| Epstein death: Prison officer 'removed from suicide watch night before billionaire paedophile died' Posted: 12 Aug 2019 04:22 AM PDT  Corrections officers had not checked in on financier and registered sex offender Jeffrey Epstein for "several" hours before he was found hanging in his cell Saturday, a person familiar with the matter said, just one in a series of missteps in the hours leading up to his death.Officers should have been checking on Epstein, who was being held in a special housing unit of the Metropolitan Correctional Center in New York City, every 30 minutes, and, under normal circumstances, he also should have had a cellmate, according to the person familiar with the matter and union officials representing facility employees.But a person who had been assigned to share a cell with Epstein was transferred on Friday, and - for reasons that investigators are still exploring - he did not receive a new one, the person familiar with the matter said Sunday night.That left Epstein, who had previously been placed on suicide watch, alone and unmonitored \- at least in the hours before his death - by even those officers assigned to guard him.The person familiar with the matter spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss the investigation.The revelations are sure to increase scrutiny of the Federal Bureau of Prisons and the Metropolitan Correctional Center, a high-rise facility in Manhattan where Epstein, 66, was found unresponsive in his cell Saturday while he was awaiting trial.He was facing federal charges alleging that he sexually abused dozens of girls in the early 2000s. After being found, he was taken to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead.The hanging, which authorities had classified initially as an "apparent suicide," triggered investigations of how such a high-profile inmate, who was supposed to have been carefully monitored, could have died in federal custody.It also caused outrage among his victims and their representatives, who had hoped that Epstein's trial next year would produce the justice they thought he had long evaded.The Federal Bureau of Prisons did not return repeated messages seeking a comment.Barbara Sampson, New York City's chief medical examiner, said her office conducted an autopsy of Epstein's body Sunday but had not yet reached a determination on cause of death, "pending further information."The medical examiner also allowed Michael Baden, a private pathologist, to observe the autopsy at the request of Epstein's representatives, Ms Sampson said.The two corrections officers assigned to watch the special unit in the detention centre where Epstein was being housed were working overtime - one forced to do so by management, the other for his fourth or fifth consecutive day, the president of the local union for staffers said.Serene Gregg, president of the American Federation of Government Employees Local 3148, said the Metropolitan Correctional Center in Manhattan is functioning with less than 70 percent of the needed correctional officers, forcing many to work mandatory overtime and 60- or 70-hour workweeks.She said one of the individuals assigned to watch Epstein's unit did not normally work as a correctional officer but, like others in roles such as counsellors and teachers, was able to do so. She declined to say which one or specify the person's regular role."If it wasn't Mr. Epstein, it would have been somebody else, because of the conditions at that institution," Ms Gregg said. "It wasn't a matter of how it happened or it happening, but it was only a matter of time for it to happen. It was inevitable. Our staff is severely overworked."Ms Gregg said she did not know details of the investigation into Epstein's death and declined to detail her discussions with those working that night.But she said she has long complained about understaffing at the facility, telling superiors, "It's only a matter of time before we have a loss of life." And in Epstein's case, she said, it was possible overwork of officers played a role."It's daunting, mentally, physically. I would feel confident in saying that some of that contributed to the unfortunate death of inmate Epstein," she said, clarifying later that she did not know with certainty whether workload played a role in the incident because she was not privy to details of the investigation.On Sunday, amid inquiries by the FBI, Justice Department's inspector general and New York City medical examiner, questions remained."It's our practice not to comment on ongoing investigations," said John Lavinsky, a spokesman for the Justice Department's inspector general.Epstein was not on suicide watch Saturday before he was found, but because he was held in the facility's special housing unit, he should have been checked on every 30 minutes, according to union officials and a person familiar with the investigation.A person familiar with the matter said that procedure was not being followed, at least according to preliminary information corrections officials gave investigators. Ms Gregg declined to comment on internal security procedures.It was also not clear how much, if any, of the incident or authorities' check-ins was captured on camera. E.O. Young, the national president of the Council of Prison Locals C-33, said that while cameras are prevalent in the facility, he did not believe they generally captured inmates' cells.The Federal Bureau of Prisons said Saturday that lifesaving measures were "initiated immediately" after Epstein was found, and then emergency responders were summoned.Epstein had been placed on suicide watch after a July 23 incident in which he was found in his cell with marks on his neck \- which subjected him to near constant monitoring and daily psychological evaluations, according to people familiar with the case.But he was taken off that about a week later and brought to the special housing unit, where there was a higher level of security, but not constant monitoring.Before the incident, Epstein had a cellmate: Nicholas Tartaglione, a former police officer in custody on murder and narcotics charges. But Mr Young, the national union president, said Epstein was in a cell alone immediately before his death.Mr Young said he was not certain why Epstein was in the cell alone, as the Bureau of Prisons has moved recently to make sure fewer inmates are housed on their own.He said there was some speculation after the July 23 incident that Epstein was trying to get away from Tartaglione, whom he feared, and he believed that - at least for a time - Epstein had another cellmate after coming off suicide watch.Mr Young asserted that in the facility's general population, Epstein also probably would have been a target, and that there was only so much officers could do to prevent him from harming himself.But Mr Young said, even in Epstein's case, correctional officers face a grim reality."We can't ever stop anyone who is persistent on killing themselves," Young said. "The only thing the bureau can do is delay that."Young said he and other officials had long been raising concerns as the Trump administration had imposed a hiring freeze and budget cuts on the Bureau of Prisons."All this was caused by the administration," Mr Young said.Spokesmen for the White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment. In congressional testimony earlier this year, Attorney General William Barr conceded that the bureau was "short" about 4,000 or 5,000 employees and said he had lifted the hiring freeze and was trying to ensure a steady pipeline of new officers to replace those who leave."I think this is an area where we have stumbled," Mr Barr said.Though Epstein's death will short-circuit his trial, the U.S. Attorney in Manhattan said Saturday that authorities were continuing to explore those who might have conspired with Epstein.The financier had a star-studded list of acquaintances and friends \- including former president Bill Clinton and President Donald Trump \- although investigators' focus in the past has been on the less-famous people who worked with Epstein and have been accused of helping procure girls for him.Epstein had pleaded guilty in 2008 to two state charges of soliciting prostitution to resolve similar sexual abuse allegations as part of an agreement that has been widely criticised as overly lenient.The deal allowed Epstein to spend just 13 months in jail and be released regularly for work, and it spared those who worked with him from prosecution.It was approved by Alex Acosta, who was then the US Attorney in Miami. Mr Acosta would go on to serve as labour secretary in the Trump administration but resigned from his post last month after federal prosecutors in New York charged Epstein, renewing questions about the earlier deal.The Washington Post
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| Saudi-led coalition launches strike after Aden 'coup' Posted: 11 Aug 2019 08:22 AM PDT  A Saudi-led coalition launched Sunday a strike against Yemen's southern separatists after clashes in the second city Aden left around 40 people dead, threatening to push the war-ravaged nation deeper into turmoil. The strike came a day after the separatists seized the presidential palace in Aden, a move decried by the Riyadh-backed Yemeni government as a UAE-supported coup. The deadly violence, which threatens to exacerbate Yemen's humanitarian crisis, reflects deep divisions between secessionists and loyalist forces, both of whom have fought Shiite Huthi rebels.
