Oil Rises On China Possibly Easing COVID Curbs https://digitalarizonanews.com/oil-rises-on-china-possibly-easing-covid-curbs/
Pump jacks operate at sunset in an oil field in Midland, Texas U.S. August 22, 2018. REUTERS/Nick Oxford/File Photo
China mulls cutting quarantine time for visitors – report
Looming EU ban on Russian oil, OPEC+ cuts supportive
U.S. oil reserve sales plan fails to dampen prices
NEW YORK, Oct 20 (Reuters) – Oil prices rose by more than 1% on Thursday on news China is considering easing COVID-19 quarantine measures for visitors, boosting hopes for increased energy demand in the world’s top oil importer.
Brent crude futures rose $1.30, or 1.4%, to $93.71 a barrel by 11:07 a.m. EDT (1507 GMT).
U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude for November delivery , which expires on Thursday, rose $1.76, or 2.1%, to $87.31 per barrel. WTI for December delivery was up $1.45, or 1.7%, at $85.97 per barrel.
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Beijing is considering cutting the quarantine period for visitors to seven days from 10 days, Bloomberg news reported on Thursday, citing people familiar with the matter. read more
China, the world’s largest crude importer, has stuck to strict COVID curbs this year, which weighed heavily on business and economic activity, lowering demand for fuel.
“We have a bit of a rally as a result of events in China,” said Bob Yawger, director of energy futures at Mizuho in New York. “That’s been seen as a positive demand indicator for the market.”
A looming European Union ban on Russian crude and oil products, as well as the output cut from the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and allies including Russia, known as OPEC+, have also supported prices.
OPEC+ agreed on a production cut of 2 million barrels per day in early October.
Separately, U.S. President Joe Biden announced a plan on Wednesday to sell off the rest of his release from the nation’s Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) by year’s end, or 15 million barrels of oil, and begin refilling the stockpile as he tries to dampen high gasoline prices ahead of midterm elections on Nov. 8.
The announcement, however failed to ease oil prices, as official U.S. data showed that the SPR last week dropped to their lowest since mid-1984, while commercial oil stocks fell unexpectedly.
“Yesterday’s failed attempt at cooling oil prices is further evidence that the U.S. has lost its influence over global oil markets,” PVM Oil’s Stephen Brennock said.
Meanwhile, global demand for fuel remains uncertain. U.S. economic activity expanded modestly in recent weeks, although it was flat in some regions and declined in a couple of others, the Federal Reserve said on Wednesday in a report that showed firms growing more pessimistic about the outlook.
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Reporting by Stephanie Kelly in New York; Additional reporting by Ahmad Ghaddar in London and Emily Chow in Singapore; Editing by Marguerita Choy and Kirsten Donovan
Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.
Stephanie Kelly
Thomson Reuters
A New-York-based correspondent covering the U.S. crude market and member of the energy team since 2018 covering the oil and fuel markets as well as federal policy around renewable fuels.
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Spright Achieves Longest US Commercial UAS BVLOS Flight On Record
Spright Achieves Longest US Commercial UAS BVLOS Flight On Record https://digitalarizonanews.com/spright-achieves-longest-us-commercial-uas-bvlos-flight-on-record/
Gilbert, AZ, Oct. 20, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Spright, the drone division of Air Methods, has successfully completed the longest UAS Beyond Visual Line of Sight (BVLOS) flight in the US by a commercial entity, marking a critical achievement in the pending launch of the first bi-directional US medical drone delivery network.
The 29-mile flight was accomplished using a Wingcopter 198 eVtol aircraft, departing from Hutchinson Medical Center in Hutchinson, KS, and flying to the affiliated Rice County District Hospital in Lyons, KS. The flight lasted approximately 23 minutes, a stark contrast to the estimated 45minutes it takes to travel between the facilities by road.
“We are proud to be leading the UAS industry in opening corridors of opportunity for commercial drone delivery,” said Spright President Joseph Resnik. “We look forward to the next phase of our effort to establish a US medical drone network that connects communities with the resources needed to expand healthcare access and improve patient care.”
For rural areas like Lyons, economic pressures often limit the patient services available through community health centers. Supply inventories, including items like whole blood or critical medications, may be centralized in larger healthcare facilities to control costs. Therefore, accessing those products in an emergency medical situation is challenging and time-consuming, delaying care and threatening positive patient outcomes. Looking ahead, Spright drone delivery will enable the faster and more efficient on-demand transport of vital medical supplies, making a measurable impact on the quality of care available to outlying communities.
“We are committed to delivering the best care possible for our patients. Partnering with Spright on this groundbreaking drone delivery effort will allow us to better serve our patients and communities, but also create internal efficiencies through enhanced resource allocation,” said Chuck Welch, Chief Strategy Officer of Hutchinson Regional Healthcare System. “It’s a win for our staff, our patients, and the broader region as a whole.”
ABOUT SPRIGHT
Spright is the drone division of Air Methods, created to help solve for many of the toughest challenges facing communities across North America. This innovative, drone-based solution leverages emerging aeronautical technology to create operational solutions that can be implemented locally. Based in Gilbert, Arizona, Spright as a stand-alone Part 135 Operator with a leadership team that touts more than 70 years of aviation operational experience.
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SVN | Desert Commercial Advisors Closes On $70M Sale Of 270 Acres In Mesa AZ
SVN | Desert Commercial Advisors Closes On $70M Sale Of 270 Acres In Mesa, AZ https://digitalarizonanews.com/svn-desert-commercial-advisors-closes-on-70m-sale-of-270-acres-in-mesa-az/
October 20, 2022 11:17 ET | Source: SVN International Corp.
Boston, MA, Oct. 20, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — SVN | Desert Commercial Advisors represented Shopoff Realty Investments, in the acquisition of 269.6 acres of land located at E. Elliott and S. Sossaman Road. Situated in the City of Mesa boundaries, in what is considered unincorporated Maricopa County, plans for the purchase include annexing the site into the City.
As reported in Shopoff’s release; “This property is located in a burgeoning employment hub with increasing demand for manufacturing space,” said William Shopoff, the firm’s president and CEO, in a statement. “We plan to work closely with the city to annex the property into the city of Mesa, and subsequently entitle the property for manufacturing use, in order to meet market demands.”
Previously a dairy farm, Arizona Dairy Co. completed its final disposition in the immediate area with this sale. General Manager Justin Stewart reports that other parts of its agricultural land have been sold over the years, including the sale to Google of 186 acres located at the NWC of Elliot and Sossaman in 2019.
Shopoff has proposed potential plans for the development of “The Block On Elliot,” a premier manufacturing, technology, and employment park. The park could include up to fifteen buildings, at an average size of 500,000 square feet and up to 4.1 million leasable square feet. The 269.9 acres are positioned within the Elliot Road Technology Corridor. Deemed by the City of Mesa as, “A Smart Location for High-Tech Manufacturing and Technology Companies.” Mesa Economic Development Director Bill Jabjiniak comments, “With the success, we’ve had in the formal part of the Elliot Road Technology Corridor, it sort of makes sense with Google on the northwest corner to continue the theme and focus of technology all along Elliot Road.”
Dylan Sproul and Paul Borgesen of SVN Desert Commercial Advisors negotiated the transaction on behalf of the buyer, Shopoff Realty Investments. Dylan Sproul stated, “It was a pleasure working with Shopoff Realty on this transaction. Given the complexity of taking an active dairy operation to a fully demolished and environmentally clean site in the span of 8 months, in addition to funding this deal in a tumultuous capital market environment, is a true testament to their innovative and nimble approach. Shopoff now owns the largest development-ready industrial park in the entire Southeast Valley. We are very excited to see the economic growth this development brings to the City of Mesa and the Mesa-Gateway Airport.”
The proposed “Block On Elliot” development sits just North of Sossaman Park 202. Among the first major ground-up developments around Sossaman and Warner Roads, with the help of Paul Borgesen and Dylan Sproul, the 112 acres of land was acquired by California firm Contour in December 2021. Phase 1 of the 1.55-million-square-foot industrial development broke ground in September 2022. Alongside Google’s Project Red Hawk, Facebook’s $800 million Meta Mesa Data Center, Apple’s Global Command Center, EdgeCore Data Center, and many more high-tech companies, these planned developments serve as a catalyst for future growth in the Mesa-Gateway area.
About SVN | Desert Commercial Advisors
SVN | Desert Commercial Advisors is a full-service commercial real estate services firm providing comprehensive expertise in investment brokerage, leasing, landlord/tenant representation, analysis/valuation and market research. We specialize in multifamily, industrial, retail, office, medical/dental, restaurant, and land/development. Visit our website at www.SVNDesertCommercial.com for more information.
About SVN®
The SVN organization is a globally recognized commercial real estate entity united by a shared vision of creating value with clients, colleagues, and our communities. The SVN brand is comprised of over 1,600 advisors and staff in more than 200 offices across the globe in six countries. Our brand pillars represent the transparency, innovation, and inclusivity that enables all our advisors to collaborate with the entire real estate industry on behalf of our clients. SVN’s unique Shared Value Network® is just one of the many ways that SVN advisors create amazing value with our clients, colleagues, and communities. For more information, visit www.svn.com.
All SVN offices are independently owned and operated. To learn more about becoming an SVN commercial real estate business owner, visit http://www.svn.com/franchising-opportunities/.
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SVN | Desert Commercial Advisors
SVN | Desert Commercial Advisors
SVN | Desert Commercial Advisors Mesa 270 aerial with site plans SVN | Desert Commercial Advisors Elliot Road Tech Corridor Map
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SVN® Corporate Marketing Department SVN International Corp. marketing@svn.com
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Still The Opps Tho: Mike Pence Distances Himself From Donald Trump
Still The Opps Tho: Mike Pence Distances Himself From Donald Trump https://digitalarizonanews.com/still-the-opps-tho-mike-pence-distances-himself-from-donald-trump/
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Source: Tom Williams / Getty
Mike Pence, the former Vice President of the United States, will forever be aligned with former president Donald Trump due to their time at the top of elected office. Despite this connection, Pence is seemingly distancing himself from the former business mogul after a recent appearance in Washington, D.C.
