| Trump impeachment hearings: 5 key takeaways from the first day Posted: 13 Nov 2019 02:00 PM PST  The first day of public impeachment hearings resulted in new evidence supporting the Democrats' case that President Trump leveraged U.S. aid to get Ukraine to investigate his political rivals.
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| Sorry, Hillary: Democrats don't need a savior Posted: 13 Nov 2019 11:42 AM PST  With the Iowa caucuses fast approaching, Hillary Clinton is just the latest in the colorful cast of characters who seem to have surveyed the sprawling Democratic field, sensed something lacking and decided that "something" might be them.
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| American war veteran who spent several days in ICE detention receives $190k settlement Posted: 14 Nov 2019 07:36 AM PST  A US citizen and military veteran suffering from a mental health condition will reportedly receive $190,000 (£147,988) from a Michigan city after local officials transferred him to ICE detention following an arrest last year.Jilmar Ramos-Gomez, a decorated Marine veteran suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder, was arrested while experiencing an episode in which he lost all recollection, according to the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU).
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| Mom of Missing Florida Girl, 5, Charged With Child Neglect After Massive Search Uncovers a Child's Remains Posted: 13 Nov 2019 07:14 AM PST  Taylor Rose Williams' mom was also hospitalized after 'an apparent overdose'
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| Pope taps fellow Jesuit as Vatican’s finance minister Posted: 14 Nov 2019 04:13 AM PST  Pope Francis on Thursday appointed a fellow Jesuit to be the Vatican's finance minister, filling a crucial position left vacant for more than two years after Cardinal George Pell left Rome to stand trial on sex abuse charges in his native Australia. The appointment of the Rev. Juan Antonio Guerrero Alves, a 60-year-old Spanish economist, came one day after Australia's Supreme Court agreed to hear Pell's appeal of his conviction for molesting two choirboys in the 1990s. Francis created the Secretariat for the Economy, and named Pell its prefect, as a key part of his financial reform plans after being elected pope in 2013.
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| Top Putin aide named by MH17 airliner investigators Posted: 14 Nov 2019 05:12 AM PST  An international investigation into the 2014 downing of Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 on Thursday released a series of phone intercepts, including one between a top aide to Russian President Vladimir Putin and pro-Russian rebels accused in the crash. Calls between officials in Moscow and pro-Russian rebels in eastern Ukraine mostly took place via secure telephones provided by the Russian security service, and intensified ahead of the disaster in the first half of July 2014, the Joint Investigation Team (JIT) said. "The indications for close ties between leaders of the DPR (Donetsk People's Republic) and Russian government officials raise questions about their possible involvement in the deployment of the (missile), which brought down flight MH17 on 17 July 2014," the JIT said.
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| 4 frat deaths this month, 2 this week alone. What's going on with fraternity hazing? Posted: 14 Nov 2019 03:37 PM PST  As a wave of young men nationally die in circumstances that appear to be related to fraternities, experts are unsure what to do next
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| General rebuked after tempers flare over rebuilding Notre-Dame Posted: 14 Nov 2019 05:44 AM PST  The French army general charged with the rebuilding of Paris' fire-ravaged Notre-Dame was rebuked by the government Thursday after telling the chief architect to "shut his mouth" in a sign of tension over the cathedral's future appearance. General Jean-Louis Georgelin lost his cool with architect Philippe Villeneuve in a dispute over whether to replace the spire -- which was toppled in the April 15 blaze -- with an exact replica or mix things up with a modern twist. "As for the chief architect, I have already explained that he should shut his mouth," Georgelin said to gasps of astonishment at a meeting of the cultural affairs committee of the lower house National Assembly late Wednesday.
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| Ukrainian energy company tied to Hunter Biden supported American think tank, paid for trips Posted: 12 Nov 2019 05:51 PM PST  Burisma gave more than $450,000 to the Atlantic Council, a prominent Washington think tank.
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| Immigration officer blows whistle on 'morally objectionable' Trump asylum policy Posted: 13 Nov 2019 09:09 AM PST  A new anonymous whistleblower has accused the Trump administration of requiring U.S. asylum officers to enforce an illegal and immoral policy "clearly designed to further this administration's racist agenda of keeping Hispanic and Latino populations from entering the United States."
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| Hyundai Santa Cruz Small Pickup Will Start Production in 2021 Posted: 13 Nov 2019 06:54 PM PST  Several years after its debut as a concept, Hyundai's first truck has officially become a reality.
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| There have been 366 mass shootings in the US so far in 2019 — here's the full list Posted: 14 Nov 2019 01:33 PM PST  As of November 14, 2019, there have been more mass shootings in the US than there are days. At least people have died in mass shootings this year.
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| Justice Dept. rolls out new program to combat gun violence Posted: 13 Nov 2019 10:53 AM PST  Attorney General William Barr announced a new initiative Wednesday that would better enforce the U.S. gun background check system, coordinate state and federal gun cases and ensure prosecutors quickly update databases to show when a defendant can't possess a firearm because of mental health issues. The push, known as Project Guardian, was unveiled at a news conference in Memphis, Tennessee, alongside officials from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, on the same day public impeachment hearings against President Donald Trump began in Washington. "Gun crime remains a pervasive problem in too many communities across America," Barr said in a statement.