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| Manhunt over: Escaped Tennessee inmate Curtis Ray Watson captured, death penalty possible Posted: 11 Aug 2019 02:43 PM PDT  Curtis Ray Watson, 44, was charged with the murder of a correctional administrator after he escaped in the midst of a 15-year kidnapping sentence.
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| Accused Sex Trafficker Steered $100K Payday to Bannon Posted: 11 Aug 2019 02:30 AM PDT  Photo Illustration by Lyne Lucien/The Daily Beast/GettyAn accused pedophile helped Steve Bannon secure a $100,000 speaking gig from a prestigious Washington think tank, according to emails reviewed by The Daily Beast. The emails—between Republican fundraiser and investor Elliott Broidy and Lebanese-American political operative George Nader—shed light on the relationship between Trump's ex-adviser and a man now in jail awaiting trial on child sex trafficking charges. The emails point to a closer relationship between Bannon and Nader than previously known. It's been widely reported that Nader met with Bannon in the White House during his time as a Trump adviser there. But these emails show they stayed in contact after Bannon left government, and that Nader helped the ex-Breitbart chief secure an appearance with a six-figure payday. A Bannon spokesperson, meanwhile, said Nader was "irrelevant" to Bannon's speech. Nader's work drew the attention of Special Counsel Robert Mueller, who questioned him extensively as part of his probe into foreign meddling in the 2016 presidential race. But Mueller wasn't the only federal prosecutor interested in Nader. On June 3 of this year, he was arrested at John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York and charged with possessing child pornography. And just last month, the feds rolled out additional charges for child sex trafficking. Nader is in jail awaiting trial, and has pleaded not guilty. Broidy, meanwhile, also appears to have drawn attention from the feds: The Daily Beast confirmed in April that one of his former associates has spoken with FBI agents about his business dealings. The emails between Nader and Broidy, sent in September and October 2017, involve arrangements for a conference on Qatar hosted by the Hudson Institute. Broidy, then seeking business from the government of the United Arab Emirates, was running a quiet public relations campaign designed to undermine the Qatari government's influence in Washington and with American Jewish leaders. He was particularly incensed that Nick Muzin, a former staffer to Sen. Ted Cruz with deep ties to Jewish leaders, had signed on to lobby for the government of Qatar. They'd run in the same tight-knit circle of Jewish Republicans and Broidy saw Muzin as a traitor. The country's connections to Iran—with which it shares a huge gas field—have long angered many in the pro-Israel community. And its ownership of Al Jazeera also fuels opposition from many supporters of Israel. Steve Bannon Got Russian 'Evidence' From Rob Goldstone During Transition"I want to Puke," he wrote in an email to his wife on Sept. 6. "What a moron.""Is this guy a self-hating Jew or an idiot?" she replied. "What can you do?"Just a few months earlier, the governments of Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates started a blockade of Qatar. It was a bid to isolate the peninsular nation, which those governments blamed for funding terrorism. The Qataris kicked off a well-funded lobbying effort to tell their side of the story in Washington and stay in the Trump administration's good graces. Muzin's outreach to Jewish leaders—which Broidy sought to countervail—was part of the Qataris' effort to shore up support. As part of Broidy's project, he helped arrange a conference to be held at the Hudson Institute, a conservative think tank known for its foreign policy work. The conference, set for October of 2017, would make the case against Qatar. In September, Broidy communicated with Nader—whom he had known since Trump's inauguration—about those plans. And on Sept. 22, Nader emailed Broidy about getting Bannon involved [all punctuation sic]. "Hope all is going well with you and the Conference," Nader wrote. "Send me please an update[.] Steve is interested in participating." Nader then shared Bannon's email with Broidy. "Send him pls a letter to brief him…on the conference, what you like him to do and when," Nader continued. "You should get him key time and all by himself with proper guy to introduce him. Let me know what you have in mind!"Two days later, Broidy sent Nader a curious email. It opened with the words "Dear Steve," and then described the plans for the conference. "I would love to have you as one of the keynote speakers," Broidy wrote in the email sent to Nader but addressed to Bannon. The email included a draft of the conference's agenda. It appears Broidy wanted Nader to proof-read the invitation before it went to Bannon, who had left the White House in August 2017.On Sept. 29, event organizers circulated a draft of a Save-the-Date invitation for the conference. Bannon's name wasn't on it. "You need to add please Steve Bannon," Nader wrote in an email to Broidy. "He is as important if not more to that invitation and kindly send me too a draft of the full program as is for now[.]" Two weeks later, Bannon was in. "Still working on many details," Broidy wrote to Nader on Oct. 17. "Will get schedule to you when ready. Steve is on board, FYI $100k honorarium." Five days later, Broidy was still keeping Nader looped in on Bannon's participation. He forwarded Nader an email he sent directly to Bannon that day. "I am very excited about your appearance at the conference tomorrow," he wrote in the email to Bannon that he forwarded to Nader. "George asked me to resend some talking points. See you then." A person close to Bannon said that the two men got to know each other better after Bannon left the White House, and that Nader was one of many people who approached Bannon on behalf of event organizers about making speeches. But a Bannon spokesperson discounted Nader's role in Bannon's speech."This is just one of many speaking requests Mr. Bannon receives," the spokesperson said in a statement. "Hudson Institute is a highly respected think tank, and because of that, he accepted an invitation with others such as Sen. Cotton and Gen. Petraeus. George Nader was irrelevant; neither he nor anyone has influenced Mr. Bannon's longtime position on the condemnation of Qatar as an urgent threat to Israel: a state sponsor of the Muslim Brotherhood, Hamas, and other Islamic terror organizations."The conference went forward, largely as planned, and a source familiar with it confirmed that Bannon received the $100,000 payment. It featured a host of luminaries, including Gen. David Petraeus; Zalmay Khalilzad, who later became the State Department's Special Representative for Afghan Reconciliation; Democratic and Republican members of the House of Representatives; and Republican Sen. Tom Cotton. Bannon, in his speech, was characteristically bombastic and praised the blockade. "I think the single most important thing that's happening in the world