| Pompeo savaged by Democrats on Capitol Hill over coronavirus, Iran Posted: 28 Feb 2020 11:19 AM PST  Secretary of State Mike Pompeo faced intense criticism Friday from Democrats on Capitol Hill, who questioned him on the Trump administration's response to the growing coronavirus threat, as well as the persistent threat from foes like Iran.
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| Biden wins South Carolina primary: Live updates Posted: 29 Feb 2020 02:29 PM PST  Former Vice President Joe Biden won Saturday's Democratic primary in South Carolina, where voters delivered his struggling campaign a much-needed boost heading into Super Tuesday.
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| Trump says he's ordering 'a lot of different elements of medical' to deal with coronavirus Posted: 28 Feb 2020 03:00 PM PST  It's unclear what Trump meant by "elements of medical," but his comments came as the White House faces a firestorm over its response to coronavirus.
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| Daughter of alleged Mexican drug kingpin El Mencho arrested Posted: 27 Feb 2020 06:38 PM PST  El Mencho is allegedly the head of the Cartel Jalisco Nueva Generacion and is considered the "number one priority for DEA."
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| Turkey's Erdogan asks Russia to step aside in Syria Posted: 29 Feb 2020 01:59 AM PST  Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said on Saturday he had asked President Vladimir Putin for Russia to stand aside in Syria and let Turkey fight Syrian government forces alone, after 34 Turkish soldiers were killed this week. The government forces' air strikes are part of a major assault to capture the province, part of the last remaining territory held by rebels backed by Turkey.
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| Dozens of Turkish soldiers killed in airstrike in Syria Posted: 28 Feb 2020 05:00 AM PST  At least 33 Turkish military personnel have been killed in an airstrike in Syria's Idlib province, in a dramatic escalation in the battle for control of the country's last opposition stronghold.
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| Why the Navy's New Lrasm Missile Would Be a Real Ship-Killer Posted: 28 Feb 2020 02:00 PM PST  A very good idea.
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| Serbia passes law in response to missing babies scandal Posted: 29 Feb 2020 09:42 AM PST  Serbian lawmakers on Saturday approved a long-awaited law that aims to shed light on the fate of hundreds of children whose parents fear might have been stolen from birth clinics throughout the Balkan country. Two lawmakers abstained. The high number of absent lawmakers was unrelated to the bill, but an ongoing boycott of parliament sessions by opposition parties and other reasons.
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| New coronavirus cases in Northern California raise alarm Posted: 28 Feb 2020 11:14 AM PST  Three students at the University of California, Davis, are under observation for possible exposure to coronavirus.
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| 40% of Americans don't think the US government is prepared to handle coronavirus Posted: 28 Feb 2020 10:22 AM PST  Only 7% of Americans said they felt the US government is "extremely prepared" for coronavirus, while 12% said "very prepared."
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| Man whose son was found encased in cement sentenced to 72 years in prison Posted: 29 Feb 2020 03:01 PM PST  A Colorado man whose seven-year-old son was repeatedly abused before being found encased in concrete in a Denver storage unit has been sentenced to 72 years in prison for the death.Leland Pankey received the sentence on Friday, with one count of child abuse landing him 48 years in prison and 24 years for tampering with the body.
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| South Carolina exit polls: Black and moderate voters fuel Biden to victory Posted: 29 Feb 2020 04:30 PM PST  The former vice president won 60 percent of the black vote and received solid backing from moderate and religious voters Saturday.
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| Trump says U.S. considering restrictions at Mexican border over coronavirus Posted: 29 Feb 2020 10:24 AM PST  The United States is considering shutting the country's southern border with Mexico to control the spread of the new coronavirus, President Donald Trump said on Saturday, as his administration announced new limits on travelers who have visited Iran and recommended against travel to hard-hit areas of Italy and South Korea. Mexico's government said on Friday it had detected three cases of coronavirus infection in three men who had all recently traveled to Italy, making the country the second in Latin America to register the fast-spreading flu-like illness.
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| Philippines, U.S. Seek New Military Deal After Duterte Exit Posted: 27 Feb 2020 10:19 PM PST |
| Black Lives Matter activist Hawk Newsome on the current state of America Posted: 27 Feb 2020 07:33 PM PST  Newsome is chairman of Black Lives Matter of Greater New York, and has spent his adult life advancing the cause of what he calls the "Second Civil Rights Movement."