Mike Pence was a guest at Georgetown University for an event hosted by the conservative group, Young America’s Foundation. Pence, a staunch conservative, faced mild protests from students and used the dog whistle term of “woke” to issue a charge that political discourse has gone off the rails, of course not lambasting his side but only those that don’t agree with his side’s views.
“It seems like every day a new story breaks that says big media, big government, big tech or big business have locked arms to advance a woke agenda designed to advance the policies and beliefs of the American left, and show intolerance to people that have divergent views,” Pence said, as reported by The Hill.
During this portion of the event, the protesting students exited the venue, which drew a sharp remark from Pence.
“It seems to me that having served many years in Washington, leaders in the nation’s capital of never been more out of touch or more intent on imposing their agenda or walking out on people that might have a different point of view,” Pence said in response.
During the Q&A portion of the event, a person asked Pence if Trump manages to snag the Republican Party presidential nomination for 2024, would Pence pull the lever for his former running mate. With a knowing smirk and laughs throughout the audience, Pence said, “well there might be somebody I prefer more.”
What observers shouldn’t do in this instance is take this to mean Pence is suddenly a GOP defector. In fact, it appears that Pence is hoping for the so-called “red wave” as his party eyes majorities in the House and Senate with a push to bulldoze conservative policies back into the fabric of America. As the kids say, Mike Pence is still the opps.
Check out the reactions to Mike Pence and his comments on Donald Trump below. The video below is courtesy of ABC News.
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Photo: Getty
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The Presidential Steal https://digitalarizonanews.com/the-presidential-steal/
October 20, 2022 10:33 am
By New York Daily News Editorial Board
This appeared in the New York Daily News.
In the vortex of corruption, malfeasance, incompetence, nepotism and self-dealing that were the Trump years, it can be a legitimate challenge to even try to remember the various scandals off the top of one’s head. Ultimately, most were overshadowed by the gravest of all the misdeeds — the former president’s attempt to subvert democracy and nullify his 2020 defeat through pressure, litigation and violence — yet all are still worth documenting, if only to have as full a possible evidentiary record of Trump’s unfitness for leadership.
So we commend the House Oversight Committee, chaired by New York’s own outgoing Rep. Carolyn Maloney, for doggedly pursuing one of the many instances of clear graft engineered by Trump and his ilk: the Secret Service’s lavish spending on the family’s own business interests, particularly stays at Trump-owned hotels. The digging must continue after Maloney’s retired.
In a letter to the Secret Service requesting more information, Maloney summarizes documents obtained by the committee showing that the agency spent at least $1.4 million over 669 expenditures at Trump properties between his taking office and Sept. 15, 2021 — months after his failed coup, with agents continuing to stay at Trump hotels to protect the former president
The records, which show extravagant spends like a $1,160-a-night rate for a stay at the Trump International Hotel in Washington in March 2017, are incomplete, meaning the real amounts are likely significantly higher. Not only did the taxpayer shovel money to the Trumps’ private business, the family lied about it like they’ve lied about everything else, with Eric Trump once claiming that the Secret Service was being charged “like $50″ per room.
Though what would have been a significant scandal for any other leader is just one of the pantheon of offenses, it is indicative of the way in which the Trump family viewed the highest office in the land: not as the ultimate opportunity to perform public service, but as a chance to make boost a brand and line personal pockets.
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Wall St Rises As Upbeat Corporate Forecasts Trump UK Political Shock
Wall St Rises As Upbeat Corporate Forecasts Trump UK Political Shock https://digitalarizonanews.com/wall-st-rises-as-upbeat-corporate-forecasts-trump-uk-political-shock/
The New York Stock Exchange building is seen from Broad Street in Lower Manhattan in New York, January 20, 2016. REUTERS/Mike Segar
IBM up as it sees higher full-year sales
Tesla expects to miss vehicle delivery target this year
AT&T raises annual profit forecast, Verizon gains
Indexes up: Dow 0.98%, S&P 0.72%, Nasdaq 0.96%
Oct 20 (Reuters) – Wall Street’s main indexes regained footing on Thursday, recovering from a brief shock after the resignation of Liz Truss as prime minister of the United Kingdom, as focus moved back to positive forecasts from IBM and AT&T.
IBM Corp (IBM.N) shares gained 4.1%, leading the advance among Dow components after the software and IT services company beat quarterly earnings estimates on Wednesday and said it expects to exceed full-year revenue growth targets.
Fellow blue-chip stock Verizon Communications Inc (VZ.N) rose 2.3% after peer AT&T Inc (T.N) jumped 9.9% upon raising its annual profit forecast.
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Both the companies lifted up the S&P 500 communication services sector index (.SPLRCL) by 1.9% to lead gains among the 11 major sectors on the benchmark index (.SPX).
This comes after upbeat results from big U.S. banks, Netflix Inc (NFLX.O), Procter & Gamble Co (PG.N) and Travelers Companies Inc (TRV.N) prompted analysts to raise third-quarter profit growth expectations for S&P 500 companies to 3.1% from a 2.8% increase earlier in the week, according to Refinitiv data.
However, the estimate is still sharply lower than an 11.1% increase that was forecast at the start of July.
“With the small set of companies that have reported earnings so far, we’re seeing majority of them beat profit estimates and I would very much put that in the ‘better-than-feared’ category,” said Art Hogan, chief market strategist at B. Riley Wealth in New York.
Tesla Inc (TSLA.O) dropped 6.6% as the electric vehicle maker flagged persistent logistics challenges, with fourth-quarter deliveries growing by less than the aimed 50%.
Wall Street’s main indexes have been hammered by fears of aggressive interest rate hikes by the Federal Reserve in recent months, with Treasury yields climbing to multi-year highs amid no real signs of U.S. inflation slowing.
Data showed the number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment benefits fell unexpectedly last week, pointing to a tight labor market even as demand for labor is cooling amid higher interest rates.
The U.S. central bank is expected to deliver its fourth straight 75 basis-point hike in its November meeting, with some even pricing in a full percentage point increase.
U.S. stocks were briefly pressured after UK’s Liz Truss announced her resignation just six weeks into the job, brought down by an economic program that had sent shockwaves through global financial markets and divided her Conservative Party.
At 10:09 a.m. ET, the Dow Jones Industrial Average (.DJI) was up 299.33 points, or 0.98%, at 30,723.14, the S&P 500 (.SPX) was up 26.44 points, or 0.72%, at 3,721.60 and the Nasdaq Composite (.IXIC) was up 102.57 points, or 0.96%, at 10,783.08.
Advancing issues outnumbered decliners by a 2.38-to-1 ratio on the NYSE and by a 2.09-to-1 ratio on the Nasdaq.
The S&P index recorded two new 52-week highs and 10 new lows, while the Nasdaq recorded 17 new highs and 104 new lows.
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Reporting by Ankika Biswas & Shreyashi Sanyal; Additional reporting by Bansari Mayur Kamdar; Editing by Anil D’Silva and Arun Koyyur
Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.
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Heating Costs Expected To Increase; Judge Addresses Trump Voter Fraud Claims; Astros Padres Win | Hot Off The Wire Podcast
Heating Costs Expected To Increase; Judge Addresses Trump Voter Fraud Claims; Astros, Padres Win | Hot Off The Wire Podcast https://digitalarizonanews.com/heating-costs-expected-to-increase-judge-addresses-trump-voter-fraud-claims-astros-padres-win-hot-off-the-wire-podcast/
COVID-19 drove a dramatic increase in the number of women who died from pregnancy or childbirth complications in the U.S. last year, a crisis that has disproportionately claimed Black and Hispanic women as victims.
The U.S. Department of Energy is projecting sharp price increases for home heating compared to last winter.
Russian troops are fighting to regain lost ground in areas of Ukraine that President Vladimir Putin has illegally annexed. Moscow also is trying to pound the invaded country into submission with more missile and drone attacks on critical infrastructure.
Oklahoma is preparing to execute Benjamin Cole, 57, for killing his 9-month-old daughter in 2002.
Former President Donald Trump answered questions under oath in a defamation lawsuit filed by a writer who says he raped her in the mid-1990s. The deposition Wednesday provided lawyers for E. Jean Carroll a chance to interrogate the Republican ex-president about Carroll’s assault allegations, as well as statements he made in 2019 when she first told her story publicly.
A “swift-footed lizard” that lived millions of years ago in what’s now Massachusetts has been named the state’s official dinosaur.
A federal judge says Trump signed legal documents after the 2020 election that included voter fraud claims he knew were inaccurate. U.S. District Court Judge David Carter wrote in an 18-page opinion issued Wednesday that emails between Trump and attorney John Eastman show efforts to submit false claims in federal court for the purpose of delaying the counting of the electoral vote on Jan. 6, 2021.
In sports, the Astros struck first in the ALCS while the Padres got even in the NLCS, Ben Simmons struggled in his Nets debut, the Cavaliers wasted a good performance from their top offseason pickup and the Jets knocked off the defending Stanley Cup champs.
President Joe Biden is telling voters that he hasn’t given up on lowering gasoline prices. Biden says he has ordered the release of 15 million barrels from the U.S. strategic reserve and will consider additional withdrawals this winter. It’s a message with clear political implications as the president’s approval rating has moved in the opposite direction from changes in gasoline prices.
The Biden administration on Wednesday awarded $2.8 billion in grants to build and expand domestic manufacturing of batteries for electric vehicles in 12 states. The announcement comes as the administration seeks to boost production and sales of electric vehicles as a key part of President Joe Biden’s strategy to slow climate change and build up U.S. manufacturing.
Russian President Vladimir Putin doubled down Wednesday on his faltering invasion of Ukraine with a declaration of martial law in four illegally annexed regions and preparations within Russia for draconian new restrictions and crackdowns.
North Korea has fired about 100 more artillery shells toward the sea in response to South Korean live-firing drills at border areas as the rivals accuse each other of dialing up tensions with weapons tests.
British Home Secretary Suella Braverman has become the second senior minister in a week to leave embattled Prime Minister Liz Truss’ government. Her departure came hours after Truss appeared in Parliament to describe herself as “a fighter and not a quitter.”