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| Sanders, AOC to Introduce Over $100 Billion Plan to Make Public Housing Environmentally Friendly Posted: 14 Nov 2019 10:14 AM PST  Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D., N.Y.) and Senator Bernie Sanders (I., Vt.) plan to introduce legislation on Thursday that makes public housing more energy efficient, at a cost of over $100 billion.The plan, dubbed the Green New Deal for Public Housing Act, will call for renovation of public housing units to install community gardens and organic grocery stores along with on-site childcare services, according to the Washington Post. Data for Progress, a progressive think tank, has estimated the cost of the program at between $119-$172 billion over the next decade."Importantly, the working people who have been most impacted by decades of disinvestment in public housing will be empowered to lead this effort and share in the economic prosperity that it generates for our country," Sanders said in a statement. Ocasio-Cortez said the legislation will "train and mobilize the workforce to decarbonize the public housing stock."In February of this year, Ocasio-Cortez released with Senator Ed Markey (D., Mass.) the "Green New Deal" plan to reduce carbon emissions across the U.S. to net zero within ten years and to eliminate completely the fossil fuel industry within the same time frame. The plan was widely pilloried by conservatives as well as many Democrats for being impractical."The green dream or whatever they call it," House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said at the time, "nobody knows what it is, but they're for it, right?""It is difficult to take this unrealistic manifesto seriously, but the economic and social devastation it would cause if it moves forward is serious and real," said Terry O'Sullivan, the president of the Laborers' International Union of North America, when the plan was released.
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| Iran starts gasoline rationing, hikes prices - state TV Posted: 14 Nov 2019 02:13 PM PST ![Iran starts gasoline rationing, hikes prices - state TV]( "Iran starts gasoline rationing, hikes prices - state TV") Iran introduced gasoline rationing and price hikes on Friday with an official saying that the revenue would be used for subsidies for 18 million needy families, state television reported. Iran, which has some of the world's cheapest fuel prices due to heavy subsidies and the fall of its currency, has been fighting rampant fuel smuggling to neighbouring countries. Mohammad Bagher Nobakht, head of the country's Plan and Budget Organization, told state TV that proceeds from the price hikes would be used to fund additional subsidies for 18 million families, or about 60 million people.
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| Trump ally blocks resolution recognising Armenian genocide after meeting with Erdogan Posted: 14 Nov 2019 08:31 AM PST  Lindsey Graham has blocked a resolution that would have formally recognised the mass killing of Armenians as genocide following a meeting with Turkish president Reccep Tayyip Erdogan.The influential Republican senator, one of Donald Trump's staunchest allies in Congress, intervened after Democratic senator Robert Menendez asked for consent to pass the resolution.
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| Drug trafficking up sharply under Venezuela's Maduro: US Posted: 14 Nov 2019 04:19 PM PST  Drug trafficking to and from Venezuela has shot up 50 percent under President Nicolas Maduro, who is enriching himself by working with organized crime, the United States charged Thursday. Maduro, a leftist who has been in power since 2013, helps crime gangs and has given refuge to terror groups, said Admiral Craig Faller, commander of the US Southern Command based in Miami. "We're seeing an increase in drug trafficking placed out of Venezuela that is aided and abetted by the illegitimate Maduro regime," Faller told a Caribbean security conference.
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| Pirates attacked an Italian ship off the coast of Mexico — the latest sign of a growing criminal industry Posted: 13 Nov 2019 01:25 PM PST  There's big money in stealing fuel in Mexico, and the thieves are willing to go offshore in order to find new targets.
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| California sued again for requiring women on company boards Posted: 12 Nov 2019 06:15 PM PST  California's first-in-the-nation law requiring publicly held companies to put women on their boards of directors is facing a second legal challenge. The law requires publicly traded companies to have at least one woman on their boards by the end of this year. The Pacific Legal Foundation provided The Associated Press with the lawsuit it filed in federal court Wednesday, arguing that the law violates the equal protection clause of the U.S. Constitution.
