| Here are the likely contenders on Biden's vice president shortlist Posted: 27 May 2020 10:27 AM PDT  While Joe Biden has committed to selecting a female running mate, few further details are confirmed. Here's a look at five women in the picture.
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| Surveillance video of the moments leading up to George Floyd being pinned under a policeman's knee shows that he didn't resist arrest Posted: 28 May 2020 10:03 AM PDT  An off-duty firefighter saw Floyd "go from struggling to unresponsive on the ground while handcuffed and subdued" by police, an incident report said.
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| Coronavirus infections are rising as states reopen, potentially signaling a second wave Posted: 27 May 2020 08:48 AM PDT  Twenty states reported an increase in new infections during the week ending May 24, up from 13 states the week before.
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| Iran Guards warn US after receiving new combat vessels Posted: 28 May 2020 06:15 AM PDT  Iran's Revolutionary Guards on Thursday warned the United States against its naval presence in the Gulf as they received 110 new combat vessels. "We announce today that wherever the Americans are, we are right next to them, and they will feel our presence even more in the near future," the Guards' navy chief Rear Admiral Alireza Tangsiri said during a ceremony in southern Iran. Iran and the United States have appeared to be on the brink of an all-out confrontation twice in the past year.
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| Meng Wanzhou: Huawei executive suffers US extradition blow Posted: 27 May 2020 01:59 PM PDT  A Canadian court has ruled that the extradition hearing of Meng Wanzhou can continue.
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| Protester who hung effigy of Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear fired from job at car dealership Posted: 27 May 2020 12:39 PM PDT  Terry Bush, president of the Kentucky 3 Percenters group, only hoisted the effigy, his wife Patsy said Wednesday morning.
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| Warrants describe nightmarish child abuse case in Tennessee Posted: 27 May 2020 11:19 AM PDT  Arrest warrants in a Tennessee couple's abuse case describe a hellish existence for four children in their legal custody, a nightmare that finally ended after a little boy was spotted walking alone along a Roane County road. Michael Anthony Gray Sr., 63, and his wife, Shirley Ann Gray, 60, were arrested Monday on charges of aggravated child abuse, especially aggravated kidnapping, aggravated child neglect and abuse of a corpse, authorities said. The oldest had been locked in the partially flooded, unfinished basement for stealing food shortly after the family moved to the home in June 2016, authorities said, "and had no contact with anyone outside the basement, only given small amounts of food, being white bread and some water," the warrants state.
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| So-called honor killing of teen girl sparks outcry in Iran Posted: 27 May 2020 02:53 PM PDT  The so-called honor killing of a 14-year-old Iranian girl by her dad, who reportedly beheaded her as she slept, has sparked a nationwide outcry.
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| Five UK mercenaries offered $150,000 each to fly helicopters for Gen Haftar in Libya, say UN Posted: 28 May 2020 09:18 AM PDT  Five British mercenaries involved in an operation to fly assault helicopters for Libya's renegade General Khalifa Haftar were offered bounties of up to $150,000 each for their role in the daring plot which went awry. The men, comprised of former Royal Marines and RAF personnel, were among 20 foreign mercenaries who traveled to Libya last June in an operation to pilot assault helicopters and speed boats to intercept Turkish ships ferrying weapons to Haftar's opponents – the UN-backed government in Tripoli. A source with knowledge of the secret UN report which revealed the plot told The Daily Telegraph that the men involved were believed on sums of "$30,000 to $50,000 a month, or $20,000 to $40,000 per month depending on whether you were pilot or aircrewman". "It was a three-month contract". The Telegraph can reveal that the UN investigation concluded that the operation was led by Steven Lodge, a former South African Air Force officer who also served in the British military. Mr. Lodge, who now resides in Scotland, is a director of Umbra Aviation, a South-Africa based company that has recently supplied helicopters to the Government of Mozambique, where the country is battling a jihadist insurgency in its restive north. Speaking to The Telegraph over the phone, Mr. Lodge flatly denied the chronicle of events detailed in the UN report. "All the info is incorrect - the whole facts behind the whole thing," he said.
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| Biden on 100,000 coronavirus deaths: 'To those hurting, the nation grieves with you.' Posted: 27 May 2020 04:39 PM PDT  Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden released a video message on Wednesday marking the grim milestone of 100,000 American lives lost to the coronavirus pandemic, telling the bereaved: "The nation grieves with you." Biden spoke after various tallies of COVID-19 deaths, including one compiled by Reuters, showed that the novel coronavirus has killed over 100,000 people in the United States, even as the slowdown in deaths encouraged businesses to reopen and Americans to emerge from more than two months of lockdowns. Biden, speaking from his home in Delaware, drew on his own family loss when making his remarks.