The South Carolina Supreme Court will hear a case that could determine the scope of abortion restrictions in the state.
Iranian climber Elnaz Rekabi has returned to Tehran after competing in South Korea without wearing a headscarf. Her move was seized upon by demonstrators as the Islamic Republic has faced weeks of protests over its mandatory hijab.
The International Energy Agency said Wednesday that it expects carbon emissions from the burning of fossil fuels to rise again this year, but by much less than in 2021 due to the growth in renewable power and electric cars.
Florida has seen an increase in cases of flesh-eating bacteria this year driven largely by a surge in the county hit hardest by Hurricane Ian. The state Department of Health reports that as of Friday there have been 65 cases of vibrio vulnificus infections and 11 deaths in Florida this year.
Black-white disparities exist in fertility medicine and are reflected in life-and-death outcomes for babies. That’s according to a large study of U.S. births published Wednesday in the journal Pediatrics.
A 75-year-old New York City man has pleaded guilty to manslaughter in the 1976 killing of a World War I veteran. Martin Motta pleaded guilty on Tuesday in the death of 81-year-old George Seitz.
Some of the world’s largest land animals demolished some of Portland’s largest pumpkins during the Oregon Zoo’s 24th annual Squishing of the Squash.
It hasn’t been taking photos for long, but it’s already showing its value.
Iranian climber Elnaz Rekabi returned to Tehran early Wednesday after competing in South Korea without wearing a headscarf, an act widely seen…
An iron man-style jet suit is here to make life changing impacts. Veuer’s Maria Mercedes Galuppo has the story.
Scientists on a mission to map the waters around the Maldives believe they have discovered a new ecosystem.
October is ‘Adopt a Shelter Dog’ month and to celebrate it, we went to meet some of the dogs at ‘Tails of Compassion’ in Haryana, India. A lot…
Thousands have taken to the streets across France, as tensions rise between workers and the government.
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British Prime Minister Liz Truss Resigns After 6 Weeks In Office
British Prime Minister Liz Truss Resigns After 6 Weeks In Office https://digitalarizonanews.com/british-prime-minister-liz-truss-resigns-after-6-weeks-in-office/
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Truss Fires Home Secretary as UK Government Risks Imploding
(Bloomberg) — Most Read from BloombergTrump Prosecutors See Evidence for Obstruction ChargesWeed Is Coming to Circle K Gas Stations in US Next YearA Tense Pay Dispute Overshadows Nintendo’s Upcoming Bayonetta 3Trump Special Master Has ‘No Patience’ for Records Spats$200 Diesel Puts Biden in an Ugly CornerLiz Truss fired Home Secretary Suella Braverman for what was described as a national security breach, a dramatic move that heaps even more pressure on Britain’s premier as she clings to power.B
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What Putin’s martial law order means for the Russia-Ukraine war
Russian President Vladimir Putin announced the latest escalation of his war in Ukraine on Wednesday, declaring martial law in occupied areas of Ukraine and wartime measures throughout much of Russia. Ukrainian officials said the order would not deter their efforts to retake occupied territory, but warned it could mean mass deportations of Ukrainians out of…
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Italy’s Berlusconi Blames Zelenskiy for Russia’s Invasion
(Bloomberg) — Italy’s Silvio Berlusconi told lawmakers that Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, pushed Russian President Vladimir Putin into an endless war, according to audio obtained by an Italian newswire, despite a preponderance of evidence to the contrary.Most Read from BloombergWeed Is Coming to Circle K Gas Stations in US Next YearTrump Prosecutors See Evidence for Obstruction ChargesChina Is Debating a Reduction to Covid Quarantine for Inbound TravelersTruss’s Government on Brink
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Shadow Government in Putin’s Own Backyard Plots Against Him
Photo Illustration by Thomas Levinson/The Daily Beast/GettyBelarus’ opposition, led by Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, is plotting to form an alliance with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to try to hamper any hopes that Russia may have of territorial expansion beyond Ukraine and further into Europe.The concern is that Russian President Vladimir Putin is eyeing Belarus much like how he’s eyeing Ukraine—and hoping to envelope Belarus into Russia itself, Valery Kavaleuski, a foreign affairs repres
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‘We prayed for death’: 2 American veterans freed from Russian captivity in Ukraine describe torture
Two American soldiers who were captured by Russian-backed separatist forces in eastern Ukraine have described the torture they endured in several interviews since their release in September. The soldiers from Alabama, who spent 105 days in Russian captivity, told ABC News they were held in a “black site,” where the had to endure daily torture. Huynh, a Vietnamese American who served in the U.S. Marines, was studying at Calhoun Community College when Russia invaded Ukraine.
Associated Press
Oregon lawmakers hear bullying charge against gov candidate
A former legislator told an Oregon House committee Wednesday that he was bullied by then-House Speaker Tina Kotek, the Democratic candidate for governor, to the point that he suffers from PTSD. The hearing, held remotely via video, was emotional, with another former legislator testifying that the complainant, former Rep. Diego Hernandez, tried to kill himself recently. “He called me,” former Rep. Brian Clem said haltingly as he tried to compose himself.
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Norway On Edge Over Drone Sightings Arrest Of Son Of Putin Confidante
Norway On Edge Over Drone Sightings, Arrest Of Son Of Putin Confidante https://digitalarizonanews.com/norway-on-edge-over-drone-sightings-arrest-of-son-of-putin-confidante/
BRUSSELS — Norwegian officials warned Thursday that there could be more arrests after at least seven Russians were detained in the span of weeks for flying drones or taking pictures near sensitive areas — including the son of a close associate of Russian President Vladimir Putin — prompting an investigation by the domestic intelligence service.
The news comes as Norway and other countries move to secure critical infrastructure in the wake of the sabotage of the Nord Stream pipelines. It follows weeks of reports of drone sightings in its vast offshore oil and gas fields, as well as recent sightings at Norwegian airports.
On Wednesday, Norway’s Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Store blamed foreign intelligence — and indirectly pointed a finger a Russia. “It is not acceptable that foreign intelligence is flying drones over Norwegian airports. Russians are not allowed to fly drones in Norway,” he said according to Norwegian broadcaster NRK.
Offshore oil and gas installations are central to Norway’s economy. Since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the country has become a critical supplier to energy-starved Europe.
Store’s remarks came hours after a drone was spotted near the airport in Bergen, the country’s second most populous city, temporarily shutting down air traffic.
Authorities also disclosed the arrest of a dual Russian-British national who stands accused of flying a drone over Svalbard, an archipelago in the Arctic Ocean, allegedly violating a rule that bars Russian citizens from flying drones in the country.
The man, Andrey Yakunin, 47 is the son of is the son of Vladimir Yakunin, a former president of Russian Railways and a confidant of Putin. The elder Yakunin was sanctioned by the United States in the wake of Russia’s 2014 invasion of Crimea.
When the younger Yakunin was arrested, police also seized drones and electronic devices, police prosecutor Anja Mikkelsen Indbjor told the Barents Observer. “The content from the drone is of great importance for the case.”
The younger Yakunin, who was once featured in a Financial Times story about using his 88-foot sailing yacht to go skiing in Norway’s remote Arctic, reportedly asked the court consider him a British citizen.
His lawyer, John Christian Elden, said in an email that his client is a British citizen, who studied, works and has family there.
Elden did not deny Yakunin piloted a drone, but said doing so was illegal for Russian citizens, not British citizens.
Yakunin’s arrest comes nearly a week after Norwegian police arrested a Russian man after he was caught flying a drone above an airport in Tromso, in northern Norway. The authorities Friday seized a “large” amount of photography equipment, including the drone and memory cards. Police also discovered photos of the airport in Kirkenes, a Norwegian town near the Russian border, and of a Norwegian military helicopter.
A 50-year-old Russian man was also detained the same day at Norway’s border with Russia after he was found to be carrying two drones and several electronic storage devices, according to the Associated Press. Four other Russians were detained days later for taking pictures of areas that are not allowed to be photographed, according to Norwegian officials.
Norwegian authorities have said that there is a heightened risk of an attack on critical infrastructure, but that the overall risk remains low, and that the purpose of the drones may be to create fear.