is the situation in Qatar," he said. "What's happening in Qatar is every bit as important as what's happening in North Korea."A lawyer for Nader declined to comment for this story. Spokespersons for Broidy and Bannon declined to comment as well. The Hudson Institute stands by its work."Hudson has held countless panels and produced reports on the Middle East, including Qatar and the pernicious impact of the Muslim Brotherhood specifically," said a statement the Institute shared with The Daily Beast. "We believe our criticisms and analysis of Qatar, Iran, and the Muslim Brotherhood are still valid." George Nader's Phones Had Child Porn—and Communications With a Crown Prince, Feds SayA source close to Hudson said Bannon's honorarium was on par with what other main speakers received. In an ironic twist, Bannon has since gotten to know Muzin—Broidy's old nemesis—and discussed going into business with him. The Daily Beast reported earlier this year that Muzin pitched an executive at Juul, the e-cigarette company, on his lobbying services and said Bannon would be able to help out with his influence efforts. Juul didn't take them up on the offer. For Broidy and Nader, the weeks before the Hudson conference were a comparatively simple time. Two months after the event, hackers stole troves of emails Broidy had sent and received. The emails were fodder for a host of news stories about his business dealings and relationships with foreign government officials, including officials looking to influence Trumpworld. Many of Nader's communications with Broidy have also become public since the hack. And numerous reports have revealed Nader's work as a gatekeeper between Gulf dignitaries and denizens of Trumpworld. The emails The Daily Beast obtained indicate that, on at least one occasion, he also helped connect a Republican financier to Bannon. Broidy has alleged in court that the Qatari government sponsored the hacks. The Qataris say the allegations are baseless, and the litigation is underway. 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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| 'Words matter': Bloomberg says Trump rhetoric can encourage violence Posted: 11 Aug 2019 05:28 AM PDT  Former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg says he hopes President Trump understands that a leader's careless word choice risks encouraging racism and even violence.
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| Freshly Restored 1968 Chevrolet Camaro RS/SS Pro Touring Posted: 12 Aug 2019 09:59 AM PDT  Low miles with modern performance and luxury upgrades. Flemings Ultimate Garage is pleased to announce this 1968 Chevrolet Camaro RS/SS Pro Touring model up for sale. For the 1968 model year, Chevrolet could leave well enough alone with the Camaro; it was an instant hit and racking up strong sales numbers and track figures against the Mustang. After all, the saying does go "if it ain't broke, don't fix it." The changes from 1967 to 1968 were subtle, but thoughtful nonetheless. The vent windows that framed the A-pillars were eliminated, so GM installed air vents below the dash called "Astro-Ventilation" to get proper airflow to the driver. The model you see here is an excellent example from '68 and will make a stunning addition to your garage. The Camaro is timeless, and this recently restored coupe is nothing short of a masterpiece.This '68 Camaro RS/SS is dressed in Cortez Silver paint with a mirror finish and black Super Sport nose stripes. The car is in show-quality, having been waxed and detailed to perfection. The interior features custom fourth-generation Camaro Houndstooth black 10-way power seats. Other cabin goodies include a custom aluminum trim floor console, optional Cool-it floor and door sound deadening, a new Vintage Air a/c system, CPP fast-ratio power steering, and upgraded Pioneer digital sound system with AM/FM/USB/AUX with Pioneer 6x9 speakers. The dash also features new vintage 3-in-1 full custom gauges, including a 140 speedometer and an 8K rpm tachometer.Powering this bad boy is a brand-new GM Performance Parts hi-performance fuel-injected aluminum LS3 V8 engine making over 500 horsepower! It's mated to a rebuilt Tremec T-56 six-speed manual transmission with a modern hydraulic clutch and an LS7 pressure plate. This Camaro has its original 12-bolt rear differential with an Eaton Posi rebuild with Moser axles and 3.73 gears.The car rides on 18x8 and 18x9 Bonspeed Puresport two-piece forged alloy wheels wrapped in Nitto hi-speed radials. It's lowered on Hotchkis springs with brand-new Bilstein shocks, and optional Hotchkis sway bars and tubular control arms. All of the power is stopped via Wilwood four-wheel power disc brakes with 14-inch six-piston calipers up front and 13-inch four-piston calipers at the rear. It sounds incredible too, thanks to the polished stainless dual exhaust with Magnaflow mufflers, X-pipe, and long-tube headers.This Camaro was freshly restored not too long ago and looks the part. Since the resto, it's only clocked 2,290 miles! This baby is now ready for a new owner to continue its story. The current asking price as of this writing is $89,900, and you can make an offer right here. Read More: * Built To Thrill: 800-Horsepower 2011 Chevrolet Camaro SS * Gorgeous Hugger Orange 1972 Chevrolet Camaro Restomod For Sale
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| Mocking suspect's hairstyle could get you prosecuted, police warn Posted: 12 Aug 2019 06:05 AM PDT  Police have warned social media users they could face arrest if they "troll" a wanted drug dealer by mocking his distinctive hairstyle. An online appeal to catch the criminal has resulted in tens of thousands of people posting joke comments. Jermaine Taylor, 21, is wanted for breaching his licence conditions after being released from prison in December 2018. Gwent Police launched the social media appeal to find the convicted drug dealer, but it backfired when people began making jokes about his hairstyle, with one saying it had been "pushed back more times than Brexit". The picture shows Taylor with a large, bald forehead and two tufts of hair sticking up. Twitter users joked: "His forehead is bigger than his future," and "that hairline goes further back than Woolworths". Another quipped: "Looks like his hairline is on the run too." The large number of comments prompted Gwent Police to warn users that posting abusive material could be against the law. Many users seemed undeterred, however, with one adding: "He was last seen in town - police are combing the area," and another joking: "He's vanished into thin hair." In a statement, Gwent Police warned users against online bullying. "Please remember that harassing, threatening and abusing people on social media can be against the law," the force said. "Our advice is to be as careful on social media as you would in any other form of communication. If you say something about someone which is grossly offensive or is of an indecent, obscene or menacing character, then you could be investigated by the police." Taylor was jailed for three years at Cardiff Crown Court in September 2017 over the supply of cocaine.