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| One of Trump's favorite pollsters shows his approval plummeting Posted: 27 May 2020 11:39 AM PDT  President Trump's approval rating has plummeted since late February, according to the Rasmussen daily tracking poll, which the president frequently cited during his first three years in office.
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| ICC allows former I.Coast president Gbagbo to leave Belgium Posted: 28 May 2020 03:02 PM PDT  The International Criminal Court on Thursday said former Ivory Coast President Laurent Gbagbo can leave Belgium under certain conditions following his acquittal last year over post-electoral violence that killed 3,000 people. Gbagbo and his deputy Charles Ble Goude were both cleared of crimes against humanity a year ago, eight years after the former West African strongman's arrest and transfer to the Hague-based court. Belgium agreed to host Gbagbo, 73, after he was released in February last year under strict conditions including that he would return to court for a prosecution appeal against his acquittal.
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| New tropical hotspot may emerge in Atlantic amid busy start to hurricane season Posted: 28 May 2020 01:21 PM PDT  Two tropical storms have already formed prior to the official start of the 2020 Atlantic hurricane season, which begins on June 1- and AccuWeather meteorologists say there are two factors behind the unusual occurrence. These weather factors could soon cause more storms to brew, but this time, forecasters are watching a new tropical hotspot of the basin.Tropical Storm Arthur, the first storm of the season, was named by the National Hurricane Center (NHC) on May 16, the earliest-named tropical system to form in the Atlantic since Tropical Storm Arlene in April 2017. The system first developed into a tropical depression about 125 miles off Melbourne, Florida. As the disturbance gained strength and moved northward over warm waters in the western Atlantic, Arthur avoided landfall in North Carolina. But, the system still unleashed wind gusts of up to 49 mph in the state. Fortunately, no major impacts were reported, and Arthur went out to sea before it could directly strike land.Less than two weeks later, Tropical Storm Bertha became the second-named storm of the season on May 27 in a similar area to where Arthur had developed. Bertha will also go down as the first-named storm to make landfall in the U.S. this year. Bertha struck about 20 miles south of Charleston, South Carolina, on Wednesday, and unleashed flooding rainfall across the Carolinas and portions of the mid-Atlantic. Before officially being named the system drenched South Florida with flooding rainfall, which pushed monthly rain totals to more than two times the normal amount for May in places like Miami.The last time two named storms preceded the official start of hurricane season in the Atlantic was in 2016, when Hurricane Alex and Tropical Storm Bonnie both formed before June 1. This GOES-16 satellite image taken Wednesday, May 27, 2020, at 11:40 UTC and provided by THE National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), shows Tropical Storm Bertha approaching the South Carolina coast. (NOAA via AP) "You get early season development when you get an interaction between the jet stream and the tropics," AccuWeather Chief Broadcast Meteorologist Bernie Rayno said. "It's still early enough in the year that, at times, the jet stream can take pronounced dips into the south."A southward plunge in the jet stream causes weather systems to interact with the warm water of the Atlantic, explained Rayno."The jet stream brings down frontal boundaries that stall, frontal boundaries are locations where showers and thunderstorms could form, and in time, if you can get that area to sit, you start to get lower pressure to form, and in time this could turn into a tropical system," said Rayno.Arthur and Bertha both formed from a similar set of weather factors, and a third-named tropical storm could form as early as next week, fueled by another big dive of the jet stream."On Monday, this dip in the jet stream [is] gonna push a frontal boundary into the northwest Caribbean. That frontal boundary will stall as we get into Monday. [On] Tuesday, showers and thunderstorms start to form and by mid- to- late-next week, I think we are going to get an area of low pressure to form," said Rayno. The Miami skyline is shrouded in clouds as a cyclist rides along Biscayne Bay at Matheson Hammock Park, Friday, May 15, 2020, in Miami. A trough of low pressure moved through the Florida Straits and organized over the northwest Bahamas to become Tropical Storm Arthur. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky) Rayno said that he believes there is a 50/50 chance that the third named storm, which would be called Cristobal, could be the result of this setup.AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist David Samuhel said tropical trouble could first brew in the East Pacific before emerging into the Atlantic. Forecasters have been monitoring an area of disturbed weather in the East Pacific this week that could soon churn out a tropical entity, which could take an unusual track into Central America."We are watching an area south of Mexico and Central America. It is expected to become a tropical depression or even a named storm as it approaches the coast of El Salvador, Guatemala and southern Mexico," Samuhel said.Even though the storm that is being monitored will likely dissipate over land, Samuhel said that, "There will be abundant moisture associated with the system and when that moisture moves northward into the Caribbean and Gulf of Mexico, it could reform into a new tropical system."The last three tropical cyclones to make landfall in the U.S. during the month of June were all Gulf of Mexico storms, similar to the hotspot currently being monitored. The most recent Gulf of Mexico storm to result in a June landfall was Tropical Storm Cindy, which came ashore in western Louisiana in 2017.Samuhel advised that while the reformation of the storm would not happen until several days into June, the conditions could be favorable for development as water temperatures in the Gulf of Mexico are above normal and upper-level conditions in the atmosphere could remain favorable.It has been a few years since the third-named storm of the season formed as early in the season as June and made landfall in the U.S., with the last occurrence being Tropical Storm Cindy in 2017 and then again in 2016 when Tropical Storm Colin developed and slammed into the Gulf Coast of Florida, north of Tampa.Before that, it had been several decades since this happened with the last time prior to 2016 being back in 1968, when Tropical Storm Candy formed in late June.Having three named storms this early in the season is a rare occurrence, and only twice in the last decade has a fourth-named storm formed in June with Tropical Storm Danielle in 2017 and Tropical Storm Debby in 2012. Tommy and Dorothy McIntosh walk away from their daughters flooded home in Live Oak Fla., Wednesday, June 27, 2012. Dozens of homes and businesses were flooded by torrential rains from Tropical Storm Debby. (AP Photo/Dave Martin) Landfalling hurricanes are even more rare during the month of June. Hurricane Bonnie in 1986 was the last hurricane to make landfall in the U.S. during the month. The Category 1 storm generated peak winds of 85 mph before rolling into High Island, Texas. Bonnie claimed five lives in the U.S. and it triggered more than a foot of rainfall in parts of Texas, including 13 inches in Ace, Texas."Only one major hurricane has made landfall in June anywhere in the U.S.," Samuhel said, adding that Hurricane Audrey dealt a devastating blow to southwestern Louisiana when it crashed onshore as a Category 3 storm, packing 125-mph winds, in 1957, and killed more than 400 in the U.S. According to the National Weather Service (NWS), Bonnie ranks as the seventh deadliest storm to make landfall in the U.S. and the third deadliest in Louisiana history.Dan Kottlowski, AccuWeather's top hurricane expert, and his team of long-range meteorologists, have been hard at work analyzing weather patterns for the upcoming Atlantic hurricane season since late in winter. Kottlowski warned about early season risks in the Gulf of Mexico in his initial forecast for the season, which was released on March 25.Kottlowski upped the numbers projected for the 2020 season in an early May forecast update. He expressed "growing concern" for an active season due to a La Niña pattern that is expected to develop during the season. La Niña is the cool phase and counterpoint to El Niño -- and it is characterized by three consecutive months of below-normal temperatures in the central and eastern Pacific, near the equator. The team is now predicting 14 to 20 tropical storms and seven to 11 hurricanes, since La Niña patterns can limit episodes of high winds that can disrupt tropical development in the Atlantic.Four to six of the storms could strengthen into major hurricanes - Category 3 or higher. And Kottlowski warned that four to six named tropical systems could make direct impacts on the U.S mainland, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands.The AccuWeather TV Network on Thursday night will host its first-ever hurricane town hall. The exclusive one-hour event will be moderated by AccuWeather Broadcast Meteorologist Brittany Boyer who will lead a roundtable discussion with several of the top minds in hurricane forecasting and weather preparedness.Among those joining the discussion will be National Hurricane Center Director Ken Graham, AccuWeather's own hurricane expert Dan Kottlowksi and Trevor Riggen of the American Red Cross, along with several others. Chief among the topics being discussed will be the impact the coronavirus pandemic will have on preparing for hurricanes this season, which AccuWeather forecasters believe will be very active. Tune in to the AccuWeather TV Network at 9 p.m. EDT Thursday evening and check AccuWeather.com for highlights and a recap.Keep checking back on AccuWeather.com and stay tuned to the AccuWeather Network on DirecTV, Frontier and Verizon Fios