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Flesh-Eating Bacteria Reports Increase In Florida After Hurricane Ian
Flesh-Eating Bacteria Reports Increase In Florida After Hurricane Ian https://digitalarizonanews.com/flesh-eating-bacteria-reports-increase-in-florida-after-hurricane-ian/
STEWART: FLORIDA HAS SEEN AN INCREASE IN CASES OF FLESH-EATING BACTERIA THIS YEAR. THE BACTERIA THRIVES IN FLOOD WATER. MICHELLE: BECAUSE OF THAT AS AMANDA DUKES REPORTS OFFICIALS SAY IT’S DRIVEN LARGELY BY A SURGE IN THE COUNTY HIT HARDEST BY HURRICANE IAN. AMANDA: PARTS OF FLORIDA HIT HARDEST BY HURRICANE IAN ARE SEEING NEARLY DOUBLE THE NORMAL NUMBER OF INFECTIONS FROM A FLESH-EATING BACTERIA THAT THRIVES IN COASTAL FLOODWATERS. ACCORDING TO THE FLORIDA DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH, SO FAR IN 2022 FLORIDA HAS SEEN 65 CASES AND 11 DEATHS FROM THE BACTERIUM, THAT COMPARES WITH 34 CASES AND 10 DEATHS IN 2021 THE ONLY CENTRAL FLORIDA COUNTIES WITH REPORTED CASES THIS YEAR ARE BREVARD WITH TWO CASES AND NO DEATHS, AND SEMINOLE WITH ONE CASE AND ONE DEATH. COMPARE THAT TO LEE COUNTY, WHERE HURRICANE IAN MADE LANDFALL, IT HAS 29 CASES AND 4 DEATHS. UCF PROFESSOR DR. SALVADOR ALMAGRO MARENO IS AN EXPERT IN FLESH EATING BACTERIA. HE SAYS CONSIDERING THE EXPANSIVE FLOODING FROM IAN, HE’S NOT SURPRISED AT THE SPIKE. PEOPLE THAT MIGHT NOT BE IN CONTACT WITH BACTERIA AT NORMAL TIMES, BECAUSE OF THE WATER, AND THE COASTAL WATER GETTING INSIDE THE LAND, IT JUST INCREASES THE CONTACT AND ALSO PEOPLE ARE GOING TO HAVE LIKE WOUNDS BECAUSE THEY ARE GOING TO BE CARRYING THINGS. IT’S GOING TO CREATE THE PERFECT ENVIRONMENT FOR TRANSMISSION OF THE DISEASE. AMANDA: SCIENTISTS SAY FLESH EATING BACTERIA PRIMARILY THRIVE IN SALTWATER AND THE FLOODING WE SAW HERE IN CENTRAL FLORIDA WAS MOSTLY FRESH WATER. THEY SAY THAT’S WHY WE DIDN’T SEE MORE CASES HERE. DOCTORS SAY FOR THOSE WITH WEAKENED IMMUNE SYSTEMS AN INFECTION WITH FLESH EATING BACTERIA CAN BE LIFE THREATENING. DR. MORENO’ ADVICE IS SIMPLY TO AVOID BRACKISH FLOODWATERS WHENEVER POSSIBLE. AMANDA DUKES REPORTING, WESH
Flesh-eating bacteria reports increase in Florida after Hurricane Ian
Parts of Florida hit hardest by Hurricane Ian are seeing nearly double the normal number of infections from flesh-eating bacteria that thrive in coastal floodwaters.According to the Florida Department of Health, so far in 2022, Florida has seen 65 cases and one death from the bacterium compared with 34 cases and 10 deaths in 2021.The only Central Florida counties with reported cases this year are Brevard with two cases and no deaths, and Seminole with one case and one death. Compare that to Lee County, where Hurricane Ian made landfall, it has 29 cases and four deaths.University of Central Florida professor Salvador Almagro Mareno, Ph.D., is an expert in flesh-eating bacteria. He said considering the expansive flooding from Ian, he’s not surprised at the spike.”People that might not be in contact with bacteria at normal times, because of the water, and the coastal water getting inside the land. It just increases the contact and also people are gonna have like wounds because they are gonna be carrying things. It’s going to create the perfect environment for transmission of the disease,” Mareno said.Scientists say flesh-eating bacteria thrive in salt water and the flooding seen in Central Florida was primarily fresh water. They say that’s why we didn’t see more cases here.Doctors say for those with weakened immune systems, infection with flesh-eating bacteria can be life-threateningMoreno’s advice is simply to avoid brackish floodwaters whenever possible and to carefully wash with soap and water after exposure to them.Symptoms of Vibrio infection, or vibriosis, include watery diarrhea, abdominal cramping, nausea, vomiting, fever and chills. Treatment is not always needed, and severe illness is rare, but doctors prescribe antibiotics in more persistent cases, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
ORLANDO, Fla. —
Parts of Florida hit hardest by Hurricane Ian are seeing nearly double the normal number of infections from flesh-eating bacteria that thrive in coastal floodwaters.
According to the Florida Department of Health, so far in 2022, Florida has seen 65 cases and one death from the bacterium compared with 34 cases and 10 deaths in 2021.
The only Central Florida counties with reported cases this year are Brevard with two cases and no deaths, and Seminole with one case and one death. Compare that to Lee County, where Hurricane Ian made landfall, it has 29 cases and four deaths.
University of Central Florida professor Salvador Almagro Mareno, Ph.D., is an expert in flesh-eating bacteria. He said considering the expansive flooding from Ian, he’s not surprised at the spike.
“People that might not be in contact with bacteria at normal times, because of the water, and the coastal water getting inside the land. It just increases the contact and also people are gonna have like wounds because they are gonna be carrying things. It’s going to create the perfect environment for transmission of the disease,” Mareno said.
Scientists say flesh-eating bacteria thrive in salt water and the flooding seen in Central Florida was primarily fresh water. They say that’s why we didn’t see more cases here.
Doctors say for those with weakened immune systems, infection with flesh-eating bacteria can be life-threatening
Moreno’s advice is simply to avoid brackish floodwaters whenever possible and to carefully wash with soap and water after exposure to them.
Symptoms of Vibrio infection, or vibriosis, include watery diarrhea, abdominal cramping, nausea, vomiting, fever and chills. Treatment is not always needed, and severe illness is rare, but doctors prescribe antibiotics in more persistent cases, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
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Annual Golf Event Raises Money For Disabilities Scholarship Fund
Annual Golf Event Raises Money For Disabilities Scholarship Fund https://digitalarizonanews.com/annual-golf-event-raises-money-for-disabilities-scholarship-fund/
INDEPENDENT NEWSMEDIA
The Mayor’s Committee for People with Disabilities’ 26th Annual Chandler Golf Challenge swings into action Friday, Nov. 11, with a 12:30 p.m. shotgun start.
The Bear Creek Golf Club, 500 E. Riggs Road, Chandler, will be the site of the event that supports the Mayor’s Committee for People with Disabilities Scholarship Fund.
Presented by Dignity Health of Arizona, the tournament includes 18 holes of golf followed by a catered dinner.
Golfers also will receive a golfer gift and have a chance to enter a raffle.
“The generosity of a host of corporate sponsors, community partners like RAD, and the golfers themselves has helped to make the Golf Challenge one our most successful fundraising events,” Collette Prather, recreation coordinator, said.
“The tournament contributes nearly $10,000 each year toward Chandler Parks and Recreation’s efforts to support more than 300 children and adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities and their families living in Chandler and neighboring cities.”
Participation in the all-inclusive tournament is $95 for individual golfers, $380 for foursomes and $425 to be a tee box sponsor and a host a foursome.
To register or for more information: chandleraz.gov/GolfChallenge
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Stocks Making The Biggest Moves Premarket: AT&T American Airlines Blackstone And More
Stocks Making The Biggest Moves Premarket: AT&T, American Airlines, Blackstone And More https://digitalarizonanews.com/stocks-making-the-biggest-moves-premarket-att-american-airlines-blackstone-and-more/
Check out the companies making headlines before the bell:
AT&T (T) – AT&T rose 2.4% in the premarket after reporting better-than-expected profit and revenue for the third quarter. The company said wireless revenue rose 5.6%, the best quarterly improvement in more than a decade, and postpaid phone net additions came in higher than expected.
American Airlines (AAL) – American Airlines beat top and bottom line estimates for the third quarter as travel demand continued to surge despite economic worries. American stock jumped 2.6% in premarket trading.
Blackstone (BX) – Blackstone added 1% in premarket action following better-than-expected quarterly results. Distributable earnings fell 16% from a year ago, due in part to market declines.
Dow Inc. (DOW) – The chemical maker’s stock fell 2.5% in the premarket, despite a top and bottom line beat for the third quarter, with investors focusing on higher energy costs that hurt Dow’s profit margins.
Tesla (TSLA) – Tesla slid 5.3% in premarket trading after it reported lower-than-expected quarterly revenue and cut its full-year delivery target. The electric vehicle maker reported a better-than-expected profit for the quarter.
IBM (IBM) – IBM rallied 3.3% in off-hours trading after reporting a top and bottom line beat for its latest quarter and raising its full-year revenue outlook. IBM saw improved results in multiple business segments, including software, consulting and infrastructure.
Las Vegas Sands (LVS) – Las Vegas Sands reported a larger-than-expected loss for the third quarter, while revenue beat analyst forecasts. The casino operator’s results are still being impacted by China’s Covid-19 policies, which are crimping business In Macau. However, Las Vegas Sands shares rose 1% in premarket trading.
Allstate (ALL) – Allstate tumbled 10.3% in the premarket after the insurance company said it would report a third-quarter loss. Catastrophe losses will grow for the quarter, largely due to the impact of Hurricane Ian, which struck in September.
WD-40 (WDFC) – WD-40 slid 6.3% in premarket action after saying inflation will affect the lubricant maker’s ability to hit its 55% gross margin target.
Alcoa (AA) – Alcoa shares slumped 10.7% in the premarket after the aluminum producer reported an unexpected third-quarter loss. A drop in aluminum prices and higher costs affected Alcoa’s results.
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Oct. 22: Road Restrictions For Tempe Making Strides Against Breast Cancer Walk
Oct. 22: Road Restrictions For Tempe Making Strides Against Breast Cancer Walk https://digitalarizonanews.com/oct-22-road-restrictions-for-tempe-making-strides-against-breast-cancer-walk/
Several road closures and transit changes are in effect due to the event
Posted at 4:49 AM, Oct 20, 2022
and last updated 2022-10-20 07:50:06-04
TEMPE, AZ — Heads up, drivers! Several streets will be closed or restricted for the Making Strides Against Breast Cancer Walk on Oct. 22, according to information from the City of Tempe.
The following street restrictions and closures have been identified. However, others could be put in place to address public safety concerns that occur during the event.
Oct. 22 from 7 a.m. to 10:30 a.m.:
Rio Salado Parkway will be closed in both directions between Ash and Mill avenues.
Oct. 22 from 7:45 a.m. to 10:30 a.m.:
Rural Road/Scottsdale Road will be closed in both directions between Gilbert Drive and Rio Salado Parkway.
College Avenue will be closed southbound between Curry Road and Gilbert Drive.
Gilbert Drive will be closed eastbound between College Avenue and Scottsdale Road.
Curry Road will be closed eastbound between Mill and College avenues.
Lakeview Drive will be closed in both directions between Washington Street and Curry Road.
Mill Avenue will be closed in both directions between Washington Street/Curry Road and Rio Salado Parkway.
The eastbound Loop 202 exit ramp will be closed at Scottsdale Road.
Rio Salado Parkway will be closed westbound between Mill and Ash avenues.
The following bus detours will also be in effect for the Making Strides Against Breast Cancer Walk on Oct. 22. Buses traveling in downtown Tempe may experience delays due to traffic.