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| Seven dead in DR Congo lake boat capsize Posted: 12 Aug 2019 06:30 AM PDT  Seven people drowned after a transport boat sank after hitting rocks on a lake in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo over the weekend, local authorities said on Monday. Lake and river transport is widely used in the DRC as the highway system is poor, but accidents are common, often caused by overloading and the unsafe state of vessels. The "total number of deaths is seven," the local minister of transport and communication in South Kivu province, Claude Swedy Basila said in a statement.
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| The Latest: Hong Kong airport to restart flights Tuesday Posted: 12 Aug 2019 05:01 AM PDT  The Hong Kong airport says it will restart flights starting at 6 a.m. Tuesday after it completely shut down operations when thousands of pro-democracy demonstrators occupied its main terminal. Airport staff advised passengers to leave the airport for their own safety, but traffic outside was at a near standstill, and public transportation was clogged. Some passengers and departing protesters opted to walk.
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| A Minnesota father told police he dropped his 5-month-old boy on his head for being 'fussy.' The baby died Posted: 11 Aug 2019 02:54 PM PDT ![A Minnesota father told police he dropped his 5-month-old boy on his head for being 'fussy.' The baby died]( "A Minnesota father told police he dropped his 5-month-old boy on his head for being 'fussy.' The baby died") Matthew Hoisser, 35, complained that his son was "difficult" and "fussy," according to court documents. He dropped the baby on his head, killing him.
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| Father praises Canadian murder suspects for evading police: 'These boys are smart' Posted: 12 Aug 2019 07:57 AM PDT  The father of one of the Canadian teenage boys accused of murdering a coupleand a 64-year-old man recently commended the suspects for eluding authorities
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| '#ClintonBodyCount': Trump's sharing of Epstein conspiracy theory draws outrage Posted: 11 Aug 2019 10:58 AM PDT  President Trump drew widespread backlash after sharing a baseless conspiracy theory tying the death of Jeffrey Epstein, a well-connected convicted sex offender, to Bill and Hillary Clinton.
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| Typhoon leaves 28 dead in China, 20 still missing Posted: 11 Aug 2019 12:25 AM PDT  A powerful typhoon left at least 28 people dead in southeastern China, including more than 20 who perished after a landslide backed up a river that then inundated homes, state media reported Sunday. Another 20 people remained unaccounted for in Zhejiang province, the official Xinhua News Agency said. After the landslide, the river rose to a level of 10 meters (30 feet) within 10 minutes, trapping 120 people in Yongjia county, Xinhua said.
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| VIDEO: Homeless man throws rock into windshield of car in Pomona Posted: 11 Aug 2019 08:59 PM PDT  Video shows an apparently homeless man heaving a heavy rock directly into the windshield of a car in Pomona.
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| Hong Kong airport authority cancels all flights for Monday Posted: 12 Aug 2019 01:31 AM PDT ![Hong Kong airport authority cancels all flights for Monday]( "Hong Kong airport authority cancels all flights for Monday") Hong Kong's Airport Authority has cancelled all flights not yet checked in by Monday afternoon, the agency said, as anti-government protesters peacefully demonstrated at the airport for a fourth day. "Other than departure flights that have completed the check- in process and the arrival flights already heading to Hong Kong, all other flights have been cancelled for the rest of today," the authority said in a statement. The increasingly violent protests have plunged Chinese-ruled Hong Kong into its most serious crisis in decades and presented a serious challenge to Beijing.
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| Strip club seeks stay-at-home moms to dance for 'extra cash.' City leader: 'Distasteful' Posted: 12 Aug 2019 10:30 AM PDT  A gentleman's club is posting provocative signs to pressure Omaha into giving it a liquor license. One advertised for stay-at-home moms as dancers.
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| Police arrest white supremacist for threatening Walmart attack Posted: 11 Aug 2019 12:42 PM PDT  A white supremacist has been arrested after he posted a message on Facebook threatening a shooting at a Walmart in Florida, police have said.Richard Clayton, 26, was arrested after making an online threat on Friday, according to police, just days after a gunman stormed a Walmart in El Paso, Texas, killing 22 people. That suspect, Patrick Crusius, reportedly posted an anti-immigrant screed on the online messaging forum 8chan shortly before the mass shooting. Mr Clayton reportedly wrote on Facebook: "3 more days of probation left then I get my AR-15 back.""Don't go to Walmart next week," the post continued.He was charged with making written threats to kill or do bodily harm, according to Florida officials, who told the Associated Press he was held on $15,000 (£12,461) bond at the Orange County Jail. The Florida Department of Law enforcement said in a statement: "Law enforcement has zero tolerance for threats being made and will utilise the full force of the Joint Terrorism Task Force to ensure the public's safety." The country has been on high alert amid a wave of deadly mass shootings and an apparent rise in domestic terror incidents which FBI Director Christopher Wray attributed to violent white supremacy during a public Senate hearing this summer. A day before Mr Clayton's arrest, a man was charged with "making a terrorist threat in the first degree" after walking into a Missouri Walmart earlier in the week donning full body armour while carrying multiple firearms and over 100 rounds of ammunition. The suspect, 23-year-old Conor Climo from Las Vegas, reportedly possessed bomb-making materials and shared white supremacist and neo-Nazi sentiments with an undercover FBI agent.Another Florida resident was charged with threatening an attack just one day after the Walmart shooting, calling one of the chain stores in the town of Gibsonton and reportedly threatening to "shoot up the store". There have also been a series of false alarms in recent weeks where crowds have mistaken loud noises for mass shootings, including in Times Square, New York.
