| 'People aren't looking for revolution': Biden takes shot at Sanders after blowout win in South Carolina Posted: 01 Mar 2020 08:23 AM PST  Joe Biden took a victory lap on the Sunday talk shows after a decisive win in the South Carolina Democratic primary.
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| 'Thank you, God': Trump revels in reign as absolute king of CPAC Posted: 29 Feb 2020 03:16 PM PST  At the grassroots conservative gathering after fronting a coronavirus briefing, the president was back in his happy placeStop Donald Trump now, Democrats warned at his impeachment trial, or will he take on the aspect of a king.The prophecy appears to have been borne out, as the US president hands out jobs to loyalists, purges perceived enemies, pardons convicted criminals and swaggers as if with a divine right.On Saturday, addressing the biggest annual gathering of US grassroots conservatives, Trump wondered aloud at it being "sort of a miracle" he has got so much done despite all he's been through."Maybe it's right there, right?" he asked, pointing to the heavens. "Thank you, God."The crowd loved it. Trump stayed away from a sceptical Conservative Political Action Conference in 2016 but now he is its sun king. Supporters in a palatial ballroom at the National Harbour leaped to their feet, whooping and cheering, many wearing "Make America great again" and "Keep America great" caps.> They're coming after me, and we fight them back> > Donald TrumpThey roared their approval when, like a medieval monarch who has survived a bloody insurrection, Trump vowed revenge."They're coming after me and we fight them back," he said. "And now we're going after them because we have no choice. We have to straighten out our country. But despite the best efforts of the leftwing fanatics, their scams, schemes, slanders, they've all been discredited, totally discredited."He singled out James Comey, whom he fired as director of the FBI, and special counsel Robert Mueller, who led the Russia investigation, as enemies whose heads deserved to end up on metaphorical spikes."How is Comey doing?" he asked, sardonically. "How is Bob Mueller doing? That was a great performance in Congress. 'Raise your right hand.' 'What?'"There was also mention of the Utah senator Mitt Romney, who voted to convict Trump at the impeachment trial and, like a rebellious duke, was banished from CPAC this year. Trump described Romney as "lowlife" and the crowd booed lustily.The president also spoke ominously of getting rid of bad people in government who are "not people that love our country" and launched a familiar tirade against the "fake news" media.He gave little sign that he is worried about the democratic inconvenience of an election in November. Just a couple of hours after trying to muster gravitas in the White House briefing room while discussing the coronavirus, he reverted to the comfort zone of freewheeling rally style.He took delight in mocking each of his Democratic rivals."We've got Sleepy Joe [Biden], we've got Crazy Bernie [Sanders], we've got Mini Mike [Bloomberg] but I think he's out of it," he said. "That was probably the worst debate performance in the history of presidential debates."It just shows you can't buy an election. I mean, there's a point at which people say, 'You gotta bring the goods a little bit, too.'"Trump parodied Bloomberg's height by crouching behind the lectern and the crowd went wild, laughing ecstatically and chanting: "Four more years! Four more years!"The president said: "We hit a nerve!"He also took a swipe at Biden, the former vice-president, for a gaffe in a recent debate: "Did he just say that we killed 150 million people? That's half of our population."Trump even held an instant poll by asking the audience to "scream" for whether he would beat Biden or Sanders more easily. There was a significant scream for Biden but a much louder and sustained one for the democratic socialist senator from Vermont.Trump suggested Biden would be "sitting in a home" for the elderly rather than governing, whereas Sanders might be a communist. That chimed with the conference's theme: "America vs socialism".Of the Democrats, Trump warned darkly: "They want to take away your money, take away your choice, take away your speech, take away your guns, take away your religion, take away your history, take away your future and ultimately take away your freedom. But we will never let them do that."In a characteristically rambling monologue, he seemed genuinely unable to comprehend how teenage climate activist Greta Thunberg beat him to the precious title of Time magazine person of the year.But he finished his speech by hugging and kissing the flag – a familiar move which elicited a huge cheer from his devoted subjects.For them, and for Trump's loyal courtiers at the White House and on Capitol Hill, it is a case of long live the king.
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| Putin proposes to enshrine God, heterosexual marriage in constitution Posted: 02 Mar 2020 08:36 AM PST  Russian President Vladimir Putin has submitted to parliament a number of constitutional changes, including amendments that mention God and stipulate that marriage is a union of a man and woman. Shortly afterwards, the lower house unanimously approved the constitutional reform bill in a first reading after less than two hours of debate. Ahead of a second and key reading set for next week, Putin submitted 24 pages worth of new proposals, said State Duma Speaker Vyacheslav Volodin.