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| Young Turks Founder Cenk Uygur Files for Katie Hill’s Former Seat Posted: 14 Nov 2019 05:05 AM PST  Progressive talk show host Cenk Uygur has filed to enter the race for disgraced former congresswoman Katie Hill's congressional district, according to a Federal Election Commission database filing submitted on Wednesday.Uygur, host and creator of "The Young Turks," a leftist online news outlet, tweeted "no comment" after news broke of the filing Wednesday night.> To all reporters: No comment.> > -- Cenk Uygur (@cenkuygur) November 13, 2019During a show on Wednesday in which he endorsed Bernie Sanders (I., Vt.) for president, Uygur hinted at "dramatic news on Thursday" and told viewers to "stay tuned."A former MSNBC commentator, Uygur has drifted further left in recent years, but in college he espoused conservative views, supporting pro-life causes and defending Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas. A Turkish immigrant, he has also been the subject of controversy for his past denial of the Armenian genocide, for which he apologized in 2016.Hill left her seat on October 28, resigning after the House Ethics Committee opened an investigation into allegations that Hill engaged in inappropriate sexual relationships with multiple staffers."I know that even a consensual relationship with a subordinate is inappropriate, but I still allowed it to happen despite my better judgment," Hill wrote in a letter of resignation at the time.On Wednesday night, Hill appeared to distance herself from Uygur by reinforcing her support for state assemblywoman Christy Smith, saying "A local gal is the only one who can keep it blue and the only one the community deserves."> A local gal flipped a decades-long Rep seat to win by 9 pts. A local gal is the only one who can keep it blue and the only one the community deserves. I called @ChristyforCA25 before I resigned to make sure she would run. Boys, please be gentlemen and step aside. She's got this. https://t.co/0HGzQY58Zr> > -- Katie Hill (@KatieHill4CA) November 13, 2019On October 29, former Trump campaign aide George Papadopoulos — a central figure in the 2016 Russiagate probe — announced his interest in running for Hill's seat.In 2017, Papadopoulous pleaded guilty to lying to investigators regarding his contacts with Russia and subsequently spent twelve days in prison.> I care about one endorsement: the American people. The rest is white noise.> > -- George Papadopoulos (@GeorgePapa19) October 30, 2019
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| The Navy Has Spent $13 Billion On An Aircraft Carrier That Can't Deploy Posted: 13 Nov 2019 02:00 PM PST  The delay could further inhibit the ability of the Navy's Atlantic Fleet to deploy carriers.
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| Russia blames fatal plane crash on pilots, including one who lied to get license Posted: 14 Nov 2019 03:18 AM PST  A plane crash that killed all 50 people on board at Russia's Kazan Airport in 2013 was the result of errors made by two pilots, including one who got his license using falsified documents, Russian investigators said on Thursday. The Boeing 737-500 aircraft was operated by the now-defunct Tatarstan Airlines, which later had its license revoked by Russia's Federal Air Transport Agency, Rosaviatsiya. The plane from Moscow had been trying to abort its landing when it nose-dived into the runway and burst into flames.
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| George Conway mocks Republicans' 'ridiculous' impeachment arguments in rare cable news appearance Posted: 13 Nov 2019 07:15 AM PST ![George Conway mocks Republicans' 'ridiculous' impeachment arguments in rare cable news appearance]( "George Conway mocks Republicans' 'ridiculous' impeachment arguments in rare cable news appearance") MSNBC is getting ready for the historic first impeachment hearing of President Trump with a very special guest making a rare appearance on cable news. George Conway, who is married to White House counselor Kellyanne Conway, appeared on MSNBC Wednesday morning in the lead-up to the first public hearing in the impeachment inquiry. Though Conway has been a vocal critic of Trump, CNN's Brian Stelter notes he has declined all TV interview requests until now.Ahead of the testimony of William Taylor, the U.S. charge d'affaires in Ukraine, and Deputy Assistant Secretary of State George Kent, Conway told MSNBC that Trump "always sees himself first" and that this scandal is all about Trump having used "the power of the presidency in its most unchecked area, foreign affairs, to advance his own personal interests as opposed to the country."Conway also said Congress needs to "do its duty" for the country and that he's "horrified" at how Republicans have come to the president's defense."Take that Republican hat off and look at it neutrally," he said. "Or look at what you would have done if Donald Trump was a Democrat. Would you be making these ridiculous arguments about process ... or 'it wasn't corrupt, he was really talking about corruption.' All these things that they don't really believe or couldn't possibly believe." Conway was, evidently, a reluctant guest, telling MSNBC, "I don't frankly want to be on television." > WATCH: George Conway discusses the US Constitution, President Trump and the president's actions in regard to Ukraine. pic.twitter.com/X0vFOGVKwU> > -- MSNBC (@MSNBC) November 13, 2019More stories from theweek.com The coming death of just about every rock legend The president has already confessed to his crimes Why are 2020 Democrats so weird?