Oct 22 from the beginning of service until 10:30 a.m.:
Note: Orbit Earth will not serve downtown Tempe during this time. Connect to Route 72 at Scottsdale Rd./Weber Dr. for service to downtown Tempe.
72 Northbound: Regular route to Rural Rd./Rio Salado Pkwy.; east on Rio Salado Pkwy. To McClintock Dr.; north on McClintock Dr. to Curry Rd.; west on Curry Rd. to Scottsdale Rd.; north on Scottsdale Rd. to resume regular route
72 Southbound: Regular route to Scottsdale Rd./Curry Rd.; east on Curry Rd. to McClintock Dr.; south on McClintock Dr. to Rio Salado Pkwy.; west on Rio Salado Pkwy. to Rural Rd.; south on Rural Rd. to resume regular route
Earth Westbound: Regular route to Scottsdale Rd./Weber Dr.; continue south on Scottsdale Rd. to Curry Rd.; west on Curry Rd. to College Ave.; north on College Ave to layover – route ends at College Ave. and Curry Rd.
Earth Eastbound: Route begins on northbound College Ave. at Curry Rd.; north on College Ave. to resume regular route
Copyright 2022 Scripps Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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Post Politics Now: Biden Heading To Pa. To Visit Rebuilt Bridge Raise Money For Fetterman
Post Politics Now: Biden Heading To Pa. To Visit Rebuilt Bridge, Raise Money For Fetterman https://digitalarizonanews.com/post-politics-now-biden-heading-to-pa-to-visit-rebuilt-bridge-raise-money-for-fetterman/
Today, President Biden is heading to the battleground state of Pennsylvania with two aims: to highlight the impact of the infrastructure bill he signed into law last year and to help Democrat John Fetterman raise money in one of the most competitive Senate races in the country. Biden’s first stop is the site of a bridge that collapsed in Pittsburgh nine months ago that is rapidly being rebuilt. He’ll then head to Philadelphia to join Fetterman, who faces Republican celebrity physician Mehmet Oz.
In Washington, the House select committee investigating the attack on the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, is expected to issue a subpoena for testimony and documents from Donald Trump before the end of the week, setting up what could be a prolonged legal battle with the former president.
Your daily dashboard
11 a.m. Eastern time: Biden departs the White House en route to Pittsburgh. White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre will brief reporters on board Air Force One. Listen live here.
2:15 p.m. Eastern: Biden delivers remarks in Pittsburgh on infrastructure. Watch live here.
7 p.m. Eastern: Biden joins Fetterman at a reception in Philadelphia.
Got a question about politics? Submit it here. After 3 p.m. weekdays, return to this space and we’ll address what’s on the mind of readers.
Analysis: Jim Jordan ramps up investigation into FBI over domestic terrorism
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House Judiciary Committee Republicans are ramping up their investigation of the FBI even before they know whether they’ll control the chamber in the next Congress.
Writing in The Early 202, The Post’s Leigh Ann Caldwell and Theodoric Meyer say that Jill Sanborn, former executive assistant director of the National Security Branch at the FBI during the Biden administration, has offered to sit for a transcribed interview with House Republicans, led by Rep. Jim Jordan (Ohio), to discuss the bureau’s focus on “domestic violent extremism,” according to the letter obtained by The Early.
On our radar: Biden heading to the battleground state of Pennsylvania
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With 19 days until the midterms, President Biden is heading to the battleground state of Pennsylvania on Thursday to highlight the infrastructure law he signed last month and to help raise money for Senate Democratic candidate John Fetterman, who is in a competitive race against Republican celebrity physician Mehmet Oz.
Biden’s first stop is Pittsburgh, where he plans to visit the site of the Fern Hollow Bridge, which collapsed in late January. On the day it collapsed, Biden had already planned to be in Pittsburgh to talk about infrastructure. Before delivering his remarks, he made an unscheduled stop at the bridge site.
On our radar: Oprah Winfrey seeking to give Stacey Abrams a boost
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Media mogul Oprah Winfrey is seeking to give a boost to the Georgia gubernatorial campaign of Stacey Abrams with a planned appearance at a virtual event with the Democratic nominee Thursday after sending a fundraising solicitation on her behalf the day before.
“I can’t wait for you to hear our conversation and get to know Stacey even better,” Winfrey said in an email blast Wednesday. “Stacey is a once-in-a-generation leader who needs our support to win.”
Winfrey appeared with Abrams during the closing weeks of her 2018 campaign, and she is among the high-profile backers rallying around Abrams in this year’s rematch with Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp (R).
Noted: ‘There might be somebody else I’d prefer more,’ Pence says of a 2024 Trump White House run
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Not long ago, they ran the country together. Now former vice president Mike Pence has suggested he might not lend his support to his old boss, Donald Trump, if Trump runs in the next presidential election.
The Post’s Adela Suliman reports that when asked whether he would back Trump in 2024, Pence took a long pause and, with a wry smile, told an audience at Georgetown University late Wednesday: “Well, there might be somebody else I’d prefer more.”
Here’s more from Adela:
It’s possibly the heaviest hint yet that the former veep might put himself in the running instead — fueling the possibility of a clash that has been the subject of Washington speculation since the tensions between the two leaders in the last days of the Trump administration.
Shrugging off applause, Pence continued, “What I can tell you is, I have every confidence that the Republican Party is going to sort out leadership. All my focus has been on the midterm elections, and it’ll stay that way for the next 20 days.”
“But after that, we’ll be thinking about the future, ours and the nations,” he added. “I’ll keep you posted.”
You can read the full story here.
On our radar: Trump’s Jan. 6 subpoena is expected soon. But what happens next?
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The House select committee investigating the attack on the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, is expected to issue a subpoena for testimony and documents from Donald Trump before the end of the week, wading into what could be a prolonged and unprecedented legal battle with the former president.
The Post’s Jacqueline Alemany writes that if Trump resists the subpoena, the committee faces hurdles in compelling him to comply that could end in a constitutional showdown, according to legal experts and congressional counsel with experience in congressional oversight and investigations. Per our colleague:
Noted: Biden touting policies he hopes will resonate with voters
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With President Biden’s approval rating hovering in the 40s, he has not received a lot of invites to campaign with embattled Democrats.
But that is not stopping him from spending the week touting policies that he hopes will resonate with voters — though his stumping has mostly been in D.C. and without a candidate by his side, The Post’s Cleve R. Wootson Jr. writes. Per Cleve:
On Tuesday, Biden announced that he is releasing 15 million more barrels of fuel from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, a move aimed at easing gas prices less than three weeks before the midterms. He brushed aside Republican claims that the move was political, noting that it was not the first time he’d ordered such a withdrawal. …
In the final stretch before Election Day on Nov. 8, with early voting already underway in some states, Biden’s strategy seems to be to hit on one or two big campaign themes a day.
On Tuesday, he spoke about abortion rights, saying that if Democrats gain seats in the Senate and maintain control of the House, the first item on his legislative agenda will be codifying Roe v. Wade — a promise aimed at people incensed by the Supreme Court’s decision in June to overturn the landmark 1973 case.
On Thursday, the president plans to tout the infrastructure law at the site of a collapsed bridge in Pittsburgh. And he will head to Delaware on Friday to talk about how his administration has canceled thousands of dollars in student loans.
The latest: In Oregon debate, Kotek pushes back against charges she wants to defund the police
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By Camila DeChalus DeChalus
Democratic Oregon gubernatorial nominee Tina Kotek faced attacks Wednesday from both of her opponents during a final televised debate, including accusations that she wants to “defund the police” — a charge she rebutted by saying she wants to hire more police officers across Oregon.
“I’ve always supported our state police,” said Kotek, former speaker of the Oregon House of Representatives. “They’re both misrepresenting my record. I do support law enforcement.”
The hour-long debate featuring Kotek, Republican nominee Christine Drazan and unaffiliated candidate Betsy Johnson was held just hours before mail-in ballots were expected to be sent to Oregonians for the November elections. Drazan and Johnson are also both former legislators.
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Law Professor Breaks Down Former President Donald Trump
Law Professor Breaks Down Former President Donald Trump https://digitalarizonanews.com/law-professor-breaks-down-former-president-donald-trump/
Law professor breaks down Trump’s legal battles
Law professor breaks down Trump’s legal battles 05:30
NEW YORK — Former President Donald Trump is once again in a legal battle in New York.
On Wednesday, he was deposed as part of a defamation lawsuit by longtime magazine columnist E. Jean Carroll.
She claims the former president defamed her when he accused her of lying in her 2019 memoir.
In the book, she says Trump sexually assaulted her in a New York City department store in the late 1990s.
Hofstra University law professor James Sample joined CBS News New York to break down the details in the case.
Watch his full interview above for more.
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Donald Trump
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Pence On Trump In 2024: There Might Be Somebody Else Id Prefer
Pence On Trump In 2024: ‘There Might Be Somebody Else I’d Prefer’ https://digitalarizonanews.com/pence-on-trump-in-2024-there-might-be-somebody-else-id-prefer/
Once upon a time, they ran the country together. Now former vice president Mike Pence has suggested he might not lend his support to his old boss, Donald Trump, if Trump runs in the next presidential election.
Asked whether he’d back Trump in 2024, Pence took a long pause and, with a wry smile, told an audience at Georgetown University late Wednesday: “Well, there might be somebody else I’d prefer more.”
It’s possibly the heaviest hint yet that the former veep might put himself in the running instead — fueling the possibility of a clash that has been the subject of Washington speculation since the tensions between the two leaders in the last days of the Trump administration.
Shrugging off applause, Pence continued, “What I can tell you is, I have every confidence that the Republican Party is going to sort out leadership. All my focus has been on the midterm elections, and it’ll stay that way for the next 20 days.”
“But after that, we’ll be thinking about the future, ours and the nation’s,” he added. “I’ll keep you posted.”
Over the summer, Trump has made it less of a question of if, but rather when, he would announce his bid. “In my own mind, I’ve already made that decision,” he told New York magazine.
Pence, who has largely stayed away from overtly criticizing Trump, refers to his time at the White House as “the Trump-Pence administration” and has undertaken an aggressive travel schedule to early 2024 primary and caucus states, particularly South Carolina and Iowa.