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| Embattled Chris Matthews Left Out of MSNBC’s S.C. Primary Coverage Posted: 29 Feb 2020 05:39 PM PST  A day after he was accused of sexual harassment by a journalist, MSNBC decided to keep host Chris Matthews off its airwaves during coverage of the South Carolina primary results.Matthews is normally a fixture of election night coverage, which made his absence on Saturday all the more notable. His disappearing act came as MSNBC faced calls from a feminist organization to fire him because of sexism and sexual misconduct allegations—after raised eyebrows over other on-air remarks.A week ago, Matthews likened Sen Bernie Sanders' (I-VT) victory in the Nevada caucuses to France falling to the Nazis in World War II. He apologized to Sanders—who is Jewish and whose family lost members in the Holocaust—but quickly shoved his foot in his mouth again.Laura Bassett Accuses MSNBC Host Chris Matthews of Sexually Harassing Her in 2016After Tuesday's Democratic debate, Matthews pressed Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) about why she confronted former New York City mayor Mike Bloomberg about accusations of sexist behavior in his past, including an allegation he told a pregnant employee to "kill it.""Why would he lie?" Matthews said of Bloomberg's denial. "Because just to protect himself?"Then, on Friday, columnist Laura Bassett wrote in a GQ article that Matthews harassed her in 2016, looking her over while she was getting her makeup done for an appearance and remarking, "Why haven't I fallen in love with you yet?"'Senator Sanders, I'm Sorry': Chris Matthews Apologizes for Nazi AnalogyBassett said Matthews continued to comment on her appearance, at one point telling the makeup artist, "Make sure you wipe this off her face after the show. We don't make her up so some guy at a bar can look at her like this."It was reported in late 2017 that NBC had paid separation compensation to a producer who accused Matthews of sexually harassing her. The network claimed at the time that the host had been "formally reprimanded" over the incident.On Friday night, Matthews had another cringe-worthy moment. While covering President Donald Trump's South Carolina rally, he mistook South Carolina Democratic Senate candidate Jaime Harrison with footage of another black politician, Tim Scott (R-S.C.).MSNBC did not immediately return a request for comment.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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| Turkey shoots down Syrian warplanes, kills hundreds of government forces Posted: 02 Mar 2020 03:05 AM PST  Turkey shot down two Syrian Su-24 fighter jets and struck several bases deep in Syrian government territory, killing hundreds of Syrian forces and destroying armaments, Turkey's Defense Ministry said, calling the attacks retaliation for airstrikes that killed 36 Turkish soldiers on Thursday. Defense Minister Hulusi Akar said Turkey has killed 2,200 Syrian troops and destroyed significant amounts of heavy weaponry and armaments since the conflict between Syria and Turkey escalated in the past few days. Danny Makki, a Syrian analyst, put the number of Syrian troops killed in the hundreds.Turkey's offensive appears to have erased or at least stopped Syria's recent push to recapture the last opposition strongholds in Idlib province, The Washington Post reports. "Russia, Syria's most important ally, refrained from intervening on its behalf for the first time since the Idlib fighting first erupted last year, suggesting an unwillingness by Moscow to allow the spiraling confrontation between Turkey and Syria to jeopardize its relationship with Ankara or to escalate into a wider conflict with an important NATO member." The U.S., Turkey's ally, also has troops in eastern Syria.Turkey has repeatedly warned Syria and its allies to stop their march toward the Turkish border, sending waves of refugees into Turkey in what the United Nations has deemed one of the worst humanitarian crises of the nine-year-old Syrian war. Turkey has opened its northern border, allowing refugees to pass on to Europe. In return, Greece sealed its border, trapping hundreds of refugees in a no-man's land."Over the past few days, Russia has done nothing in the face of an offensive that is rapidly destroying the capabilities of the Syrian army," Makki told the Post. "Russia's central interests in Syria have been secured, whether political or economic, so Russia has nothing to gain by entering into an awkward and bloody confrontation with Turkey, which is a member of NATO."More stories from theweek.com It's not 1972 and Bernie Sanders isn't George McGovern Coronavirus might be the end of international travel as we know it It's 2020 and women are exhausted
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| South Korea sect leader wears controversial watch during virus apology Posted: 02 Mar 2020 07:06 AM PST  When the leader of a South Korean religious sect knelt before the nation on Monday, he had hoped to defuse public anger over his church's role in spreading the coronavirus.
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| Navy is overhauling education system as US advantages erode Posted: 01 Mar 2020 10:15 PM PST  The U.S. Navy is overhauling its approach to education because the nation no longer has a massive economic and technological edge over potential adversaries, according to a strategy it is releasing Monday. The Education for Seapower Strategy 2020, provided to The Associated Press ahead of its release, is the first unified, comprehensive education strategy for the Navy and Marine Corps, said John Kroger, who is implementing the strategy as the Navy's first chief learning officer. It is very much a response to the nation's geopolitical position in the world today, versus the advantages it had at the end of the Cold War, Kroger said, noting China's economic strength and investments in 5G networks, energy storage and other major technologies that matter for war-fighting.
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| A member of the inner circle of Iran's Supreme Leader died of the coronavirus, as the country records more deaths than anywhere outside China Posted: 02 Mar 2020 02:41 AM PST  Iran is accused of hiding the true number of coronavirus cases. Some researchers estimate there could be 23 times more infections than stated.
