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Ralph Nader: Democrats Broaden Your Campaign Messages And Strategies – OpEd https://digitalarizonanews.com/ralph-nader-democrats-broaden-your-campaign-messages-and-strategies-oped/ With just over four weeks to Election Day, the Democratic Party still has time to realize its limitations, which have led to them losing winnable races, or barely squeaking by at the federal and state levels. Imagine the worst, most corrupt, lying, dictatorial GOP since its creation in 1854 having their most dangerous and extreme candidates win elections. To liberate the many policies, messages, strategies, rebuttals and ground-level ways to get out more votes, Democrats need to escape the controls of their incarcerating political/media consultants, who are too often conflicted by their ongoing corporate clients and their 15% commissions received from placing repetitive, vacuous video ads. With their ample funds, the Democrats have to aggregate the case against the GOP’s morbid opposition to humanity and contrast it with the Democratic Party’s own lawmaking, votes and positions. For example, the Dems need to compare all their pro-children work with the GOP’s ugly record of cruelty to the little ones once they are born. (See my column: Big Campaign 2022 Issue: GOP’s Cruelty to Children). Trump’s GOP went out of its way to keep federal Medicaid funds from insuring children in GOP-dominated states, lunged to revoke an Obama rule to ban a pesticide, especially deadly to young children, and blocked all attempts to enact paid sick leave, family leave and daycare. In 2017 the Republicans also slashed the already low tax rates for their Rich and Powerful paymasters. Dems should move fast with a winning “Protect and Nurture ALL Our Children” platform. The GOP is chronically antagonistic to freedom and equality for women. Republican opposition to the Equal Rights Amendment, equal pay mandates, corporate marketplace discriminations and reproductive choice, and other serious biases can form the basis for a Democratic “Freedom for Women” platform plank. With lives and public infrastructure being regularly destroyed by floods, ocean surges, winds, and wildfires from Global Warming, GOP candidates respond with a curled lip: NO! Republicans voted against, or successfully blocked the public works bills backed by Congressional Democrats, costing lives, jobs, community stability and using tax dollars not to benefit the people, but to the corporate greed hounds of Wall Street and its plutocrats. Most Democrats have been reluctant to take on the 800 lb. gorilla in the political arena – the widely despised, by both liberal and conservative voters, Big Business controls coercions, bailouts and exploitations over people’s livelihoods. Over 70% of people, regardless of political labels, bear the brunt of abuses by corporate barons every day where they live, work and raise their children. Plenty of press reports, pointed studies, and litigation data make the case that Democratic candidates who commit to All the parents, All the workers, and All the consumers to make giant companies our servants, not our masters, will garner large majority voter support. People are tired of double standards. They want corporate crooks to go to jail. They want runaway CEOs to be held accountable. Such stands would immediately contrast with the GOP’s coverups of Wall Street, the big banks, insurance companies, and avaricious drug and health insurance companies. Many Democrats can point to their pending legislation holding these Goliaths to account that the Republicans have stifled. The central point of these proposals – among others available – is to energize Democratic candidates and enliven their repetitive daily campaign routines and rhetoric. It is time for the Dems to go on the offensive against the GOP’s made-up fake accusations and give a hungry media compelling substance. Reporters are tired of covering campaigns as horse races, and mainly reporting on campaign contributions and polling results. Headlines could emerge by injecting fresh issues and slogans to grab more of the 120 million eligible voters who are expected to stay at home. Some examples follow. “Go vote for a raise to $15 per hour, you’ve earned it and it’s long overdue.” The GOP hates the very idea of a minimum wage and has frozen the federal minimum at $7.25 per hour, while letting the likes of Apple’s CEO Tim Cook, make $833 per MINUTE with low tax rates! Raising the minimum wage will help over 25 million voters. “Go vote to extend the $300 a month child tax credit that reached 58 million children and cut the child poverty rates by a third, until the Congressional GOP blocked its extension in January 2022.” Democrats who show they mean what they say, stay on the offensive, and hone debating skills to provide memorable contrasts with the GOP can win a working majority in the legislatures to get things done. Moreover, exposing the GOP’s Death Cult that can’t help opposing the concrete existing and proposed health, safety and economic rights of American families, will motivate voters. GOP Florida Senator Rick Scott, in charge of electing Republican Senators, wants to sunset laws, including Social Security and Medicare as indicated in his “An 11 Point Plan to Rescue America” (https://www.politico.com/f/?id=0000017f-1cf5-d281-a7ff-3ffd5f4a0000). Run against this outrage daily. These contrasts can be summarized on a single-sheet Voter Self-Help Guides distributed in the tens of millions everywhere on paper (and online). One side can poll the voters on a dozen positions. The other side can show that the Democratic candidate is “On Their Side” and the GOP candidate is not (supported by the facts and their record). Together with civic leader Mark Green and two dozen experienced and accomplished civic advocates, we compiled a collection of such policies, strategies and messaging to attract voters and retire GOP candidates who follow their leader, Herr Trump, in further wrecking our fragile climate, democratic institutions, voting procedures and public health with their early denial of the Covid pandemic. The Winning America effort has been endorsed by Senator Edward Markey, Reps. Hakim Jeffries, John Larson, Jim McGovern, Peter DeFazio, Jamie Raskin, and Carolyn Maloney, among others. There is still time for candidates to listen, learn and self-galvanize electoral energies. The question is: Will Democrats in the close House, Senate and state legislative races be willing to break out of their managed cocoons and become Winning Monarch Butterflies on November 8, 2022? Will the Democratic Party stop the GOP Party of Anxiety, Dread, and Fear from anointing Trump lackey Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) as Speaker of the House and the corporatist Mitch McConnell (“The Guardian of Gridlock” who says he “will tell you what we’re doing to do AFTER we win the Election”) to resume his control of the Senate? Voter turnout will decide which future awaits America. See https://winningamerica.net/ Read More Here

Jared Cannonier Gives Exclusive Insight On O'Malley's Gym Habits https://digitalarizonanews.com/jared-cannonier-gives-exclusive-insight-on-omalleys-gym-habits/ Jared Cannonier has been training with bantamweight prospect Sean O’Malley recently and has spilled the beans on that experience. A commonly recited principle in mixed martial arts has always been that iron sharpens iron, and the fact that Cannonier and O’Malley train together is a prime example of this. They have both been working at the MMA Lab in Phoenix, AZ, with the recent middleweight title challenger preparing for a bout with Sean Strickland, and Suga’ Sean gearing up to take on former bantamweight champ Petr Yan. Jared Cannonier Praises Sean O’Malley With this type of training environment, Jared Cannonier has had the chance to see first-hand the type of athlete Sean O’Malley is, even when he is not in front of the cameras. As it turns out, “The Killa Gorilla” is actually quite impressed with what he has seen. Speaking in an interview with The Schmo, Cannonier explained that he is blown away with the dedication shown by O’Malley to really study all the fighters in his division, not just Yan. Moreover, he said that the flashy style Suga’ Sean is known for is something he actually practices, not just something done in the spur of the moment. “Suga’ puts in the work, man,” Cannonier said. “Suga’s a master of his craft, for sure. He’s been dissecting these fighters, the bantamweights, the ebb and flow of the game. He’s always ahead of it, if not right there neck-and-neck with it. Suga’s the man. He’s always upping his game, inside and outside the Octagon. There’s many different examples that take out of him, from watching him. “Not to mention his style is very entertaining to watch, and it’s effective as well,” Cannonier added. “When I watch him landing strikes, doing his moves and stuff, it’s not just things he’s pulling out of his ass. He’s working, and he’s practicing these things, and he’s wired to do them. It’s very fun watching him, and when he goes in there and Abu Dhabi and gets to shine on the big stage, it’s going to be well deserved, and I’m just going to be entertained.” This is high praise from Jared Cannonier to Sean O’Malley. Time will tell if the exciting bantamweight lives up to the hype that has been bestowed upon him, but no matter what, it is clear that he genuinely puts thought into everything he does with the sport. This story originally appeared on MMANews.com. Please provide transcription credit with a link to this article if you use any of these quotes. Read More…

Russian Strike Kills At Least 17 In Ukraine Following Bridge Attack https://digitalarizonanews.com/russian-strike-kills-at-least-17-in-ukraine-following-bridge-attack/ A Russian barrage pounded apartment buildings and other targets in the Ukrainian city of Zaporizhzhia, killing at least 17 people and wounding dozens, officials said Sunday. The blasts in the city, which remains under Ukrainian control but sits in a region Moscow has claimed as its own, blew out windows in adjacent buildings and left at least one high-rise apartment building partially collapsed. The multiple strikes came after an explosion Saturday caused the partial collapse of a bridge linking the Crimean Peninsula with Russia. The Kerch Bridge attack damaged an important supply route for the Kremlin’s faltering war effort in southern Ukraine, an artery that also is a towering symbol of Russia’s power in the region. Russian President Vladimir Putin on Sunday called the attack “a terrorist act” masterminded by Ukrainian special services.   “There’s no doubt it was a terrorist act directed at the destruction of critically important civilian infrastructure of the Russian Federation,” Putin said during a meeting with the chairman of Russia’s Investigative Committee, Alexander Bastrykin. “And the authors, perpetrators, and those who ordered it are the special services of Ukraine.” Bastrykin said Ukrainian special services and citizens of Russia and other countries took part in the attack. He said a criminal investigation had been launched into an act of terror. “We have already established the route of the truck,” he said, saying it had been to Bulgaria, Georgia, Armenia, North Ossetia and Krasnodar, a region in southern Russia. In Kyiv, presidential adviser Mikhail Podolyak called Putin’s accusation “too cynical even for Russia.” “Putin accuses Ukraine of terrorism?” he said. “It has not even been 24 hours since Russian planes fired 12 rockets into a residential area of Zaporizhzhia, killing 13 people and injuring more than 50. No, there is only one state terrorist and the whole world knows who he is.” Podolyak referred to missile strikes on the city of Zaporizhzhia overnight that brought down part of a large apartment building. The six missiles were launched from Russian-occupied areas of the Zaporizhzhia region, the Ukrainian air force said. The bombing of the bridge came a day after Putin turned 70, dealing him a humiliating blow that one military analyst called it a punch in the face for Putin on his birthday, CBS News’ Charlie D’Agata reports. The rockets that pounded Zaporizhzhia overnight damaged at least 20 private homes and 50 apartment buildings, city council Secretary Anatoliy Kurtev said. At least 40 people were hospitalized, Kurtev said on Telegram. The Ukrainian military confirmed the attack, saying there were dozens of casualties. Rescuers work at a site of a residential area heavily damaged by a Russian missile strike, amid Russia’s attack on Ukraine, in Zaporizhzhia, Ukraine October 9, 2022. STRINGER / REUTERS Residents gathered behind police tape by a building where several floors collapsed from the blast, leaving a smoldering chasm at least 40-feet wide where apartments once stood. Tetyana Lazun’ko, 73, and her husband, Oleksii, took shelter in the hallway of their top floor apartment after hearing sirens, warning of an attack. They were spared the worst of the blast that left them in fear and disbelief. “There was an explosion. Everything was shaking,” Lazun’ko said. “Everything was flying and I was screaming.” Shards of glass, entire window and door frames and other debris covered the exterior floors of the apartment where they’d lived since 1974. Lazun’ko wept inconsolably, wondering why their home in an area with no military infrastructure in sight was targeted. “Why are they bombing us. Why?” she said. Oleksii, who sat quietly, leaning on a wooden cane, has suffered three strokes, Lazun’ko said. Breaking his silence, he said slowly, “This is international terrorism. You can’t be saved from it.” In recent weeks, Russia has repeatedly struck Zaporizhzhia, which is the capital of a region of the same name that Russian President Vladimir Putin annexed in violation of international law last week. At least 19 people died in Russian missile strikes on apartment buildings in the city on Thursday. “Again, Zaporizhzhia. Again, merciless attacks on civilians, targeting residential buildings, in the middle of the night,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy wrote in a Telegram post. “Absolute meanness. Absolute evil. … From the one who gave this order, to everyone who carried out this order: they will answer. They must. Before the law and the people,” he added While Russia targeted Zaporizhzhia before Saturday’s explosion on the Crimea bridge, the attack was a significant blow to Russia, which annexed the Crimean Peninsula from Ukraine in 2014. No one has claimed responsibility for damaging the bridge. Putin signed a decree late Saturday tightening security for the bridge and for energy infrastructure between Crimea and Russia, and put Russia’s federal security service, the FSB, in charge of the effort. Some Russian lawmakers called for Putin to declare a “counterterrorism operation,” rather than the term “special military operation” that has downplayed the scope of fighting to ordinary Russians. Hours after the explosion, Russia’s Defense Ministry announced that the air force chief, Gen. Sergei Surovikin, would now command all Russian troops in Ukraine. Surovikin, who this summer was placed in charge of troops in southern Ukraine, had led Russian forces in Syria and was accused of overseeing a bombardment that destroyed much of Aleppo. The 19-kilometer (12-mile) Kerch Bridge, on a strait between the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov, is a symbol of Moscow’s claims on Crimea and an essential link to the peninsula, which Russia annexed from Ukraine in 2014. The $3.6 billion bridge, the longest in Europe, is vital to sustaining Russia’s military operations in southern Ukraine. Putin himself presided over the bridge’s opening in May 2018. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, in a video address, indirectly acknowledged the bridge attack but did not address its cause. “Today was not a bad day and mostly sunny on our state’s territory,” he said. “Unfortunately, it was cloudy in Crimea. Although it was also warm.” Zelenskyy said Ukraine wants a future “without occupiers. Throughout our territory, in particular in Crimea.” Zelenskyy also said Ukrainian forces advanced or held the line in the east and south, but acknowledged “very, very difficult, very tough fighting” around the city of Bakhmut in the eastern Donetsk region, where Russian forces have claimed recent gains. Train and automobile traffic over the bridge was temporarily suspended. Automobile traffic resumed Saturday afternoon on one of the two links that remained intact, with the flow alternating in each direction, said Crimea’s Russia-backed leader, Sergey Aksyonov. The Russian transport ministry said on Telegram Sunday that passenger train traffic between Crimea and the Russian mainland resumed overnight “according to schedule.” In a separate Telegram post Sunday, the ministry said car ferries also were working between Crimea and the mainland, with the first crossing taking place shortly before 2 a.m. local time (11 p.m. GMT). While Russia seized areas north of Crimea early in its invasion of Ukraine and built a land corridor to it along the Sea of Azov, Ukraine is pressing a counteroffensive to reclaim that territory as well as four regions Putin illegally annexed this month. Russia has ramped up its strikes on the city of Zaporizhzhia since formally absorbing the surrounding region on September 29. The regional governor of Zaporizhzhia reported that the death toll had risen to 32 after Russia’s missile strike on a civilian convoy making its way out of the city on September 30. In a Telegram post, Oleksandr Starukh that one more person died in the hospital on Friday. A part of the Zaporizhzhia region currently under Russian control is home to Europe’s largest nuclear power station. Fighting has repeatedly imperiled the the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant, and Ukrainian authorities shut down its last operating reactor last month to prevent a radiation disaster. The International Atomic Energy Agency, the U.N.’s nuclear watchdog, said Saturday that the Zaporizhzhia plant has since lost its last remaining external power source as a result of renewed shelling and is now relying on emergency diesel generators. The Crimean Peninsula is a popular destination for Russian tourists and home to a Russian naval base. A Russian tourist association estimated that 50,000 tourists were in Crimea on Saturday. In: Ukraine Russia Read More Here