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| Minneapolis Man: Cop Who Kneeled on George Floyd ‘Tried to Kill Me’ in 2008 Posted: 28 May 2020 09:27 AM PDT  Ira Latrell Toles didn't immediately recognize Minneapolis cop Derek Chauvin in the now-viral video of him holding his knee on George Floyd's neck as the handcuffed black man repeatedly told him he couldn't breathe.But when news outlets identified the officers involved, Toles, 33, realized the man responsible for Floyd's death was the same police officer who barged into his home and beat him up in the bathroom before shooting him in the stomach 12 years earlier while responding to a domestic violence call. "The officer that killed that guy might be the one that shot me," Toles texted his sister on Tuesday night, according to messages shared with The Daily Beast. "They said his last name and I think it was him.""It's him," his sister instantly replied.On Tuesday, Chauvin was one of four officers fired for his involvement in Floyd's death, which has sparked protests across the country and calls for a federal hate-crime investigation. Local outlets reported that Chauvin was the officer who knelt on Floyd's neck for several minutes—as the 46-year-old pleaded, "I'm about to die." Floyd had no pulse when he was finally put into an ambulance.'Burn It Down. Let Them Pay': Deadly Chaos Erupts in Minneapolis as Fires Rage Over Police ViolenceMinneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey on Wednesday called for Hennepin County Attorney Mike Freeman to arrest and charge Chauvin with Floyd's death. "Why is the man who killed George Floyd not in jail? If you had done it, or I had done it, we would be behind bars right now," Frey said in a news conference.Toles believes that Floyd's horrific death could have been prevented if Chauvin was properly punished for his violent arrest in May 2008. He said that while he pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge—and still suffers pain from the bullet hole in his lower stomach—Chauvin continued his career at the Minneapolis Police Department with nothing more than a slap on the wrist."If he was reprimanded when he shot me, George Floyd would still be alive," the IT professional said. Authorities said that just before 2 a.m on May 24, 2008, officers responded to a domestic violence call at an apartment complex on Columbus Ave South. The 911 operator could hear a woman yelling for somebody to stop hitting her, local media reported at the time. Toles, who was then 21, admits that the mother of his child called the cops on him that night, but he was surprised when several officers showed up without announcing themselves. "When I saw that he breached the front door, I ran in the bathroom," Toles told The Daily Beast. "Then [Chauvin] starts kicking in that door. I was in the bathroom with a cigarette and no lighter."The 33-year-old said that Chauvin broke into the bathroom and started to hit him without warning. Toles said he returned blows to the officer because "my natural reaction to someone hitting me is to stop them from hitting me." "All I could do is assume it was the police because they didn't announce themselves or ever give me a command," he said. "I didn't know what to think when he started hitting me. I swear he was hitting me with the gun."According to local news reports, Chauvin shot and wounded Toles after he allegedly reached for an officer's gun. Toles said he doesn't remember being shot—just "being walked through the apartment until I collapsed in the main entrance where I was left to bleed until the paramedics came." "I remember my baby mother screaming and crying also," he added.Toles was taken to Hennepin County Medical Center, where he said he stayed for about three days. There, he learned Chauvin had shot him at such close range that the bullet went through his groin and came out his left butt cheek before hitting the bathroom wall. The wound, he said, left a hole that "never really closed" and is so large he can still stick a finger inside. Once he was released from the hospital, Toles said he was taken directly to court, where he was charged with two felony counts of obstructing legal process or arrest and a misdemeanor count of domestic assault. "I would assume my reaction would be to try to stop him from hitting me. If his first reaction was hitting me in the face that means I can't see and I'm too disoriented to first locate his gun and then try to take it from him and for what?" Toles said. "To turn a misdemeanor disorderly situation into a felony situation that could have resulted in me dying? He tried to kill me in that bathroom." Toles said he only spent a day or two in jail—where he was denied pain pills—for the charges before he was released. Three months later, he said he pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge as part of a deal.Chauvin and the other officers involved were put on paid administrative leave pending an investigation into the shooting—a standard procedure for the Minneapolis Police Department—but were later placed back into the field. "I knew he would do something again," Toles said. "I wish we had smartphones back then."The Minneapolis Police Department did not immediately respond to The Daily Beast's request for comment. Chauvin, 44, is one of four officers who responded to a suspected "forgery in process" on Monday night—along with Thomas Lane, J Alexander Kueng, and Tou Thao.In the gut-wrenching, 10-minute video recorded by a bystander, Chauvin is seen pressing his knee on Floyd's neck while Thao stands guard, trying to keep upset bystanders at bay. "Please, please, please, I can't breathe. Please, man," Floyd says in the footage that does not show the beginning of the arrest. "I'm about to die," he says. A Minneapolis Fire Department report said Floyd did not have a pulse when he was loaded into an ambulance. He was pronounced dead at a nearby hospital shortly after in what police described as a "medical incident.""We are looking and demanding that these officers be arrested and charged with the murder of George Floyd," Ben Crump, a civil rights attorney representing the 46-year-old's family, told The Daily Beast on Thursday. "My hope is that there will be effective and courageous leadership that will speak to the value of George Floyd's life as an example to the world that black lives