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| Coronavirus patient's dog tests positive for COVID-19 but still unclear if it's infected Posted: 29 Feb 2020 12:27 PM PST  The pet dog of a coronavirus patient in Hong Kong tested "weak" positive for COVID-19, a spokesman said Friday.
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| Biden's South Carolina win gives me hope that Democrats will reject Sanders and beat Trump Posted: 02 Mar 2020 10:48 AM PST  Just days ago Sanders seemed unstoppable. I can't overstate how scary that was for many Democrats. We would see a second Trump term as a catastrophe.
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| Waste of Time: Trump Wants to Cut Taxes to Battle the Coronavirus. Posted: 29 Feb 2020 06:21 PM PST  Simply put, coronavirus's impact on the economy is both a consumer confidence issue, as well as a supply-chain and labour-supply issue, which cannot be fixed by any policy.
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| Conservative News Giant Newsmax Is Funding a Super PAC for Its Publisher’s GOP Senate Ally Posted: 02 Mar 2020 07:01 AM PST  As the competitive Maine Senate race heated up last summer, the conservative news outlet Newsmax blared a warning to its audience: Democratic moneymen were pouring cash into an effort to flip one of Republicans' most endangered Senate seats."Progressive big-money donors are stepping up their crusade against centrist Sen. Susan Collins," Newsmax senior editor David Patten wrote. "Advertising Analytics reports none of the $1.3 million spent on the Senate race so far has come from Republican sources." Collins' Senate campaign quickly promoted the piece on its own website.Exactly one week later, Newsmax took steps to even the odds. The company donated $50,000 to 1820 PAC, a deep-pocketed super PAC linked to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce supporting Collins' re-election. It was just the fifth time the company had donated directly to a federal political committee, and the first time it had done so since 2015. And it was by far Newsmax's largest-ever donation.Days after the donation, Patten wrote another story relaying allegations of election law violations by Collins' Democratic opponent, Maine State House Speaker Sara Gideon. The following month, Newsmax ran a story touting Collins' lead in the polls—and reporting on a new 1820 PAC ad supporting her. Neither of those articles disclosed the news outlet's donation to the group, nor has any article on the Maine Senate race in the ensuing months.Newsmax is among the web's most popular right-of-center news outlets, boasting about 3.7 million unique visitors in January, according to web analytics service ComScore. It also runs a cable-news channel that the company claims reaches 100 million homes. Newsmax founder and publisher Christopher Ruddy is a friend and acquaintance of President Donald Trump, and is known to frequent the president's Mar-a-Lago club, a short drive from the Newsmax headquarters in Boca Raton.The company has made some high-profile hires in the Trump era, including bringing on former Fox News news executive Michael Clemente as CEO in 2018 (Clemente stepped down after about a year, but still consults for the company). Most recently, Newsmax hired former White House press secretary Sean Spicer to host a weekday news and opinion show. Its regular guests include prominent names such as former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, disgraced former Fox News primetime host Bill O'Reilly, and far-right columnist Michelle Malkin.Newsmax does not hide its conservative leanings. But its five-figure donation to 1820 PAC in August crossed a line from ideologically driven coverage of politics and current events into outright and quantifiable support for an explicit partisan outfit. It's the most apparent illustration to date of the overt politicization of a news organization where, according to a former anchor for the outlet, executives micromanage and tailor news coverage to fit a political agenda."Newsmax tightly controls its on-air and website content to cater to its conservative viewing audience. Executives at are intimately involved in selecting the topics of news stories and how they are covered," alleged Miranda Khan, a former Newsmax TV host, in a lawsuit filed last year. "Prior to joining Newsmax, [Khan] had substantial on-camera experience, particularly in the news industry," the lawsuit added. She said she "had never experienced the level of control she experienced at Newsmax."The lawsuit was settled before Newsmax officially responded to those allegations. Khan declined to comment on her allegations, which have not been previously reported.Ruddy did not respond to inquiries about the allegations, or the ethical issues raised by its political contributions.Ruddy himself is a longtime Collins supporter. "Throughout Susan Collins' 21-year career as a U.S. senator, the Maine Republican has faced criticism from both sides of the aisle, but has always come out with her head held high and her principles intact," he wrote in a glowing opinion column in 2018.That column is now featured on the homepage of 1820 PAC's website. Of the six news items posted in the site's "news" section, three are Newsmax stories or columns.Ruddy has also supported Collins financially ahead of her 2020 re-election fight. He has made just two federal political contributions this cycle: $2,500 to Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC), and $5,200 to the Collins Victory Committee, a joint fundraising committee that dispersed the money to Collins' campaign and her leadership PAC. The transfers to her campaign came in June, shortly before Newsmax chipped in to 1820 PAC.It's common for large media companies' political action committees to donate to congressional candidates. But that political giving is usually spread among dozens of recipients of both parties, and generally aligns more with the business interests of parent companies such as News Corp, CBS Entertainment Group, or Disney than with the editorial positions