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| Probe: State Department Punished Staffer Over Iranian Heritage, Politics Posted: 13 Nov 2019 03:15 PM PST  GettyA long-awaited State Department watchdog report will find that the Trump administration's point man on Iran, among other officials, retaliated against an agency employee in part because of her Iranian-American background, two knowledgeable sources told The Daily Beast.The Daily Beast has previously reported that the State Department inspector general's office was prepared to suggest disciplinary action for Brian Hook for political retaliation against employees in his policy planning office, including a career department official and Iran expert, Sahar Nowrouzzadeh. But the inspector general's report, set for release on Thursday in between the first two public hearings in the impeachment of the president, found that top State Department officials, including Hook, retaliated against Nowrouzzadeh in part because she is Iranian. Politico first reported the finding.The allegation derives from a cache of emails that show officials within Hook's policy planning office and other departments talking about Nowrouzzadeh's background ahead of the premature end of her detail to the prestigious office. Some of those emails, previously reported by The Daily Beast, described Nowrouzzadeh as being among "Obama/Clinton loyalists not at all supportive of President Trump's agenda." And one official falsely suggests that Nowrouzzadeh was born in Iran.He's Trump's Point Man on Iran—and Under InvestigationHook has vociferously denied retaliating in 2017 against Nowrouzzadeh based on her heritage. The inspector general report, released Thursday, acknowledges that it "did not identify emails or other documents in which Mr. Hook suggested that he was personally motivated to end the detail because of [Nowrouzzadeh's] perceived political opinions, perceived place of birth, or similar issues, and no witnesses made such statements." Department Counselor T. Ulrich Brechbuhl disagreed with the inspector general's findings, writing that it "ignore[d] the compelling evidence provided by Brian Hook that his personnel decision in this matter was actually made prior to any of the non-merit factors being brought to his attention, and that the decision was made for entirely professional and lawful reasons."However, the inspector general said it did not find Hook's alternative rationales for ending Nowrouzzadeh's detail early to be "a convincing explanation." It called his "acquiescence" to the campaign to remove Nowrouzzadeh—a campaign that bought up her heritage and her perceived politics as a factor—"inappropriate." Taking action against an employee for reasons not having to do with merit, it continues as a blanket statement, strikes "at the heart" of the career service."Regardless of whether Mr. Hook personally shared the opinions and motivations expressed by Ms. Haller [Julia Haller, then the department liaison to the White House] and others, the comments about [Nowrouzzadeh] in the articles and emails circulated within the Office of the Secretary suggest that improper factors likely influenced the requests to end her detail and his acquiescence to those requests," the report concludes.After the report's release, Nowrouzzadeh commented in a statement: "It is my hope that the Inspector General's findings pertaining to my case help prompt action that will guard against any further such misconduct by members of this or any future administration. For nearly 15 years, I've been proud to serve our country, across Republican and Democratic administrations. I continue to strongly encourage Americans of all backgrounds, including those of Iranian heritage, to consider public service to our nation and to not be discouraged by these findings."The State Department IG's office has for months held onto its report for final review before sending it to Capitol Hill. Two individuals with knowledge of the report's drafting told The Daily Beast that the report was originally due for public release sometime over the summer. The IG's office picked up the investigation into Hook and other State Department officials for their perceived political retaliations after multiple whistleblowers approached lawmakers on the Hill about their experiences working on the policy planning team under Hook.The release of the report comes at a time when the State Department is under the microscope by investigators on Capitol Hill looking into how officials in Foggy Bottom worked to convince Ukraine to open up specific investigations in exchange for a presidential White House visit and the delivery of U.S. military aid. And multiple impeachment witnesses have criticized Secretary of State Mike Pompeo's treatment of career diplomats. The details provided in the inspector general's report about Hook can only serve to further undermine the department's credibility in the way it conducts foreign policy. In a different case, however, the inspector general did not find political retaliation. Ian Moss, a State Department official who served in the office for closing the Guantanamo Bay detention facility during the Obama administration, began the Trump administration on a detail to the White House's National Security Council. Moss' performance evaluations were consistently laudatory. By the time Moss returned to State later in 2017, he entered an atmosphere where chief deputies to then-Secretary Rex Tillerson were assessing the department's political leanings based in part on officials' association with Obama administration priorities— such as closing Guantanamo. Moss found himself reassigned to the Freedom-of-Information Act office, from which he launched a retaliation claim first reported by CNN. State IG Set to Recommend Discipline for Trump's Top Iran HandAmong the evidence the inspector general collected is an email between Kirstjen Nielsen, then the deputy White House chief of staff, discussing Moss with Tillerson's chief of staff, Margaret Peterlin. The email chain concludes with an exhortation to continue the conversation over the phone. Yet the inspector general stopped short of assessing that Moss was the victim of political reprisal. Moss, formerly a U.S. Marine, told The Daily Beast the inspector general's findings in his case are a "pathetic whitewash." "While they were targeting experienced career officials on account of their ethnicities and on account of perceived political affiliation, they were hiring C-list YouTubers and wine bloggers," Moss said. "It is hard to find evidence when you don't even bother to interview witnesses and deliberately choose not to follow glaring leads. [State Department Inspector General Steve] Linick has no honor." Moss put the saga of political retaliation at the State Department in the context of Trump's impeachment. Over a half-dozen witnesses from the State Department, NSC, and elsewhere in the government have told the House impeachment inquiry about a shadow foreign policy to Ukraine run by Rudy Giuliani, Ukraine special envoy Kurt Volker, and