."During interactions with scientists at the WIV laboratory, they noted the new lab has a serious shortage of appropriately trained technicians and investigators needed to safely operate this high-containment laboratory," a cable dated 19 January 2018 said, according to the Post.The diplomats urged further US support for the laboratory to address the concerns, but no support was given, at a time when the Trump administration was cutting back on the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) outreach abroad.Beijing's official version of the start outbreak was the Covid-19 virus (Sars-CoV-2) was transmitted to humans from animals at Wuhan's wild animal markets, though some Chinese officials have circulated conspiracy theories suggesting it was engineered in a US bioweapons laboratory.The cables reported by the Washington Post have emerged at a time when the administration is seeking to focus blame for the pandemic on China and the World Health Organization. The Republican senator Tom Cotton has raised the possibility that the pandemic was a deliberate Chinese bioweapon attack, though he has argued natural transmission from animals to humans, or a lab accident, were more likely scenarios."There's a lot of rumour and speculation in a wide variety of media, blog sites, etc," Milley told reporters at the Pentagon on Tuesday. "It should be no surprise to you that we've taken a keen interest in that, and we've had a lot of intelligence look at that. And I would just say at this point, it's inconclusive, although the weight of evidence seems to indicate natural. But we don't know for certain."Most scientists say that this coronavirus probably originated in bats but found its way to humans through an intermediary animal.There is no conclusive evidence that this happened at Wuhan's notorious "wet" markets where wild animals were sold for meat. Analysis of the first 41 Covid-19 patients in medical journal the Lancet found that 27 of them had direct exposure to the Wuhan market. But the same analysis found that the first known case did not.
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| Iran parliament: Virus deaths nearly double reported figures Posted: 15 Apr 2020 06:09 AM PDT  The death toll in Iran from the coronavirus pandemic is likely nearly double the officially reported figures, due to undercounting and because not everyone with breathing problems has been tested for the virus, a parliament report said. Iranian health officials offered no comment on the report, which represents the highest-level charge yet from within the Islamic Republic's government of its figures being questionable, something long suspected by international experts. Iran on Wednesday put the death toll at 4,777, out of 76,389 confirmed cases of the virus — still making it the Mideast's worst outbreak by far.
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| Three potential coronavirus vaccines moving ahead in tests Posted: 15 Apr 2020 08:40 AM PDT  CanSino Biologics of China is in the second phase of testing a coronavirus vaccine candidate, and a U.S. shot by Moderna and the NIH isn't far behind.
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| Sarah Sanders says the media mob is intent on destroying President Trump Posted: 14 Apr 2020 06:51 PM PDT  Fox News contributor Sarah Sanders, former White House press secretary, joins Sean Hannity on 'Hannity.'
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| Holland America, Carnival, Princess cruise lines extend cancellations through end of June Posted: 15 Apr 2020 05:48 AM PDT  Carnival Cruise Line said Monday it plans to resume sailing on June 27. The CDC extended a no-sail order that may dock ships through late July.
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| White House misses congressional deadline to explain intelligence watchdog's firing Posted: 14 Apr 2020 02:50 PM PDT  The White House is still refusing to give Congress a reason for firing Intelligence Community Inspector General Michael Atkinson, as required by law, missing a deadline set by a bipartisan group of senators.
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| Virus hit 'like a bomb' as toll rises in Ecuador's business capital Posted: 14 Apr 2020 07:35 PM PDT  Ecuador's economic capital Guayaquil is reeling from the most aggressive outbreak of COVID-19 in Latin America after the pandemic hit the city "like a bomb," its mayor said. Cynthia Viteri has emerged from her own bout with the virus to battle the worst crisis the port city of nearly 3 million people has known in modern times. Mortuaries, funeral homes and hospital services are overwhelmed, and Viteri said the actual death toll from the virus is likely much higher than the official national figure of 369.
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| Evidence that coronavirus originated at Chinese lab is 'inconclusive,' top general says Posted: 14 Apr 2020 01:20 PM PDT  "We've had a lot of intelligence take a hard look at that," Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Mark Milley told reporters Tuesday.