of its news properties.That giving is also almost uniformly done by way of the parent companies' PACs, not by the companies themselves. Corporations can't donate to political candidates directly, but they can set up PACs, generally funded by their employees, that can give up to $5,000 per election cycle to federal political candidates.Corporations can also donate unlimited sums directly to super PACs. But it's extremely rare for a media company to so heavily fund such a group set up for the express purpose of electing a single political candidate. Newsmax's donation to 1820 PAC is all the more noteworthy due to its alignment with the political activity of Ruddy, the company's top executive, and the company's simultaneous promotion of Collins' candidacy through its regular coverage of the Maine Senate race. The contribution also came just months after Khan recounted Newsmax executives' meddling in the company's news coverage.Newsmax has in the past scrutinized and been critical of political donations by journalists and media executives that could be seen as conflicts of interest. When it was revealed during the 2016 presidential campaign that ABC News anchor George Stephanopoulos had donated $75,000 to the Clinton Foundation, Newsmax's print and TV arms ran a number of stories relaying allegations of a breach of journalistic ethics. None mentioned Newsmax's own $1-million financial pledge to the foundation."WikiLeaks email revelations from Hillary Clinton's campaign chairman John Podesta," a Newsmax columnist wrote the following year, "show that not only is there a deep connection with the media—reporters, opinion writers, and news anchors—but it also reaches as high as the corporate executive suite."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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| Taliban end partial truce as Afghan violence resumes Posted: 02 Mar 2020 09:58 AM PST  A deadly blast shattered a period of relative calm in Afghanistan on Monday and the Taliban ordered fighters to resume operations against Afghan forces just two days after signing a deal to usher in peace. No group immediately claimed responsibility for the attack at a football ground in Khost in eastern Afghanistan, where three brothers were killed, officials told AFP. The blast occurred around the same time the Taliban ordered fighters to recommence attacks against Afghan army and police forces, apparently ending an official "reduction in violence" that had seen a dramatic drop in bloodshed and given Afghans a welcome taste of peace.
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| New virus hits Mideast airlines with $100M loss, group says Posted: 02 Mar 2020 04:38 AM PST  Major travel disruptions due to the new coronavirus have already caused the equivalent of a roughly $100 million loss to airlines in the Middle East, which serves as a connection hub for east-west travel, the industry's main trade association said Monday. The Persian Gulf city of Dubai, which is home to the world's busiest airport for international travel, relies heavily on tourism and aviation. The United Arab Emirates has cancelled all flights to Iran, as have other Gulf countries.
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| Did You Know Your Battery Can Explode If Not Recycled Properly? Posted: 02 Mar 2020 08:47 AM PST |
| Jimmy Carter: Buttigieg "doesn't know what he's going to do" after South Carolina Posted: 01 Mar 2020 10:51 AM PST  Buttigieg said South Carolina was a "convincing" victory for former Vice President Joe Biden.
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| Billionaire Tom Steyer drops out of presidential race Posted: 29 Feb 2020 06:23 PM PST  The former hedge fund manager ended his campaign after a disappointing finish in South Carolina and after spending more than $250 million of his own money.
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| A dire phase of the coronavirus outbreak? 'Boom' of US cases 'should be expected' as global death toll tops 3,000 Posted: 02 Mar 2020 05:33 AM PST  A Seattle scientist estimates that a "few hundred" residents of Washington state alone may already have been infected with the deadly new coronavirus.
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| A CDC lab is said to be under investigation after contamination fears, another sign the US botched its rollout of coronavirus testing kits Posted: 02 Mar 2020 03:39 AM PST  An FDA official raised the alarm about possible contamination in the lab, where there had been a "manufacturing issue," Axios reported.
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| Taliban say will resume operations against Afghan forces Posted: 02 Mar 2020 05:28 AM PST The Taliban said Monday they were resuming offensive operations against Afghan security forces, ending the partial truce that preceded the signing of a deal between the insurgents and Washington. The declaration comes only a day after President Ashraf Ghani said he would continue the partial truce at least until talks between Afghan officials and the Taliban kick-off, supposedly on March 10. "The reduction in violence... has ended now and our operations will continue as normal," Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid told AFP.
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| 7 Examples of Centuries-Old Design That Combat Climate Change Posted: 02 Mar 2020 09:00 AM PST |
| Friends say Tijuana woman was stalked even after death Posted: 01 Mar 2020 09:04 PM PST  The man was obsessed with Marbella Valdez. The man — identified by Mexican rules only by his first name, Juan — has insisted on his innocence. Authorities in the border state of Baja California confirmed that the suspect is the man seen in photographs depositing flowers on Marbella's coffin as it was lowered into the ground on Feb. 14.
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| John Roberts is the Supreme Court's new middle. Here's what that means for abortion. Posted: 02 Mar 2020 01:30 AM PST  The question of whether or not the court will respect precedent is a big one.