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| Donald Trump Jr. accuses Democrats of hoping coronavirus 'kills millions of people' Posted: 28 Feb 2020 09:35 AM PST  Amid growing fears of a coronavirus outbreak in the United States, Donald Trump Jr. on Friday accused Democrats of hoping that the disease kills millions of Americans to thwart his father's chances of reelection.
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| The FDA just announced the first drug shortage caused by the coronavirus, but wouldn't identify the drug Posted: 28 Feb 2020 06:28 AM PST  China is a critical player in the global supply chain for drugs, as many ingredients in the medicines we take are manufactured there.
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| Crazy Custody Battle With Doomsday Mom’s Niece Airs Claims of Cults, Child-Stealing, and Attempted Murder Posted: 28 Feb 2020 01:30 PM PST  The investigation into the disappearance of doomsday mom Lori Vallow's children has exposed a bitter, mudslinging custody battle between her niece and the niece's ex-husband—with allegations of cult membership, child-stealing, and attempted murder.The fight is being waged between Melani Pawlowski and Brandon Boudreaux, an Arizona couple who were married with four children until things started to get very strange in the summer of 2019.That's when, according to Boudreaux, his wife began spending a lot of time with Vallow, her aunt, and joined what he called a doomsday cult. She suddenly demanded a divorce, blindsiding Boudreaux."I thought I had a happy marriage, so it was pretty overwhelming," Boudreaux told the Arizona Republic a few months ago.Things were about to get more overwhelming. On Oct. 2, Boudreaux was returning home when a 2018 Jeep Wrangler pulled up with a rifle with a silencer poking out of the window, he said. A bullet came whizzing at him and barely missed his head.Doomsday Mom Told Her Husband's Kids Their Dad Was Dead Via Text MessageAccording to Boudreaux and prosecutors, the car belonged to Charles Vallow, husband of Lori Vallow.There was no way Charles was at the wheel, however. He had been dead for months. In July, while estranged from Lori, he traveled from his home in Texas to hers in Arizona to see their adopted 7-year-old son, J.J., and stepdaughter Tylee, 17.Lori would later tell police that Charles became physical and her brother, Alex Cox, shot him dead in self-defense—although police are re-investigating his death in light of recent disturbing developments.After the shooting, Boudreaux said, he became fearful for his life and the safety of his children so he filed for custody. Pawlowski moved to Idaho, where Vallow had moved after her husband's death, and a judge granted Boudreaux temporary custody. He told the Republic he was in hiding with them in another state.About a month later, Vallow remarried—tying the knot with Chad Daybell, an author who penned apocalyptic novels for a Mormon audience. His wife of almost 30 years, Tammy, had suddenly died just weeks earlier and was buried without an autopsy (though her body has since been exhumed).Vallow's children were not at the wedding; according to police, they had vanished weeks earlier and when authorities showed up on the newlyweds' doorstep to check on Tylee and J.J.'s welfare, Lori lied about where they were.That set into motion the investigation that would eventually generate headlines around the world, drawing scrutiny to the deaths of Vallow and Daybell's previous spouses, raising questions about the fate of Tylee and J.J., and providing new ammunition for Boudreaux in his legal tussle with Pawlowski, who had also since remarried.Doomsday Writer Claimed Dead Wife Helped Him Find New OneA court filing by Boudreaux on Feb. 19, first reported by Fox 10, included a number of unsubstantiated allegations of nefarious behavior by Pawlowski: that she was involved in a cult where "adults and children alike have been being killed off like flies" and that she was involved in the Oct. 2 shooting."Brandon believed Melani, his wife at the time, had a million dollars of reasons to have him killed," the filing alleged in reference to a life insurance policy. He claimed that Vallow's brother, Cox, was the gunman; Cox has since died of unknown causes.In the court papers, Boudreaux also alleged that Pawlowski knows where Tylee and J.J. are and that she had ominously told her new husband, "Sometimes children are full of light and then just like that they go dark." Arizona police have said they were not able to corroborate the litany of lurid accusations—and Pawlowski fired back with a barrage of her own allegations in a statement from her attorneys."Sadly, and irresponsibly, much of the media has quoted Brandon Boudreaux's biased, vindictive, and fake accusations as truth and fact when they are