However, he is also walking a fine line, having criticized Trump’s efforts to overturn the 2020 election but still campaigning with Republicans ahead of the midterm elections who have embraced Trump’s falsehoods about it.
Trump supporters have called Pence a “traitor” for carrying out his ceremonial duty to certify Joe Biden’s victory on Jan. 6, 2021. Rioters in the pro-Trump mob that stormed the Capitol that day chanted “Hang Mike Pence!” He said he feared for his and his family’s safety as they hid near the Senate floor.
Trump has said bluntly: “Mike committed political suicide by not taking votes that he knew were wrong.”
But Pence has hit back. “President Trump is wrong,” he said in February in Florida. “I had no right to overturn the election.”
Political pundits have noted that Pence isn’t yet making opposition to Trump a core part of his political brand.
Instead, he has been keen to talk about policies, notably immigration and border control. Earlier Wednesday, he spoke at the conservative Heritage Foundation and called out “apologists” for Russian President Vladimir Putin within the Republican Party. He also chided those who have argued against U.S. defense funding for Ukraine.
And Pence again hinted at his own ambitions, noting that the United States was “on the cusp of a new era of Republican leadership.” Republicans, he said, can’t “allow our movement to be led astray by the siren song of unprincipled populism that’s unmoored from our oldest traditions and most cherished values.”
At the Georgetown event, Pence told the audience he “frankly always had a good relationship” with President Biden, although he said he couldn’t “identify a policy that I agree with.” Pence added: “I think you can say that somebody’s ideas are bad without saying they’re a bad person.”
Of the current vice president, Kamala D. Harris, Pence also took a moderate approach: “We got strong differences, but look, I literally respect everyone. I don’t care what your politics are if you’re willing to stand up and put your name on a ballot because you love this county — you have my respect.”
Isaac Arnsdorf, John Wagner and Mariana Alfaro contributed to this report
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Embattled British Prime Minister Liz Truss Warned She Has Hours To Save Her Job | CNN
Embattled British Prime Minister Liz Truss Warned She Has Hours To Save Her Job | CNN https://digitalarizonanews.com/embattled-british-prime-minister-liz-truss-warned-she-has-hours-to-save-her-job-cnn/
London CNN —
Liz Truss is fighting to save her job as Britain’s prime minister after more of her own lawmakers called for her to quit, incensed by a shambolic parliamentary vote and the resignation of her home secretary late on Wednesday.
Truss’s government has “12 hours” to “turn the ship around,” Conservative lawmaker Simon Hoare said on Thursday, after a vote on whether to ban controversial fracking for shale gas descended into chaos.
Lawmakers reported that aides for Truss manhandled MPs into the voting lobby to force them to vote against the ban. The government initially presented the vote as a confidence motion in Truss’s government, but confusion remains about whether it was. A Downing Street spokesperson said on Thursday that Conservative lawmakers who didn’t participate in Wednesday evening’s vote will face disciplinary action, PA Media said.
The chaos came hours after Suella Braverman, Truss’ home secretary, dramatically resigned just seven weeks into her job with a blistering attack on the PM’s leadership.
“The business of government relies upon people accepting responsibility for their mistakes. Pretending we haven’t made mistakes, carrying on as if everyone can’t see that we have made them, and hoping that things will magically come right is not serious politics,” Braverman wrote in a critique of Truss’s numerous U-turns on taxes and public spending.
“I have concerns about the direction of this government,” Braverman said. “Not only have we broken key pledges that were promised to our voters, but I have serious concerns about this Government’s commitment to honoring manifesto commitments.”
Truss, who fired her finance minister just last week after a disastrous and since-ditched financial plan caused turmoil on the markets, must now focus on getting to the weekend without her own MPs moving to oust her.
Backbencher Crispin Blunt told BBC Radio 4 on Thursday that Truss’ position is “wholly untenable,” adding that she has shown a “lack of self-knowledge” in this process.
“And if she doesn’t understand that then I would be astonished,” Blunt said. “But one of the qualities she has shown is a lack of self-knowledge to this whole process, because it ought to have been clear that she did not have the capacity to lead our party and I don’t think she should have put herself up for the leadership in the first place.”
At least two Conservatives lawmakers have confirmed they have submitted letters of no confidence, although many more are believed to have done so in private. “I had high hopes for Liz Truss but after what happened last night her position has become untenable and I have submitted a letter to Sir Graham Brady,” Sheryll Murray wrote on Twitter on Thursday, following her colleague William Wragg in publicly declaring her letter.
Truss will face a vote of confidence if the influential 1922 Committee of backbenchers changes its rules to enable one so soon after the leadership vote, but previous prime ministers have been pressured to resign before facing the humiliation of a successful ballot to oust them.
Earlier this year, Truss’s predecessor Boris Johnson narrowly survived a confidence vote in his leadership. But he resigned weeks later when dozens of ministers and members of the government resigned, citing a lack of confidence in his government.
Keir Starmer, the leader of the opposition Labour Party which is enjoying a huge lead in opinion polls, repeated his calls for an early general election on Thursday. “Britain can’t afford the Tories’ chaos,” he wrote on Twitter. “My Labour government will provide the stability and leadership needed. For our economy. For growth. For working people. General Election, now.”
A vote does not need to be called until January 2025 at the latest, but the prospect of Britain seeing its third prime minister since the last poll in 2019 would heap pressure on Truss’ successor to ask the public for a new mandate.
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Missing Toddlers Mom Grandma Have Big Night Out Amid FBI Search
Missing Toddler’s Mom, Grandma Have Big Night Out Amid FBI Search https://digitalarizonanews.com/missing-toddlers-mom-grandma-have-big-night-out-amid-fbi-search/
As the FBI and police comb through a landfill for the remains of missing 20-month-old Quinton Simon, his mother was seen drinking at a local bar.
Alongside Leilani Simon, who is now the prime suspect in Quinton’s disappearance, was her mother, Billie Jo Howell. “They were here, they drank, they left,” a staff member at Sting Ray’s on Tybee Island, Georgia, told The Independent.
Waitstaff said the “flirty” group was drinking shots “and demanded a waiter’s number,” according to WSAV, as protesters sat in front of their house, holding signs and “screaming for an arrest.”
“They were having a great time, like they didn’t have a care in the world,” a server told the New York Post.
“They were drinking Patron shots in the deck area, being loud and laughing. It’s almost like they were trying to draw attention to themselves.”
The unidentified server said that one of the employees recognized the Savannah, Georgia, family from news reports and they subsequently felt uncomfortable and angry over their presence.
“People were getting upset,” the worker said. “They just wanted them out of here. But they stayed for a long time, for hours. It was really strange.”
Simon, Howell, and their friends allegedly racked up a tab of more than $300 Tuesday night.
Howell was seen on a motorbike speaking to police on Wednesday morning as she was about to leave the island.
The search for Quinton began again Wednesday in Chatham County and after searching for hours combing through garbage, wrapped up amid warnings it could take weeks to find his body.
“We’re in for the long haul,” Chief Jeffrey Hadley of the Chatham County Police Department said.
“We’re not just randomly searching this landfill, we have evidence, specific evidence which leads up to this large property,” FBI Supervisory Special Agent Will Clarke said Tuesday.
It is the only place authorities will be searching.
Cops believe Quinton was placed in a “specific dumpster at a specific location” and was brought to the landfill “by regular means of disposal.”
Chatham County Police posted Wednesday night, repeating Hadley’s words “as true today.”
“We’re not ready to charge anyone yet. We still have work to do. We still have an investigation to do, and we’re not going to do anything pre-emptively that would harm future prosecution.
“I believe in our investigators. I believe in the expertise we’ve brought to bear here. We’re tracking in the right direction.”
Cops said Tuesday that they do not believe Simon is a flight risk.
Quinton was last seen early on Oct. 5 at approximately 6 a.m. after his mother, Simon, texted his babysitter alerting her he would not be coming that day. At 9:40 a.m., Simon reported the 20-month-old missing and allegedly told cops that his biological father had taken him. Police said that was not the case.
Last week authorities announced Quinton was presumed dead “based on multiple search warrants and interviews.”
“We are saddened to report that CCPD and the FBI have notified Quinton Simon’s family that we believe he is deceased,” a statement read at the time.
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East Valley High School Football Schedule Picks For Oct. 20-22
East Valley High School Football Schedule, Picks For Oct. 20-22 https://digitalarizonanews.com/east-valley-high-school-football-schedule-picks-for-oct-20-22/
Playoff rankings are beginning to take shape as teams enter region play.
There’s already been a lot of movement in the coveted Open Division top eight, with new faces jumping in and some getting bumped out. Several games with major Open implications will take place this week, including battles in Chandler and Gilbert.
Here’s a look at the East Valley and Scottsdale teams in action this week with picks in bold. Kickoff is at 7 p.m. unless noted.
Thursday, Oct. 20
6A
Hamilton at Basha
4A
Snowflake at Apache Junction
Friday, Oct. 21
6A
Desert Vista at Corona del Sol
Trevor Browne at Desert Ridge
Mountain Pointe at Dobson
Saguaro at Highland — no pick, attending
Westwood at Mesa
Chandler at Mountain View
Casteel at Perry
Queen Creek at Red Mountain
Williams Field at Salpointe Catholic
5A
Campo Verde at ALA Queen Creek
Gilbert at Cactus Shadows
Horizon at Casa Grande
Skyline at Desert Mountain
Mesquite at Higley
Sunnyslope at Notre Dame Prep
McClintock at South Mountain
4A
AZ College Prep at ALA Gilbert North
Seton Catholic at Arcadia
Poston Butte at Ben Franklin
Combs at Marcos de Niza
3A
San Tan Foothills at Bisbee
Florence at ALA Ironwood
Coolidge at Eastmark
Tempe at Phoenix Christian
Arizona Lutheran at Valley Christian
2A
Arete Prep at Chandler Prep
Scottsdale Prep at Madison Highland
Globe at San Tan Charter
Coronado at Scottsdale Christian
1A
12 Lincoln Prep at 5 Salome (first round 1A playoffs)
Saturday, Oct. 22
2A
Gilbert Christian at Sequoia Pathway, 1 p.m.