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| South Korea’s Creepy Coronavirus Cellphone Alerts are Useful, But They May Be TMI Posted: 02 Mar 2020 02:49 AM PST  SEOUL–In high-tech South Korean society millions of mobile phones are beeping at once with the disturbing words "Emergency Alert."In the midst of a medical crisis that refuses to go away, the messages are more than urgent warnings to wash hands and avoid crowds. They offer details tailored to the city, the ward, the place where the latest patient is known to have been. This as as the number of those suffering from COVID-19 soared to nearly 4,000 and the 20th death was reported Sunday.Coronavirus Spread by a Second Coming 'Cult' Has Put South Korea on 'Maximum Alert'One example: In Dongdaemun, an historic part of Seoul normally seething with shoppers and diners we suddenly learn one person with the virus "visited the Jung-yuk Restaurant between 7 and 9 p.m. on 29 February. We sanitized the place at 3:50 p.m., 1 March, and closed the restaurant." Anyone with a mobile phone is getting dozens of alerts like that, even as a deathly calm has settled over cities and towns.March 1 is a big day in South Korea. This was the 101st anniversary of a revolt against Japanese rule in 1919, and crowds normally fill the broad streets and parks to mark the occasion, but the only sign of the observance this year was a televised appearance by President Moon Jae-in, who spent much of his time parrying criticism of the way he's handled the novel coronavirus outbreak."All the people will come together and overcome even today's crisis," Moon said at a ceremony in a girl's high school, but the words were hardly reassuring as the alerts poured in."Moon is too kind to China," said Choi Tae-hyun, an opposition politico. "He should have stopped the Chinese from coming here." Then Choi clicked on his mobile as more messages flashed on the screen:In Incheon, the port city west of Seoul where Choi has been campaigning for a seat in the National Assembly, the local government confirmed another patient. "Do not go to public events," the message implored. "Please wear face masks."Another message, from central Seoul, offered still more detail. "We have confirmed a patient from another ward went to Jigae Restaurant," it said. "This person visited between 9:30 and 11:00 pm. We sanitized the area, and the restaurant closed." The message concluded, "If you visited this restaurant, please contact the ward office." Although most of the cases reported so far have been in the city of Daegu and the nearby town of Cheongdo, where the first deaths were reported in a local hospital, the fear is the disease can spread around the country as it did in China after the first outbreak in the industrial city of Wuhan. As reports pop up on mobile screens, the sense is the virus might strike anywhere, indiscriminately, in defiance of efforts to contain it. In Seongbuk ward, where billionaires and millionaires live in splendid isolation on a twisting road in the hills of northern Seoul, "One case is confirmed," said an alert. The bulletin did not say where but urged, "If you have any fever or respiratory illness, contact our office." On the southern fringe of the capital, in a town named Kwacheon, shared by several government ministries and a prison, "a woman in her 50s is confined as a patient," said an alert. "She is a worker in the ward office." For those wanting to know where she had been, the message advised, "her whereabouts can be traced on our home page." The technical efficiency and cold crispness of the messages fueled rising resentment of Moon and the people around him. "Merchants are angry," said Shim Jae-hoon, a writer who grew up in Daegu but has lived in Seoul for years. "They are attacking the government for misleading them into believing this virus would be over in a few days." In his call for unity Moon did not mention China, but his eagerness to get along with South Korea's biggest trading partner keeps coming up, and is turning into a political liability. "He should have closed the border against China," said Shim. "Instead he opened the door." It was from China that members of the Shincheonji cult, which claims 210,000 adherents around the country, are assumed to have caught the bug while visiting fellow church members in Wuhan. North Korea's Secret Coronavirus Crisis is Crazy ScaryNow, as once huge numbers of Chinese tourists are gone, about 10,000 young Chinese are due to return to university campuses here after their spring break. The students may stay away while the government here, as in China and Japan, suspends classes, but some conservatives are calling for keeping them out much longer.In Daegu, Hwang Kyo-ahn, who was prime minister and acting president before Moon's victory in the snap election three years ago, promised during a tour of the ancient central market to set matters straight. "I will do my best to get things done as soon as possible," Hwang, wearing a black face-mask, told a scrum of journalists pursuing him past thousands of shuttered shops and dining places. The inference was clear—Moon and his government have failed. And every alert on the phone just drives that point home.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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| Adviser to Iran's supreme leader dies from coronavirus Posted: 02 Mar 2020 04:24 AM PST  A member of a council that advises Iran's supreme leader died Monday after falling ill due to the new coronavirus, state radio reported, becoming the first top official to succumb to the disease that is affecting members of the Islamic Republic's leadership.
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| Super Tuesday: A state-by-state guide to the frontrunners, issues and prizes at stake Posted: 02 Mar 2020 04:35 AM PST  It is now just days away.No matter the outcome, the Super Tuesday Democratic primary elections will be a turning point in the race to determine which candidate will face Donald Trump in November. This year, 14 states will vote on Super Tuesday, including the nation's most populous states, California and Texas. Of crucial importance, we will see the impact of former New York mayor Michael Bloomberg's non-traditional, self-funded run, that has seen him invest up to $400m to win support in many of the states voting on Super Tuesday.