his resentful, vengeful, and dishonest efforts to get full custody of Melani's children," attorney Garrett Smith said. "Brandon Boudreaux deceptively took Melani's children out of state and kept them unlawfully, Melani was the stable parent in her children's lives while Brandon Boudreaux traveled for weeks and was rarely home."The statement went on to level ugly charges about Boudreaux's behavior and his family, including criminal misconduct, while defending Pawlowski.The lawyers said Pawlowski does not know where Vallow's children are and told the FBI as much during three sit-downs. They added she had nothing to do with the Oct. 2 shooting, which they suggested was an "elaborate manipulation." Doomsday Mom of Missing Kids Arrested in Hawaii"Melani has never been associated with a cult," another attorney, Robert Jarvis, added. "Melani is a lifetime member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints and her beliefs are consistent with the Church. Melani holds close to her belief in a loving God. She loves her children and respects life."In the middle of all this finger-pointing, the question of where Tylee and J.J. are remains unanswered.Police in Rexburg, Idaho, have said they believe the pair are in danger and that Vallow and Daybell have refused to cooperate with the investigation. A day after investigators asked Vallow and Daybell about the children, the couple left Idaho and eventually resurfaced in Hawaii.An Idaho judge ordered Vallow to return with the children, but she failed to show, and she was arrested on charges of child desertion, contempt of court, and promoting criminal behavior. That last count stems from an allegation that she asked a friend to lie for her and tell police that she had J.J.Initially held on $5 million bail, Vallow has since waived extradition and will soon return to Idaho to face the charges. Her attorneys say she plans to fight the allegation and did not comply with the court order only because she did not want them to end up in foster care. He did not, however, say where the children are.Read more at The Daily Beast.Get our top stories in your inbox every day. Sign up now!Daily Beast Membership: Beast Inside goes deeper on the stories that matter to you. Learn more.
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| South Carolina primary results in full – county by county Posted: 29 Feb 2020 12:00 PM PST  Get the results in the crucial early voting state * South Carolina Democrats vote as Biden looks for win to boost flagging campaign * Help us cover the critical issues of 2020. Consider making a contributionSouth Carolina is the first state in the deep south to cast its vote in the primary race, where African American voters form a majority of the electorate. Democrats and Republicans will be voting, but because Donald Trump faces no serious opposition, all eyes will be on the Democratic contest.default What is a primary?The primaries and caucuses are a series of contests, in all 50 US states plus Washington DC and US territories, by which the party selects its presidential nominee. Most US states hold primary elections, in which voters go to a polling place, mail in their ballots or otherwise vote remotely. A handful of states hold caucuses – complicated, hours-long meetings, which continue until one candidate emerges as victor. And the process is different for Democrats and Republicans. Why is the South Carolina primary important?The goal for the candidates is to amass a majority of pledged delegates whose job it is to nominate the candidate at the party's convention. In all states, delegates are awarded proportionally among top winners.To become the Democratic presidential nominee, the candidate must secure 1,991 pledged delegates before the Democratic Party's convention in Wisconsin in July. If there is no outright majority then so-called super delegates, unpledged senior party members, could decide who secures the presidential nomination.There are 54 delegates in play in South Carolina. Only 101 so far allotted after the first three primaries in Iowa, New Hampshire and Nevada. South Carolina serves as a launchpad for the vital Super Tuesday election in just three days time, when 16 states and territories will vote and over 1,300 delegates, around a third of the total in the entire election, will be up for grabs. Sanders so far leads the pack with 45 delegates. He is followed by former South Bend mayor Pete Buttigieg on 26, while Biden lags behind with 15. Massachusetts senator Elizabeth Warren holds 8 with Minnesota senator Amy Klobuchar on 7.
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| After chemical attack and kidnapping, migrant mom tries again to enter U.S. Posted: 28 Feb 2020 12:51 PM PST  "They're putting us at risk," the asylum-seeker said. "After all we've been through."