October 9, 2022 Russia-Ukraine News | CNN https://digitalarizonanews.com/october-9-2022-russia-ukraine-news-cnn/ Videos show aftermath of Crimea bridge explosion 02:34 At least 13 people were killed and 89 others wounded in Russian missile strikes on the southern Ukrainian city of Zaporizhzhia Saturday, according to officials. Rescue teams sifted through rubble all day Sunday as the death and injury tolls climbed. At least 12 children were among those hurt, according to a top Ukrainian official. Russian President Vladimir Putin accused Ukraine’s special services of causing an explosion on the only bridge connecting annexed Crimea with the Russian mainland. The blast threatens Russian supply lines, though some rail and vehicle access has been restored. Ukrainian officials have publicly celebrated the explosion but have not claimed responsibility. One leader suggested the blast was the result of internal strife in Russia. We’ve wrapped up our live coverage for today. You can read more on the Russian invasion of Ukraine here, or scroll through the posts below. Crews restored power and cellular connection in Enerhodar, the city near Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant that is currently under Russian control, a senior official said Sunday. “Water supply will be restored in the near future,” Rogov, a pro-Russian leader in the regional Zaporizhzhia government, wrote in a telegram post Sunday Rogov also said that Ukrainians “have concentrated significant number of militants in Zaporizhzhia direction” and that the risk of storming the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant “remains high”. Some context: Russian and Ukrainian officials blame each other for the recent shelling in Enerhodar. According to Ukrainian-elected mayor Dmytro Orlov, constant Russian shelling “prevents quick emergency and restoration work.” Orlov said “the Ukrainian authorities have repeatedly tried to deliver humanitarian supplies with food, hygiene products and so on to the city,” adding that Ukraine is “ready to organize prompt delivery and distribution of drinking water in Enerhodar” but that Russian forces have not let humanitarian aid through. Volunteers work to clean the debris on a site where several houses were destroyed after a Russian attack at a residential area in Zaporizhzhia, Ukraine, Sunday, October 9. (Leo Correa/AP) Thirteen people have died and the injury count has risen to 89 people, among them 11 children, in the rocket attack by Russian forces on the city of Zaporizhzhia, a top Ukrainian official said Sunday. Ukraine’s Deputy Head of the Office of the President, Kyrylo Tymoshenko, shared the updated toll in a Telegram post. “The number of dead and wounded has increased. Among them are many children! As a result of the rocket attack on the city, 13 people died, including 1 child. 89 civilians were injured, including 11 children,” Tymoshenko wrote.  According to Tymoshenko, the search and rescue operations are ongoing, with rescuers continuing to get people out from under the rubble. Earlier Sunday, officials with Ukrainian emergency services said they and other agencies deployed more than 200 rescuers and teams with search dogs after the strikes. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Austria called on Russia to stop attacks on civilian infrastructure Sunday, condemning this weekend’s missile strikes on the Ukrainian city of Zaporizhzhia. “Russian attacks against civilian infrastructure like in Zaporizhzhia are utterly unacceptable and must stop. The protection of civilians is not a choice, but a duty under international law. Those responsible must be held to account,” reads a statement tweeted by the ministry. View the tweet here: Russian President Vladimir Putin called Saturday’s explosion on the Crimean bridge a “terrorist attack” and claimed Ukrainian special services organized and executed the blast.  Putin made his remarks during a meeting with Chairman of the Russian Investigative Committee Alexander Bastrykin Sunday. “We have no doubts that this is a terrorist attack aimed at the destruction of the critical infrastructure of Russian Federation. And authors, executors and masterminds are the secret services of Ukraine,” Putin said. “Secret services of Ukraine and citizens of Russia from foreign countries are the ones who helped to execute this terrorist attack,” Bastrykin said. Bastrykin also said that Russians “have already established the route of the truck where the explosion occurred.” In addition, “carriers have been identified — persons who participated in organizing the movement of this truck.” What we know so far: CCTV video shows the moment a huge explosion rocked the bridge Saturday. “A truck is seen driving in the lane towards Crimea when all of a sudden there’s a massive explosion, though it’s not clear whether it is the truck that actually blew up,” CNN’s Fred Pleitgen reports. What Ukraine is saying: High-ranking Ukrainian officials immediately celebrated the blast. Ukraine’s secretary of the National Security and Defense Council posted a taunting birthday message for Putin and the postal service announced stamps commemorating the explosion. But Ukraine has stopped short of claiming responsibility. An adviser to the head of the Ukranian president’s office even suggested the blast was to be blamed on internal strife “between the military and power structures of Russia.” Ukrainian troops have significantly increased shelling of Russian territory near the war’s frontlines since the beginning of October, Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) said in a statement Sunday. “Over the past week, more than 100 attacks using multiple launch rocket systems, cannon artillery, mortars and unmanned aerial vehicles on 32 settlements in the Bryansk, Kursk and Belgorod regions were recorded,” the statement said. According to FSB, one local resident was killed during the shelling and five people were injured, including a child. “In border settlements, two electrical substations, 11 residential buildings and two administrative buildings were destroyed. 8 checkpoints across the state border were damaged,” the statement added. Two settlements in Ukraine’s Sumy region were shelled by Russian forces on Sunday, according to a statement published by the Ukrainian Operational Command North on Facebook. There were no losses among personnel and equipment, according to the command. “From 12:10 to 12:15, the observers recorded three ‘arrivals,’ probably from a 120 mm mortar, in the area of the settlement of Seredyna-Buda. Also, from 14:35 to 14:55, it became known about five more hits, probably from a 120 mm mortar, in the area near Bachivsk village,” the statement read. Kyrylo Tymoshenko, deputy head of the president’s office, said on Telegram on Sunday that the Russian forces used a drone to attack a third area in Sumy — the village of Myronivka. One person died in the drone attack, Tymoshenko said. Brittney Griner and Paul Whelan. (Reuters) Former Gov. Bill Richardson said Sunday he is “cautiously optimistic” that two Americans wrongfully detained by Russia will be released and suggested they could be freed by the end of the year. Richardson, a former Democratic governor of New Mexico, and his namesake center privately work on behalf of families of hostages and detainees. He recently traveled to Russia to discuss with Kremlin officials the possible release of basketball star Brittney Griner and former US Marine Paul Whelan, and he said Sunday that he’s working with the families of both Americans and coordinating with the White House for their release. “I do think so. Now, I hate making predictions, but yes,” Richardson told CNN’s Jake Tapper on “State of the Union” when asked if he believed Griner and Whelan may be released before the end of this year. “I know (the families are) very emotional and this is a very emotional time. All I can say is that the Biden administration is working hard on it,” added Richardson, who served as US ambassador to the United Nations in the Clinton administration. “So am I. We coordinate, but not always agree on every tactical decision. But I’m not going to interfere in their process. I’m just giving you my assessment after two visits to Russia on behalf of American hostages.” Some background: The Biden administration has distanced itself from Richardson’s efforts. Last month, a senior administration official told CNN that anyone “who’s going to Russia is going as a private citizen, and they don’t speak for the US government.” The detainees: Griner was sentenced in August to nine years in a Russian jail after pleading guilty to drug-smuggling. The two-time US Olympic basketball gold medalist had been arrested at a Moscow airport and accused by Russian prosecutors of trying to smuggle less than 1 gram of cannabis oil in her luggage – which she said she had accidentally packed while in a hurry. Whelan was detained at a Moscow hotel in December 2018 and arrested on espionage charges, which he has consistently and vehemently denied. He was convicted and sentenced in June 2020 to 16 years in prison in a trial US officials denounced as unfair. Black smoke billows from a fire on the Kerch bridge, on October 8. (AFP/Getty Images) The Kremlin is intent on showing the attack on the Crimea bridge wasn’t that serious and that the crucial lifeline from the Russian mainland to the illegally-annexed Crimean Peninsula will be back to normal soon. The physical damage can be restored — Russia immediately dispatched a large emergency team to the site — but the damage to Russia’s prestige and, more importantly, to the image of Vladimir Putin, won’t be that easy to repair.  This is his bridge, his project, built with the equivalent of almost $4 billion from the Russian treasury. It’s a symbolic “wedding band” uniting Mother Russia and Ukraine, or at least a region that still legally belongs to Ukraine, crucial not only to Putin’s war effort but to his obsession with bringing Ukra...

Trump To Campaign For Arizona Election Deniers In A State That Will Test His Power In 2022 And Beyond | CNN Politics https://digitalarizonanews.com/trump-to-campaign-for-arizona-election-deniers-in-a-state-that-will-test-his-power-in-2022-and-beyond-cnn-politics/ CNN  —  There is perhaps nowhere in the country where former President Donald Trump had more success elevating his slate of “Make American Great Again” candidates into formidable 2022 contenders than Arizona, a state he narrowly lost in 2020 where he has relentlessly sought to overturn the presidential election results. With less than a month until Election Day, Trump is campaigning in Mesa on Sunday with those hand-selected GOP candidates vying for the top offices in the state: Gubernatorial nominee Kari Lake, US Senate nominee Blake Masters and Secretary of State nominee Mark Finchem. All three rose to the top of their fields during the primary contests – in a state where Trump acolytes have asserted their control over the Republican Party – by echoing Trump’s falsehoods about the 2020 presidential election to varying degrees. That has made Arizona the most closely watched laboratory for democracy in the midterm contests, as Trump weighs another presidential run in 2024, setting up a fresh test of the nation’s election apparatus and the strength of democratic institutions. In the near-term, the Senate race could be pivotal to control of the chamber in 2023. But looking forward, Arizona’s status as a battleground state means it could determine the next occupant of the White House, which is why the Democratic opponents of Lake and Finchem – along with Wyoming GOP Rep. Liz Cheney, the vice chair of the House select committee probing January 6, 2021 – have warned that their ascent to the state’s highest offices could lead to meddling with the 2024 election results, creating what Cheney recently framed as a test of the “future functioning of our constitutional republic.” In Arizona, the secretary of state is second in line to the governorship. Lake, Masters and Finchem are all in tight contests for the seats they are seeking, according to new CNN polling in the Grand Canyon state. They are benefiting in part from the fact that a plurality of Arizona voters are registered as Republicans, but also from the fact that election denialism does not rank as the top concern for the state’s voters as they grapple with the impact of inflation, high gas prices and economic turbulence in a climate that should favor the GOP. There is no clear leader in the gubernatorial race between Lake and Democratic Secretary of State Katie Hobbs, who gained national prominence by opposing the efforts of Trump-aligned GOP lawmakers in Arizona to repeatedly wage partisan audits and challenge the 2020 election results. (There is no evidence of widespread election fraud, and the so-called audit confirmed Biden’s victory.) About 49% of likely voters backed Hobbs, while 46% backed Lake in CNN’s new poll. Democratic Sen. Mark Kelly is narrowly leading Masters 51% to 45% among likely voters in the Senate race; and there is no clear leader in the race between Finchem and Democrat Adrian Fontes, the former recorder of Maricopa County who was defeated in his 2020 reelection bid after facing criticism for some of the changes he made to the county’s voting systems. Trump, who repeatedly targeted Arizona’s term-limited GOP Gov. Doug Ducey for rebuffing his entreaties to overturn Biden’s victory in Arizona, has heartily embraced Lake’s candidacy. The former Arizona news anchor, who has repeatedly referred to the 2020 election as “stolen” and “corrupt,” has raised money at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago retreat in Florida. During a GOP primary debate this year, she said she would not have certified the 2020 presidential election results in Arizona as Ducey did (and as is required by law). Ducey declined national Republicans’ efforts to get him to run for Senate this year, leaving a crowded field of candidates jockeying for Trump’s support. Trump eventually backed Masters, who had the support of conservative tech billionaire Peter Thiel in the primary, and had released a campaign video stating he believed Trump won the 2020 election. But during an Arizona Senate debate last week where Kelly warned that the “wheels” could “come off our democracy” if candidates like his opponent are elected, Masters modulated his tone on the 2020 election results – part of a clear play by the venture capitalist to appeal to a broader swath of the Arizona electorate. Under questioning from the moderator he conceded that he had not seen evidence of fraud in the 2020 vote counting or election results in a way that would have changed the outcome. After his primary victory in August, he also scrubbed his website of language that included the false claim that the election was stolen. Lake, who is executing a Trump playbook by focusing her efforts on boosting GOP base turnout in Arizona, has not attempted to finesse her stance on the 2020 election as some other Trump-endorsed candidates have. In an interview on CBS’s “Face the Nation” Sunday morning after Major Garrett noted that Masters had said he had not seen evidence of problems that would have changed the 2020 outcome, Lake did not directly answer when asked if Biden is the legitimate president. “I think we have major problems in our election system. And … it goes back to 2000. We had Democrats saying the 2000 election wasn’t fair,” Lake replied, adding that Democrats had raised questions about several subsequent elections. “Nobody called them election deniers. And now, all of a sudden in 2020, Garrett, we don’t have free speech anymore. We can’t speak out against our own elections. All I’m asking for is the ability to speak out. When our government does something wrong, we should be able to speak out against it.” Finchem is one of at least 11 Republican nominees running for state elections chief who have questioned, rejected or tried to overturn the results of the 2020 election. The state representative co-sponsored legislation with fellow Republican lawmakers in Arizona that would allow them to reject election results and require election workers to hand count ballots instead of using electronic equipment to tabulate results. He has also called for decertifying the 2020 election results in three Arizona counties – even though legal experts say there is no legal mechanism to do so. Read More Here