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| People turn backs on Mike Bloomberg at Bloody Sunday church service in Selma Posted: 01 Mar 2020 02:04 PM PST  Protesters said stop-and-frisk policies in New York City were the same as the brutal tactics used by the police 55 years ago * John Lewis joins presidential hopefuls on Bloody Sunday march * 55 years after Bloody Sunday, concern rises over voting rightsMike Bloomberg faced a small but tense protest at the historic Brown Chapel in Selma, Alabama, on Sunday, a handful of people standing and turning their backs on the former New York mayor as he spoke from the pulpit.Even before Bloomberg began speaking, it was clear his presence at the black church, which was the epicenter of the civil rights movement in Selma, was controversial.series boxPastor Leodis Strong prefaced the mayor's speech by saying that when he first invited Bloomberg, he rebuffed the invitation only to later change his mind."It shows a willingness on his part to change," Strong said, adding that he wanted Bloomberg to come to Selma to listen to people.But several in the audience could be heard whispering in contempt – referencing the stop-and-frisk policing policy he pursued in New York and his immense wealth.One of the people who turned his back to the mayor was Ryan Haygood, president and chief executive of the New Jersey Institute for Social Justice.As Bloomberg spoke, Haygood said, he thought about the kind of police brutality the civil rights organizers faced in the chapel 55 years ago as they protested for equal voting rights.Bloomberg, Haygood said, presided over the same kind of tactics as mayor of New York. As he realized the Democratic candidate was not planning to address that issue, Haygood said, he decided to turn his back."I thought this would be the place where he could finally say once and for all, 'Let me own what I did, let me atone for it,'" Haygood said. "He didn't even touch it which is more disrespectful. And some of the foot soldiers were in the building, who were brutalized."Bloomberg, who apologized for stop-and-frisk in November, was one of several high-profile figures to attend a nearly four-hour service Sunday, including former vice-president Joe Biden, Massachusetts senator Elizabeth Warren and former Georgia gubernatorial candidate and voting rights campaigner Stacey Abrams.Biden and Warren were fresh off the South Carolina primary, which Biden won handily, confirming his strength with the black community.He earned a warm welcome at the chapel, where he spoke about the legacy of the civil rights movement and the need for healing in the face of division."When I get up in the morning sometimes I wonder whether it's 1920 or 2020," he said. "I'm serious, think about it."Biden evoked Barack Obama, congressman and civil rights veteran John Lewis and the importance of the church, which continues to be a key force in politics in Alabama. He also playfully suggested that Abrams, the keynote speaker who rose to national attention in 2018, could be president or vice-president to come.Abrams closed the service with a speech about voting rights in the south and her decision to fight for them through the Fair Fight 2020 campaign.
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| At least 50 killed in northern Nigeria 'bandit' attacks Posted: 02 Mar 2020 03:31 AM PST  At least 50 people were killed in multiple attacks by armed 'bandits' on villages in an area of northern Nigeria rife with cattle theft and kidnappings, local officials said Monday. Sources said around 100 armed assailants stormed into the villages of Kerawa, Zareyawa and Minda in Kaduna state at dawn on Sunday, gunning down worshippers as they left a mosque for morning prayers before killing residents, burning and looting homes. "So far 50 bodies have been recovered but the figure is not conclusive and is very likely to rise as rescue efforts are still under way," Zayyad Ibrahim, a lawmaker in the Nigerian parliament, told AFP on Monday.
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| How to stockpile healthy and nutritious food for a 14-day quarantine as coronavirus spreads across the US Posted: 01 Mar 2020 05:00 AM PST  Health officials have suggested there may be quarantines in the US as the coronavirus spreads. Here are recipes from frozen food and canned goods.
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| Putin Adds New Changes to Constitution, Wooing Traditionalists Posted: 02 Mar 2020 07:56 AM PST  (Bloomberg) -- The Kremlin added new amendments to the package of constitutional overhauls President Vladimir Putin made last month, appealing to issues likely to boost public support for a plan widely viewed as a bid by the Russian leader to extend his two-decade-old rule.An updated 24-page list of amendments submitted Monday includes a clause that classifies a marriage as a union of a man and a woman, said Pyotr Tolstoy, deputy speaker of the lower house of parliament, official news agencies reported. The changes also introduce a mention of God, describe Russia as a successor state to the Soviet Union and bar ceding any Russian territory except for border delimitations or criticizing Moscow's role in the Second World War, state media reported.The State Duma, the lower chamber, unanimously approved the initial proposals just days after Putin unveiled them in a surprise announcement in January. The revised plan including the latest changes is scheduled for final votes in the Duma on March 10 and 11, and to a nationwide ballot on April 22.The original amendments, the most dramatic since the constitution was adopted in 1993, would reduce the power of the presidency, giving somewhat more authority to the parliament and strengthening the State Council, now a largely ceremonial body. The overhaul could create options for Putin to retain control after his current term -- his last under constitutional limits -- ends in 2024.The traditionalist-appealing measures such as safeguarding the sanctity of heterosexual marriage are "needed to ensure as many people as possible come to vote," said Alexei Makarkin, deputy director of the Center for Political Technologies in Moscow. "But the other amendments are more important -- they're about the division of power."So far, the Kremlin's efforts to drum up public enthusiasm for the proposals have met limited success. A poll released last week by the independent Levada Center said only 25% of Russians were ready to support the plan, while 10% said they would vote against it and another 37% hadn't made up their minds. Another 23% said they wouldn't participate. The proposals need to win a majority to take effect, according to the Kremlin plan.To contact the reporters on this story: Henry Meyer in Moscow at hmeyer4@bloomberg.net;Stepan Kravchenko in Moscow at skravchenko@bloomberg.netTo contact the editor responsible for this story: Gregory L. White at gwhite64@bloomberg.netFor 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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| Making travel plans? How coronavirus fear is spreading and putting trips in limbo Posted: 02 Mar 2020 10:37 AM PST  What are people doing in the face of unprecedented coronavirus travel anxiety? Some are canceling or modifying trips, and others are forging ahead.