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| Report: Michelle Obama petitioned to run as vice president to stop Bernie Sanders Posted: 28 Feb 2020 04:40 AM PST  Fearing the selection of Bernie Sanders as the Democrats' 2020 presidential nominee, a growing number of establishment party officials are reportedly considering Sherrod Brown as a late-entry "white knight" with Michelle Obama as a running mate.
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| Could This Be the Navy's New Super Bomber? (Wait, What?) Posted: 29 Feb 2020 02:00 PM PST  While bombers could certainly contribute to searches for adversary shipping, quite likely potential targets will more often be relayed to them by other maritime surveillance assets.
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| Trump Team Testing ‘Off-the-Shelf’ Drugs to Cure Coronavirus Posted: 29 Feb 2020 12:28 PM PST  (Bloomberg) -- The Trump administration is testing existing "off-the-shelf" drugs to combat the coronavirus, a cabinet official said Saturday.A national lab in Tennessee recently made "an important discovery" involving existing drugs, Energy Secretary Dan Brouillette said at the Conservative Political Action Conference in Maryland."The scientists at our Oak Ridge National Laboratory were able to look at the protein strains and determine -- perhaps, it's still early -- that we can find some off-the-shelf drugs that can help us not only cure the disease but stop the spread of the infection," Brouillette said.Brouillette was responding to a question about what his agency is doing to help combat the virus, which has caused markets to plunge and killed nearly 3,000 people across the globe. In the U.S., where 22 cases have been reported, the virus has killed one person -- a woman from Washington state -- and more cases are likely, President Donald Trump said Saturday.In addition to the laboratory tests, Brouillette said he's harnessing the power of his agency's "super computers" as well as artificial intelligence capabilities to assist organizations like the Centers for Disease Control and the World Heath Organization to conduct modeling on the virus."We want to know how far is this going to spread and at what point might it peak," he said.To contact the reporter on this story: Ari Natter in Washington at anatter5@bloomberg.netTo contact the editors responsible for this story: Jon Morgan at jmorgan97@bloomberg.net, Matthew G. Miller, Virginia Van NattaFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.comSubscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.©2020 Bloomberg L.P.
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| First coronavirus death on US soil confirmed, Trump calls for calm Posted: 29 Feb 2020 03:07 PM PST  The first fatality from the novel coronavirus has been confirmed on US soil, as President Donald Trump on Saturday urged Americans not to panic. Health officials said the man who died in Washington state was one of a handful with no known links to global hot zones to have contracted the virus -- indicating that the pathogen was now likely spreading in communities. The death occurred in King County, the most populous in the state and home to Seattle, a city of more than 700,000 people, officials told AFP.
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| How to prepare for a coronavirus pandemic Posted: 29 Feb 2020 01:39 PM PST  Keep a two-week supply of food and a 30-day supply of medicine. Wearing a face mask at all times might not be necessary.
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| As India counts dead, brutality of Hindu-Muslim riot emerges Posted: 29 Feb 2020 12:01 AM PST  The wounded came in waves. As the Mustafabad neighborhood of India's capital was ravaged by communal riots for three days this week, the Al-Hind Hospital turned from a community clinic into a trauma ward. Doctors like M.A. Anwar were for the first time dealing with injuries such as gunshot wounds, crushed skulls and torn genitals.