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| A day after ire, CNN's Chris Cuomo says 'I love where I am' Posted: 14 Apr 2020 09:29 AM PDT  CNN anchor Chris Cuomo has reaffirmed his commitment to CNN and his gratitude for his primetime perch, a day after the TV host expressed frustration at elements of his job. "I've never been in a better position professionally, I've never been more grateful, I've never been on a better team," Cuomo said Tuesday on his SiriusXM show.
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| Just 27% of Americans think the US is doing better than other countries at containing the coronavirus Posted: 13 Apr 2020 02:29 PM PDT  The US is currently the epicenter of the coronavirus pandemic, with the most reported cases and fatalities from the virus in the world. Americans do not appear to be overwhelmingly confident in how their country has handled the coronavirus pandemic compared to the rest of the globe. The US is currently the epicenter of the coronavirus pandemic, with the most reported cases in the world.
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| I will vote for Joe Biden in November. And it will kill me Posted: 13 Apr 2020 02:11 PM PDT  Against all internal resistance, I will vote for creepy Joe Biden, a man who both should be and does not deserve to be president.
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| Beijing Privately Warned Health Officials of A ‘Pandemic’ Six Days Before Xi Jinping’s Public Coronavirus Comments Posted: 15 Apr 2020 06:05 AM PDT  Documents reveal that Chinese President Xi Jinping waited six days to publicly warn about the Wuhan coronavirus outbreak, after his top officials determined that the situation was "likely to develop into a major public health event."On January 20, Xi broke silence on the outbreak to warn it "must be taken seriously," with leading Chinese epidemiologist, Zhong Nanshan saying for the first time publicly that the virus was transmissible from person-to-person.That public warning came six days after a January 14 teleconference in which the head of China's National Health Commission, Ma Xiaowei, warned Xi and local health officials that a global pandemic was likely underway, according to an internal memo obtained by The Associated Press. Some 3,000 Chinese people are believed to have been infected during the six-day delay."The epidemic situation is still severe and complex, the most severe challenge since SARS in 2003, and is likely to develop into a major public health event," Ma said, according to the memo.The call came a day after authorities in Thailand discovered the first case reported outside of China, which the memo cited as an indication that the situation had "changed significantly." It added that "clustered cases suggest that human-to-human transmission is possible.""With the coming of the Spring Festival, many people will be traveling, and the risk of transmission and spread is high," the memo reads. "All localities must prepare for and respond to a pandemic."Ma also urged officials to prioritize political considerations and social stability ahead of the long China's two biggest political meetings of the year in March.The same day as the teleconference, the World Health Organization stated that "preliminary investigations conducted by the Chinese authorities have found no clear evidence of human-to-human transmission of the novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) identified in Wuhan, China." One day prior, on January 19, the National Health Commission said the virus was "still preventable and controllable."A timeline of China's slow response to the coronavirus reveals the failures of Beijing to slow the spread of the pandemic. While the Chinese government has reported approximately 82,000 cases, estimates have suggested the number is closer to 2.9 million.In December, party officials issued a gag order to labs in Wuhan after scientists realized the novel virus closely resembled SARS, ordering them to halt tests, destroy samples, and conceal the news.
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| Why it's suddenly more difficult to get a mortgage Posted: 14 Apr 2020 05:47 AM PDT  Some banks are now requiring a credit score of at least 700 and a 20 percent down payment.
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| China reports fewer coronavirus cases but local infections rise near Russian border Posted: 14 Apr 2020 05:43 PM PDT  China reported a decline in new confirmed cases of the coronavirus in the mainland on Wednesday, but there was an increasing number of local transmissions in its far northeast bordering Russia. China had 46 new confirmed cases on Tuesday compared with 89 a day earlier, according to the National Health Commission. The 10 remaining cases were new locally transmitted infections, with the northeastern Heilongjiang province accounting for eight and the southern Guangdong province two.
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| 'We don't have a king:' Trump's claim of 'total' authority over states gets pushback across spectrum Posted: 14 Apr 2020 04:32 AM PDT  President Donald Trump's claim that he has total authority over governors to reopen states drew pushback, including from some fellow conservatives.