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| Harris decries Trump's 'campaign of terror' against immigrants Posted: 11 Aug 2019 08:26 AM PDT  Sen. Kamala Harris, D-Calif., on NBC's "Meet the Press" on Sunday, said President Trump's administration is running a "campaign of terror" against immigrants.
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| No deal announced as US, Taliban wrap up latest talks Posted: 12 Aug 2019 06:05 AM PDT  The latest round of talks between the Taliban and the United States ended early Monday without any sign a peace deal had been reached for Afghanistan, as both sides said they would consult with their leaderships on the next steps. A Taliban spokesman had said last week that this eighth round of talks would conclude with a deal to end the nearly 18-year war, America's longest. The two sides have been discussing an agreement under which U.S. forces would withdraw from Afghanistan and the Taliban would guarantee the country would not revert to being a launch pad for global terrorist attacks.
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| Call waiting: Kashmiris queue for two-minute phone access Posted: 10 Aug 2019 10:46 PM PDT  Outside a guarded government office in Indian Kashmir's main city, an interminable queue forms every day for a near-priceless opportunity: a two-minute phone call to the outside world. Residents of Srinagar and the Kashmir Valley have been starved of phone and internet use for a week as India snuffs out opposition to its military lockdown in the Himalayan region. Only two mobile phones with an outside line are on offer in the deputy commissioner's office, but so desperate are people to contact families in the rest of India and overseas that they come from across Srinagar and beyond to wait in line.
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| I Got 75 Miles Per Gallon in a Range Rover Posted: 11 Aug 2019 07:00 AM PDT  The new P400e plug-in hybrid has 398 horsepower and can get outrageous mileage—so why am I not excited about that?
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| Gabon court sets date for Bongo health case Posted: 12 Aug 2019 10:31 AM PDT  A Gabon court will shortly hear a petition for President Ali Bongo Ondimba to undergo medical tests to prove his fitness to govern after suffering a stroke last year, lawyers said Monday. The case will be heard by the Court of Appeal in Libreville starting August 26, attorneys for both sides said. Speculation about Bongo's ability to rule the small oil-rich country has surged since he fell ill while in Saudi Arabia last October.
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| Viral clip of Russian policeman punching female protester stirs anger Posted: 12 Aug 2019 06:28 AM PDT ![Viral clip of Russian policeman punching female protester stirs anger]( "Viral clip of Russian policeman punching female protester stirs anger") Video footage of a Russian police officer punching a young woman in the stomach has stirred anger among many Russians who believe the authorities have used excessive force to disperse weeks of political demonstrations in Moscow. The clip, filmed on Saturday and later circulated online by Russian celebrities with millions of followers, shows the moment two helmeted riot policemen drag the woman, Daria Sosnovskaya, to a waiting police bus. Sosnovskaya, 26, is seen struggling to break free and trying to trip up one of the police officers who responds by punching her in the stomach, prompting one of the reporters filming the incident to sarcastically call the policeman "a hero".
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| Teen dies in pit bull attack while trespassing in Texas backyard Posted: 12 Aug 2019 10:20 AM PDT  The incident took place early Saturday morning as Irving, Texas police arrived to the scene in Irving. The teen was trespassing, the owner claimed.
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| Typhoon Lekima death toll reaches 33 in China Posted: 11 Aug 2019 07:02 AM PDT  The death toll from a powerful typhoon that hit southeastern China rose to 33 on Sunday, as rescue workers used rubber dinghies to evacuate stranded people as swift currents swept by homes. China's emergency broadcasting network said that 16 people were still missing in Zhejiang province, where 32 died. Typhoon Lekima triggered landslides and floods after making landfall in Zhejiang early Saturday, about 300 kilometers (190 miles) south of Shanghai.
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| How Robert O’Rourke Became ‘Beto’ Posted: 12 Aug 2019 03:30 AM PDT  A great deal of controversy has continued the past few days over Robert Francis O'Rourke's longtime use of a nickname given to him at birth (albeit temporarily jettisoned while in prep school) — especially in the wake of his recent sensational and unfounded charges that Donald Trump is directly responsible for the mass shootings in El Paso, Texas, and that white supremacy defines America, past and present, and explains Trump's culpability.The point of the amused contention is not that O'Rourke was given such a nickname at or near birth. Rather, the controversy is over his continued use of the sobriquet for cynical political advantage in a somewhat related manner to Senator Elizabeth Warren's longtime false cultural appropriation of a Native American identity for careerist purposes. After all, we live in a progressive era in which "cultural appropriation" is a mortal sin and non-minority university students are routinely chastised for wearing clothing or hairstyles associated with minority groups or appearing in dramas playing the roles of characters of a different ethnic background.According to the Dallas Morning News, a quite prescient senior O'Rourke once explained why he had given the shortened form of the Spanish "Roberto" to his son as a nickname. And he seemed to imply that such naming was for political reasons in addition to avoiding confusing young Robert with his maternal grandfather of the same first name:> In the backdrop of the city's multicultural community, his father, Pat O'Rourke, a consummate politician, once explained why he nicknamed his son Beto: Nicknames are common in Mexico and along the border, and if he ever ran for office in El Paso, the odds of being elected in this mostly Mexican-American city were far greater with a name like Beto than Robert Francis O'Rourke.While congressman and would-be Senator Beto apparently found the Hispanic nickname advantageous in some ways in local and statewide Texas races (ironically, sometimes in contests opposed to those of authentic Latino ancestries), his continued use of Beto suggests that he thinks it also resonates, at the least, an empathy for assumed marginalized peoples, and at the most offers some confusion to less well-informed voters over whether he