Hiker Rescued By Firebird Helicopter On Gateway Loop Trail In Scottsdale https://digitalarizonanews.com/hiker-rescued-by-firebird-helicopter-on-gateway-loop-trail-in-scottsdale/ SCOTTSDALE, AZ (3TV/CBS 5) – A woman was rescued Sunday afternoon by Scottsdale and Phoenix fire officials off of the Gateway Loop trail. The Scottsdale fire department says the 48-year-old began developing symptoms of heat exhaustion around 1.5 miles from the trailhead when she called 911 for help. During the rescue, the woman told fire officials that she’d been on the trail for around five hours. Due to the rough terrain, the Phoenix Police Department’s Firebird 10 was used during the rescue for a hoist operation. Bell Road and 104 Street was closed during the rescue process. Click below to watch the rescue from the Scottsdale Fire Department Twitter page: Scottsdale and Phoenix Fire Technical Rescue Teams have removed a female hiker from Gateway Loop Trail. Utilizing Firebird 10 from Phoenix PD. Scottsdale Aircraft Rescue Technician Paramedic was inserted and assisted treating the hiker.#WeCareForYou pic.twitter.com/yge21naqDi — Scottsdale Fire Department (@ScottsdaleFire) October 9, 2022 Fire and police officials are encouraging everyone to be vigilant about their health, water reserves, and stamina, despite somewhat cooling temperatures in the Valley. Hydrate, hydrate, hydrate. … Get halfway with your water turn around go back to the trailhead. Wear light, loose, sweat-wicking clothes, and avoid cotton. Wear a hat & sunscreen. Start your hike early. Plan your hike for shade and water. Know the danger signs for heat stroke. Be prepared. Have a charged cell phone. Copyright 2022 KTVK/KPHO. All rights reserved. Read More…

Tucson Parks And Rec Receives Two Tohono O’Odham Nation Grants – Signals AZ https://digitalarizonanews.com/tucson-parks-and-rec-receives-two-tohono-oodham-nation-grants-signals-az/ The CAST 11 Podcast Network is made possible by the 2022 Ultimate Holiday Guide. Promote your next event or holiday offering in the Ultimate Holiday Guide by calling Elicia at: 928-642-3552. The City of Tucson Parks and Recreation department was selected by the Tohono O’odham Nation as a recipient of the 12% Gaming Distribution grant funding in the amounts of $150,000 to enhance a new splash pad project at Santa Rita Park and $80,000 to add a shade structure at Mansfield Pool. www.tucsonaz.gov Santa Rita Park Santa Rita Park, located at 401 E. 22nd St., resides in Ward 5 and recently underwent a master planning process with the final plan approved by Mayor and Council on Aug. 9, 2022. In addition to a new splash pad, other improvements will include a new playground, restroom, ramada, walking path, and the existing parking, lighting, basketball court, skate park, and irrigation will be renovated. On Nov. 6, 2018, City of Tucson voters approved Proposition 407, a $225 million bond package for capital improvements via General Obligation bonds. Santa Rita Park has approximately $3 million in bond funds dedicated to improving this park. The $150,000 grant will be combined with $850,000 of City of Tucson funds to build a splash pad with more amenities. The splash pad project will expand recreational opportunities to an underserved population surrounding the park. Splash pads are a great, free recreational opportunity primarily intended to serve youth. Beyond being an ideal location to escape Tucson’s hot summers, they are known to foster physical development, providing sensory stimulation through tactile interactions with water sprays, streams, and jets. Additionally, they encourage the development of motor movement through jumping, running, and dodging. To view the master plan and for more information on the projects at Santa Rita Park, visit the project website. Mansfield Pool Mansfield Pool, located at 2275 N. 4th Ave., is one of three public pools in Ward 3. It is an amenity, as well as a necessity, that provides families with affordable outdoor recreation during the summer. It is a three-pool complex, making it a popular place to cool off. The pool features a diving bay with 1- and 3-meter boards, a wading pool, and a temporarily closed slide. Tucson’s public pools provide outdoor family recreation opportunities to serve those who otherwise would not have a place to swim, as well as providing swimming lessons, education, and lifeguard training. Swimming is a great way for those with limited mobility, medical conditions, and/or injuries to enjoy physical activity as well. Pools offer a means of social interaction, relaxation, and stress relief. While the pool currently has a small shade area, the complex needs an additional shade structure to give children and families a cool place to relax and recreate. This $80,000 grant will allow Tucson Parks and Recreation to add more shade to the complex. Mansfield Pool has $187,560 in 2018 voter-approved bond funds to replace the broken 141-foot-long slide that has been fenced off and unavailable for five years. The Ward 3 office allocated an additional $150,000 from Community Reinvestment funds provided by the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) to supplement the cost of replacing the existing slide. For more information on projects planned through the Tucson Delivers Great Parks + Strong Connections voter-approved bond funds from 2018, visit this website. Catch up with the news and read more stories from the Desert Cities on Signals A Z.com! Coming soon to Talking Glass Media and featured in your Winter Editions of Badger Nation, Cougar Country, and Prescott Valley Recreation Guide featuring Bear Nation! Read More Here

Full Transcript Of https://digitalarizonanews.com/full-transcript-of/ On this “Face the Nation” broadcast moderated by Major Garrett: Anthony Salvanto, CBS News director of election and surveys Kari Lake, Republican gubernatorial candidate in Arizona  Kate Hobbs, Democratic gubernatorial candidate in Arizona Peter Baker, Susan Glasser, Nikole Killion, Scott MacFarlane   Mohamed El-Erian, Allianz Chief Economic Adviser Click here to browse full transcripts of “Face the Nation.”   MAJOR GARRETT: I’m Major Garrett. And this week on Face the Nation, we will dive into one of the most closely watched governor’s races in the country and examine problems facing America at home and abroad. We have new CBS polls in Michigan, Wisconsin and Arizona. And, in back-to- back appearances, we will hear from Republican Kari Lake and Democrat Katie Hobbs, as they are running dead even to be Arizona’s next governor. Our political panel will track this unique Arizona event and the week’s news. Then: Financial markets remain jumpy, and recession anxieties got more fuel after the OPEC cartel cut oil production. We will check in with top economist Mohamed El-Erian about the road ahead. Finally, a key bridge linking the Crimean Peninsula with Russia is destroyed. Ukrainians celebrate, while Russia fumes. What are Vladimir Putin’s options? Could one be battlefield nuclear weapons? We will have a report from the region. It’s all just ahead on Face the Nation. Good morning. Welcome to Face the Nation. Margaret Brennan is off. We have new CBS Battleground Tracker polls from several key states. In Michigan, Democratic Governor Gretchen Whitmer is leading her Republican challenger, Tudor Dixon, 53 percent to 47 percent. In Wisconsin, we’re tracking two statewide races. The governor’s race between Democratic incumbent Tony Evers and his Republican challenger, businessman Tim Michels, is deadlocked, with both candidates at 50 percent. In the Senate race, incumbent Republican Senator Ron Johnson is polling at 50 percent against his Democratic rival, Mandela Barnes, who is at 49 percent. We also learned last week in Arizona incumbent Democratic Senator Mark Kelly is narrowly ahead of his Republican challenger, Blake Masters, 51 percent to 48 percent. Joining us now to discuss all of this is CBS News elections and surveys director Anthony Salvanto. Anthony, good morning. Catch us up on the dynamics of these Senate races. ANTHONY SALVANTO: Good morning, Major. So, Wisconsin and Arizona are two Senate races out of, I think, five that will ultimately determine control the chamber. So, they’re both close for reasons that are across all of these races. And that is, it’s the economy against abortion, which is to say, Democrats are winning voters who are concerned about abortion. That’s happening in Wisconsin. Mandela Barnes is getting almost three- quarters of those who say it’s very important. And then the economy. Republicans are winning voters who say the economy is most important, going to punish the party in power. And that’s the Democrats. He’s getting almost two-thirds of them. Now, having said that, each party is sort of jockeying to try to add another set of issues to that list. And on the Republican side, one of those is crime. So, they’re running attack ads. They’re trying to tie Democrats to this unpopular position — and it is unpopular in Wisconsin — of defunding the police. And when voters perceive, if they perceive that Barnes supports defunding the police — again, that’s their perception — then they aren’t voting for him. And he’s behind Johnson on the idea of, will your — will their policies keep you safe? Now, Democrats, for their part, would like to add this issue of election integrity, threats to democracy after the attempts to overturn 2020. MAJOR GARRETT: Under that banner of threats to democracy, some Republicans won their primaries by denying or questioning the 2020 election. To what degree is that position either being embraced or backed away from or having an effect on the general elections they find themselves in now? ANTHONY SALVANTO: Well, look, for Republicans, it was almost a litmus test in their primaries. And they’re still supporting their candidates regardless of their stance. There’s a little bit of evidence that the position of trying to overturn 2020 hurts Republicans in this sense, if you look at independents who believe that Ron Johnson — again, their perception — was trying to overturn the election, they’re not voting for him. And the way it also connects is on candidate qualities. Take a look at Arizona. A majority of people say that they’d prefer their elected officials say that Joe Biden won, which he did. Now, when you look at voters who say that they think that the candidates are — or a Republican candidate is talking about 2020, they’re more likely to label that candidate as extreme, as opposed to mainstream. And that goes towards candidate qualities, where Democrats have tended to have an advantage. Those are the dynamics all at work here. MAJOR GARRETT: Anthony Salvanto, thank you very much. ANTHONY SALVANTO: Thank you. MAJOR GARRETT: Now to the race for governor of Arizona. Our latest poll shows Democrat Katie Hobbs and Republican Kari Lake tied at 49 percent. The two candidates have not scheduled a debate, but they are here to answer our questions. Each candidate will have about eight-and-a- half minutes. We intend to cover the same issues with each candidate, issues identified by our own polling as of leading concern to Arizona voters. Our ability to cover this ground, of course, will be influenced in no small measure by the length of the candidates’ answers, first Republican Kari Lake, who joins us from Phoenix. Good morning, and welcome to Face the Nation. KARI LAKE (R-Arizona Gubernatorial Candidate): Good morning, Major. Thank you so much for having me on. Just to clarify, I have agreed to any and all debates, and I will be taking part in one without my opponent next week, on the 12th. I would love it if she would show up, because I think there’s a lot of important issues that the people of Arizona need to hear about. MAJOR GARRETT: We’ll get to that, I promise. Your Web site is detailed and specific on the question of immigration and border security. You call, if elected as governor, for Arizona to join other states to form what you call a compact to carry out border security separate from the federal government, including arrest and detention. For the benefit of Arizona voters, can you explain the legal and practical application of this approach? KARI LAKE: Well, of course, if you know the Constitution, you know that Article 4, Section 4 calls for the federal government to protect us from invasion. And under Joe Biden’s lack of leadership, we just aren’t seeing that. And we have an invasion at our border. The cartels, these narco terrorist groups have operational control. And they’re using Arizona to smuggle people, to traffic children, and to traffic the most dangerous drug we’ve ever seen, fentanyl. And so we’re going to invoke our Article 1, Section 10, basically, authority to take care of our own border and protect our own border. It’s right there in black and white in the Constitution. And we meet all three criteria. We have an invasion, our people are in imminent danger, and time is of the essence. There’s no time for delay. So we’re going to have other states offer help. I have already got a couple other governors who are willing to help out. And I know that if you ask people in other states that are not border states, they deem this crisis on the border as one of the top issues facing our country… MAJOR GARRETT: Would Arizona… KARI LAKE: … with so many young people dying of fentanyl poisoning right now. MAJOR GARRETT: Would Arizona go it alone if it didn’t get this compact agreement with other states? KARI LAKE: Yes, we will. But I believe we will get help. I have already talked to some other governors. And they’re — they’re vowing to help us out wherever they can, because they realize that what comes into Arizona, fentanyl, people coming here illegally, children being trafficked, doesn’t stay in Arizona. It goes to all 50 states. And I just spoke last week to a mother and father who lost their son. And it’s just tragic. We’re losing more people to fentanyl in Arizona since Joe Biden took office than we lost in 9/11 or during COVID. MAJOR GARRETT: If, as there would likely be, federal challenges were presented, would you, as governor, await for those federal challenges to this state compact be resolved? And would you respect them if they were to any way impinge upon or restrict or nullify the state compact approach? KARI LAKE: We will — we will challenge the federal government, if they’re going to challenge us. I think we have the right to do this. And we will have attorneys file lawsuits as well. But we’re not going to back down and let our people be overrun with drugs, watch our children die. We had a 16-year-old die here in the metro area last week from a fentanyl overdose. We can’t keep having this happen. We’re losing our young generation. So I hope that Joe Biden doesn’t fight us, because then it would really look like he is on the side of the cartels. And I don’t think he wants the people to think that. MAJOR GARRETT: Your Web site also says that Washington D.C. incentivizes illegal immigration to satisfy — quote — “big business lust for cheap labor.” Does that big business lust reside in Arizona at all? KARI LAKE: I think it resides everywhere. And we saw it with Nancy Pelosi last week. I mean, it was the most racist thing, I think, I have heard her say, although she’s said quite a few things that are offensive. She said these people coming in illegally should go pick fruit in the South. I mean, I couldn’t believe my ears, Major, when I heard that. We want to make sure that our middle class and our working class are ...