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Japanese Yen Hits 150 Against The U.S. Dollar Weakest Levels Not Seen Since August 1990
Japanese Yen Hits 150 Against The U.S. Dollar, Weakest Levels Not Seen Since August 1990 https://digitalarizonanews.com/japanese-yen-hits-150-against-the-u-s-dollar-weakest-levels-not-seen-since-august-1990/
The Japanese yen weakened past 150 against the U.S. dollar, a key psychological level, reaching levels not seen since August 1990.
The Bank of Japan’s two-day meeting is slated for next week. Policymakers have ruled out a rate hike in order to defend against further weakening of the currency.
On Thursday, Japan’s 10-year government debt yields breached the 0.25% ceiling that the central bank vowed to defend – last standing at 0.252%. The yield on the 20-year bond also rose to its highest since September 2015.
The Bank of Japan also announced emergency bond-buying operations Thursday. It offered to buy 100 billion yen ($666.98 million) worth of Japanese government bonds with maturities of 10-20 years and another tranche worth 100 billion yen with maturities of 5-10 years.
The central bank has repeatedly vowed to buy an unlimited amount of bonds at a fixed rate in order to cap 10-year government debt yields at 0.25% as part of its stimulus measures for the economy.
Stock picks and investing trends from CNBC Pro:
On Thursday, Reuters reported Japanese Finance Minister Shunichi Suzuki said the government will take “appropriate steps against excess volatility.”
“Recent rapid and one-sided yen declines are undesirable. We absolutely cannot tolerate excessively volatile moves driven by speculative trading,” he said.
Levels ‘not destabilizing’
When asked how concerning is USD/JPY reaching levels around 150, ANZ chief economist Richard Yetsenga said he’s “not that worried.”
“I don’t think we’re into destabilizing currency territory yet,” he said on CNBC’s “Squawk Box Asia.”
“There’s lots of emotive words around it, but what problems has it engendered?” he said.
Shortly after the Bank of Japan’s latest decision to maintain low interest rates to support the country’s sluggish economy last month, officials confirmed they intervened to support the currency against further weakening.
That intervention briefly pushed the yen to 142 against the dollar. The spread between the highest and lowest points intraday was also at its widest since 2016.
In April 1990, the yen traded around 159.8 against the dollar and last breached 160 in December 1986.
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The Venezuelans Who Left Too Late: Migrants Stranded By Abrupt Biden Policy Change
The Venezuelans Who Left Too Late: Migrants Stranded By Abrupt Biden Policy Change https://digitalarizonanews.com/the-venezuelans-who-left-too-late-migrants-stranded-by-abrupt-biden-policy-change/
The news could not have reached Remira Alarsa at a worse moment.
Since leaving her home in Venezuela last month, the former teacher, her husband and nephew had trekked thousands of miles through seven countries, determined to resettle in the US – only to be robbed of their savings in Guatemala.
Soon afterwards, she learned that it might all have been for nothing.
On 12 October, the Biden administration announced that it would deport Venezuelan migrants to Mexico, under a previously obscure public health law, Title 42, which was used for summary expulsions by the Trump administration and has been continued under Joe Biden.
Venezuelans arriving at the southern border will no longer be able to join their families in the US while they wait their turn in the asylum process, but will be forced to languish in Mexico, where they are routinely targeted for rape, robbery and extortion.
The abrupt implementation of Title 42 for Venezuelans has created an arbitrary cutoff, and left tens of thousands to an uncertain future.
Alarsa is now in Tapachula, a migrant hub on the Mexico-Guatemala border where refugees are processed by the Mexican government. With the length of Mexico still ahead of her and at least two weeks before she reaches the US border and her fate with it, she must decide whether to turn back or forge ahead.
“We have to keep going, as there is no other option. I keep trying to tell myself that I didn’t leave two weeks too late, that this was the perfect timing. But at every stop, money is taken from you, little by little. And now we’re going to have to pay a lot more,” Alarsa said.
Critics of Title 42 say it represents a gutting of the right to request asylum for vulnerable people with few other options.
“Just at the moment that the Biden administration is fighting a lawsuit to try to end Title 42, they are also expanding it, which is just baffling. We’ve lost just about any pretense that this is a health measure. They are using a backdoor way to end the right to asylum,” said Adam Isacson, director of the Defense Oversight Program at the Washington Office on Latin America.
Nearly 7 million Venezuelans have fled economic collapse and political repression since 2018, most of them settling elsewhere in South America. But this year has seen an unprecedented surge of migrants from the country walking north.
In most recent years, the number of Venezuelans detained at the US southern border has been fewer than 100, but between November 2021 and September 2022, about 150,000 Venezuelans have made the dangerous journey over land to the US.
“If they deport me to Mexico, I’ll stay and work here. I’ll work anywhere they let me – economically, every option would be better than going back to Venezuela. I was making twenty dollars a month in Caracas!” said Alcides Granado, who was lounging in Tapachula’s central plaza, sheltering from the punishing sun under a floppy cloth hat.
But in another shock to those still heading north, Venezuelans deported over the past week have received a notice from the Mexican government upon their arrival, demanding that they leave the country within 15 days exactly how they came – through the southern border with Guatemala.
Venezuelan migrants walk towards Tapachula from Huixtla, Chiapas state, Mexico, on 14 October. Photograph: AFP/Getty Images
Many currently in Tapachula worry they will be forced back to this city in a few short weeks.
None are planning to return to Venezuela the way they came, through the treacherous jungle of the Darién Gap between Colombia and Panama where travellers must negotiate treacherous jungle terrain, flash-floods and predatory gangs.
“If you gave me a million dollars right now, I still would not enter the Darién again,” said Remira’s husband Ramón Iflán.
Some of the Venezuelans who will be deported from the US to Mexico – and then possibly forced out of Mexico as well – have nothing to return to in their home country, having sold everything they own aside from what they can carry on their backs.
Many have not even left any family behind, bringing children, siblings, aunts, uncles, cousins and even grandparents on the journey with them.
In Tapachula’s central plaza, hundreds of Venezuelans huddle, trying to come up with a reasonable plan B. One man suggested holding a protest march to get the attention of US authorities, but there was little support for his idea.
Others were already raising money to pay coyotes who traffic people over the border for up to t $10,000 a passenger. These arrangements can be extremely dangerous; in July, fifty migrants from Central America and Mexico died in an overheated truck when they were abandoned on the side of the road by smugglers in Texas.
“The smugglers who have already been doing really well under Title 42, as it has been used on people from the Northern Triangle [Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador] now have a huge, huge new consumer base,” Isaacson said. “I don’t know of a single border city where shelters are not already overflowing. There will be more people on the street, more people kidnapped, and those who do make it into the US and evade capture will have a very unstable existence.”
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George Conway Says New Trump Ruling Contains https://digitalarizonanews.com/george-conway-says-new-trump-ruling-contains/
Conservative attorney George Conway on Wednesday called information in a new ruling “a smoking gun” that effectively established former President Donald Trump committed perjury and other federal crimes.
U.S. District Court Judge David Carter handed down the ruling Wednesday, which ordered the release of emails between Trump and one of his attorneys, John Eastman, to the House committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol.
According to Carter, Trump signed a legal document claiming that the information he provided in a lawsuit challenging the results of the 2020 election in Georgia was true, even though the Eastman emails demonstrated he knew the numbers were wrong.
Conway said the development would be a smoking gun for the state prosecutor in Georgia, where Trump is under criminal investigation for election interference.
“What this is, is a smoking gun in Georgia because if you look at what the judge describes here of these emails is: they file a lawsuit, a state court lawsuit, [on] Dec. 4, making various allegations about dead people voting, about felons voting, about unregistered voters voting,” Conway told CNN’s Anderson Cooper. “And by the end of December, they’re aware that these allegations are false. And that’s the email that the judge quotes here.”
Conway read aloud part of the email, in which Eastman said Trump had been made aware that some of the allegations were inaccurate. Nonetheless, Trump’s lawyers then had him “file a federal lawsuit where Trump certifies, under oath, verifies under oath, that these allegations were in fact, true,” Conway said. “That’s perjury and that’s certainly evidence of federal crimes.”
“The Georgia investigation is very advanced and this is going to be a very important document in exhibit in the charges that I’m sure [the prosecutor] is going to bring,” he added.
Watch the interview below:
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Can Congress Get A Witness? https://digitalarizonanews.com/can-congress-get-a-witness/
Former Trump National Security Advisor John Bolton’s brain is like a triangular pinball machine where his ideas rocket around three governing bumpers: One, he’s always right. Two, the Democrats are always wrong. And, three, he’ll always be a good Republican.
He remains steadfast in his conviction that he was justified in refusing to testify in Donald Trump’s first impeachment because the Democrats didn’t press him hard enough, and he frequently serves this up as evidence of why Democrats are to blame for Trump’s continued menace on the American electorate. Bolton has made this point in his book, many media appearances, and most recently, a Wall Street Journal review of Rachael Bade and Karoun Demirjian’s new book Unchecked: The Untold Story Behind Congress’s Botched Impeachments of Donald Trump.
Bolton isn’t really reviewing the book; he’s just using a supposed review as an opportunity to push his point. But because Bolton is an emblem of a far bigger political problem, it’s worth taking up his argument.
Bolton agrees with Bade and Demirjian that the partisan nature of Trump’s first and second impeachment is mainly what made them unsuccessful. The difference is the reporters say both parties missed opportunities to check Trump, and Bolton chastises the Democrats. Conveniently left out of Bolton’s argument is that he himself is precisely the type of high-ranking Republican official whom House Democrats hoped would lend bipartisan credibility to the impeachment over Trump’s Ukraine aid holdup. Bolton also skips right over the part where Senate Republicans, led by then-Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, engineered a pressure campaign to ensure that the Senate wouldn’t call any witnesses for that trial.