matter. It's time for a change in Minneapolis."Chauvin, who joined the force in 2001, has also been involved in several other police-involved shootings throughout his career. According to Communities United Against Police Brutality, 10 complaints have been filed against the now-former police officer—but Chauvin only ever received two verbal reprimands.In 2006, Chauvin was involved in the fatal shooting of 42-year-old Wayne Reyes, who allegedly stabbed two people before reportedly turning a gun on police. Chauvin was among six officers to respond to the stabbing. A year prior, Chauvin and another officer were also chasing a car that then hit and killed three people, according to Communities United Against Police Brutality.In 2011, the officer was also one of five officers placed on a standard three-day leave after the non-fatal shooting of a Native American man. The officers returned to work after the department determined that they had acted "appropriately."The city's Civilian Review Authority, which lists complaints prior to September 2012, shows five more complaints against Chauvin, which were closed without discipline. A prisoner at a Minnesota correctional facility sued Chauvin and seven other officers for "alleged violations of his federal constitutional rights" in 2006, although the case was dismissed and the details were not clear.Toles said that while he has not protested himself, he believes this horrific incident is a watershed moment for the Minneapolis Police Department—an agency that he says has become the butt of a joke in the black community."We joke about it in the black community but we know that a white person calling the cops on us is gonna go in their favor," he said. The 33-year-old added that while he believes Floyd's death will finally bring change and reform that is necessary for Minneapolis, it's outraged residents who will ensure that justice is finally seen. He added that while he never filed a complaint in 2008, he is now looking to sue the Minneapolis Police Department for the violent incident. "We've all reached our tipping point. Water boils at 212 degrees," he said. "We're at 600."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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| Failed Maduro coup leader flew on pro-govt magnate's plane Posted: 28 May 2020 05:15 AM PDT  It was mid-January and Jordan Goudreau was itching to get going on a secret plan to raid Venezuela and arrest President Nicolás Maduro when the former special forces commando flew to the city of Barranquilla in Colombia to meet with his would-be partner in arms. To get there, Goudreau and two former Green Beret buddies relied on some unusual help: a chartered flight out of Miami's Opa Locka executive airport on a plane owned by a Venezuelan businessman so close to the government of Hugo Chávez that he spent almost 4 years in a U.S. prison for trying to cover up clandestine cash payments to its allies. The owner of the Venezuela-registered Cessna Citation II with yellow and blue lines, identified with the tail number YV-3231, was Franklin Durán, according to three people familiar with the businessman's movements who spoke on the condition of anonymity for fear of retaliation.
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| Iran outraged by 'honour killing' of 14-year-old girl Romina Ashrafi Posted: 28 May 2020 03:36 AM PDT  The killing of an Iranian teen by her father after she eloped with an older man sparked outrage on Wednesday, with local media denouncing "institutionalised violence" in "patriarchal" Iran. Iranian media covered the apparent "honour" crime extensively, with Ebtekar newspaper leading its front page with the headline "Unsafe father's house". According to local media, Romina Ashrafi was killed in her sleep on May 21 by her father, who decapitated her in the family home in Talesh in northern Gilan province. The reports said her father had refused her permission to marry a man fifteen years her senior, spurring her to run away, but she was returned home after her father reported her. The legal marriage age in Iran is 13 for women. Iranian media reported that after authorities detained the teenager, she told a judge she feared for her life if she was returned to home. But what most outraged public opinion was the lenient punishment the father is likely to face, Ebtekar wrote. The newspaper notes that Iran's normal "eye for an eye" retributive justice does not apply to fathers who kill their children. Accordingly, he is likely to face three to 10 years in prison, a sentence that could be reduced further, the newspaper wrote, denouncing the "institutionalised violence" of Iran's "patriarchal culture". With the farsi hashtag Romina_Ashrafi focusing outrage on Twitter, President Hassan Rouhani "expressed his regrets" in a cabinet meeting on Wednesday, pleading for the speedy passing of several anti-violence bills, his office said. On Twitter, Vice President for Women and Family Affairs, Masoumeh Ebtekar, said a bill on the protection of young people was in the "final phase" of validation by Iran's Guardian Council. The council, which vets legislation to ensure compliance with Iran's constitution and Islamic sharia law, has thrice previously called for changes to the law after it was passed by lawmakers, Ebtekar newspaper wrote. The publication fears that if the council sends back the bill, it will be buried by Iran's new parliament, which held its first session Wednesday and is dominated by conservatives and hardliners opposed to Rouhani.