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| Court Rules Against Epstein Victims on Controversial Plea Deal Posted: 14 Apr 2020 11:27 AM PDT  A federal appeals court has denied relief to victims of Jeffrey Epstein under the Crime Victims' Rights Act, refusing their requests for remedies such as the release of FBI documents and a public hearing on Epstein's criminal case in Florida.The opinion comes as part of a 12-year legal battle between Courtney Wild, who was underage when Epstein sexually abused her, and the federal government. After Epstein secured a controversial plea deal in 2008, Wild was one of two "Jane Does" to sue the feds, alleging the U.S. Attorney's Office in Miami violated the Crime Victims' Rights Act (CVRA) by keeping more than 30 victims in the dark about Epstein's non-prosecution agreement.In May of 2007, Epstein was facing a 53-page indictment for trafficking underage girls and could have spent life behind bars, if charged and convicted. But Epstein's lawyers secretly negotiated with federal prosecutors to scrap the drafted indictment, and the perverted financier pleaded guilty to lesser state charges instead. (Epstein served 13 months in a private wing of the Palm Beach County jail. The money-manager was permitted to spend 12 hours a day, six days a week, on "work release," and during that time, he continued to abuse young women.)On Tuesday, the appeals court ruled the CVRA does not apply to Wild's case because "the government never filed charges or otherwise commenced criminal proceedings against Epstein" and thus "the CVRA was never triggered."Jeffrey Epstein's Hollywood Pipeline Ran Straight to Harvey Weinstein"Despite our sympathy for Ms. Wild and others like her, who suffered unspeakable horror at Epstein's hands, only to be left in the dark—and, so it seems, affirmatively misled—by government lawyers, we find ourselves constrained to deny her petition," wrote the panel, which included judges Kevin C. Newsom, Gerald Bard Tjoflat and Frank M. Hull. (The decision was written by Newsom, with Tjoflat concurring. Judge Hull dissented.)"We hold that at least as matters currently stand—which is to say at least as the CVRA is currently written—rights under the Act do not attach until criminal proceedings have been initiated against a defendant, either by complaint, information, or indictment," the judges' decision continued."Because the government never filed charges or otherwise commenced criminal proceedings against Epstein, the CVRA was never triggered. It's not a result we like, but it's the result we think the law requires."Brad Edwards, a lawyer for the victims, told The Daily Beast he would request a hearing before the full Eleventh Circuit court to reconsider the panel's decision. "It is clear that even the majority detested the government's treatment of the victims but apparently felt there was a loophole in the CVRA that the prosecutors and Epstein successfully exploited," Edwards said in an email. "For all the reasons given in the 60-page dissenting opinion, we strongly disagree with today's ruling—which leaves victims like Ms. Wild without any remedy, even for victims like her who have been 'affirmatively misled' by federal prosecutors."In February of 2019, U.S. District Judge Kenneth A. Marra ruled federal prosecutors in Miami violated the CVRA by secretly negotiating with Epstein's lawyers to downgrade his charges to state court. "Petitioners and the other victims should have been notified of the Government's intention to take that course of action before it bound itself under" a plea agreement, Marra wrote in his decision.But in September, Marra rejected victims' requests for remedies, which included voiding the plea deal's immunity provisions that protected Epstein and his alleged accomplices. The alleged co-conspirators, according to the agreement, include "Sarah Kellen, Adriana Ross, Lesley Groff, or Nadia Marcinkova." Wild petitioned the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit to reverse Marra's decision and order the district court to grant victims "all appropriate remedies," including rolling back "the NPA's immunity provisions, holding a public hearing on the case, release of documents, and an award of attorneys' fees."The appeals court's decision suggests the CVRA doesn't apply to Epstein's victims at all.According to the federal law, crime victims have rights—which include the right to timely notice of any public court proceeding involving the crime; the right to be heard at any public proceeding in the district court involving pleas or sentencing; and the right to confer with the attorney for the government in the case."The interpretation of the CVRA that petitioner advances, and that the district court adopted, is not implausible; the CVRA could be read to apply pre-charge," the panel stated. "We conclude, though—reluctantly, especially given the mistreatment that petitioner seems to have suffered at the hands of federal prosecutors—that the Act is neither best nor most naturally read that way.""On balance, we conclude that the Act's terms—including the provisions on which petitioner relies—demonstrate that its protections apply only after the commencement of criminal proceedings."The panel majority adds, "Again, must prosecutors