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| Immigrants Could Face Nearly $1,000 Charge to Appeal Deportation Orders Posted: 28 Feb 2020 12:21 PM PST  Immigrants who hope to challenge their deportation orders could be charged nearly $1,000 to go to court under a proposed new regulation unveiled Thursday, a nearly tenfold increase that immigration lawyers warn could make deportation appeals much more difficult to pursue.The new fee schedule is the latest in a series of moves by the Trump administration to speed up deportations and discourage the arrival of immigrants. Under the same proposal, the administration wants to require asylum-seekers to pay a $50 fee to have their cases heard in court; historically, the asylum process has been available to people fleeing persecution regardless of their ability to pay.In proposing the new fees, the Executive Office for Immigration Review, an arm of the Justice Department, said asking immigrants to pay a greater share of costs would help make sure that court resources were available and would also assure "that U.S. taxpayers do not bear a disproportionate burden in funding the immigration system."The proposed fees are now open to public comment for a 30-day period. The fees were last increased in 1986, the agency said, and applicants would continue to be able to apply for waivers if they are unable to pay.But lawyers representing immigrants said the proposed fees, especially those for asylum applicants, could violate the United States' legal obligation to provide immigrants fleeing dangerous conditions to a full and fair hearing."I think that new proposed regulation is absolutely outrageous and will have draconian consequences on the ability of noncitizens in removal proceedings to be able to navigate and access the system that Congress put in place for the proceedings," said Trina Realmuto, directing attorney at the American Immigration Council.The proposed fee for asylum-seekers is inconsistent with the concept of welcoming individuals fleeing persecution and torture and amounts to "putting a price tag" on asylum, Realmuto said.Another branch of the government, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, has also proposed a sharp increase in fees for immigrants and visa applicants. Fees for permanent residence permits, known as green cards, would increase by $990 to a total of $2,750, and the cost for naturalization of new citizens would increase by $445 to $1,170.Again and again, the Trump administration has made it more expensive to be an immigrant. The price of bonds for release from immigration detention have gone up for many. And Monday, a rule went into effect that makes it difficult for immigrants to pursue permanent legal status if they have used public benefits, such as Medicaid and food stamps.Lawyers who work in immigration courts said many of their clients are already deeply worried they will be unable to afford to fight deportation orders, even when they may have substantial justification for staying in the country."There's just been a sense of panic," said Matt Adams, legal director for the Northwest Immigrant Rights Project. "For many of our clients, it basically is an insurmountable obstacle."Immigrants who would be hit hardest by the increase are those in immigration detention, Adams said. Many were the primary breadwinners in their family before being locked up, and they may not even have the chance to file an appeal, he said."It's undermining the very idea of a fair hearing," he said. "It's like, 'You can get a fair hearing, if you have enough money to pay for it.'"This article originally appeared in The New York Times.(C) 2020 The New York Times Company
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| U.S.-Taliban sign landmark agreement in bid to end America's longest war Posted: 29 Feb 2020 08:22 AM PST  The U.S. has agreed to withdraw all forces from Afghanistan within 14 months and pull out of five bases in 135 days.
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| Tom Steyer: Billionaire Democrat dances to ‘Back That Azz Up’ on stage with rapper in embarrassing rally stunt Posted: 29 Feb 2020 08:50 AM PST  Presidential hopeful and billionaire hedge fund manager Tom Steyer, 62, found an eye-catching way to end his final rally before the South Carolina primary -- twerking on stage with the rapper Juvenile.In an enthusiastic display of dad-dancing, the former hedge fund manager worked up a sweat dancing to Back That Azz Up.
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| This Photo Might Be the Real Start of World War II Posted: 29 Feb 2020 06:45 AM PST  And it was in a nation that technically was neutral.
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| UC Santa Cruz fires 54 graduate students participating in months-long strike Posted: 28 Feb 2020 06:45 PM PST  Termination letters were sent to those students protesting for a cost-of-living adjustment amid California's housing crisisThe University of California, Santa Cruz, issued termination letters on Friday to 54 graduate students who have been waging a months-long strike for a cost-of-living-adjustment amid soaring rents.The firings came as graduate students at the University of California, Davis, and University of California, Santa Barbara, began their own cost-of-living strikes in solidarity. One of their demands is that all UC Santa Cruz graduate workers who participated in strike activities be restored to full employment status.The 54 UC Santa Cruz graduate students who received termination letters on Friday are just a fraction of the 233 graduate student instructors and teaching assistants who have refused to submit nearly 12,000 grades from the fall quarter since December.This month, the students' grading strike expanded, as teaching assistants refused all teaching duties and research