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| The Chinese CDC now says the coronavirus didn't jump to people at the Wuhan wet market — instead, it was the site of a super-spreader event Posted: 28 May 2020 03:49 PM PDT  The origin of the new coronavirus still isn't known. But according to the Chinese CDC, it isn't the wet market in Wuhan.
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| Philippines eases one of world's toughest curbs amid spike in coronavirus cases Posted: 27 May 2020 06:13 PM PDT  Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte eased one of the toughest and longest lockdowns in the world for residents in the capital Manila from June 1, even as the country saw its biggest spike in coronavirus cases on Thursday. The Philippines reported 539 infections on Thursday, the highest daily tally since it recorded its first case of the coronavirus in January. "For me, this does not look bad," Duterte said in a late night televised address, citing what he described as the country's low mortality rate.
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| Hong Kong loses US 'special status' -- what next? Posted: 28 May 2020 01:55 AM PDT  Washington's declaration that Hong Kong is no longer sufficiently autonomous from China is a historic moment with potentially far-reaching consequences for the finance hub -- though much will depend on what President Donald Trump does next. The revocation of special status could radically rearrange the fortunes of a city that has served for decades as China's economic gateway to the world if targeted sanctions, tariffs or trade restrictions are imposed. - What is Hong Kong's special status?
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| White House punts economic update as election draws near Posted: 28 May 2020 08:32 AM PDT  The White House took the unusual step on Thursday of deciding not to release an updated economic forecast as planned this year, a fresh sign of the administration's anxiety about how the coronavirus has ravaged the nation just months before the election. The decision, which was confirmed by a senior administration official who was not authorized to publicly comment on the plan, came amid intensifying signals of the pandemic's grim economic toll. At least 2.1 million Americans lost their jobs last week, meaning an astonishing 41 million Americans have filed for unemployment benefits since shutdowns intended to prevent the spread of the coronavirus began in mid-March.
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| George Floyd death: AOC says politicians scared of ‘political power of police’ as she and Ilhan Omar call for officer to be charged with murder Posted: 28 May 2020 06:50 AM PDT  Democratic congresswomen Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Ilhan Omar have called for the police officer who knelt on George Floyd's neck to be charged with murder, as the former claims politicians are scared of "the political power of police."On Monday, four police officers in Minneapolis were fired after footage emerged of one of them kneeling on the neck of Mr Floyd, a black man, who repeatedly shouted that he couldn't breathe.
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| 'Orwell is rolling in his grave': Anger and disbelief at strict new lockdown rules in Moscow Posted: 28 May 2020 04:15 AM PDT  The Moscow City Hall on Wednesday promised to re-open parks and finally allow walks after nine weeks of coronavirus lockdown but the incredibly strict rules regulating outdoor activities have been met with universal derision. Sergei Sobyanin, the Moscow mayor, announced something that could be a cause for celebration on Wednesday, telling Vladimir Putin, the president, in a televised conference call that the Russian capital was poised to begin lifting some of the lockdown restrictions. The number of new Covid-19 cases recorded in Moscow on Thursday, was just over 2,000, the lowest in five weeks, and the number of hospitalisations dropped by 40 per cent in a fortnight, according to the mayor. Most of Moscow's shops and parks will re-open on Monday, and walks and outdoor exercises will finally be allowed but with a caveat. The details of what the City Hall dubbed an "experiment" have angered even the mayor's supporters who have credited him for stemming the outbreak. Each apartment building will be assigned three days a week when residents will be allowed to venture outside but only between 9 am and 9 pm, exercising will be permitted only before 9 am, and face masks will be mandatory.
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| Ford made its police SUV heat itself up to more than 133 degrees to kill the coronavirus Posted: 27 May 2020 08:45 AM PDT  Ford worked with Ohio State and police departments to develop the tech. Ford has a longstanding relationship with law enforcement.
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| Study: Death Rates for Drivers Vary by Car Size Posted: 27 May 2020 09:01 PM PDT  When it comes to vehicle crashes, size and weight matter a great deal. That's the conclusion of a comprehensive, three-year study into how drivers fared in their vehicles over time by the Insuran...