Ambassador to the European Union Gordon Sondland. Those witnesses, typically career or long-experienced diplomats, have said this shadow effort was designed to benefit Trump rather than the United States and routed around those most expert in Ukraine because of their perceived disloyalty. Moss considers his and others' experience in 2017 to have been a harbinger of the apparently highly parochial shadow initiative. "This is what happens when you let nefarious behavior go unchecked," he told The Daily Beast. Over the summer the State Department hired the Iranian-American woman who publicly advocates for the ousting of the government in Tehran to work with Hook and other senior officials.Mora Namdar, an Iranian-American lawyer from Texas, is working with top department officials, including Brian Hook, the administration's special representative on Iran. She is also working on a controversial project to build a U.S. pavilion at the World's Fair in Dubai in 2020.This is the second team to take on the task of raising $60 million for the event. The first team disbanded this spring when several individuals on the board quit because of internal mismanagement and allegations of influence-peddling by leadership. One of the managers, Alan Dunn, is also the CEO of IP3, the firm attempting to push forward a nuclear deal with Saudi Arabia. Dunn used his position on the team to advance the interests of his firm, The Daily Beast reported in August.Namdar's law school brief from 2011 mimics that of the current Trump administration's policies on Iran, including the need for economic sanctions, increased pressure on Tehran to scale back its nuclear program, and directly targeting Iranian officials by freezing their assets. But she says the U.S. should go one step further."It is logical to ascertain that it would be in the best interest of not only the Iranian people but the United States to support regime change in Iran," Namdar wrote.Namdar went on to say that "encouraging the United States to stay out of the internal conflict with the Iranian elections… can now be seen as poor advice."The department first took notice of Namdar during Secretary of State Mike Pompeo's visit to Dallas this spring, when he met with members of the Iranian-American diaspora in a roundtable session, according to two State Department officials. Namdar was pictured sitting next to Pompeo during that event.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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| Saugus school shooting in California: What we know now Posted: 14 Nov 2019 04:33 PM PST  Several people are injured, including the suspect, after a shooting at a high school outside Los Angeles. Here's what we know.
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| Bolivia interim leader recognises Guaido as legitimate Venezuelan leader as balance shifts Posted: 14 Nov 2019 09:44 AM PST  Interim president Jeanine Anez moved Thursday to consolidate power in deeply polarized Bolivia, winning recognition from the United States and immediately shifting the country's foreign policy on erstwhile ally Venezuela. Anez was expected to complete her government line-up, having named new military chiefs and half of her proposed 20-member cabinet - including Defense Minister Fernando Lopez Julio - the night before. "We have come to pacify the country," Lopez Julio said in a speech at the military college in La Paz. "Above all, we will have to have faith in God," he said, highlighting the conservative Christian emphasis of the new government after Anez had set the tone by brandishing a bible when she assumed office on Tuesday. Anez swore herself in as president on Tuesday after Morales fled the country, fearing for his safety amid deadly protests. Evo Morales supporters march in La Paz on Thursday Credit: Natacha Pisarenko/AP Unrest erupted when he was accused of rigging the results of October 20 polls to gain re-election for a fourth term. Normal business resumed in the main cities after weeks of deadly protests, but schools and universities remained shut due to the continued threat of demonstrations. Many gas stations remained closed because of a lack of supplies. Nearly a month of protests have left 10 people dead and nearly 400 injured. Morales supporters launched fresh protests Thursday, marching toward government headquarters in La Paz. Riot police had clashed with hundreds of Morales supporters the night before during a demonstration against Anez, who Morales accused of carrying out a "coup." Morales has kept up attacks on the new government via Twitter from his exile in Mexico. Anez told reporters Thursday that new Foreign Minister Karen Longari would "make representations" to Mexico to insist that Morales be held to the terms of his political asylum. Morales's Movement for Socialism (MAS) party on Thursday accused her of "continuing to incite violence" in the country, which has been in turmoil since Morales's contested re-election. She wasn't helped by her Interior Minister Arturo Murillo, who announced the government would "hunt down" a former Morales minister, Juan Ramon Quintana, accused of masterminding opposition to Anez. Quintana "is an animal that feeds of blood," said Murillo, while Anez has publicly insisted there would be no persecution of Morales's inner circle. The 52-year-old interim leader gave the first indication of her government's foreign policy on Thursday, recognizing Venezuelan opposition leader Juan Guaido as his country's president, a key shift of alliance in the volatile region. The announcement removes one of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro's main allies as he fends off efforts to oust him amid a deadly economic and political crisis. - Break with Maduro - Anez's decision signals a significant break from socialist leader Morales's position on Maduro. Her government decided to formally recognize Guaido "from this moment on," Communications Minister Roxana Lizarraga told reporters. In Venezuela, Maduro's opponents have branded him a dictator for clinging to office as the country's crisis has worsened over recent years. Guaido has declared himself Venezuela's rightful president. He has gained the recognition of 50 countries, including the United States, but has so far failed to dislodge Maduro.
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| New Jersey seeks $640M from Uber for misclassifying workers Posted: 14 Nov 2019 12:47 PM PST  New Jersey is seeking more than $640 million from Uber in taxes and penalties, saying the ride-hailing company misclassified its drivers as independent contractors. The decision is the latest setback for Uber and other companies in the so-called "gig economy" that rely heavily on contract labor to deliver the services at the heart of their popular apps. New Jersey's labor department told Uber it, along with its subsidiary Rasier, owes $523 million in overdue taxes form the last four years and is also facing fines and interest of $119 million, according to letters from the department that were first reported Thursday by Bloomberg Law.