US Forecast https://digitalarizonanews.com/us-forecast-37/ City/Town, State;Yesterday’s High Temp (F);Yesterday’s Low Temp (F);Today’s High Temp (F);Today’s Low Temp (F);Weather Condition;Wind Direction;Wind Speed (MPH);Humidity (%);Chance of Precip. (%);UV Index Albany, NY;62;42;59;39;Becoming cloudy;W;7;65%;25%;2 Albuquerque, NM;65;52;68;51;Mostly cloudy;SSE;7;56%;15%;4 Anchorage, AK;51;32;41;31;Rain and drizzle;NNW;7;73%;92%;0 Asheville, NC;64;42;68;45;Partly sunny;ESE;6;57%;2%;5 Atlanta, GA;73;47;77;54;Mostly sunny, nice;ENE;6;44%;4%;5 Atlantic City, NJ;64;46;68;49;Plenty of sunshine;WSW;9;53%;0%;4 Austin, TX;89;64;89;64;Mostly sunny, warm;SSE;5;49%;11%;6 Baltimore, MD;64;46;69;50;Mostly sunny;WSW;6;45%;3%;4 Baton Rouge, LA;83;56;85;57;Sunny and nice;ENE;7;51%;5%;5 Billings, MT;73;46;78;48;Partly sunny, warm;WSW;11;40%;25%;3 Birmingham, AL;73;45;78;49;Sunny and nice;ENE;7;40%;5%;5 Bismarck, ND;66;38;73;43;Mostly sunny, warm;SSE;10;50%;2%;3 Boise, ID;79;48;79;48;Sunny and very warm;ENE;7;30%;0%;4 Boston, MA;63;45;64;47;Partly sunny;NW;7;54%;8%;3 Bridgeport, CT;63;44;66;46;Mostly sunny;NW;7;53%;2%;4 Buffalo, NY;60;46;60;45;A shower in the a.m.;SSW;6;60%;57%;3 Burlington, VT;53;36;54;37;Mostly cloudy;ESE;6;63%;27%;2 Caribou, ME;49;28;51;30;Clouds limiting sun;WSW;7;58%;8%;2 Casper, WY;74;38;76;45;Breezy in the p.m.;SW;12;26%;1%;4 Charleston, SC;74;65;77;65;Humid, a p.m. shower;NE;9;78%;49%;4 Charleston, WV;64;37;69;41;Mostly sunny;SE;4;57%;1%;4 Charlotte, NC;70;52;70;51;Mostly cloudy;E;7;68%;12%;2 Cheyenne, WY;70;40;75;46;Partly sunny, warm;WSW;10;25%;3%;4 Chicago, IL;69;51;69;54;Mostly sunny;ESE;7;47%;3%;4 Cleveland, OH;64;48;63;52;Periods of sun;SE;9;55%;9%;4 Columbia, SC;73;60;73;58;Low clouds may break;NE;6;78%;21%;2 Columbus, OH;62;40;69;44;Mostly sunny;S;7;49%;4%;4 Concord, NH;62;34;57;35;An afternoon shower;NW;6;68%;40%;2 Dallas-Ft. Worth, TX;82;64;86;66;Clouds and sun, warm;S;7;48%;25%;5 Denver, CO;74;46;75;50;Mostly sunny;SW;6;29%;3%;4 Des Moines, IA;74;46;79;58;Plenty of sunshine;SSE;8;41%;7%;4 Detroit, MI;68;45;66;48;Mostly sunny;SE;5;56%;9%;4 Dodge City, KS;76;49;79;55;Mostly sunny;S;13;48%;26%;4 Duluth, MN;53;40;59;48;Mostly sunny, milder;ENE;5;71%;3%;3 El Paso, TX;74;57;75;58;A t-storm around;SE;7;58%;52%;4 Fairbanks, AK;40;26;37;21;Mostly cloudy;NNW;5;66%;71%;1 Fargo, ND;63;38;68;50;Mostly sunny;SSE;10;61%;8%;3 Grand Junction, CO;72;47;75;49;Sunny and pleasant;SE;8;42%;4%;4 Grand Rapids, MI;64;42;65;45;Mostly sunny;E;5;61%;9%;4 Hartford, CT;64;43;66;44;Partly sunny;NNW;6;57%;2%;4 Helena, MT;70;40;74;49;Partly sunny, warm;WSW;9;43%;74%;3 Honolulu, HI;86;71;85;73;Cloudy and humid;SE;7;74%;44%;2 Houston, TX;87;64;87;65;Plenty of sunshine;SE;8;53%;9%;6 Indianapolis, IN;65;44;74;50;Sunshine and nice;SSE;8;46%;2%;4 Jackson, MS;79;52;82;54;Sunny and nice;ESE;5;51%;8%;5 Jacksonville, FL;86;66;84;68;Partly sunny;NNE;8;66%;11%;5 Juneau, AK;57;45;49;45;A couple of showers;S;10;85%;99%;0 Kansas City, MO;77;52;84;62;Sunny and very warm;S;7;49%;56%;4 Knoxville, TN;68;38;71;44;Partly sunny, nice;NE;5;51%;3%;5 Las Vegas, NV;90;66;88;64;A stray t-shower;NW;7;33%;50%;5 Lexington, KY;64;39;71;44;Mostly sunny, nice;SSE;6;53%;3%;4 Little Rock, AR;78;56;86;59;Mostly cloudy;SSE;5;53%;12%;4 Long Beach, CA;79;66;76;64;Partly sunny, nice;SW;6;73%;6%;4 Los Angeles, CA;80;64;79;63;Partly sunny;SW;6;72%;5%;4 Louisville, KY;65;43;76;47;Mostly sunny, nice;SSE;7;48%;3%;4 Madison, WI;67;40;67;49;Partly sunny;SE;5;61%;4%;4 Memphis, TN;76;55;84;58;Partly sunny;SE;5;45%;3%;5 Miami, FL;84;78;88;79;Humid;ENE;10;73%;67%;7 Milwaukee, WI;68;48;64;51;Mostly sunny;SSE;8;64%;5%;4 Minneapolis-St. Paul, MN;69;44;70;55;Mostly sunny, nice;SSE;8;49%;3%;3 Mobile, AL;81;55;84;55;Sunny and nice;NNE;9;42%;6%;5 Montgomery, AL;76;46;79;50;Sunny and nice;NE;8;38%;7%;5 Mt. Washington, NH;32;20;29;21;A bit of ice;WNW;30;92%;60%;2 Nashville, TN;70;41;77;46;Partly sunny, nice;ESE;5;50%;5%;5 New Orleans, LA;81;64;83;64;Sunny and pleasant;ENE;10;47%;7%;6 New York, NY;64;48;66;51;Mostly sunny;WNW;8;45%;1%;4 Newark, NJ;64;44;67;47;Partly sunny;WNW;7;49%;2%;4 Norfolk, VA;68;47;70;49;Partly sunny;SE;5;60%;4%;4 Oklahoma City, OK;75;58;75;61;A stray p.m. t-storm;S;12;70%;82%;2 Olympia, WA;77;48;68;44;Not as warm;SW;9;77%;22%;2 Omaha, NE;77;44;81;59;Partly sunny, warm;SSE;9;44%;8%;4 Orlando, FL;86;72;86;72;An afternoon shower;NNE;9;74%;70%;3 Philadelphia, PA;64;45;68;48;Sunny;SW;7;47%;2%;4 Phoenix, AZ;90;71;90;71;Mostly sunny;ENE;6;36%;9%;5 Pittsburgh, PA;61;41;66;45;Partly sunny;SSW;7;49%;3%;4 Portland, ME;60;38;56;39;A passing shower;NW;6;62%;80%;2 Portland, OR;84;53;73;50;Not as warm;NNW;6;64%;34%;3 Providence, RI;63;42;65;43;Partial sunshine;WNW;6;55%;4%;3 Raleigh, NC;70;51;69;49;Mostly cloudy;NNE;5;67%;9%;2 Reno, NV;81;47;81;46;Partly sunny;W;4;29%;4%;4 Richmond, VA;66;41;70;43;Partly sunny;SE;6;53%;3%;4 Roswell, NM;68;54;73;53;A t-storm in spots;S;6;64%;64%;3 Sacramento, CA;90;56;92;56;Sunny and hot;SSE;5;41%;1%;4 Salt Lake City, UT;81;52;79;55;Mostly sunny, warm;SE;7;33%;0%;4 San Antonio, TX;88;64;89;65;Mostly sunny, warm;SE;8;53%;14%;6 San Diego, CA;74;66;75;66;Partly sunny, humid;WNW;8;74%;3%;5 San Francisco, CA;64;54;68;55;Partly sunny;WSW;10;73%;2%;3 Savannah, GA;79;63;80;64;Humid with sunshine;NNE;7;74%;30%;5 Seattle-Tacoma, WA;76;55;68;51;Mostly sunny, nice;E;6;69%;32%;3 Sioux Falls, SD;76;38;75;56;Mostly sunny, warm;SSE;9;46%;16%;4 Spokane, WA;77;47;77;46;Sunny and warm;W;9;45%;1%;3 Springfield, IL;73;43;78;53;Mostly sunny, warm;SSE;6;47%;25%;4 St. Louis, MO;73;47;82;56;Sunny and warm;SSE;6;47%;26%;4 Tampa, FL;90;71;87;72;Showers around;ENE;7;76%;70%;3 Toledo, OH;67;41;67;47;Mostly sunny;SE;5;57%;10%;4 Tucson, AZ;83;63;84;62;Mostly sunny;ESE;7;44%;4%;5 Tulsa, OK;78;58;81;63;A stray p.m. t-storm;SSW;8;59%;94%;3 Vero Beach, FL;87;74;86;74;Humid with a t-storm;ENE;8;81%;85%;2 Washington, DC;65;44;68;47;Mostly sunny;SW;6;49%;2%;4 Wichita, KS;78;53;80;62;Mostly sunny;S;10;60%;66%;4 Wilmington, DE;64;42;68;46;Sunshine;SW;7;51%;1%;4 _____ Copyright 2022 AccuWeather Read More Here

Russian Analyst Set To Face Trial On Charges Of Lying To FBI https://digitalarizonanews.com/russian-analyst-set-to-face-trial-on-charges-of-lying-to-fbi-2/ ALEXANDRIA, Va. (AP) — Five years after the term “Steele dossier” entered the political lexicon, a think tank analyst who contributed to research about Donald Trump and Russia goes on trial Tuesday for lying to the FBI about his sources of information. Igor Danchenko is the third person to be prosecuted by Special Counsel John Durham, who was appointed to investigate the origins of “Crossfire Hurricane” — the designation given to the FBI’s 2016 probe into former president Trump’s Russia connections. It is also the first of Durham’s cases that delves deeply into the origins of the dossier that Trump derided as fake news and a political witch hunt. Here’s some background on what the case is about. WHO IS DANCHENKO AND WHAT IS HE ACCUSED OF? Danchenko, a Russian analyst, was a source of information for Christopher Steele, a former British spy who was paid by Democrats to research ties between Russia and presidential candidate Donald Trump. The compilation of research files, which included salacious rumors and unproven assertions, came to be familiarly known as the “Steele dossier.” Though the dossier did not help launch the FBI’s investigation into potential coordination between Russia and Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign, the Justice Department did rely on it when it applied for and received warrants to monitor the communications of a former Trump campaign adviser. As part of its efforts to verify information in the dossier, the FBI interviewed Danchenko in 2017. He is charged with lying to agents about his information sources, with prosecutors accusing Danchenko of misleading the FBI in an effort to make his own contributions seem more credible. WHAT DO THE PROSECUTORS SAY? Prosecutors say Danchenko lied when the FBI asked him about how he obtained the information he gave to Steele. Specifically, they say he denied that he relied on a Democratic operative, Charles Dolan, a public relations executive who volunteered for Hillary Clinton’s presidential 2016 campaign. Prosecutors also say Danchenko lied when he said he received information from an anonymous phone call that he believed was placed by a man named named Sergei Millian, a former president of the Russian-American Chamber of Commerce. They argue Danchenko knew that Millian wasn’t a source of any anonymous phone call. The indictment says the FBI could have better judged the veracity of the Steele dossier had it known that a Democratic operative was the source of much of its information. WHAT DOES THE DEFENSE SAY? Danchenko’s lawyers say the prosecution “is a case of extraordinary government overreach.” They note that Danchenko agreed to multiple voluntary FBI interviews throughout 2017. They say his answers to the FBI were all technically true. For instance, an FBI agent asked Danchenko whether he ever “talked” with Dolan about the information that showed up in the dossier. While prosecutors have produced evidence that the two had email exchanges about topics in the dossier, there’s no evidence that they talked orally about those topics. “It was a bad question,” said Danchenko’s lawyer, Stuart Sears, at a pretrial hearing last month. “That’s the special counsel’s problem. Not Mr. Danchenko’s.” And while Danchenko said he believed Millian was the voice on the anonymous phone call, he never told the FBI with any certainty that it was Millian. Sears argued that ambiguous statements like that fall short of what’s necessary to convict on a false statements charge. U.S. District Judge Anthony Trenga last month rejected a request from defense lawyers to dismiss the charges, though he called his decision to let the case move forward an “extremely close call.” He has since ruled that prosecutors cannot present evidence about the most salacious parts of the dossier. WHAT OTHER CASES HAS DURHAM BROUGHT? Durham was the U.S. Attorney in Connecticut in 2019 when he was tapped by then-Attorney General William Barr to hunt for potential misconduct by government officials who conducted the original Russia investigation. But after more than three years, Durham’s work has failed to meet the expectations of Trump supporters who hoped he would uncover sweeping FBI conspiracies to derail the Republican’s candidacy. The probe has produced only three criminal cases. The first case was against an FBI lawyer, Kevin Clinesmith, who was accused of altering an email related to the surveillance of former Trump campaign aide Carter Page. It ended in a guilty plea and a sentence of probation – and involved FBI misconduct already uncovered by the Justice Department’s inspector general. Last year, Durham’s team charged a Democratic lawyer with making a false statement to the FBI’s top lawyer during a 2016 meeting in which he presented information about a purported digital backchannel between a Russia bank and the Trump organization. The FBI investigated but found no suspicious contact. The case against the lawyer, Michael Sussmann, ended in a swift acquittal in May. Durham’s work has continued deep into the Biden administration Justice Department, but the Danchenko trial seems likely to be the last criminal case his team will bring. It is not clear when Durham might produce a report summarizing his findings. ____ Tucker reported from Washington. Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. Read More Here