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| What schools will look like when they reopen: Scheduled days home, more online learning, lots of hand-washing Posted: 28 May 2020 03:01 AM PDT  Imagine American children returning to school this fall amid the coronavirus pandemic. Here's how the school week could look vastly different.
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| Biden points out he was warning about pandemic unpreparedness in October while Trump tweeted about iPhones Posted: 28 May 2020 09:20 AM PDT  Former Vice President Joe Biden has a humble brag he'd like to share.In October 2019, months before the coronavirus outbreak began, Biden tweeted a warning to the United States, saying "We are not prepared for a pandemic." Biden then called out President Trump for rolling back measures the Obama administration took, likely referring to Trump's 2018 disbandment of the team directly responsible for handling a pandemic response.As Biden's Twitter account conveniently pointed out Thursday, while Biden was urging caution, Trump was tweeting about iPhones. Specifically, the president took issue with the button-less feature in iPhone models released in 2017 onward.> Two tweets from the same day in October. pic.twitter.com/rsSslLCsTW> > — Joe Biden (@JoeBiden) May 28, 2020In fairness to Trump, this was months before the first COVID-19 case had even been reported, and just one month after the newest iPhone model had been released. And we do miss those buttons.More stories from theweek.com Amy Klobuchar declined to prosecute officer at center of George Floyd's death after previous conduct complaints Trump signs executive order seeking regulations on social media Trump retweets video declaring 'the only good Democrat is a dead Democrat'
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| Pelosi calls on Trump to 'take responsibility' for coronavirus response Posted: 27 May 2020 01:15 PM PDT  In a press conference Wednesday, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi called on President Trump to "stop making excuses. Take responsibility" for his response to the coronavirus pandemic.
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| Mexican drug lord pleads poverty in bid to escape arrest Posted: 27 May 2020 05:23 PM PDT  Drug lord Rafael Caro Quintero, a notorious underworld figure who is on the FBI's most wanted list for the murder of a federal agent over three decades ago, said in a legal appeal that he has no money, is too old to work and has no pension. The odd plea was filed Tuesday by Caro Quintero's lawyer seeking an injunction against his arrest or extradition to the United States for the kidnapping and murder of DEA Special Agent Enrique Camarena in Mexico in 1985. The U.S. government says Caro Quintero and his family remain in the drug trade.
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| Philippines eases capital's strict virus lockdown Posted: 28 May 2020 08:51 AM PDT  The Philippines will lift key coronavirus lockdown measures in the nation's capital, President Rodrigo Duterte said Thursday, aiming to resuscitate a faltering economy after nearly three months of strict home quarantine. Manila has endured one of the world's longest lockdowns, which has hit the livelihoods of millions of workers but not halted a steady stream of new infections. "Remember that the entire nation is under quarantine," Duterte said in a late-night speech.
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| Analysis: With a new law for Hong Kong, Beijing makes clear sovereignty is its bottom line Posted: 28 May 2020 09:30 AM PDT  Beijing's bottom line is sovereignty. Hong Kong is a 'purely internal affair that allows no foreign interference,' Chinese government spokesman says.
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| India coronavirus: Trouble ahead for India's fight against infections Posted: 27 May 2020 07:25 PM PDT  India's fatality rate remains among the lowest in the world, but the rise in infections is worrying.
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| Tesla slashes prices to boost demand Posted: 27 May 2020 09:06 AM PDT  Tesla Inc. has cut prices of its electric vehicles by as much as 6% in North America following a decline in auto demand in the region during weeks of lockdown that have now started to ease.
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| UK's Johnson tries to stop health experts from commenting on aide Cummings Posted: 28 May 2020 10:03 AM PDT  British Prime Minister Boris Johnson tried to stop his top medical and scientific advisors from answering reporters' questions about the behaviour of chief political advisor Dominic Cummings, saying they should not be involved in politics. Chris Whitty, England's chief medical officer, and Patrick Vallance, the government's chief scientific advisor, were repeatedly asked during a government news conference if a trip by Cummings from London to northern England set a bad example to the general public.