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| Steve Bannon says Democrats' strategy to impeach Trump is 'brilliant' Posted: 13 Nov 2019 06:50 AM PST  Far-right political strategist Steve Bannon has called the tactics deployed by Democrats to impeach his former boss and remove him from office "quite brilliant."
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| Warren Says Honest Businesses Shouldn’t Worry If She Wins 2020 Posted: 14 Nov 2019 08:47 AM PST  (Bloomberg) -- Democratic presidential candidate Elizabeth Warren sought to reassure business leaders and investors they have nothing to worry about if she is elected -- as long as they obey the law."I believe in markets. Markets with rules that are consistently enforced," she said in an interview in Concord, New Hampshire. "If someone has built a business on cheating people, then they should be very worried about a Warren administration, but if that's not the case, then there's no reason for them to worry."Warren's progressive proposals for reducing inequality, including a wealth tax, breaking up big technology and agriculture companies, as well as her $21 trillion plan to replace private health insurance with a government-run system, have raised concerns on Wall Street that her policies would be ruinous and push the U.S. too far to the left.As she has gained in the polls, she's come in for criticism from Wall Street executives and billionaires, including JPMorgan Chase & Co. Chief Executive Officer Jamie Dimon, hedge fund billionaire Leon Cooperman and Microsoft Corp. founder Bill Gates.She attacked Cooperman in a new campaign commercial, and on Wednesday he fired back in a profanity-laced tirade on CNBC.The Massachusetts senator, who has pledged not to take big-donor money to fuel her campaign, said the criticism reminded her of the opposition she faced when she proposed establishing the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau."A lot of financial institutions were saying in effect, 'if there's a cop on the beat, that's going to destroy my business,'" Warren said. "My answer was: 'Really? What are you doing that a cop is going to catch you out and make you shut down? Do you not have a business model that works and the cop could glance over your shoulder once in a while and say yeah, that's fine.'"Warren is gaining on Democratic front-runner Joe Biden in polls with a campaign message that corporate and government wrongdoing have broken American democracy. She's presented plans to tackle corruption, including increasing oversight of lobbying and imposing restrictions and large fines on some of the largest U.S. corporations."If you're running a straight-up honest business, you want a cop on the beat, because you don't want to have to compete against the cheaters," Warren said. "That's what a Warren administration will be all about."She has vowed to make the richest Americans bear the cost of her plans through higher taxes, including levies on wealth and financial transactions. In a research note this month, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. said her plan to return the corporate tax rate to 26% from 18% would drive down earnings for S&P 500 companies."This country is broken and the way we will repair it is together," she said. "Not by depending on the billionaires, not by depending on corporate PACs, but by building a movement across this nation."On the campaign trail, Warren tells potential voters that while she doesn't have a "beef with billionaires," she wants to ensure that they pay their fair share.(Adds new quote in eleventh paragraph.)To contact the reporter on this story: Misyrlena Egkolfopoulou in Washington at megkolfopoul@bloomberg.netTo contact the editors responsible for this story: Joe Sobczyk at jsobczyk@bloomberg.net, Gregory MottFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
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| 'One-in-a-million' deer with three antlers spotted caught on camera Posted: 14 Nov 2019 02:23 AM PST  A day after images of a puppy with an extra tail growing from its head made headlines around the world, another animal with unusual extra headgear has been sighted - a rare three-antlered whitetail deer.The creature was pictured between the snow covered trees on Michigan's Upper Peninsula by amateur photographer and former state representative, Steve Lindberg.
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| FEATURE-On China's Yangtze river, giant dam's legacy blocks revival Posted: 13 Nov 2019 10:02 PM PST ![FEATURE-On China's Yangtze river, giant dam's legacy blocks revival]( "FEATURE-On China's Yangtze river, giant dam's legacy blocks revival") The 2,000 residents of Muhe, whose village was moved to higher ground a decade ago to escape the rising Yangtze River, have tried to make the most of their remaining land by planting orchards of oranges and persimmons along its banks. With just 110 hectares on the edge of Asia's longest river, Muhe lost half its territory to make way for the colossal Three Gorges Project, a 185-metre dam and 660-kilometre reservoir designed to control flooding, aid navigation and generate electricity. Beijing has allocated more than 600 billion yuan ($86 billion) since 2011 to alleviate the dam's long-term impacts on villages like Muhe and bring the region's deteriorating environment under "effective control".