is in fact Latino himself.Add in the fact that Beto is also a child of both inherited and maritally acquired wealth and what he would call "white privilege" that likely kept him as a sometimes reckless youth out of jail on one occasion for a serious crime. Thus, in a bizarre way, the misleading nickname offers some concrete authenticity to his chronic resentment of the very privilege he has for so long enjoyed.Certainly, a number of Hispanic politicians and opinion writers have chided Beto for cynically giving incomplete impressions to voters — that he might be ethnically as well as linguistically Latino. Again, one could cite cruder efforts at gaining some sort of political or careerist traction in the minority misrepresentations of Senator Warren, Ward Churchill, or Rachel Dolezal. Warren, after all, who makes the same sort of serial allegations of dominant and endemic white supremacy that Beto does, did not choose to assume a false Finnish or Irish identity to propel her legal and academic career, although, given her appearance, it would have been an easier distortion.But why his nickname is again in the news and additionally matters is because Beto himself is on record recently of damning Trump as a white nationalist and a racist who is responsible for the El Paso shootings. According to Beto, Trump apparently seeks to resonate with kindred white supremacists. Beto additionally goes further in damning the United States as essentially governed by ideas of white supremacy both now and in its past. But again, Beto is no longer running a local congressional or even a Texas-wide race. He has far transcended the clairvoyant predictions of his father that the nickname would come in handy in the anticipated borderland politics of southern Texas.Rather, Beto seems to think that the current and continued Hispanicizing of his nomenclature (remember, at times Beto has dropped his nickname) will pay dividends in a national race. Yet according to his own logic, it should not, given his prior denunciations that America is incurably racist.Given that all politicians entertain a degree of cynicism and opportunism, if we truly lived in a culture of white supremacy, we would more likely see candidates fabricating European dog-whistle names and identities than the sad efforts of a Churchill, Dolezal, O'Rourke, or Warren. And in fact, in a far different America of the past, many minority celebrities and politicians did assume Anglicized names on their unfortunately all-too-accurate assumption that too many white racists would ostracize them for their minority status.Yet the opposite linguistic dynamic has been in play for some time. A young and politically ambitious Obama brilliantly understood that political reality when, in a twist to authenticity, he ceased going by his teenage nickname Barry and reverted to his actual birth name, Barack.In terms of linguistic contortions or just simply adaptations, the force of compound names, accent marks, and ethnic sobriquets is to suggest perceived difference from, not homogeneity with, the majority population — to the extent that, in a racially intermarried and assimilated population, anyone's ethnic heritage is clear.In other words, O'Rourke's use of Beto seems ipso facto to suggest that he privately believes in general that Americans of all backgrounds (including a supposed 70 percent white electorate) either do not care whether a candidate is so-called white or, more likely, are intrigued by or admire those who are not — again, sort of refuting Beto's entire premise of an intolerant and all-powerful white-supremacist society.
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| From D-Day beaches to the Champs-Elysees Posted: 11 Aug 2019 07:58 PM PDT  Paris (AFP) - It took less than three months of fighting from the Allied troop landings on France's Normandy beaches for Paris to be liberated from the Nazis, whose surrender in 1945 ended World War II in Europe.
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| Kamala Harris: Immigration raids will distort 2020 census Posted: 11 Aug 2019 06:02 AM PDT  'I'm telling you that, given the policies of this administration, that is going to be a flawed census,' Harris said.
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| We Got a Tire-Squealing Ride in a 2020 Porsche Taycan. Here's What We Learned Posted: 11 Aug 2019 03:01 PM PDT  Porsche's electric sports sedan is almost here and feels ready to impress.
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| Brazil ex-billionaire Batista out of jail: officials Posted: 11 Aug 2019 08:30 AM PDT  Once one of the world's richest men, Brazilian entrepreneur Eike Batista was out of jail Sunday after having been detained for violating terms of his house arrest, prison officials said. Batista, 62, had been under house arrest pending an appeal of a 30-year jail sentence. Then on Thursday he was arrested in Rio de Janeiro on suspicion of insider trading and money laundering, the news portal G1 said.
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| UPDATE 1-U.S. transportation chief asks new FAA head to review agency in wake of 737 MAX crashes Posted: 12 Aug 2019 10:43 AM PDT ![UPDATE 1-U.S. transportation chief asks new FAA head to review agency in wake of 737 MAX crashes]( "UPDATE 1-U.S. transportation chief asks new FAA head to review agency in wake of 737 MAX crashes") U.S. Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao said on Monday she has asked the new head of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to assess the agency's performance in the wake of two fatal crashes of Boeing Co's 737 MAX planes since October. Dickson reiterated the position of his predecessor, Dan Elwell, who has been the acting FAA chief since January 2018, that the Boeing 737 MAX "will not fly in commercial service until I am completely satisfied that it is safe to do so.
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| 'Exemplary parents': 2 gay penguins have adopted an abandoned egg in Berlin Zoo Posted: 12 Aug 2019 11:24 AM PDT  Skipper and Ping, the two male emperor penguins, have taken in an abandoned egg. Zookeepers say they've been "acting like exemplary parents."
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| 5 children killed in fire at Pennsylvania day care center Posted: 12 Aug 2019 06:34 AM PDT  A day care center where children could stay overnight as their parents worked was ravaged Sunday by a fire that killed five and sent the owner to the hospital, authorities said. The victims in the lakeside city of Erie, Pennslyvania, ranged in age from 8 months to 7 years, Chief Guy Santone of the Erie Fire Department said. At least four of the victims were staying overnight at the residential house that had been turned into a day care center, Erie Chief Fire Inspector John Widomski told the Erie Times-News.