US Forecast https://digitalarizonanews.com/us-forecast-36/ City/Town, State;Yesterday’s High Temp (F);Yesterday’s Low Temp (F);Today’s High Temp (F);Today’s Low Temp (F);Weather Condition;Wind Direction;Wind Speed (MPH);Humidity (%);Chance of Precip. (%);UV Index Albany, NY;62;42;59;39;Becoming cloudy;W;7;65%;25%;2 Albuquerque, NM;65;52;68;51;Mostly cloudy;SSE;7;56%;15%;4 Anchorage, AK;51;32;41;31;Rain and drizzle;NNW;7;73%;92%;0 Asheville, NC;64;42;68;45;Partly sunny;ESE;6;57%;2%;5 Atlanta, GA;73;47;77;54;Mostly sunny, nice;ENE;6;44%;4%;5 Atlantic City, NJ;64;46;68;49;Plenty of sunshine;WSW;9;53%;0%;4 Austin, TX;89;64;89;64;Mostly sunny, warm;SSE;5;49%;11%;6 Baltimore, MD;64;46;69;50;Mostly sunny;WSW;6;45%;3%;4 Baton Rouge, LA;83;56;85;57;Sunny and nice;ENE;7;51%;5%;5 Billings, MT;73;46;78;48;Partly sunny, warm;WSW;11;40%;25%;3 Birmingham, AL;73;45;78;49;Sunny and nice;ENE;7;40%;5%;5 Bismarck, ND;66;38;73;43;Mostly sunny, warm;SSE;10;50%;2%;3 Boise, ID;79;48;79;48;Sunny and very warm;ENE;7;30%;0%;4 Boston, MA;63;45;64;47;Partly sunny;NW;7;54%;8%;3 Bridgeport, CT;63;44;66;46;Mostly sunny;NW;7;53%;2%;4 Buffalo, NY;60;46;60;45;A shower in the a.m.;SSW;6;60%;57%;3 Burlington, VT;53;36;54;37;Mostly cloudy;ESE;6;63%;27%;2 Caribou, ME;49;28;51;30;Clouds limiting sun;WSW;7;58%;8%;2 Casper, WY;74;38;76;45;Breezy in the p.m.;SW;12;26%;1%;4 Charleston, SC;74;65;77;65;Humid, a p.m. shower;NE;9;78%;49%;4 Charleston, WV;64;37;69;41;Mostly sunny;SE;4;57%;1%;4 Charlotte, NC;70;52;70;51;Mostly cloudy;E;7;68%;12%;2 Cheyenne, WY;70;40;75;46;Partly sunny, warm;WSW;10;25%;3%;4 Chicago, IL;69;51;69;54;Mostly sunny;ESE;7;47%;3%;4 Cleveland, OH;64;48;63;52;Periods of sun;SE;9;55%;9%;4 Columbia, SC;73;60;73;58;Low clouds may break;NE;6;78%;21%;2 Columbus, OH;62;40;69;44;Mostly sunny;S;7;49%;4%;4 Concord, NH;62;34;57;35;An afternoon shower;NW;6;68%;40%;2 Dallas-Ft. Worth, TX;82;64;86;66;Clouds and sun, warm;S;7;48%;25%;5 Denver, CO;74;46;75;50;Mostly sunny;SW;6;29%;3%;4 Des Moines, IA;74;46;79;58;Plenty of sunshine;SSE;8;41%;7%;4 Detroit, MI;68;45;66;48;Mostly sunny;SE;5;56%;9%;4 Dodge City, KS;76;49;79;55;Mostly sunny;S;13;48%;26%;4 Duluth, MN;53;40;59;48;Mostly sunny, milder;ENE;5;71%;3%;3 El Paso, TX;74;57;75;58;A t-storm around;SE;7;58%;52%;4 Fairbanks, AK;40;26;37;21;Mostly cloudy;NNW;5;66%;71%;1 Fargo, ND;63;38;68;50;Mostly sunny;SSE;10;61%;8%;3 Grand Junction, CO;72;47;75;49;Sunny and pleasant;SE;8;42%;4%;4 Grand Rapids, MI;64;42;65;45;Mostly sunny;E;5;61%;9%;4 Hartford, CT;64;43;66;44;Partly sunny;NNW;6;57%;2%;4 Helena, MT;70;40;74;49;Partly sunny, warm;WSW;9;43%;74%;3 Honolulu, HI;86;71;85;73;Cloudy and humid;SE;7;74%;44%;2 Houston, TX;87;64;87;65;Plenty of sunshine;SE;8;53%;9%;6 Indianapolis, IN;65;44;74;50;Sunshine and nice;SSE;8;46%;2%;4 Jackson, MS;79;52;82;54;Sunny and nice;ESE;5;51%;8%;5 Jacksonville, FL;86;66;84;68;Partly sunny;NNE;8;66%;11%;5 Juneau, AK;57;45;49;45;A couple of showers;S;10;85%;99%;0 Kansas City, MO;77;52;84;62;Sunny and very warm;S;7;49%;56%;4 Knoxville, TN;68;38;71;44;Partly sunny, nice;NE;5;51%;3%;5 Las Vegas, NV;90;66;88;64;A stray t-shower;NW;7;33%;50%;5 Lexington, KY;64;39;71;44;Mostly sunny, nice;SSE;6;53%;3%;4 Little Rock, AR;78;56;86;59;Mostly cloudy;SSE;5;53%;12%;4 Long Beach, CA;79;66;76;64;Partly sunny, nice;SW;6;73%;6%;4 Los Angeles, CA;80;64;79;63;Partly sunny;SW;6;72%;5%;4 Louisville, KY;65;43;76;47;Mostly sunny, nice;SSE;7;48%;3%;4 Madison, WI;67;40;67;49;Partly sunny;SE;5;61%;4%;4 Memphis, TN;76;55;84;58;Partly sunny;SE;5;45%;3%;5 Miami, FL;84;78;88;79;Humid;ENE;10;73%;67%;7 Milwaukee, WI;68;48;64;51;Mostly sunny;SSE;8;64%;5%;4 Minneapolis-St. Paul, MN;69;44;70;55;Mostly sunny, nice;SSE;8;49%;3%;3 Mobile, AL;81;55;84;55;Sunny and nice;NNE;9;42%;6%;5 Montgomery, AL;76;46;79;50;Sunny and nice;NE;8;38%;7%;5 Mt. Washington, NH;32;20;29;21;A bit of ice;WNW;30;92%;60%;2 Nashville, TN;70;41;77;46;Partly sunny, nice;ESE;5;50%;5%;5 New Orleans, LA;81;64;83;64;Sunny and pleasant;ENE;10;47%;7%;6 New York, NY;64;48;66;51;Mostly sunny;WNW;8;45%;1%;4 Newark, NJ;64;44;67;47;Partly sunny;WNW;7;49%;2%;4 Norfolk, VA;68;47;70;49;Partly sunny;SE;5;60%;4%;4 Oklahoma City, OK;75;58;75;61;A stray p.m. t-storm;S;12;70%;82%;2 Olympia, WA;77;48;68;44;Not as warm;SW;9;77%;22%;2 Omaha, NE;77;44;81;59;Partly sunny, warm;SSE;9;44%;8%;4 Orlando, FL;86;72;86;72;An afternoon shower;NNE;9;74%;70%;3 Philadelphia, PA;64;45;68;48;Sunny;SW;7;47%;2%;4 Phoenix, AZ;90;71;90;71;Mostly sunny;ENE;6;36%;9%;5 Pittsburgh, PA;61;41;66;45;Partly sunny;SSW;7;49%;3%;4 Portland, ME;60;38;56;39;A passing shower;NW;6;62%;80%;2 Portland, OR;84;53;73;50;Not as warm;NNW;6;64%;34%;3 Providence, RI;63;42;65;43;Partial sunshine;WNW;6;55%;4%;3 Raleigh, NC;70;51;69;49;Mostly cloudy;NNE;5;67%;9%;2 Reno, NV;81;47;81;46;Partly sunny;W;4;29%;4%;4 Richmond, VA;66;41;70;43;Partly sunny;SE;6;53%;3%;4 Roswell, NM;68;54;73;53;A t-storm in spots;S;6;64%;64%;3 Sacramento, CA;90;56;92;56;Sunny and hot;SSE;5;41%;1%;4 Salt Lake City, UT;81;52;79;55;Mostly sunny, warm;SE;7;33%;0%;4 San Antonio, TX;88;64;89;65;Mostly sunny, warm;SE;8;53%;14%;6 San Diego, CA;74;66;75;66;Partly sunny, humid;WNW;8;74%;3%;5 San Francisco, CA;64;54;68;55;Partly sunny;WSW;10;73%;2%;3 Savannah, GA;79;63;80;64;Humid with sunshine;NNE;7;74%;30%;5 Seattle-Tacoma, WA;76;55;68;51;Mostly sunny, nice;E;6;69%;32%;3 Sioux Falls, SD;76;38;75;56;Mostly sunny, warm;SSE;9;46%;16%;4 Spokane, WA;77;47;77;46;Sunny and warm;W;9;45%;1%;3 Springfield, IL;73;43;78;53;Mostly sunny, warm;SSE;6;47%;25%;4 St. Louis, MO;73;47;82;56;Sunny and warm;SSE;6;47%;26%;4 Tampa, FL;90;71;87;72;Showers around;ENE;7;76%;70%;3 Toledo, OH;67;41;67;47;Mostly sunny;SE;5;57%;10%;4 Tucson, AZ;83;63;84;62;Mostly sunny;ESE;7;44%;4%;5 Tulsa, OK;78;58;81;63;A stray p.m. t-storm;SSW;8;59%;94%;3 Vero Beach, FL;87;74;86;74;Humid with a t-storm;ENE;8;81%;85%;2 Washington, DC;65;44;68;47;Mostly sunny;SW;6;49%;2%;4 Wichita, KS;78;53;80;62;Mostly sunny;S;10;60%;66%;4 Wilmington, DE;64;42;68;46;Sunshine;SW;7;51%;1%;4 _____ Copyright 2022 AccuWeather Read More…

Editorial: Trump https://digitalarizonanews.com/editorial-trump/ By the Editorial Board Donald Trump followed through Monday on his threat in July to sue CNN for libel. The network’s coverage, Trump complains, has caused him to suffer “embarrassment, pain, humiliation and mental anguish.” If those criteria are sufficient to qualify for a lawsuit, the entire nation should be suing Trump for exactly the same. Trump embarrassed America before the world with his crass behavior and insulting language. He inflicted pain on immigrants at the border and used language that inspired followers to attack minorities. He inflicted withering humiliation on anyone who didn’t display unquestioning loyalty to him, including his own vice president. The nation’s collective mental anguish continues pretty much unabated to this day. But America’s grievances, substantial as they are, aren’t before the court. Trump’s lawsuit is. He asserts that CNN presenters and guest commentators undertook “a smear campaign to malign” Trump “with a barrage of negative associations and innuendos, broadcasting commentary that he is like a cult leader, a Russian lackey, a dog whistler to white supremacists, and a racist” whom the network compared to Adolf Hitler. CNN probably did all those things, as did many other news outlets when describing the actual words spoken and actions taken by Trump during his White House tenure. It’s not a smear campaign if Trump actually merited those comparisons. The longstanding Supreme Court rule for libel claims by public figures is that the plaintiff must prove the defendant had a “reckless disregard” for the truth. Trump must prove that CNN deliberately used false information to malign him. Trump also must meet the Supreme Court standard of proving “malice aforethought” — that the network used false information maliciously to destroy his reputation. If the lawsuit proceeds, Trump can be expected to subpoena CNN staff emails, memos and other internal communications in which negative coverage of him is discussed. CNN presenters, many of whom qualify more as commentators than reporters, hardly gave the network a reputation for objectivity — something the network’s new chief, Chris Licht, is trying to correct. But Trump still has to meet the standard of proving deliberate falsity, and his own record promises to trip him up at every turn. He was a serial liar, especially regarding his assertion that the 2020 election was stolen from him. He behaved in public like a Russian lackey and invited Russia to meddle in U.S. elections. He described white supremacists as “fine people.” His racist references include his recent labeling of Elaine Chao, his former Transportation secretary and wife of the Senate minority leader, as Mitch McConnell’s “China-loving wife, Coco Chow.” To defend itself, CNN is certain to subpoena Trump’s internal communications and records. A treasure trove of juicy information awaits disclosure. In this game of chicken, the question is which side least wants its most embarrassing information to be exposed publicly. Catch the latest in Opinion Get opinion pieces, letters and editorials sent directly to your inbox weekly! Read More Here

TPD: 1 Dead, 6 Injured In Tampa Bar Shooting https://digitalarizonanews.com/tpd-1-dead-6-injured-in-tampa-bar-shooting/ Published October 9, 2022 11:33AM Fatal Tampa bar shooting Regina Gonzalez reports. TAMPA, Fla. – The Tampa Police Department is searching for at least one suspect accused of shooting seven people, one fatally, outside a Franklin Street bar early Sunday morning. According to police, a large fight broke out inside the LIT Cigar & Martini Lounge at 908 N Franklin St. shortly before 3 a.m. Tampa Police Chief Mary O’Connor says a suspect left the bar, armed himself, and returned. She says the fight spilled onto Franklin Street and that’s when at least one person opened fire.  Corey Shankle witnessed the shooting and said, “We walked out, and we saw the guy shot in the head on the corner and then multiple people were being shot in different areas.”  READ: Police arrest man accused of opening fire on homeless family in car, striking pregnant woman in head One of the victims, who was from California and in town for a wedding, was killed. Seven people were shot, one fatally, early Sunday morning outside a bar in downtown Tampa.  Four men and two women were taken to Bay Area hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.  “The suspects clearly have a disregard for human life. They opened fire into a crowd of people that weren’t doing anything more than just celebrating out here on Franklin Street, so it’s a disturbing set of circumstances,” O’Connor said.  READ: Sarasota man without a driver’s license arrested for DUI manslaughter after crashing into home O’Connor says she is aware of at least one suspect, but adds there may have been more than one shooter. However, she states that there is no imminent threat to the community.  7 people were shot, one fatally, at LIT Cigar & Martini Lounge early Sunday morning.  “Three o’clock in the morning, alcohol and guns are not a good combination,” O’Connor stated.  People living in the area say they’re not surprised by the incident.  READ: 2 men with criminal records arrested for trying to kidnap Tarpon Springs teen on her way to school, police say This is the fourth shooting on Franklin Street this year that’s resulted from fights between people going to the various bars and nightclubs that sit right next to each other.  “They do very well trying to keep all types of riff-raff out – but once they leave the establishment you don’t know what’s going to happen… it’s senseless to lose a life over an argument,” stated Eric Smith, a witness to the shooting.  It is unclear if the person who died was involved in the altercation.  Anyone with information that could lead to the identification and apprehension of the suspect or suspects involved is asked to contact the Tampa Police Department by calling 813-231-6130. Tips can also be sent via TIP411 through our TampaPD app. For those wishing to remain anonymous, contact Crimestoppers of Tampa Bay. Read More Here