assistants refused additional work. Some classes and office hours have been canceled because of the strike.The students are striking for a $1,412-a-month cost-of-living adjustment, which they say they desperately need amid a growing housing crisis in California. Most students are spending between 5o% and 70% of their $2,434-a-month salary on rent, some forced to live in substandard apartments with many roommates in order to stretch their dollars.Veronica Hamilton, a third-year graduate student studying psychology, is the union representative on campus and was copied on the termination letters that were emailed out on Friday. "The first person who was sent a letter is a single mother who spends almost all her income on rent on subsidized family student housing," Hamilton said."It's horrible," she continued. "We got to this point because they're digging their heels in the ground. We're in a crisis and they don't even want to have a conversation on how to address these issues."The graduate students are represented by United Auto Workers Local 2865, which negotiated a contract in 2018 that included a no-strike clause: meaning the current strike, known as a "wildcat strike", has been taken without the union's approval.The administration has cited this as a reason for not negotiating with the graduate students but, in response to the strike, offered two supplemental programs that will cost about $7m a year – one that will offer a yearly $2,500 need-based housing fellowship and another that offers doctoral students a five-year funding program – as well as two temporary housing assistance programs.The strikers say these programs would not be enough. Hamilton, for example, pays $1,800 a month to live 40 minutes away from campus in a small cabin she shares with her husband, who lost his job four months ago – $2,500 barely covers a month's rent, she said."The university is sympathetic to such challenges, particularly housing, and the related impacts on all our employees," said Andrew Gordon, a spokesman for Janet Napolitano, the University of California president, in a statement.However, the university has honored the contract it entered into with the union, "and we expect teaching assistants to do the same", he said."Teaching assistants who choose to withhold grades or refuse to teach are in violation of that contract," Gordon said, adding that such actions "unfairly impact undergraduate students while doing nothing to further the conversation on how to address the challenges of the rising cost of living, with which all students and employees across UC must contend".The strikers had expected more students to receive termination letters, and earlier – the executive vice-chancellor of UC Santa Cruz had set a deadline for last week."I think people were ready to be fired, but still surprised," said Jane Komori, a third-year graduate student studying the history of consciousness. "It's such a destructive action for the administration to take … Hundreds and hundreds of undergraduates won't be able to take certain classes."It's a serious issue for the quality of undergraduate education and the number of undergraduates that can be enrolled," she added.Nearly 500 graduate students have said they won't teach next quarter because of the firings, Hamilton said. Now with the strike spreading to other UC campuses, they are more ready than ever to keep on the picket line."I've heard from graduate students across the country," Hamilton said. "Everybody is sick of the situation that we're in. Graduate students of today are weighed down by the student debt crisis. Graduate students of today are more likely to be parents, more likely to come from working class backgrounds, from backgrounds of racialized capitalism. This is just the beginning."
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| Trump Nominates John Ratcliffe to Be Director of National Intelligence—Again Posted: 28 Feb 2020 02:37 PM PST  President Trump announced late Friday that he is nominating Rep. John Ratcliffe (R-TX) to be his next director of national intelligence. That's despite the former Texas prosecutor withdrawing his nomination last year.Ratcliffe, a large Trump donor, dropped out of the nomination process in July 2019, blaming unfair media coverage. But The Daily Beast reported that before Racliffe announced his withdrawal, an email revealing his alleged involvement in a contentious whistleblowing case made its way to the White House. On Friday, Trump tweeted that he "would have completed [the] process earlier" but "John wanted to wait until after IG Report was finished," an apparent reference to the inspector general's report on how the FBI handled its counterintelligence probe of Trump campaign associates."John is an outstanding man of great talent!" he wrote.Just last week, Trump appointed U.S. Ambassador to Germany and longtime Trumpworld loyalist Richard Grenell, who has no intelligence experience, as his acting DNI. A former intelligence official told The Daily Beast at the time that the announcement "blindsided" career officials in the Office of the Director of National Intelligence.Ratcliffe, who himself has little national security experience, is in for a rocky confirmation process. His nomination last year drew swift opposition from Senate Democrats and lukewarm support from key Republicans.Senate Intelligence chair Richard Burr told White House officials Ratcliffe, a outspoken supporter of the president, was too partisan, The New York Times reported. On the Senate floor, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer called him "a three-term tea party congressman who, when he goes on television, appeals to the president's sense of stridency and partisanship."Even if there's little chance Ratcliffe will be confirmed by the Senate, his nomination allows Grenell to continue to serve past March 