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| California School Shooting Leaves At Least Two Dead, Suspect in Critical Condition Posted: 14 Nov 2019 01:49 PM PST  A student opened fire on classmates at the Saugus High School in Santa Clarita, California on Thursday morning, killing at least two students and wounding another three before shooting himself.The student, who has not been identified, is in custody and is being treated at a local hospital where he is in grave condition, according to Los Angeles County Sheriff Alex Villanueva. The suspect turned 16 on Thursday, which means he was ineligible to purchase or possess a hand gun under California law.The two victims who were killed were ages 14 and 16. The suspect's motive has not yet been determined."The only thing I saw was this figure, I just saw a figure with a gun," Gerardo Alvarez, a 15-year-old sophomore, told the Wall Street Journal. "It was just a pistol but I don't know what kind."A White House spokesman said President Trump was monitoring the situation.Kent Wegener, a captain with the L.A. Sheriff's Department, told reporters at a news conference that the weapon used was a .45 caliber semiautomatic handgun.L.A. Sheriff Undersecretary Tim Murakami wrote on Twitter that police were interviewing every student at the high school in order to conduct a thorough investigation."Rumors that [the] suspect may have posted threats on social media…will be investigated," Murakami added. "If you ever learn of posted threats please notify us ASAP. It will result in an immediate investigation.""Our hearts go out to the families of those affected by this terrible incident," read a statement from the William S. Hart Union High School District, of which Saugus High School is a part. "Words are insufficient in times such as these."
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| Forget North Korea: This Is The Nuclear Hotspot No One is Talking About Posted: 14 Nov 2019 04:39 AM PST  India and Pakistan are more primed for an exchange than any other two countries.
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| Protesters blare Christine Blasey Ford testimony and dress up as handmaids outside Kavanaugh speech Posted: 14 Nov 2019 05:21 PM PST  The scene outside the venue where Brett Kavanaugh was scheduled to give the keynote speech included protesters chanting and dressed as handmaids.
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| Sri Lanka author attacked ahead of key polls Posted: 14 Nov 2019 05:44 AM PST  Armed men stabbed and injured a writer in Sri Lanka on Thursday, a week after he published a book criticising the main opposition candidate at Saturday's presidential polls, police said. The attackers stormed the home of Lasantha Wijeratne, who released his book "Wasteful Development and Corruption" last week and gave a copy to ruling party candidate Sajith Premadasa. "Four men broke into the house and stabbed him in the arm after holding a pistol to his wife's head," Wijeratne's lawyer Tharaka Nanayakkara told AFP by telephone.
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| The Latest: Officer says Miranda failure was a mistake Posted: 13 Nov 2019 02:15 PM PST  A police officer who obtained a confession from the suspect in the disappearance and death of University of Iowa student Mollie Tibbetts says she made an honest mistake by initially failing to read him his legal rights. Officer Pamela Romero testified Wednesday that she tried to read Cristhian Bahena Rivera his Miranda warnings from memory during the Aug. 20, 2018, interrogation. After several more hours of questioning, Rivera led police officers to a cornfield where they discovered Tibbetts' body underneath a stack of leaves and stalks.
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| NASA warned of safety risks in delayed private crew launches Posted: 14 Nov 2019 01:07 PM PST  NASA auditors warned Thursday the space agency faces "significant safety and technical challenges" that need to be solved before astronauts fly in private capsules. In its report, NASA's inspector general office noted Boeing and SpaceX are several years late in transporting crews to the International Space Station. The private capsules likely won't be certified before next summer, according to the report, and NASA should set a realistic timetable to avoid compromising safety.
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| Mexico’s Rate Cuts Threaten Buoyant Peso: Decision Day Guide Posted: 14 Nov 2019 06:43 AM PST  (Bloomberg) -- Explore what's moving the global economy in the new season of the Stephanomics podcast. Subscribe via Apple Podcast, Spotify or Pocket Cast.Mexico's central bank will probably lower borrowing costs for a third straight meeting Thursday and continue monitary easing into next year as inflation slows, eroding the carry trade appeal of the Mexican peso.The central bank, led by Governor Alejandro Diaz de Leon, will reduce the key rate by a quarter point to 7.50%, according the estimate of 17 of 26 economists surveyed by Bloomberg. The other nine forecast a half-point cut to 7.25%.President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador often points out that the peso is the strongest major currency since he took office in December. But much of its demand is due the carry trade whereby investors borrow in currency where interest rates are low and buy into those with higher rates, such as Mexico. Mexico currently has the third-highest real interest rate (the gap between the policy rate and inflation) among major economies, exceeded only by crisis-stricken Argentina and Turkey. But as Mexico's borrowing costs tick steadily lower, the rate differential against other currencies -- and hence the peso's allure -- becomes less pronounced."We believe the peso will depreciate gradually for the rest of the year and into 2020 as the carry advantage of the peso erodes," said Juan Carlos Alderete, an economist at Grupo Financiero Banorte. The rate will end next year at 6%, and the peso at 21.30 per dollar, he said.Interest rate cuts may be more important than ever now, as Mexican growth continues to disappoint both investors and the nation's president. Lopez Obrador has brandished the strong peso as a weapon against