Texas Hooters Attacked By Youths, Supposedly Over Candy Bars https://digitalarizonanews.com/texas-hooters-attacked-by-youths-supposedly-over-candy-bars/ Plano, TX Hooters Attacked by Youths in Crazy Assault … Supposedly Over Chocolate 10/9/2022 12:53 PM PT UPDATE 1:17 PM PT — Plano PD tells TMZ … witnesses say this group of guys was selling chocolate in the Hooters parking lot, and when they were approached by a manager and asked to leave — things allegedly got violent. We’re told a couple of them attacked the manager and left with him a broken arm, and at that point … things spilled inside, where a customer was hurt too. UPDATE PPD says they’re investigating this as an aggravated assault case … but so far, no arrests have been made. They’ll be looking at this video as part of the evidence. A Hooters in Texas came under intense assault this week — with a group of youths going crazy on the establishment and their customers … supposedly, because of some candy. Video from the altercation first surfaced on Thursday — when the incident appears to have happened — but started making the rounds this weekend … and the footage is absolutely wild. You see a bunch of young guys, some of whom are shirtless, losing their minds. They’re beating up what appear to be patrons in the vestibule of the restaurant … wailing on one guy in particular who falls to his knees. Some of the employees — including at least one Hooters girl — also seem to get roped into the action … with complete chaos unfolding. One person filming says something to the effect of … “all over chocolate,” and you even see a chocolate bar on the ground at one point. Welp, as it turns out — that’s exactly what allegedly sparked this whole thing … according to a Hooters manager who spoke to TMZ. We’re told these guys are door-to-door salesmen and that they came around that night trying to hawk their goods, only to be turned away over a no-soliciting policy Hooters has — which is apparently what set them off. There weren’t more details provided, but the Hooters manager says they’ve resumed business and that a criminal investigation is ongoing. We’ve reached out to the local authorities, including Plano PD, to see if anything further came from this … so far, no word back. Originally Published — 12:53 PM PT Read More Here

Putin To Chair Russia Security Council Meeting After Humiliating Explosion On Strategic Crimea Bridge | CNN https://digitalarizonanews.com/putin-to-chair-russia-security-council-meeting-after-humiliating-explosion-on-strategic-crimea-bridge-cnn/ CNN  —  Russian President Vladimir Putin will hold an operational meeting of his Security Council on Monday, just two days after a massive explosion on a key strategic bridge linking Crimea and Russia. The meeting itself isn’t out of the ordinary – Putin regularly holds operational meetings with the Security Council, usually on a weekly basis, according to TASS. However, it comes just days after a major humiliation for the Russian President, when an explosion severely damaged parts of the road and rail bridge between annexed Crimea and the Russian Federation early Saturday. And while the agenda has not been made public, the meeting comes at a strategic crossroads for the Kremlin, which must make a series of unenviable choices after Russia’s brutal invasion of Ukraine has faltered after a month of military setbacks. Some road traffic and train traffic has resumed on the estimated $3.7 billion bridge. On Saturday, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Marat Khusnullin said repair works on the bridge would be carried out around the clock, with a damage survey to be completed within a day and divers scheduled to check all the supports of the bridge. The first passenger services resumed travel across the bridge on Saturday, traveling from the Crimean Peninsula to Krasnodar Krai in southern Russia, Russia’s Ministry of Transport said in a statement. Car traffic on the bridge has also restarted in two lanes, Deputy Prime Minister of Russia Marat Khusnullin said on Sunday. “Traffic has already been launched along two lanes on the Crimean bridge,” he wrote in a Telegram post, adding that earlier, one lane was being used for cars traveling in alternate directions, slowing down traffic. Heavy trucks, vans and buses have been traveling by ferry since the blast. Kyiv has not claimed responsibility for the blast on the enormous 19-kilometer (about 12-mile) bridge, which was built after Moscow annexed Ukraine’s Crimean Peninsula in 2014, an annexation regarded by the West as illegal.” The crossing was opened by Putin himself in 2018, and Ukrainian reaction to the explosion has been gleeful and triumphant. Putin called the explosions on the Crimean bridge a “terrorist attack” and said the organizers and executors were “Ukrainian special services.” “Here, as reported, we have no doubts that this is a terrorist attack aimed at the destruction of the critical infrastructure of Russian Federation. And authors, executors, and masterminds are the secret services of Ukraine,” Putin said during a meeting with Chairman of the Russian Investigative Committee Alexander Bastrykin on Sunday. In a possible act of retaliation, a round of Russian missile strikes on the southern Ukrainian city of Zaporizhzhia killed 13 people early Sunday, including one child, according to Kyrylo Tymoshenko, deputy head of the Office of the President of Ukraine. At least 89 civilians, including 11 children, were injured, Oleksandr Starukh, head of Zaporizhzhia regional military administration, said Sunday. According to Tymoshenko, the rescue and search operations are still ongoing, they continue to get people out from under the rubble. Ukraine’s military has been making dramatic advances in a counteroffensive – the Ukrainian military has recaptured 2,400 square kilometers of territory in Kherson region in the south of the country “since the beginning of the full-scale war,” a senior Ukrainian official said Friday, and Ukrainian troops are preparing for further advances into Russian-held Luhansk in the east, according to Serhiy Hayday, head of the Luhansk region’s Ukrainian military administration. Hayday acknowledged photographs of Ukrainian troops outside the Luhansk village of Stelmakhivka, less than 20 kilometers (12 miles) northwest of the crucial post of Svatove. But with a sudden and successful Ukrainian offensive comes concerns Putin will escalate Russia’s war in Ukraine, with US President Joe Biden expressing fears of the possible use of weapons of mass destruction. “First time since the Cuban missile crisis, we have a direct threat of the use (of a) nuclear weapon if in fact things continue down the path they are going,” Biden warned during remarks at a Democratic fundraiser in New York on Friday. He added: “I don’t think there’s any such thing as the ability to easily (use) a tactical nuclear weapon and not end up with Armageddon.” Read More Here

Families Separated At Border Speak Of PTS, Hundreds Still Missing https://digitalarizonanews.com/families-separated-at-border-speak-of-pts-hundreds-still-missing/ WASHINGTON (AP) — Parents suing after being separated from their children at the U.S-Mexico border are pushing back against a Justice Department effort to require additional psychological evaluations to measure how much the U.S. policy traumatized them, court documents show. The effect of the Trump-era policy that was maligned as inhumane by political and religious leaders worldwide has been unusually well-documented, and it’s unfair to require parents to undergo another round of testing now, attorneys argue in court documents filed Thursday. One woman testified about sobbing as her 7-year-old daughter was taken from her for what turned out to be more than two months, court documents show. Thousands of children were separated from their parents; some have still not been reunited. The migrants seeking compensation have already undergone other evaluations, but the Justice Department said last month that testing from a government-chosen expert is necessary since the parents are alleging permanent mental and emotional injuries. Psychological evaluations from both sides are routine in emotional-damages claims, but the parents’ lawyers say the government has dragged out the process, adding that testing would be emotionally and logistically fraught, including taking off work and find childcare on low-wage salaries. The effects of the family separations have been thoroughly explored, including by government investigators who found children separated from their parents showed more fear, feelings of abandonment and post-traumatic stress symptoms. President Joe Biden, a Democrat, said during his campaign that the policies were “an outrage, a moral failing and a stain on our national character.” Former President Donald Trump stopped the practice in June 2018 amid widespread condemnation, just days before a judge ordered an end to the program in response to a lawsuit filed by the American Civil Liberties Union. Parents studied by Physicians for Human Rights, a nonprofit collective of doctors that works to document human rights violations, exhibited suicidal thoughts and suffered a raft of problems including nightmares, depression, anxiety, panic, worry and difficulty sleeping. The Justice Department isn’t asking for the children to be re-evaluated now, but is reserving the right to do so later if necessary. A judge will eventually decide, possibly within weeks, whether to require the new evaluations. The requests came in two cases filed by 11 families. Nearly two dozen similar cases are pending in other courts, and some have already submitted to government-requested psychiatric evaluations. In one southern Florida case, a father and child agreed to the same examination, one that federal attorneys say is well within what’s considered appropriate. There is a separate legal effort to reunite other families, and there are still hundreds who have not been brought back together. The Biden administration has formed a task force that has reunited roughly 600 families. The two sides had been negotiating a settlement, but talks broke down after early proposal of $450,000 per person was reported and heavily criticized by Republicans. Trump’s “zero tolerance” policy meant that any adult caught crossing the border illegally would be prosecuted for illegal entry. Because children cannot be jailed with their family members, families were separated and children were taken into custody by Health and Human Services, which manages unaccompanied children at the border. No system was created to reunite children with their families. Copyright 2022 Scripps Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Sign up for the Headlines Newsletter and receive up to date information. Read More Here

Trump Super PAC Reserves Millions In Airtime In Key States, Including Nevada https://digitalarizonanews.com/trump-super-pac-reserves-millions-in-airtime-in-key-states-including-nevada/ JILL COLVIN  |  Associated Press NEW YORK — Former President Donald Trump is finally opening his checkbook, reserving millions of dollars in airtime for ads to bolster his endorsed candidates in key midterm races just one month before Election Day. Trump’s newly-formed MAGA Inc. super PAC will begin airing ads Saturday in Nevada, Georgia and Arizona, according to Medium Buying, an ad tracking firm. The group is already airing ads in Pennsylvania and Ohio, home to two of the most consequential and competitive Senate races in the country. The Georgia spending is particularly notable, coming as Trump’s hand-picked Republican Senate candidate Herschel Walker’s campaign has been rocked by reports alleging he encouraged and paid for an ex-girlfriend’s 2009 abortion. Walker, a longtime football icon, backed a national ban on abortion during his primary, and has said he does not believe in exceptions even in cases of rape, incest or when the health of a pregnant woman is at risk. The Trump ad set to air in Georgia, which was shared with The Associated Press, does not include any mention of Walker. Instead it focuses on his rival, Democratic Sen. Raphael Warnock, and tries to cast Warnock and his party as too extreme. “From D-Day to drag queen story time, America has lost its way,” its narrator says. “Chaos at the border. Crime in our neighborhoods. A collapsing economy. Biden and Warnock did that,” it claims. In total, the super PAC appears to have spent close to $5 million on its initial investment. That includes $954,000 in Georgia, $512,000 in Nevada and $1.16 million in Arizona, according to Medium Buying, in addition to $1.34 million in Ohio and $829,000 in Pennsylvania, according to AdImpact, another ad tracking firm. MAGA Inc. spokesman Steven Cheung declined to say how much additional spending Trump had planned beyond the initial reservations. “We’re not going to telegraph our spending but it’s a significant buy,” he said. The super PAC’s first wave of ads are all negative spots aimed at turning voters off the Democratic rivals of Trump-endorsed candidates. The first attacked Pennsylvania Democrat John Fetterman, who is running against Republican nominee Mehmet Oz, by portraying Fetterman as soft on crime. “John Fetterman wants ruthless killers, muggers and rapists back on our streets,” it charges, labeling the lieutenant governor “dangerous.” The second targeted Ohio Democratic Senate candidate Tim Ryan for voting with his party as a member of Congress, using footage from a speech in which he joked that he would “suck up a little bit” to Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer, “his future boss.” Ryan, who is running against Trump-endorsed Republican JD Vance, has run as centrist trying to win back the Rust Belt voters who have soured on the party in recent years. The ads released so far notably do not feature or even mention Trump, who remains a deeply divisive figure, but one who is extremely popular with the Republican base. Trump had been under growing pressure to finally start spending on midterm races after playing an outsize role in the primaries and pushing his favored candidates. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, in particular, had urged candidates with Trump’s support to ask him to open his checkbook heading into the race’s final stretch. The notoriously thrifty former president’s Save America PAC, his main fundraising vehicle since leaving office, ended August with more than $90 million in the bank. Trump aides have discussed transferring a portion of that money to MAGA Inc., which could later be used to support a presidential campaign should Trump decide to run again, though campaign finance experts are divided on the legality of such a move. Trump has continued to tease another presidential run, telling supporters at a rally in Warren, Michigan, last weekend, “We’ll be talking about great things hopefully in the not so distant future.” “Oh I think you’re going to be happy,” he went on to say. “But first we have to win a historic victory for the Republican Party this November.” Read More Here

Prosecutors Seek Prison For Rioter's Attack On AP Journalist https://digitalarizonanews.com/prosecutors-seek-prison-for-rioters-attack-on-ap-journalist/ FILE – In this image from video, Alan William Byerly, center, attacks an Associated Press photographer during a riot at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, Jan. 6, 2021. On Sunday, Oct. 9, 2022, federal prosecutors recommended a prison sentence of nearly four years for Byerly, of Pennsylvania, who pleaded guilty to assaulting the AP photographer and using a stun gun against police officers during a mob’s attack on the U.S. Capitol. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez, File)[ASSOCIATED PRESS/Julio Cortez] Federal prosecutors on Sunday recommended a prison sentence of approximately four years for a Pennsylvania man who pleaded guilty to assaulting an Associated Press photographer and using a stun gun against police officers during a mob’s attack on the U.S. Capitol. U.S. District Judge Randolph Moss is scheduled to sentence Alan Byerly on Oct. 21 for his attack on AP photographer John Minchillo and police during the Jan. 6, 2021 riot in Washington, D.C. Sentencing guidelines recommend a prison term ranging from 37 to 46 months. Prosecutors are seeking a sentence of at least 46 months of imprisonment followed by three years of supervised release. Byerly’s attorney has until Friday to submit a sentencing recommendation. The judge isn’t bound by any of the sentencing recommendations. Byerly was arrested in July 2021 and pleaded guilty a year later to assault charges. Byerly purchased a stun gun before he traveled from his home in Fleetwood, Pennsylvania, to Washington for the “Stop the Steal” rally on Jan. 6. Leaving the rally before then-President Donald Trump finished speaking, Byerly went to the Capitol and joined other rioters in using a large metal Trump sign as a battering ram against barricades and police officers, prosecutors said. Then he went to the Capitol’s Lower West Terrace of the Capitol, where he and other rioters attacked Minchillo, who was wearing a lanyard with AP lettering. Byerly is one of at least three people charged with assaulting Minchillo, whose assault was captured on video by a colleague. After that, Byerly approached police officer behind bike racks and deployed his stun gun. “After officers successfully removed the stun gun from Byerly’s hands, Byerly continued to charge toward the officers, struck and pushed them, and grabbed an officer’s baton,” prosecutors wrote. Byerly later told FBI agents that he did just “one stupid thing down there and that’s all it was,” according to prosecutors. “This was a reference to how he handled the reporter and nothing more,” they wrote. Byerly treated Jan. 6 “as a normal, crime-free day, akin to the movie, ‘The Purge,’ when he could do whatever he wanted without judgment or legal consequence,” prosecutors said. “He was mistaken,” they added. More than 100 police officers were injured during the Capitol siege. Approximately 900 people have been charged with federal crimes for their conduct on Jan. 6. More than 400 of them have pleaded guilty, mostly to misdemeanor offenses. Over 280 riot defendants have been sentenced, with roughly half sentenced to terms of imprisonment ranging from one week to 10 years. Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission. Read More Here