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| Pakistan's largest city shuts schools for two weeks over virus fears Posted: 02 Mar 2020 03:06 AM PST  Pakistan's southern province of Sindh extended the closure of all educational institutions following the confirmation of a second coronavirus case in Karachi, the country's largest city. Pakistan has confirmed four cases of coronavirus, three of them involving people who had traveled to neighboring Iran, one of the countries hardest hit by the outbreak that began in China in December. While two of the confirmed cased were in the southern port city of Karachi, the other two were in the capital Islamabad.
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| Las Vegas casinos brace for loss of Chinese tourism as coronavirus spreads Posted: 02 Mar 2020 09:30 AM PST  American casino companies warned that the coronavirus outbreak could affect their Las Vegas properties, which draw high rollers and tourists from China.
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| Supreme Court Agrees to Hear Case on Whether Obamacare Is Unconstitutional Posted: 02 Mar 2020 07:58 AM PST  The Supreme Court announced Monday that it would hear a GOP-led effort against Obamacare, with opening arguments likely slated for the fall after the justices initially decided against fast-tracking a ruling.Obamacare came under threat in December when the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled in a 2-1 vote that the individual mandate, which required Americans to buy health insurance under threat of fine, was unconstitutional. But the court kicked the rest of the case back down to Texas district judge Reed O'Connor, who initially decided that the individual mandate was unconstitutional in December 2018."It may still be that none of the ACA is severable from the individual mandate, even after this inquiry is concluded," Judge Jennifer Walker Elrod said in her majority opinion. "It may be that all of the ACA is severable from the individual mandate. It may also be that some of the ACA is severable from the individual mandate, and some is not."The Democratic states and the House, which are leading the defense of the 2010 healthcare statute, intervened and asked the Supreme Court to intervene and fast-track a decision by June, which it turned down. But the Court's decision to hear the case on a regular track is still unusual, as the case has yet to be fully considered by O'Conner.The Trump administration had urged in its brief for the Court to wait for a lower-court decision. "Immediate review is unwarranted in the case's present posture," it wrote, "because the court of appeals did not definitively resolve any question of practical consequence."Texas and 17 other Republican-led states sued in 2017 after the GOP-led Congress cut the tax penalty for those who lacked insurance to zero — rendering the individual mandate effectively over, and attorney general William Barr expanded the suit this year to argue that the entire law should be found unconstitutional.
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| Bernie Worked Hard to Win Over Black Voters. Here's Why They Stuck With Joe. Posted: 29 Feb 2020 07:55 PM PST  Former Vice President Joe Biden's landslide victory in South Carolina demonstrated that Sen. Bernie Sanders' earnest and substantive efforts to court black voters since 2016 were no match for a decades-long intimate political relationship with the community—for now.From the moment Biden launched his candidacy in 2019 he's banked his fortunes in the Democratic primary on black voters and with good reason. African-Americans are the most influential bloc within the party's base, especially in the South where they dominate its ranks.In fact, all of the successful Democratic presidential contenders of the last half century—Carter, Clinton and Obama—had a natural or well-cultivated comfort within the African-American community.Time's Up for the Democrats Black Voters Just RejectedThe vice president has been roundly mocked for placing his relationship with President Obama at the center of his campaign. But the fact is the way Biden comported himself as Obama's VP did earn him a lot of goodwill within communities of color. And, the fact that Delaware, the state which Biden represented for decades—is more diverse than the stomping grounds of most of his Democratic rivals—has been mostly overlooked.Biden won in South Carolina by tapping into the qualities that made him appealing in the first place: his ability to make a genuine, human connection with voters (remember when politicians used to do that?) and the strength of his bonds with his fellow establishment pols (even Lindsey Graham adored Biden before he wasn't allowed to anymore).Veteran S.C. Rep. Jim Clyburn's pivotal endorsement said it all about the structural advantage Biden enters into in every primary state with a predominantly black population:"I know Joe. We know Joe. But most importantly, Joe knows us," Clyburn said.And Joe railroaded Anita Hill. And Joe wrote the crime bill. And Joe made up a story about being arrested protesting for civil rights alongside Nelson Mandela. And yet the Joe they know proved more appealing for most black voters in the state than the Bernie they don't.Biden cleaned house, earning over 60 percent of the African-American vote according to exit polls—a dynamic that suggests a familiar challenge ahead for Sanders.In 2016, his insurgent campaign against Sec. Hillary Clinton saw its momentum blunted repeatedly by her overwhelming