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| Amy Klobuchar didn't prosecute officer at center of George Floyd's death after previous conduct complaints Posted: 28 May 2020 11:37 AM PDT  George Floyd's death in police custody is renewing criticism of Sen. Amy Klobuchar's (D-Minn.) prosecutorial record.Before she became a senator and a top contender for former Vice President Joe Biden's vice presidential spot, Klobuchar spent eight years as the Hennepin County attorney, in charge of prosecution for Minneapolis. And while in that position, Klobuchar declined to prosecute multiple police officers cited for excessive force, including the officer who kneeled on Floyd's neck as he protested, The Guardian reports.Ex-Minneapolis police officer Derick Chauvin saw at least 10 conduct complaints during his 19-year tenure before he was fired Tuesday, according to a database that documents complaints against police. In particular, he was involved in the shooting death of a man who had stabbed other people before attacking police, as well as some other undisclosed complaints. Klobuchar did not prosecute Chauvin for the first death, and he was later placed on leave when he and other officers shot and wounded a Native American man in 2011.As The Washington Post noted in March, Klobuchar "declined to bring charges in more than two dozen cases in which people were killed in encounters with police" as Hennepin County attorney. Instead, she "aggressively prosecuted smaller offenses" that "have been criticized for their disproportionate effect on poor and minority communities," the Post continues. And as Klobuchar undergoes vetting to become a possible vice presidential candidate, that track record is being scrutinized and criticized once again.More stories from theweek.com Minneapolis official calls for naming 'disease' of racism a public health issue after George Floyd death Trump retweets video declaring 'the only good Democrat is a dead Democrat' Trump signs executive order seeking regulations on social media
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| Trump press secretary says president always tries to tell truth as she attacks social media Posted: 28 May 2020 12:31 PM PDT  Donald Trump's press secretary said the president always intends to give truthful information as he prepares to sign an executive order against social media tech giants.Kayleigh McEnany said if anyone should be fact checked more it should be the mainstream media.
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| Gang of 26 arrested for allegedly smuggling people from Vietnam to Europe in investigation prompted by Essex lorry deaths Posted: 27 May 2020 07:29 AM PDT  A gang of 26 suspected people smugglers have been arrested in France and Belgium in an investigation prompted by the deaths of 39 Vietnamese migrants found in the back of a lorry in Essex last year. The early morning raids took place in Paris and Brussels, with 13 people detained in each country. In Belgium, 11 Vietnamese and two Moroccans were held, while in France, authorities said the suspects were "mostly Vietnamese and French". The suspects are allegedly part of an organised crime group that smuggles refugees from Asia, particularly from Vietnam, and that likely has transported up to several dozen people every day for several months, Europol said in a statement. "Prompted by the discovery of 39 deceased Vietnamese nationals inside a refrigerated trailer in Essex in the United Kingdom in October 2019, a joint investigation team (JIT) was created between Belgium, Ireland, France, the United Kingdom, Eurojust and Europol," Europol said.
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| Hard-line former Tehran mayor named Iran parliament speaker Posted: 27 May 2020 10:09 PM PDT  Iran's parliament elected a former mayor of Tehran tied to the Revolutionary Guard as its next speaker Thursday, solidifying hard-line control of the body as tensions between the U.S. and the Islamic Republic remain high over its collapsed nuclear deal. Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf's assumption of power comes after a string of failed presidential bids and 12 years as the leader of Iran's capital city, in which he built onto Tehran's subway and supported the construction of modern high-rises. Many, however, remember Qalibaf for his support as a Revolutionary Guard general for a violent crackdown on Iranian university students in 1999.
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| Russia slams 'dangerous' US foreign policy moves Posted: 28 May 2020 03:00 PM PDT  Russia said on Thursday the United States was acting in a dngerous and unpredictable way, after Washington withdrew from a key military treaty and moved to ramp up pressure on Iran. Foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova made the comments after Washington announced it would end sanctions waivers for nations that remain in a nuclear accord signed with Iran.
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| This 'bread omelet' is the most genius way of making an egg sandwich Posted: 27 May 2020 01:34 PM PDT  This technique changes the game because everything happens in one skillet and it eliminates the worry of burning your toast.
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| Spain will open gradually to tourism, with Europe first Posted: 28 May 2020 10:27 AM PDT  Spain will open gradually to tourism this summer, starting with European countries, and will ensure visitors only go to areas that have the coronavirus under control, Foreign Minister Arancha Gonzalez Laya said. Spain usually welcomes more than 80 million visitors each year, making it one of the most visited countries in the world, with tourism a key part of its economy.
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| The UK now has the highest coronavirus death rate in the world Posted: 28 May 2020 05:16 AM PDT  The UK has recorded the highest coronavirus death rate in the world, according to new analysis.
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| Amy Cooper: Woman sacked after calling police on black man Posted: 28 May 2020 07:53 AM PDT  The woman, identified as Amy Cooper, called police saying an African-American man was threatening her life.
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