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| Trump’s Top Energy Regulator Invites Execs to Coal Country Posted: 12 Aug 2019 03:00 AM PDT  (Bloomberg) -- President Donald Trump's chief energy regulator has invited a group of environmentalists, energy executives and other industry leaders to the heart of Coal Country for a summit on "the future of American energy."Neil Chatterjee, the Republican chairman of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission and a longstanding champion of the coal industry, recently sent invitations for the Oct. 21 summit. The event comes as the independent agency faces mounting criticism that it's become more political under his charge, and as high ranking officials in the Trump administration continue to push for action to aid the coal industry.Held in partnership with the University of Kentucky, the location was chosen because "it's a pivotal time in the Bluegrass state and a historic moment as we continue to experience changes in our generation mix," according to the invitation seen by Bloomberg.Chatterjee's office confirmed details of the invitation, saying in a statement that "the Chairman liked the idea of getting outside of the 'DC bubble' to provide a different landscape and format for these important conversations." Confirmed guests include Tyson Slocum, energy director for advocacy group Public Citizen; Abby Hopper, chief executive of the Solar Energy Industries Association; and Joe Blount, chief executive of Colonial Pipeline, according to a statement.Chatterjee, a Kentucky native who formerly advised Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell on energy policy, has been criticized for promoting policies that favor coal, including an ill-fated proposal to curb coal plant retirements by paying generators for having fuel on-site. Members of the commission are supposed to be fuel-neutral. In 2017, the agency shot down a Trump administration bid to bail out money-losing coal plants.The invitation characterizes the event as a "bipartisan, wide-ranging energy dialogue" in which participants can share their perspectives on the evolving energy landscape, leadership and innovation. Chatterjee's also organized an entire weekend of activities in addition to the actual program, including a reception at the university president's home on the Sunday before and an event at the Keeneland Race Track.To contact the reporters on this story: Stephen Cunningham in Washington at scunningha10@bloomberg.net;Lynn Doan in San Francisco at ldoan6@bloomberg.netTo contact the editors responsible for this story: David Marino at dmarino4@bloomberg.net, Catherine Traywick, Carlos CaminadaFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
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| India warns China to stay out of Kashmir dispute as crisis intensifies Posted: 12 Aug 2019 03:15 AM PDT  India has issued a warning to China to stay out of the dispute over Kashmir's status, after Pakistan said it would take the issue to the United Nations Security Council with the support of Beijing. The remarks by the Indian foreign minister, Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, came after his Pakistani counterpart visited China in a bid to seek allies for a UN resolution against New Delhi for revoking Kashmir's autonomy. Mr Jaishankar flew to Beijing himself to meet China's top diplomat, Wang Yi, saying at the talks that "the two nations should ensure that it was important that differences between us, if any, should not become disputes". China's foreign ministry said in a statement later that it had taken a "principled" stand on "unilateral" actions by India, and had urged New Delhi to play a constructive role in regional peace and stability. But India's Ministry of External Affairs bluntly said decisions on Kashmir were "an internal matter concerning the territory of India". "India does not comment on the internal affairs of other countries and similarly expects other countries to do likewise," the ministry added. Kashmir China has described India's revocation of Jammu and Kashmir's special status, in place since Partition in 1947, as "unacceptable" and a threat to its territorial sovereignty. As well as the dispute between India and Pakistan, China also claims a strip of Kashmir, Aksai Chin. Following Friday's meeting between Mr Wang and the Pakistani foreign minister, Shah Mahmood Qureshi, the Chinese diplomat expressed grave concern about the situation in Kashmir, the cause of two wars between nuclear-armed India and Pakistan. Mr Wang had assured Mr Qureshi that Beijing would continue to support Pakistan to safeguard its legitimate rights and interests, his ministry said in a statement. Kashmir itself on Monday remained under a communications blackout and a police curfew, with information still difficult to come by or verify. The Indian government said it was easing restrictions yesterday, and that the Muslim festival of Eid al-Adha had been observed largely peacefully. It also condemned as "irresponsible" a series of tweets by Pakistani officials, including Prime Minister Imran Khan, which likened the Indian government to "Nazis" and "fascists". The row spilled over into a Los Angeles beauty event, where former Bollywood actress Priyanka Chopra was accused of "encouraging nuclear war" over an Instagram caption in which she wrote "Jai Hind", meaning "victory to India" and included the hashtag IndianArmedForces. Referring to the post from February, an audience member at a beauty panel told Chopra: "You are a Unicef ambassador for peace and you're encouraging nuclear war against Pakistan. There's no winner in this." Chopra said: "War is not something that I'm really fond of, but I am patriotic." The woman, who named herself on Twitter as Ayesha Malik, was handed the microphone during the Q&A; portion of a BeautyCon panel featuring Chopra. The exchange was caught on camera. Ms Malik said: "It was kind of hard hearing you talk about humanity, because as your neighbour, a Pakistani, I know you're a bit of a hypocrite." The actress, a Unicef ambassador, was accused of fuelling tensions with a tweet backing Indian armed forces and exclaiming "Jai Hind" (Victory to India) Credit: John Sciulli/Getty Ms Malik added: "As a Pakistani, millions of people like me have supported you in your business of Bollywood." Staff then grabbed the microphone away. Chopra, who is married to US pop star Nick Jonas, replied: "I hear you. Whenever you're done venting. Got it? Done? Okay, cool." The 37-year-old said "war is not something that I'm really fond of, but I am patriotic", adding "but I think that all of us have a sort of middle ground that we all have to walk". She added: "The way you came at me right now, girl, don't yell. We're all here for love. Don't yell. Don't embarrass yourself."