Russian Analyst Set To Face Trial On Charges Of Lying To FBI https://digitalarizonanews.com/russian-analyst-set-to-face-trial-on-charges-of-lying-to-fbi/ Five years after the term “Steele dossier” entered the political lexicon, a think tank analyst who contributed to research about Donald Trump and Russia goes on trial Tuesday for lying to the FBI about his sources of information. Igor Danchenko is the third person to be prosecuted by Special Counsel John Durham, who was appointed to investigate the origins of “Crossfire Hurricane” — the designation given to the FBI’s 2016 probe into former president Trump’s Russia connections. It is also the first of Durham’s cases that delves deeply into the origins of the dossier that Trump derided as fake news and a political witch hunt. Here’s some background on what the case is about. WHO IS DANCHENKO AND WHAT IS HE ACCUSED OF? Danchenko, a Russian analyst, was a source of information for Christopher Steele, a former British spy who was paid by Democrats to research ties between Russia and presidential candidate Donald Trump. The compilation of research files, which included salacious rumors and unproven assertions, came to be familiarly known as the “Steele dossier.” Though the dossier did not help launch the FBI’s investigation into potential coordination between Russia and Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign, the Justice Department did rely on it when it applied for and received warrants to monitor the communications of a former Trump campaign adviser. As part of its efforts to verify information in the dossier, the FBI interviewed Danchenko in 2017. He is charged with lying to agents about his information sources, with prosecutors accusing Danchenko of misleading the FBI in an effort to make his own contributions seem more credible. WHAT DO THE PROSECUTORS SAY? Prosecutors say Danchenko lied when the FBI asked him about how he obtained the information he gave to Steele. Specifically, they say he denied that he relied on a Democratic operative, Charles Dolan, a public relations executive who volunteered for Hillary Clinton’s presidential 2016 campaign. Prosecutors also say Danchenko lied when he said he received information from an anonymous phone call that he believed was placed by a man named Sergei Millian, a former president of the Russian-American Chamber of Commerce. They argue Danchenko knew that Millian wasn’t a source of any anonymous phone call. The indictment says the FBI could have better judged the veracity of the Steele dossier had it known that a Democratic operative was the source of much of its information. WHAT DOES THE DEFENSE SAY? Danchenko’s lawyers say the prosecution “is a case of extraordinary government overreach.” They note that Danchenko agreed to multiple voluntary FBI interviews throughout 2017. They say his answers to the FBI were all technically true. For instance, an FBI agent asked Danchenko whether he ever “talked” with Dolan about the information that showed up in the dossier. While prosecutors have produced evidence that the two had email exchanges about topics in the dossier, there’s no evidence that they talked orally about those topics. “It was a bad question,” said Danchenko’s lawyer, Stuart Sears, at a pretrial hearing last month. “That’s the special counsel’s problem. Not Mr. Danchenko’s.” And while Danchenko said he believed Millian was the voice on the anonymous phone call, he never told the FBI with any certainty that it was Millian. Sears argued that ambiguous statements like that fall short of what’s necessary to convict on a false statements charge. WHAT OTHER CASES HAS DURHAM BROUGHT? Durham was the U.S. Attorney in Connecticut in 2019 when he was tapped by then-Attorney General William Barr to hunt for potential misconduct by government officials who conducted the original Russia investigation. But after more than three years, Durham’s work has failed to meet the expectations of Trump supporters who hoped he would uncover sweeping FBI conspiracies to derail the Republican’s candidacy. The probe has produced only three criminal cases. The first case was against an FBI lawyer, Kevin Clinesmith, who was accused of altering an email related to the surveillance of former Trump campaign aide Carter Page. It ended in a guilty plea and a sentence of probation – and involved FBI misconduct already uncovered by the Justice Department’s inspector general. Last year, Durham’s team charged a Democratic lawyer with making a false statement to the FBI’s top lawyer during a 2016 meeting in which he presented information about a purported — and ultimately debunked — backchannel between a Russian bank and the Trump organization. The case against the lawyer, Michael Sussmann, ended in a swift acquittal in May. Durham’s work has continued deep into the Biden administration Justice Department, but the Danchenko trial seems likely to be the last criminal case his team will bring. It is not clear when Durham might produce a report summarizing his findings. Read More Here

Katie Hobbs Says She Won’t Be Part Of ‘spectacle’ Of Debating Kari Lake https://digitalarizonanews.com/katie-hobbs-says-she-wont-be-part-of-spectacle-of-debating-kari-lake/ Arizona’s Democratic gubernatorial candidate Katie Hobbs on Sunday said she will not engage in the “spectacle” that would result from a debate with her GOP opponent with election day just a month away. Hobbs and Lake both appeared on CBS’ “Face the Nation” on Sunday. “What I have been focused on is opportunities like this where they can see us back to back and hear directly from us about the issues that are important to Arizonans and how we would govern without a circus — like [Lake] created in the GOP Republican primary,” Hobbs said. “I have no desire to be a part of the spectacle that she’s looking to create because that doesn’t do any service to the voters.” Hobbs, Arizona’s secretary of state, has repeatedly refused to debate Lake, a former television anchor who is backed by former President Trump and denies the results of the 2020 election. The Democrat rejected an independent state board’s attempt to moderate a debate last month after calling her opponent a “conspiracy theorist.” Her campaign team cited a June primary debate in which Lake repeated her denial of the 2020 election and cast Democrats as cheaters. On Saturday, Lake appeared to attempt to confront Hobbs during a town hall event designed to have the two candidates address voters in separate time slots on the same stage. After she was done giving her remarks, Lake, who was supposed to return to her holding room, sat in the front row of the stage before Hobbs was set to come out, according to NBC News. Hobbs did not come out and Lake eventually left after a moderator urged her to exit her front row seat in the audience. Lake has attacked Hobbs as weak for refusing to debate. Polls have shown the two neck-and-neck heading into the home stretch. When asked if Arizona voters deserve to see what the two candidates have to offer — spectacle or not — and decide for themselves, Hobbs said they have seen enough already. “I think the voters of Arizona have had a chance to see how I work under crisis throughout my leadership in the 2020 election as secretary of state, when we had to combat multiple election challengers from former President Trump and his band of election deniers, including my opponent Kari Lake,” she said. Read More Here

‘Where Is The Honor?’ Conservative Voter Condemns Donald Trump’s Toxification Of The Republican Party – MsnNOW https://digitalarizonanews.com/where-is-the-honor-conservative-voter-condemns-donald-trumps-toxification-of-the-republican-party-msnnow/ ‘Where is the honor?’ Conservative voter condemns Donald Trump’s toxification of the Republican Party  msnNOW Read More Here

ASSOCIATION OF GOLF MERCHANDISERS RELEASES FREE LAS VEGAS MARKET GIFT GUIDE EBOOK – The Golf Wire https://digitalarizonanews.com/association-of-golf-merchandisers-releases-free-las-vegas-market-gift-guide-ebook-the-golf-wire/ AGM announces an eBook of top finds from the 2022 Summer Las Vegas Market. Phoenix, AZ – The Las Vegas Market is the leading home furnishings and gift market in the western United States, and Jennifer Morton, Director of Marketing and Sales for the Association of Golf Merchandisers (AGM), brings more than 25 years of experience shopping gift markets throughout the United States to the AGM’s newly released 20-page eBook, Las Vegas Market Gift Guide. Download the FREE eBook at https://payhip.com/b/jEIBz and discover numerous finds for incorporating golf gifts into fourth-quarter buys from the 2022 Las Vegas Summer Market. To download the free eBook, visit: https://payhip.com/b/jEIBz The Las Vegas Market Gift Guide eBook includes close to 40 gift and apparel vendors, complete with contact details and product descriptions. Most of the finds in the eBook also offer golf-specific merchandise for retailers seeking new products to add into their shops this fall. According to Jennifer Morton, “Over the past 25 years, my travels have taken me to New York, Dallas, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Atlanta, Seattle, and Las Vegas – numerous times. I’ve seen a handful of markets fade, others continue to thrive (Atlanta), and more grow into spectacular showroom experiences, like Las Vegas. If you have never been to Market, my first question to you is, ‘Why not?’” Download this FREE 20-page eBook at https://payhip.com/b/jEIBz to discover the AGM’s top picks for the holidays, Tips & Tricks on how to successfully shop a trade show as a buyer, and the AGM’s Top 7 Gift Trends for 2022 this holiday season. The Association of Golf Merchandisers is proud to partner with IMC Centers, who offer AGM Merchandisers exclusive travel discounts to the winter and summer Las Vegas Market or Atlanta Market. For membership inquiries on how to join the AGM, visit: https://payhip.com/b/rjOG About the AGM The Association of Golf Merchandisers (AGM) is an international, professional association consisting of more than 800 buyer members and over 180 vendor partners all dedicated to strengthening the golf merchandising industry. These members, both the Merchandisers and the Vendor Partners, are among the best and most recognized in the golf industry.  The AGM’s mission is simple: ELEVATE RETAIL. ENHANCE RELATIONSHIPS. EDUCATE ALWAYS.  In short, we help make golf buyers better buyers by focusing our educational content on key metrics, visual merchandising, promotions, and buying strategies. We work to break down the barriers between vendor partners and golf retail buyers so that “both sides of the table” are more profitable. Visit http://agmgolf.org/ for more information. Media Contact: Desane Blaney, AGM Executive Diector- desane@agmgolf.org –  office: 602-604-8250 Jennifer Morton, AGM Director of Marketing & Sales – jennifer@agmgolf.org – office: 916-871-2709 Read More…

Where Is Quinton? Many Questions Remain As Search For Missing Savannah Toddler Enters Fifth Day https://digitalarizonanews.com/where-is-quinton-many-questions-remain-as-search-for-missing-savannah-toddler-enters-fifth-day/ Above video: The investigation so farUpdate 2:13 p.m.: Chatham County Police have established a tip line for information surrounding the case.Call 912-667-3134 to reach a detective directly. If it goes to voicemail, leave a message.The tipline is only for the Quinton Simon investigation.Update 9:30 a.m.: Chatham County Police issued the following statement Sunday morning:”Today we will be re-canvassing some specific areas in our search for Quinton Simon. We are not in need of volunteers, but want to keep you informed about our efforts to find the little boy. The FBI continues to provide assistance and support, as they have since day one.”Initial report:It has been five days since 20-month-old Quinton Simon went missing from his Buckhalter Road home in Savannah. But there are few updates to the ongoing investigation.Chatham County Police Chief Jeff Hadley told county commissioners Friday morning that police have exhausted the physical search but they are still considering it a missing person’s case. On Saturday, police issued a statement saying the case remains a high priority for them and they are not in need of volunteers. Below video: Search ongoing for missing toddlerChatham County Police say they don’t believe there was any foul play involved and hope Quinton is still alive.TRENDING STORIESHere’s how you can be in a movie starring Channing Tatum, Scarlett Johansson shooting near SavannahDeadly crash shuts down Highway 80 at Johnny Mercer BoulevardWawa announces plans to open new location in Georgia, then possibly 20 more”I hope he’s still alive,” Chatham County Police Chief Jeff Hadley said during a press conference Thursday. “We don’t have any information to believe he’s not.”Below video: Chief Hadley holds press conferenceCourt documents obtained by WJCL show that the family was at odds before Quinton’s disappearance.The documents show that Billie Jo Howell, Quinton’s grandmother, attempted to remove the child’s mother, Leilani, and her boyfriend, Daniel Youngkin, from the home.Billie Jo, Leilani’s mother, said in the document “They have damaged my property and at this point no one is living in peace.”She added that she wanted Leilani and Daniel out “as soon as possible.” Documents also show that Quinton’s grandparents, Billie Jo and her husband, are the ones who have custody of Quinton and his 3-year-old brother. Below video: Hear from Quinton’s grandparents”She hasn’t always done the right thing,” Billie Jo said of her daughter on Thursday. “Sometimes she does really great, sometimes she doesn’t. I don’t know what to think right now. I don’t know what to believe, because I don’t think anybody ever believes this is going to happen to them. I don’t know if I can trust her or I don’t. I just know I’m hurting and I want this baby home. He’s my baby.”Chief Hadley says police will leave no stone unturned in the search. “There’s a very sequential process that takes place here,” Hadley said Friday. “It may be frustrating to the general public, it may be frustrating to y’all that things aren’t developing as quickly as you may like. But we’ve got to make sure that we’re doing the right thing, that we’re being lawful, making sure we dot our I’s and cross our T’s. So that if we discover evidence, it can be admissible in court and we can use it in court if we have to.” Police say a search has been conducted of the home, the backyard pool and a nearby pond. Because of the possibility the case could be an abduction, the FBI is involved, scouring the area by land and air looking for any signs of life. If you have any information regarding the case, call 911.Below video: Initial coverage of disappearance Above video: The investigation so far Update 2:13 p.m.: Chatham County Police have established a tip line for information surrounding the case. Call 912-667-3134 to reach a detective directly. If it goes to voicemail, leave a message. The tipline is only for the Quinton Simon investigation. Update 9:30 a.m.: Chatham County Police issued the following statement Sunday morning: “Today we will be re-canvassing some specific areas in our search for Quinton Simon. We are not in need of volunteers, but want to keep you informed about our efforts to find the little boy. The FBI continues to provide assistance and support, as they have since day one.” Initial report: It has been five days since 20-month-old Quinton Simon went missing from his Buckhalter Road home in Savannah. But there are few updates to the ongoing investigation. Chatham County Police Chief Jeff Hadley told county commissioners Friday morning that police have exhausted the physical search but they are still considering it a missing person’s case. On Saturday, police issued a statement saying the case remains a high priority for them and they are not in need of volunteers. This content is imported from Facebook. You may be able to find the same content in another format, or you may be able to find more information, at their web site. Below video: Search ongoing for missing toddler Chatham County Police say they don’t believe there was any foul play involved and hope Quinton is still alive. This content is imported from Facebook. You may be able to find the same content in another format, or you may be able to find more information, at their web site. TRENDING STORIES Here’s how you can be in a movie starring Channing Tatum, Scarlett Johansson shooting near Savannah Deadly crash shuts down Highway 80 at Johnny Mercer Boulevard Wawa announces plans to open new location in Georgia, then possibly 20 more “I hope he’s still alive,” Chatham County Police Chief Jeff Hadley said during a press conference Thursday. “We don’t have any information to believe he’s not.” Below video: Chief Hadley holds press conference Court documents obtained by WJCL show that the family was at odds before Quinton’s disappearance. The documents show that Billie Jo Howell, Quinton’s grandmother, attempted to remove the child’s mother, Leilani, and her boyfriend, Daniel Youngkin, from the home. Billie Jo, Leilani’s mother, said in the document “They have damaged my property and at this point no one is living in peace.” She added that she wanted Leilani and Daniel out “as soon as possible.” Documents also show that Quinton’s grandparents, Billie Jo and her husband, are the ones who have custody of Quinton and his 3-year-old brother. Below video: Hear from Quinton’s grandparents “She hasn’t always done the right thing,” Billie Jo said of her daughter on Thursday. “Sometimes she does really great, sometimes she doesn’t. I don’t know what to think right now. I don’t know what to believe, because I don’t think anybody ever believes this is going to happen to them. I don’t know if I can trust her or I don’t. I just know I’m hurting and I want this baby home. He’s my baby.” Chief Hadley says police will leave no stone unturned in the search. “There’s a very sequential process that takes place here,” Hadley said Friday. “It may be frustrating to the general public, it may be frustrating to y’all that things aren’t developing as quickly as you may like. But we’ve got to make sure that we’re doing the right thing, that we’re being lawful, making sure we dot our I’s and cross our T’s. So that if we discover evidence, it can be admissible in court and we can use it in court if we have to.” Police say a search has been conducted of the home, the backyard pool and a nearby pond. Because of the possibility the case could be an abduction, the FBI is involved, scouring the area by land and air looking for any signs of life. If you have any information regarding the case, call 911. Below video: Initial coverage of disappearance Read More Here