consult with victims before law-enforcement officers conduct a raid, seek a warrant, or conduct an interrogation? That seems exceedingly unlikely."In a dissenting opinion, Judge Hull said the panel majority "patently errs in holding, as a matter of law, that the crime victims of Jeffrey Epstein and his co-conspirators had no statutory rights whatsoever under the CVRA.""Instead, our Court should enforce the plain and unambiguous text of the CVRA and hold that the victims had two CVRA rights—the right to confer with the government's attorney and the right to be treated fairly—that were repeatedly violated by the U.S. Attorney's Office in the Southern District of Florida," Hull wrote.The dissenting judge warned that the majority's "pre-charge rule will deny victims' CVRA rights to confer and fairness in cases involving white-collar and other wealthy defendants who commonly engage in pre-charge plea negotiations.""Jeffrey Epstein's case illustrates my point," Hull added. Hull pushed back on the majority's claim that pre-charge CVRA rights would result in prosecutors having to consult with victims before authorities "conduct a raid, seek a warrant, or conduct an interrogation.""The Majority is more afraid of a future 'crime victim' potentially asking a 'readily identifiable' government 'attorney' to confer 'reasonably' with her pre-charge, than it is of secret pre-charge plea deals for wealthy defendants, even though it's now common practice for them to seek the best plea deal in advance of indictment," Hull continued. "The Majority's new blanket restriction eviscerates crime victims' CVRA rights and makes the Epstein case a poster-child for an entirely different justice system for crime victims of wealthy defendants."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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| Haftar forces pound Libya capital after losing towns Posted: 14 Apr 2020 12:37 AM PDT  The forces of Libyan military strongman Khalifa Haftar rained rockets on the capital Tripoli early Tuesday after being ousted by government loyalists from a string of towns to its west. Salvo after salvo of rockets caused loud explosions throughout the night, AFP correspondents reported. Several homes were hit around Mitiga airbase in the eastern suburbs, the capital's sole if intermittently functioning airport.
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| North Korea Fires Missile Barrage Ahead of South Korea Election Posted: 14 Apr 2020 01:34 AM PDT |
| A cluster of coronavirus cases linked to two McDonald's locations sickens at least 12 people Posted: 15 Apr 2020 07:06 AM PDT  At least a dozen people caught COVID-19 from a localized outbreak linked to two McDonald's locations in Hawaii.
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| Mexico lacks health care workers, but turns applicants away Posted: 14 Apr 2020 04:46 PM PDT  Mexico has announced an urgent campaign to recruit medical workers for the coronavirus pandemic, but the effort sometimes lacked coordination. A long line of applicants formed at a recruitment center in Mexico City on Tuesday, but an employee came out and announced that no more applications were being taken. Experts have estimated Mexico is short thousands of workers, from nurses to specialized doctors.
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| It’s Time to Rectify Taiwan’s Shameful Treatment on the International Stage Posted: 14 Apr 2020 09:56 AM PDT  'Will the WHO reconsider Taiwan's membership?" The question — asked by Radio Television Hong Kong's Yvonne Tong — caused Dr. Bruce Aylward, a senior advisor to the Director-General of the World Health Organization (WHO) and a leader in its response to the coronavirus, to put on quite the show. Initially, Aylward feigned as if he had not heard. When Tong offered to repeat her query, Aylward insisted it was "OK" and suggested that they "move on to another one." For a third time, Tong pressed the issue, only to have Aylward reach forward and hang up on the stunned journalist. In a follow-up call, Tong again raised the topic of Taiwan. Aylward demurred that they had already discussed "China."Incidents like this one clarify the corrupting threat that the People's Republic of China (PRC) represents to international institutions — to say nothing of its threat to the United States and to the broader project of human freedom and flourishing. The PRC's population of nearly one and half billion people, and the control that the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) exerts over that population, afford it significant economic leverage that it uses to bully feckless individuals, organizations, and nation-states into ignoring and even defending its atrocious record on human rights and indefensible postures toward Hong Kong and Taiwan.Even in the U.S. — the PRC's chief competitor both economically and ideologically — we have borne witness to this frightening power. When Daryl Morey, the general manager of the NBA's Houston Rockets, tweeted out a message of support for Hong Kong's protesters last October, the league issued a statement condemning Morey's tweet as "regrettable" and "offensive." Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James blathered on about Morey and the public's need to be better "educated." Golden State Warriors coach Steve Kerr chastised Americans for worrying about China while gun violence remained an issue in the U.S.This inclination of international and American institutions to cower in the face of the PRC's economic power is unnerving. As it continues to flex its geopolitical muscles, crack down on protesters in Hong Kong, and commit an appalling cultural genocide against the Uyghurs in the province of Xinjiang, the prospect of anyone's standing up to the PRC seems decreasingly likely, even as the repercussions of acquiescence become increasingly apparent in light of the coronavirus pandemic. Recently, apologists have taken to praising the PRC for its global leadership in combating the coronavirus instead of shining a spotlight on how its deception led to the pandemic's proliferation.But the U.S. can work to reverse this trend with an important symbolic measure: recognizing that Taiwan is and ought to be a free and independent state. This would be a fitting move for President Trump to make. He ran for office as a China hawk, denouncing past administrations for allowing the PRC to bully us in the international marketplace, steal our intellectual property, and endanger American jobs. But recognizing Taiwan would represent an even more important stand: a moral one.Taiwan, the small island off the southern coast of the PRC to which Chiang Kai-shek and his followers fled after their defeat in the Chinese Civil War, has turned into a model of democracy, freedom, and human flourishing. It has its own distinct culture and does not consider itself subject to President Xi Jinping's will or state-imposed Thought. Without the CCP running the show, Taiwan has thrived economically. As one of the four "Asian Tigers," it has achieved a GDP per capita of over $25,000 USD. The PRC manages to crack just $10,000. Its people enjoy broad free-speech rights and are not persecuted for the practice of their respective religions. In other words, it is not the PRC, and the time has come to dispel the fiction that Taiwan belongs to it.President-elect Trump took a step in this direction when he accepted a phone call from Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen in December 2016. The decision was criticized sharply by many in the foreign-policy establishment as a breach of protocol and a break with the U.S.'s "One China Policy." For those of us horrified by the world's persistent acquiescence to the PRC, it was a breath of fresh air. Today, with the brutality of Xi Jinping's regime made plain by its treatment of the Uyghurs and Hong Kong protesters, and the dangers of its long reach laid bare by the coronavirus crisis and the WHO's pathetic efforts to cover for the PRC's role in its spread, the time has come to take the next step. While the U.S. can and should continue to reprimand the Chinese for their actions in Xinjiang and Hong Kong, these lectures do little to deter the PRC, or inspire anyone to stand up to it. Recognizing Taiwan while still acknowledging the PRC's claim to the mainland, on the other hand, would represent a significant blow to the PRC and send a signal to the rest of the world that the days of pretending that the world is as the CCP says it is are over. Xi Jinping has said that Taiwan "must and will" be reunited with the PRC. The U.S. should say that it will remain an independent nation — and a beacon of hope to those suffering under authoritarian rule.Recognizing Taiwan would not come without assured consequences and the assumption of significant risks. The PRC would condemn the U.S. and attempt to use its economic power to get others around the globe to do the same. But the U.S is no stranger to being among a righteous remnant on issues of international importance — our hardline on Iran, support of Israel, etc. — and facing down the PRC and its influence would be the very point of such a move. Moreover, forecasts of graver ramifications, including the PRC's running away from the negotiating table on trade and intellectual property issues, becoming uncooperative in the effort to contain and control North Korea, or perhaps even taking military action against Taiwan are overstated. It is doubtful that the PRC will, in its current incarnation, truly commit either to denuclearizing the Korean Peninsula or to pursuing a reciprocal trade relationship with the U.S. as it is. And were the PRC — amidst a global pandemic of their own creation — to invade or lob missiles at Taiwan, it would bring about the end of its legitimacy and influence around the world. It is time to weigh the consequences of continuing to play ball with the CCP and allowing the world's geopolitical reality to be shaped by Xi Jinping the rest of his Politburo alongside the risks of recognizing Taiwan. If the most powerful man in the most powerful country on the face of the planet cannot speak truth to the PRC, nobody else will.Ronald Reagan, for all of his many successes, will forever be known best for his call to tear down the Berlin Wall. In Taiwan, President Trump has an opportunity to be remembered as the world leader who finally said "enough" to the PRC, and galvanized those who enable it to do the same. He should take it.
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