support among African-Americans. Sanders very well may have won that nomination if he could only have drawn more black support.After licking his wounds, Sanders learned his lesson and did the hard work of establishing more of a sustained presence in black and brown political life. He dramatically diversified his campaign at the top and made inroads with younger, more progressive up-and-coming community leaders and politicians of color who tend to be more open to his ambitious agenda than more moderate, older African-Americans.For some time now, it appeared as though Sanders' work was paying off. He handily won Latinos and held his own with African-Americans in Nevada, the first truly diverse state to participate in the 2020 primary to date. And until recently, polls showed him surging in South Carolina, even threatening to take the lead.Pundits will have a field day trying to diagnose what went wrong for the 2020 frontrunner in South Carolina. Was it the Clyburn endorsement (which felt dramatic and inevitable at the same time)? The impact of the most prolonged attacks on Sanders by his competitors since the race began? Sanders continues to show strength with black voters under 40, which is more than can be said for Mayor Pete Buttigieg, Sen. Amy Klobuchar and arguably Sen. Elizabeth Warren, who have all garnered almost no support from African-Americans to date.Biden very well may have peaked on Saturday, or his win may be the beginning of something new—a two, maybe three-person race, featuring all white men aged 75 and up. It appears that the old white man who can make the best case to the black voters of the Democratic party will be the one who gets to face down Trump this November.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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| Vatican opens archive on pope's silence during Holocaust Posted: 02 Mar 2020 03:54 AM PST  Historians will begin combing the archives of the world's most contentious pope on Monday, hoping to glean why Pius XII stayed silent during the Nazi extermination of Jews in the Holocaust. More than 200 researchers have applied for permission to settle in one of the small studies of the Vatican Apostolic Archives to begin poring over millions of letters and documents the Vatican had kept under lock and key. The historic moment was preceded by decades of controversy and debate about why the pontiff, who headed the Catholic Church from 1939 until his death in 1958, never spoke out about the slaughter of six millions Jews in Nazi concentration camps across Europe.
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| 'They are starting to get more and more desperate': Greta Thunberg responds to a Canadian oil company accused of creating a vulgar cartoon depicting her in a non-consensual sex act Posted: 01 Mar 2020 06:57 AM PST  X-Site Energy Services has denied creating the vulgar sticker that shows 17-year-old Thunberg engaged in a non-consensual sexual act.
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| Pence says Trump Jr. 'justified' to claim Democrats hope coronavirus 'kills millions' Posted: 01 Mar 2020 09:37 PM PST  Last week, Donald Trump Jr. said Democrats hope the coronavirus "kills millions of people so that they could end Donald Trump's streak of winning."
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| Iran finds millions of hoarded gloves as coronavirus deaths hit 66 Posted: 02 Mar 2020 02:38 AM PST  Iranian authorities uncovered a stash of hoarded medical supplies including millions of gloves as deaths from its coronavirus epidemic hit 66 including a senior official. A World Health Organization (WHO) technical team flew into Tehran to help with the response in the country with the most deaths outside China, where the flu-like disease originated. Deputy Health Minister Alireza Raisi announced on state television 523 new infections and 12 new deaths, giving a total of 1,501 cases and 66 fatalities.
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| Map: Confirmed coronavirus cases, worldwide Posted: 01 Mar 2020 05:26 PM PST  More than 88,000 people have been sickened by a coronavirus, mostly in China. This map is updated daily.
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| Coronavirus quarantines in U.S. appear inevitable, doctor says Posted: 29 Feb 2020 08:33 PM PST  Agus said that making preparations would be simple, such as asking companies what their work from home policy would be, and being aware that children in the household may have to take school from home.
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| Pentagon looks to China in wake of Taliban peace deal Posted: 01 Mar 2020 03:26 PM PST  The Trump administration's peace deal with the Taliban opens the door for an initial American troop withdrawal that Defense Secretary Mark Esper sees as a step toward the broader goal of preparing for potential future war with China.
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| Can you vote for a candidate on Super Tuesday if they’ve already dropped out? Posted: 02 Mar 2020 07:47 AM PST  Less than a week before Super Tuesday, the crowded Democratic primary field suddenly shrank by two, as Tom Steyer and Pete Buttigieg decided to give up the ghost before suffering what they expected to be miserable defeats just days later.But their sudden departures raise a problem: with the states having already printed their ballots, many millions of Americans will still have a chance to vote for them.
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