critics who worry he's scaring investors. But an easing cycle that weakens the exchange rate and makes exports more attractive could help Mexico's economy far more.Gross domestic product edged up just 0.1% in the third quarter after the economy narrowly avoided a technical recession in the second quarter.The debate among economists and strategists isn't whether the peso will depreciate, but how weak it will become. And that depends on where they see the easing cycle ending. After inflation plunged to the central bank's 3% target, the real rate is now at 4.73%.Economists forecast borrowing costs will end next year at 6.50% and the peso at 20.07 per dollar, according to the latest survey by Citibanamex. The exchange rate weakened 0.55% to 19.4637 per dollar in early Thursday trading.For Christian Lawrence, a Rabobank strategist and the peso's third-best forecaster in Bloomberg's ranking, the central bank still has a while to go before robbing the peso of its appeal."By my estimates, rates can fall to 5% before the peso loses its carry trade shine relative to other currencies," said Lawrence. But if policy makers cut more quickly than expected, by half a point on Thursday, the peso will weaken, he says.Bank of America sees the central bank barely cutting rates, and ending the easing cycle at 7%, allowing the peso to remain strong. "We think that the differential with other countries will remain wide," said chief economist Carlos Capistran.(Updates with peso move in ninth paragraph.)To contact the reporters on this story: Nacha Cattan in Mexico City at ncattan@bloomberg.net;Justin Villamil in Mexico City at jvillamil18@bloomberg.netTo contact the editors responsible for this story: Juan Pablo Spinetto at jspinetto@bloomberg.net, Matthew BristowFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
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| Islamic Jihad offers Israel truce as Gaza toll hits 26 Posted: 12 Nov 2019 09:34 PM PST  GAZA/JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Palestinian militant group Islamic Jihad offered terms on Wednesday for an Egyptian-mediated ceasefire with Israel, saying if these were not met it was prepared to keep up cross-border rocket salvoes indefinitely despite a mounting Gaza death toll. The worst surge in fighting around the Palestinian enclave was sparked on Tuesday when Israel killed Islamic Jihad's top Gaza field commander in an air strike, accusing him of masterminding a spree of recent attacks and planning more soon. As Islamic Jihad fighters responded with hundreds of rocket launches that reached as far as Tel Aviv and paralyzed parts of Israel, it pressed the aerial barrage on the Gaza Strip.
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| Bloomberg Responded ‘Kill It’ after Employee Disclosed Her Pregnancy, 1997 Lawsuit Alleges Posted: 14 Nov 2019 08:11 AM PST  Democratic presidential candidate Michael Bloomberg allegedly told a female employee,"kill it!" when she told him she was pregnant, according to the former Bloomberg executive's 1997 lawsuit.The lawsuit filed in New York by Sekiko Sakai Garrison alleges Bloomberg followed up his first remark with another offensive comment, "Great! Number 16," apparently referring to the number of pregnant employees on his payroll.Sakai Garrison also claimed Bloomberg pointed out another woman to her and remarked, "If you looked like that, I would do you in a second.""Sexual harassment and sexual degredation of women at Bloomberg was pervasive," the lawsuit states.Sakai Garrison, who now lives in Seattle, achieved the number one ranking as regional sales manager at Bloomberg's company, where she worked from 1989 to 1995, when she was let go. She did not respond to a request for comment.The suit accused Bloomberg of making racist remarks as well, including calling Mexican clients "jumping beans" and telling a female employee who needed a nanny, "all you need is some black who doesn't even have to speak English to rescue it from a burning building."The billionaire businessman settled the lawsuit in 2000. Bloomberg claimed to have passed a lie detector test in 2001 denying he made the remark about Sakai Garrison's pregnancy. He said he submitted to the polygraph "because I expected that those allegations would surface in the news media as I began to explore the possibility of entering the mayor's race."Reports of the former New York City mayor's demeaning comments towards women and others have circulated for years, some documented in a book of one-liners gifted to him by work colleagues."Mike has come to see that some of what he has said is disrespectful and wrong," said Bloomberg's spokesman, Stu Loeser. "He believes his words have not always aligned with his values and the way he has led his life."Bloomberg is currently battling lackluster poll numbers in the Democratic presidential primary after his late 2020 campaign announcement.
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| Kentucky's GOP governor embraces conspiracies as he refuses to concede Posted: 13 Nov 2019 04:20 PM PST  Only hours after he appeared to lose his reelection bid last week, Kentucky Gov. Matt Bevin, a Republican, started making baseless claims about supposed irregularities and voter fraud.
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| Chicago teachers to vote on agreement that guarantees 16% raise, $35M to reduce classes Posted: 14 Nov 2019 08:23 AM PST  Chicago teachers will begin voting on a tentative contract deal that ended an 11-day strike in the nation's third-largest school district last month.
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| View Photos of the 2020 Morgan Plus 4 Posted: 14 Nov 2019 11:13 AM PST |
| What Impeachment Will Cost the GOP Posted: 13 Nov 2019 02:03 AM PST  On December 19, 1998, the day House Republicans impeached President Bill Clinton, he recorded his highest-ever score in Gallup's presidential approval poll: 73 percent favorable. Clinton boasted afterward that if it were not for the 22nd Amendment, he would have soared to a third term. President Donald Trump and this generation of Republicans plainly are looking to the politics of the Clinton impeachment as a source of comfort.
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