Why does this matter now? Congress’s struggle to get witnesses didn’t end with Trump’s first impeachment. The battle of wills extended into his second impeachment, as Republicans, save for the handful who voted to impeach or convict, refused to engage in any efforts that could damage the party. And the House January 6th Committee has repeatedly had to fight for cooperation from witnesses, issuing subpoenas to dozens of people, some of whom have still refused to testify, even to the point of being held in contempt of Congress. (Steve Bannon will be sentenced this week for contempt of Congress.) Now, as the committee is expected to subpoena Trump himself, it’s worth taking a look back at what Bolton got away with and the shameful new precedent of non-cooperation that Republicans have set.
Let’s go back to Trump’s first impeachment. When House Democrats asked Bolton to testify voluntarily, he refused and threatened to sue if they subpoenaed him. Worried about a lengthy court battle, Democrats abandoned the request, impeached Trump, and sent the articles of impeachment to the GOP-controlled Senate.
During that time, Bolton was working on his memoir, the details of which were unknown. Bolton then signaled in a January 6, 2020, statement that he would be willing to testify to the GOP-controlled Senate should it issue a subpoena. By that time, however, McConnell had already made up his mind that there should be no witnesses, a fact that was well-known to the public. Bolton’s supposed willingness to testify, in other words, was an empty promise.
But later that month, the Bolton book bombshell dropped as the Senate trial was underway. On January 26, the New York Times reported on a manuscript of Bolton’s forthcoming book where Bolton said Trump told him (in the Times’s paraphrase) “that he wanted to continue freezing $391 million in security assistance to Ukraine until officials there helped with investigations into Democrats including the Bidens.”
Bolton’s manuscript contained exactly the kind of evidence the Democrats were seeking. In Unchecked, Bade and Demirjian document how the manuscript sent Senate Republicans into panic mode. McConnell asked them not to make any public comments about calling Bolton to testify, as several of them wavered.
Behind closed doors, Mitt Romney lobbied his colleagues to join him in calling for Bolton’s testimony. Romney quashed concerns about a court battle and said Congress could appeal to the Supreme Court to make a timely decision on the matter, as it did during the 2000 presidential recount. Bade and Demirjian reported that Romney was compelling, and at that time, McConnell wasn’t sure he could win a vote to stop the Senate from calling witnesses. McConnell asked his members to stay mum and for time to “Let this play out.” But that did not mean McConnell was undecided on the matter. He wanted the time to knuckle his caucus because he understood that if the Senate voted to allow witnesses to testify, he would risk losing control over the length and outcome of the trial.
McConnell then had vulnerable 2020 Republican senators plead with their colleagues to vote no so the trial would wrap quickly and not cloud their re-election campaigns. (Two who made these speeches—Cory Gardner and Martha McSally—lost anyway.) After Trump’s lawyers rested their shoddy case, McConnell called a meeting with the senators he needed to lock down. “This is not about this president. It’s not about anything he’s been accused of doing,” McConnell said, as detailed in a chapter from Unchecked titled “Mitch’s Pressure Cooker”:
For the other side, this is about November 3, 2020. It’s always been about November 3, 2020. It’s about flipping the Senate. The longer you let this linger, the more likely it is that that will happen.
It was a purely political argument that addressed none of the substance raised in the trial. McConnell ultimately prevailed on the matter of witnesses after putting “the screws to” Lisa Murkowski, as Bade and Demirjian describe in another chapter. He specifically argued to her that “The most consequential vote during this impeachment is not about whether to convict or acquit. It’s about how to vote on witnesses—and what position that will put the courts in.” In other words, McConnell was saying that he could afford to lose Murkowski on a vote to convict Trump, which would require two-thirds of the Senate, but he couldn’t afford to lose her on a simple majority vote for witnesses. All because he believed allowing witness testimony could change the entire outcome of the trial.
Given how carefully Bolton, in his Wall Street Journal review, cherry-picked less important stories from Unchecked to suit his agenda, it’s hard to see how he could have missed these whole chapters.
Bolton all but absolves Senate Republicans of any responsibility. In his book The Room Where It Happened, he harangues the Democrats for their “partisan approach” and for being “governed more by their own political imperatives to move swiftly to vote on articles of impeachment in order to avoid interfering with the Democratic presidential nomination schedule than in completing a comprehensive investigation.” Even if the Senate had called on him to testify, given the House’s “impeachment malpractice” his testimony would have “made no significant difference” anyway.
Although Bolton insists his chief concerns revolve around high-minded complexities of constitutional law and executive privilege, there’s a more petulant argument Bolton and many other Trump-affiliated Republicans have presented through their actions when they defied requests from Congress. It amounts to two words: “make me.”
Bolton was asked to testify by House Democrats voluntarily but said a court needed to make him. He wasn’t alone in refusing the Democrats. Mick Mulvaney, Mike Pompeo, Mark Esper, Rick Perry, and a number of lesser-known officials also turned down requests for information. But Bolton stands out because he then used the information he withheld to publish a bestselling book in June 2020 that, get this, he had to fight in court for the right to publish and profit from. It’s not a great leap of logic to surmise that he only offered to testify during the Senate trial because the Republicans were likely to turn him down. If, by some far-flung chance, they changed their mind, he would gain political cover for evidence he was going to give to the public anyway. On his terms. (His desired retail price is $32.50 a copy.) But he definitely wasn’t going to do it just because the Democrats asked. That was never an option for him—because he’s as partisan as he accuses them of being.
During Trump’s second impeachment, Democrats were given another breaking-news gift when, again during the Senate trial, Rep. Jaime Herrera Beutler, one of the ten House Republicans who voted to impeach Trump the second time around, confirmed details of the shouting match Kevin McCarthy had with Trump on Jan. 6th. The unexpected information set off renewed calls for witnesses. But, like the first time, Democrats were interested in moving quickly, and the Republicans were more than happy to assist them in changing the subject. As Bade and Demirjian write, “Trump’s two impeachments were the first ever in which no investigator or prosecutor appealed to a judge to enforce their demands for evidence or witnesses.”
Now the responsibility for tracking down non-compliant witnesses for testimony related to the Trump coup belongs to the Jan. 6th Committee. Several high-ranking officials have, so far, successfully stonewalled the committee, and the committee has pursued contempt of Congress charges for the most egregious cases: Mark Meadows, Steve Bannon, Dan Scavino, Peter Navarro, and Jeffrey Clark. And the ultimate outcome of three of those cases remains unclear. The Department of Justice declined to charge Meadows and Scavino. Navarro was indicted in June and will stand trial in November. Bannon was found guilty of contempt in a jury trial last July and is scheduled to be sentenced on Friday. Prosecutors recommended that he serve six months in prison—enough jail time for Bannon to make ...
Philip Morris Raises Offer For Swedish Match And Buy U.S. Rights For IQOS
Philip Morris Raises Offer For Swedish Match And Buy U.S. Rights For IQOS https://digitalarizonanews.com/philip-morris-raises-offer-for-swedish-match-and-buy-u-s-rights-for-iqos/
Tobacco giant will pay $2.7 billion to regain U.S. rights for IQOS heated tobacco products from Altria
Updated Oct. 20, 2022 3:36 am ET
Philip Morris International raised its offer for Swedish Match AB by 9.4% and has agreed to pay $2.7 billion to regain the U.S. rights for its IQOS heated tobacco products from Altria Group Inc.
Philip Morris said it is now offering 116 Swedish kronor, equivalent to $10.34, for each Swedish Match share, up from the original offer in May of 106 Swedish kronor. The total value of that deal, though in dollar terms, is roughly unchanged from the original offer because the appreciation in the U.S. currency against the Swedish krona, made it easier for the company to raise its offer.
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Netanyahu: Trump Is Not An Antisemite | World Israel News
Netanyahu: Trump Is Not An Antisemite | World Israel News https://digitalarizonanews.com/netanyahu-trump-is-not-an-antisemite-world-israel-news/
President Donald Trump at an earlier meeting with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (GPO/ Avi Ohayon)
GPO/ Avi Ohayon
Netanyahu: Trump is not an antisemite
Israeli Opposition Leader rejects accusations of antisemitism against former President Donald Trump over social media posts on lack of support from American Jews.
By World Israel News Staff
Israeli Opposition Leader and former Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu defended former President Donald Trump Tuesday from accusations of antisemitism, after the former president’s social media posts on his lack of support from American Jews sparked controversy.
Netanyahu appeared on MSNBC to promote his new book, Bibi: My Story, released this Tuesday.
During the interview, Netanyahu was asked to comment on Trump’s recent Truth Social post in which he complained of the low levels of support he received from American Jews, despite his pro-Israel policies.
“No President has done more for Israel than I have,” Trump lamented.
“Somewhat surprisingly, however, our wonderful Evangelicals are far more appreciative of this than the people of the Jewish faith, especially those living in the U.S. Those living in Israel, though, are a different story – Highest approval rating in the World, could easily be P.M.! U.S. Jews have to get their act together and appreciate what they have in Israel – Before it is too late!”
Jonathan Greenblatt, left-wing national director and CEO of the American Anti-Defamation League, among others, slammed Trump’s post as antisemitic.
But Netanyahu denied the accusation, defending Trump while downplaying his recent post.
“He has a Jewish son-in-law and his daughter converted to Judaism. His children and grandchildren are raised as Jews,” Netanyahu said.
“I think it reflects his frustration, which happens to many politicians when they feel they don’t get all the credit they deserve for the things they did. By the way, I have to tell you, I’m not an exception. All of us belong to that.”
Netanyahu did gently criticize Trump’s comments, however, suggesting the former president misunderstands American Jewish voting patterns.
“There is a certain myopia here on the assessment of American Jews. American Jews by and large… support Israel warmly.”
“Some, especially in the radical progressive wing do not, but the great majority in the Democratic Party do. The reason that is skewed a bit is because while Democratic support for Israel among American voters has remained fairly steady as the annual Gallup poll shows over a period of many years, Republican support for Israel has skyrocketed.”
When asked whether Trump’s comments could be fueling antisemitism in the U.S., Netanyahu called Trump a “great supporter of Israel,” adding that politicians often fail to use “measured language.”
Benjamin NetanyahuDonald TrumpMSNBC
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