11, University of Texas law professor Stephen Vladeck pointed out on Twitter. Federal law also stipulates that an acting DNI can stay in place for another 210 days after the Senate either rejects a nomination or the nominee withdraws.Grenell was brought in last week to replace acting DNI Joseph Maguire, whom Trump replaced over what he felt was disloyalty by one of Maguire's aides, according to multiple reports. The aide had briefed the House Intelligence Committee that Russia was once again interfering in the election in Trump's favor.After former DNI Dan Coats announced his resignation last summer, Trump tweeted that he intended to nominate Ratcliffe to replace him, a move that surprised White House aides, who had not vetted the congressman, The Washington Post reported. Ratcliffe, a member of the House Intelligence Committee, had been a vocal critic of Special Counsel Robert Mueller's Russia probe and had seized on text messages between FBI agents Lisa Page and Peter Strzok as evidence of bias within the FBI. He even claimed to have seen texts between the pair that suggested the existence of a "secret society" working against Trump—an easily debunked conspiracy theory that he played a part in spreading far and wide.But Ratcliffe's nomination fell apart in just a few weeks. An investigation by The Washington Post found he had embellished how many immigrants he rounded up in one day as a U.S. attorney. Another investigation found he'd embellished his national security credentials by claiming he'd prosecuted two major terrorism cases, despite court records showing he had no involvement.His July 2019 withdrawal prompted Trump to complain he was being treated unfairly."Rather than going through months of slander and libel, I explained to John how miserable it would be for him and his family to deal with these people," Trump said at the time. "John has therefore decided to stay in Congress where he has done such an outstanding job representing the people of Texas, and our Country."Trump said last year it didn't bother him that Ratcliffe lacked much national security expertise. "I think he would've picked it up very quickly," he said.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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| Dad gets 72 years in death of boy found encased in concrete Posted: 28 Feb 2020 01:32 PM PST |
| El Salvador's president vetoes controversial war crimes law Posted: 28 Feb 2020 07:17 PM PST  El Salvador President Nayib Bukele on Friday vetoed a controversial law intended to allow the prosecution of crimes committed during the country's bloody civil war, arguing it was not in the interest of victims. Congress had narrowly approved the law on Wednesday but opponents criticize that it would allow judges to substantially reduce the sentences of perpetrators of war crimes and crimes against humanity. Human rights organizations and families of victims had asked him to veto it.
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| Why is Iran's reported mortality rate for coronavirus higher than in other countries? Posted: 28 Feb 2020 07:53 AM PST  Iran has now suspended parliament indefinitely due to the outbreak. Secretary of State Pompeo says the U.S. has offered to help Iran respond to the virus.
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| Ireland Was Neutral in World War II, so Why Did the Nazis Attack It? Posted: 29 Feb 2020 01:00 PM PST  An interesting story.
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| Trump targeted Central American migrants. But now, violence and fear are driving more Mexicans to the US. Posted: 29 Feb 2020 02:31 PM PST  While the Trump administration has focused on curbing Central American migrants, more Mexicans than ever are trying to cross the US Southern border.
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| Trump moves to calm virus fears after first death on US soil Posted: 29 Feb 2020 11:59 AM PST  US President Donald Trump moved to quell fears about the novel coronavirus after the first death on US soil was confirmed Saturday. The US fatality occurred in Washington State's King county, which includes Seattle, a city of more than 700,000 people, said health officials. The victim was not immediately identified, but Trump told reporters that the victim was a woman in her late 50s.
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| New Yahoo News/YouGov poll: Who is strongest against Trump? Must-win states and swing voters show Biden holds edge over Sanders Posted: 28 Feb 2020 09:16 AM PST  A new Yahoo News/YouGov poll suggests that Sanders could be a riskier nominee than his supporters are willing to admit.
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| At least two dozen US police departments have spread misinformation linking coronavirus to meth Posted: 29 Feb 2020 07:02 AM PST  "This attempt, although a long shot, still had some possibility behind it," one police department said in response to criticism.
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| Prosecutors: Hawaii man led meth ring while councilman Posted: 28 Feb 2020 12:39 PM PST  A Hawaii councilman pleaded not guilty Friday to charges accusing him of leading a drug-trafficking organization, supplying guns, conspiring with a gang leader, requesting sexual favors as payment for drugs and assaulting a law enforcement officer in a case that highlights the hold methamphetamine has on some people in the state. Arthur Brun led a major drug-trafficking conspiracy involving 11 other defendants since at least June 2019, while serving as an elected member of the Kauai County Council, U.S. Attorney for Hawaii Kenji Price said. Brun, vice chair of the council's Public Safety and Human Services Committee, pleaded not guilty in U.S. court in Honolulu.
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