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| On Ferguson, Elizabeth Warren and Kamala Harris Told a Terrible Lie Posted: 12 Aug 2019 03:34 AM PDT  On Friday afternoon, two of the leading contenders in the Democratic presidential primary lied. There's no other fair way to put it. They flat-out spread fiction, libeled an innocent man, and stoked American divisions — all for political gain.Five years ago, a Ferguson, Mo., police officer named Darren Wilson shot a young black man named Michael Brown to death after an altercation in the street. False rumors about Brown's death — namely that he was shot in cold blood while trying to surrender with his hands in the air — ignited violent protests in Missouri and revulsion across the United States."Hands up, don't shoot" became a national rallying cry — until the Obama Department of Justice comprehensively and thoroughly debunked it in a lengthy report published on March 4, 2015. Writing in December of the same year, the Washington Post's Glenn Kessler called the slogan one of "the biggest Pinocchios of the year."But Kamala Harris and Elizabeth Warren ignored the Obama DOJ. They blew straight through the facts of the case and published these accusations:> Michael Brown's murder forever changed Ferguson and America. His tragic death sparked a desperately needed conversation and a nationwide movement. We must fight for stronger accountability and racial equity in our justice system.> > -- Kamala Harris (@KamalaHarris) August 9, 2019> 5 years ago Michael Brown was murdered by a white police officer in Ferguson, Missouri. Michael was unarmed yet he was shot 6 times. I stand with activists and organizers who continue the fight for justice for Michael. We must confront systemic racism and police violence head on.> > -- Elizabeth Warren (@ewarren) August 9, 2019To demonstrate just how preposterous it is to accuse Wilson of murder, it's worth revisiting the actual facts of the case, according to the best evidence available to the investigators. On August 9, 2014, Michael Brown and a friend were walking in the middle of the street shortly after Brown had stolen cigarillos from a local market and shoved away the store clerk when he tried to intervene.When Wilson first spotted Brown and his friend, he told them to walk on the sidewalk. He then realized that they matched the description of the theft suspects and blocked their path with his vehicle.Wilson tried to open his door, but it either bounced off Brown or Brown slammed it shut. Brown then reached into the vehicle and started punching Wilson. As Wilson fended off the blows, he reached for his gun. Brown allegedly tried to take the gun from Wilson, and Wilson managed to get a shot off, injuring Brown in the hand. Eyewitnesses corroborated Wilson's claims that Brown was reaching in the car, and these claims were further corroborated by "bruising on Wilson's jaw and scratches on his neck, the presence of Brown's DNA on Wilson's collar, shirt, and pants, and Wilson's DNA on Brown's palm."Brown then started to run away. After a brief pause Wilson pursued, ordering Brown to stop. Brown then turned back to Wilson and started running toward him. According to the report, "several witnesses stated that Brown appeared to pose a physical threat to Wilson as he moved toward Wilson." Wilson fired again, striking Brown several times, yet Brown kept moving toward Wilson until the final shot hit him in the head, killing him.The report's conclusion was crystal clear:> Given that Wilson's account is corroborated by physical evidence and that his perception of a threat posed by Brown is corroborated by other eyewitnesses, to include aspects of the testimony of [Brown's friend], there is no credible evidence that Wilson willfully shot Brown as he was attempting to surrender or was otherwise not posing a threat. [Emphasis added.]The report flatly declared that Wilson "did not act with the requisite criminal intent.""No credible evidence" is a powerful statement, but if you read the report, it's a powerful statement based not just on extensive forensic evidence but also on the courageous testimony of witnesses who feared reprisal for speaking the truth. One witness, a 58-year-old black male, told prosecutors that there were signs in the neighborhood that said "Snitches get stitches." Yet he spoke the truth anyway. Other witnesses overcame their fears and spoke the truth.How do we have confidence that they spoke the truth? Because, as the report notes, their statements "have been materially consistent, are consistent with the physical evidence, and . . . are mutually corroborative."To be sure, there were other witnesses. Some neither incriminated him nor fully corroborated him. And there was an entire category of witnesses whose accounts were "inconsistent with the physical and forensic evidence," the report noted, adding:> Some of those accounts are materially inconsistent with that witness's own prior statements with no explanation, credible [or] otherwise, as to why those accounts changed over time. Certain other witnesses who originally stated Brown had his hands up in surrender recanted their original accounts, admitting that they did not witness the shooting or parts of it, despite what they initially reported either to federal or local law enforcement or to the media.There are few more fraught issues in American public life than the question of police shootings — especially police shootings of black men. I've written about the issue time and time again and have come to believe not only that too many American police officers resort to deadly force too quickly but also that there is an unacceptable pro-police bias in our criminal-justice system. There is also evidence that race plays a more malignant role in policing than many of us hoped.Indeed, while we must of course remember the DOJ's report exonerating Darren Wilson, we should also remember that there was a second DOJ report in 2015 that found systematic misconduct at the Ferguson Police Department, misconduct that disproportionately affected Ferguson's black citizens. I urge you to read both reports, and if you read the second report with an open mind, you'll almost certainly come to believe that Ferguson's black residents possessed legitimate grievances against their police department.That's the complicated nation we inhabit, but the complexity does not mean there aren't simple obligations that attach to every politician, activist, and member of the media. And the simplest of those obligations is a commitment to the truth. We know that lies and falsehoods can cause riots. They can cause city blocks to burn. They can destroy a man's life. At the very least, they can further embitter an already toxic public discourse. When issues are most fraught, the obligation of courageous, honest leadership is most imperative.But Warren and Harris's failure is more than a failure of leadership. The publication of a false accusation of a crime like murder is libelous under American law. In other words, their lies may well have been illegal. Democrats — especially Democrats who seek to address the very real challenges surrounding police violence in the United States — should demand better. Harris and Warren should do better. They should correct and retract their false statements. There is no excuse for their inflammatory lies.
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| Israel police, Palestinians clash at flashpoint Jerusalem holy site Posted: 11 Aug 2019 05:25 PM PDT  Separately on the Gaza border, a Palestinian shot at Israeli soldiers, who returned fire and killed him in the third such incident in recent days, the army said. In Jerusalem, police fired sound grenades as Palestinian protests intensified at the highly sensitive Al-Aqsa mosque compound, known to Jews as the Temple Mount, according to an AFP correspondent. The Red Crescent reported 61 Palestinians wounded, 15 of whom were taken to hospitals.
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| 9-year-old Georgia girl hospitalized after trying to save dad who drowned in pool Posted: 12 Aug 2019 09:15 AM PDT  A 9-year-old girl who tried to save her father from drowning in a pool overthe weekend was hospitalized in critical condition, according to the AtlantaJournal-Constitution
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| Tesla electric car catches fire after hitting tow truck in Moscow Posted: 11 Aug 2019 04:42 AM PDT  A Tesla Model 3 electric car caught fire after crashing into a parked tow truck on a Moscow motorway late on Saturday, with the Tesla driver saying he had failed to see the vehicle with which he collided. Asked in a video published on REN TV website if he was using an Autopilot self-driving system, driver Alexei Tretyakov said he was in a drive assistance mode in which he was still holding the steering wheel. Tesla Inc has stood by safety claims for its Model 3 in the face of regulatory scrutiny, while documents showed the top U.S. automotive safety watchdog issued at least five subpoenas since last year seeking information about crashes involving the company's vehicles.
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| United Airlines passenger accused of placing camera in first-class bathroom Posted: 12 Aug 2019 06:17 AM PDT  The FBI has accused a man of placing a camera in the first-class bathroom of a United Airlines flight earlier this year from San Diego to Houston.
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