Trump In Arizona: Blake Masters Confident In His Chances After Debate With Mark Kelly https://digitalarizonanews.com/trump-in-arizona-blake-masters-confident-in-his-chances-after-debate-with-mark-kelly/ Former President Donald Trump returns to Arizona for the third time this year with an eye to pushing his preferred Republican picks over the top in the upcoming midterms. The event starts at 1 p.m., with Trump scheduled to take the stage at 4 p.m. at Bell Bank Park in Mesa. Follow coverage by Republic reporters of Trump and the Republican campaign rally in Mesa here. 11 a.m.: Masters: ‘This race is winnable’ Republican U.S. Senate candidate Blake Masters continued what amounted to a victory lap ahead of his rally with former President Donald Trump in Mesa later today. Masters appeared with Maria Bartiromo on “Sunday Morning Futures” on Fox News and made the case that his showing in Thursday’s debate with Sen. Mark Kelly, D-Ariz., had reversed the race. “I expected him to struggle to defend (his record in the Senate) and he did,” Masters said of Kelly. “All I had to do, Maria, was go out there and tell the truth. Explain to the people how Mark Kelly has kept our border wide open, how his votes for all the crazy trillions of dollars in spending have caused inflation.” “I think we had him on the ropes a little bit, and it’s a huge vibe shift, a momentum shift for our campaign,” he continued. Asked about the lack of financial investment from some conservative corners, Masters predicted, “a lot more people are going to get involved.” “I think I showed people that this race is winnable, that I’m a much, much better candidate than Sen. Kelly in that debate the other night.” — Ronald J. Hansen 10 a.m.: Lake and Hobbs on national TV prior to Trump rally Arizona’s candidates for governor appeared on CBS’ Face the Nation morning news show Sunday, just hours ahead of Trump’s visit to the state.  The former president wasn’t the focus of the discussion; instead, Democratic nominee Katie Hobbs and Republican nominee Kari Lake discussed their plans for border security, abortion and other issues, including Hobbs’ refusal to debate Lake.  The interviews, conducted separately and aired back to back, might be the closest equivalent to a debate a national audience will see this cycle. They highlighted the stylistic and policy differences of two women locked in a nationally watched race that most polls say is tied. Lake has shifted from praising a near-total ban on abortion to saying she will follow the law. She did so again Sunday. Arizona has two conflicting laws on the books, but a court ruling Friday has allowed a ban on abortions after 15 weeks except for in medical emergencies to prevail.  Lake told CBS news correspondent Major Garrett the “law right now as it stands is Gov. Ducey’s law at 15 weeks, so we’ll follow the law,” according to a transcript of the interview.  Garrett likewise tried to pin down Hobbs’ position on abortion, which Lake has painted as extreme because Hobbs has repeatedly declined to say if there is a stage of pregnancy after which she thinks abortion should be prohibited. Pressed on that, Garrett asked Hobbs if an Arizona voter would be right to conclude that she does “not favor any specific week limit on abortion.”  “I support leaving the decision between a woman and her doctor and leaving politicians entirely out of it,” Hobbs replied.  Lake spent much of her interview talking about her plan to use state law enforcement as border patrol and deportation officers, an authority she’d seek using an untested legal theory that would buck decades of court precedent and likely lead to a lawsuit.   “I hope that Joe Biden doesn’t fight us because then it would really look like he is on the side of the cartel,” she said.  Lake didn’t mention Trump in her interview, perhaps a reflection of his unpopularity with voters nationally. Hobbs brought up the former president twice, attacking his record at the southern border and his false claims the 2020 election was “stolen,” which Lake has parroted. Hobbs said Trump’s effort to build the border wall, the signature of his border policy, wasn’t finished and called on the Biden administration to “step up.”  Asked why she wouldn’t debate Lake, and if her decision not to participate shortchanged voters of a chance to see how Hobbs would respond in a moment of duress, Hobbs shifted to Trump.  “I think the voters of Arizona have had a chance to see how I work under crisis throughout my leadership during the 2020 election as secretary of state,” Hobbs said, “when we had to combat multiple election challenges from former President Trump and his band of election deniers, including my opponent Kari Lake.” — Stacey Barchenger 9 a.m.: 17 visits and counting Arizona’s political preeminence seems like a given these days, but the red state-turned-purple battleground coincides almost perfectly with the political rise of Donald Trump. The former president found early enthusiasm for his America-first message in Arizona in 2015, and he never really stopped coming back. His scheduled rally in Mesa will add to an Arizona total no president or presidential contender can rival, with big asterisks for Barry Goldwater and John McCain, who lived in the state while pursuing the White House. According to Republic research, Trump has made at least 17 visits since entering politics. That is a list that began on July 11, 2015, with a stop in Phoenix that focused on immigration and helped set the tone for his upstart campaign. By the end of the 2016 campaign, Trump made six more stops in Arizona. He carried the state by 3.5 percentage points, an unusually low margin in a state that had voted Republican in all but one presidential election beginning in 1952. Trump visited the state seven times in 2020. That included a Feb. 19, 2020, rally in Phoenix just weeks before the pandemic halted campaign visits for months.  In May 2020, Trump started to move about again, with a stop at a Phoenix Honeywell facility making respirator masks to cope with the health crisis and to discuss aid to Native Americans. He wound up losing Arizona in 2020 by fewer than 11,000 votes, the smallest margin in the country. Trump made his first post-presidential visit to Arizona on July 24, 2021, at a Turning Point Action rally in Phoenix in which he saw firsthand the raucous reception to Kari Lake by Republicans. He wrongly predicted the ongoing review of Maricopa County ballots would vindicate his baseless claims of a stolen election. This year, Trump held a January rally in Florence, a pre-primary rally in Prescott Valley in July and is set now to again back his slate of Republicans on Sunday in Mesa.   — Ronald J. Hansen Read More Here

Obituary: Erma B. Pollock https://digitalarizonanews.com/obituary-erma-b-pollock/ Originally Published: October 9, 2022 10:34 a.m. Erma B. Pollock 1930 – 2022 Erma B. Pollock, a longtime resident of Safford, Arizona, peacefully entered into eternal life Saturday evening, October 1, 2022, at the Beehive Homes of the Gila Valley, from causes incident to age. Erma was 92. Erma was born August 12, 1930, in a farmhouse in Stanton County, Kansas, the daughter of Allen and Olive Walker. She had an older sister, Jewell O’Neal who passed away in Idaho in 2002. Allen and Olive are buried in the Cottonwood, Arizona, Cemetery, as they lived there from 1940 until their passing. The family relocated to Arizona from Kansas in 1937 during the Dust Bowl days. Erma attended the Beaver Creek School and then the Clemenceau School, graduating from Clarkdale, Arizona, in 1947. Erma worked as a secretary at the Cottonwood School from September 1948 until May of 1960. In 1954, Erma married Reed Pollock, the manager of the local Sprouse-Reitz store in Cottonwood. Reed was transferred to the Coolidge store then to two other stores in Tucson. In 1962, Erma and Reed became parents of Karyn Sue. In 1972, they relocated to Las Vegas, Nevada where Reed was District Manager of 25 Sprouse-Reitz stores. In 1978, Erma and Reed moved to Safford to be closer to family. Erma soon obtained work at Eastern Arizona College and devoted 15 years there, retiring in 1995. Reed passed away in October of 1998. Erma became an active member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints while living in Las Vegas and enjoyed working as a secretary in the Relief Society for five years. While in Safford she worked in the church library for 15 years. Erma is survived by: her grandson, Dakota Ambrose, of Phoenix. Erma as predeceased by: her husband, Reed; her daughter, Karyn Ambrose; a grandson, Jace Ambrose; her mother, Olive McNeff Walker; her father, Allen Walker; and a sister, Jewell O’Neal. Graveside services for Erma will be conducted Saturday morning, October 15, 2022, at 9:00 a.m., at the Pima Cemetery by Bishop Preston Alder of the Thatcher Seventh Ward. Online condolences may be offered at viningfuneralhome.com Arrangements are entrusted to Vining Funeral Home. Information provided by the funeral home. Read More Here

Russian Analyst Set To Face Trial On Charges Of Lying To FBI | EDGE Media Network https://digitalarizonanews.com/russian-analyst-set-to-face-trial-on-charges-of-lying-to-fbi-edge-media-network/ Igor Danchenko leaves the Albert V. Bryan United States Courthouse in Alexandria, Va., Nov. 4, 2021  (Source:AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta, File) Five years after the term “Steele dossier” entered the political lexicon, a think tank analyst who contributed to research about Donald Trump and Russia goes on trial Tuesday for lying to the FBI about his sources of information. Igor Danchenko is the third person to be prosecuted by Special Counsel John Durham, who was appointed to investigate the origins of “Crossfire Hurricane” — the designation given to the FBI’s 2016 probe into former president Trump’s Russia connections. It is also the first of Durham’s cases that delves deeply into the origins of the dossier that Trump derided as fake news and a political witch hunt. Here’s some background on what the case is about. WHO IS DANCHENKO AND WHAT IS HE ACCUSED OF? Danchenko, a Russian analyst, was a source of information for Christopher Steele, a former British spy who was paid by Democrats to research ties between Russia and presidential candidate Donald Trump. The compilation of research files, which included salacious rumors and unproven assertions, came to be familiarly known as the “Steele dossier.” Though the dossier did not help launch the FBI’s investigation into potential coordination between Russia and Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign, the Justice Department did rely on it when it applied for and received warrants to monitor the communications of a former Trump campaign adviser. As part of its efforts to verify information in the dossier, the FBI interviewed Danchenko in 2017. He is charged with lying to agents about his information sources, with prosecutors accusing Danchenko of misleading the FBI in an effort to make his own contributions seem more credible. WHAT DO THE PROSECUTORS SAY? Prosecutors say Danchenko lied when the FBI asked him about how he obtained the information he gave to Steele. Specifically, they say he denied that he relied on a Democratic operative, Charles Dolan, a public relations executive who volunteered for Hillary Clinton’s presidential 2016 campaign. Prosecutors also say Danchenko lied when he said he received information from an anonymous phone call that he believed was placed by a man named named Sergei Millian, a former president of the Russian-American Chamber of Commerce. They argue Danchenko knew that Millian wasn’t a source of any anonymous phone call. The indictment says the FBI could have better judged the veracity of the Steele dossier had it known that a Democratic operative was the source of much of its information. WHAT DOES THE DEFENSE SAY? Danchenko’s lawyers say the prosecution “is a case of extraordinary government overreach.” They note that Danchenko agreed to multiple voluntary FBI interviews throughout 2017. They say his answers to the FBI were all technically true. For instance, an FBI agent asked Danchenko whether he ever “talked” with Dolan about the information that showed up in the dossier. While prosecutors have produced evidence that the two had email exchanges about topics in the dossier, there’s no evidence that they talked orally about those topics. “It was a bad question,” said Danchenko’s lawyer, Stuart Sears, at a pretrial hearing last month. “That’s the special counsel’s problem. Not Mr. Danchenko’s.” And while Danchenko said he believed Millian was the voice on the anonymous phone call, he never told the FBI with any certainty that it was Millian. Sears argued that ambiguous statements like that fall short of what’s necessary to convict on a false statements charge. WHAT OTHER CASES HAS DURHAM BROUGHT? Durham was the U.S. Attorney in Connecticut in 2019 when he was tapped by then-Attorney General William Barr to hunt for potential misconduct by government officials who conducted the original Russia investigation. But after more than three years, Durham’s work has failed to meet the expectations of Trump supporters who hoped he would uncover sweeping FBI conspiracies to derail the Republican’s candidacy. The probe has produced only three criminal cases. The first case was against an FBI lawyer, Kevin Clinesmith, who was accused of altering an email related to the surveillance of former Trump campaign aide Carter Page. It ended in a guilty plea and a sentence of probation — and involved FBI misconduct already uncovered by the Justice Department’s inspector general. Last year, Durham’s team charged a Democratic lawyer with making a false statement to the FBI’s top lawyer during a 2016 meeting in which he presented information about a purported — and ultimately debunked — backchannel between a Russia bank and the Trump organization. The case against the lawyer, Michael Sussmann, ended in a swift acquittal in May. Durham’s work has continued deep into the Biden administration Justice Department, but the Danchenko trial seems likely to be the last criminal case his team will bring. It is not clear when Durham might produce a report summarizing his findings. Copyright Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Read More Here

Alabama’s Tommy Tuberville Injects The Ghost Of Bull Connor Into 2022 Midterms https://digitalarizonanews.com/alabamas-tommy-tuberville-injects-the-ghost-of-bull-connor-into-2022-midterms/ In the morally downhill midterms of 2022, there are dog whistles … and then there are just whistles. Nowhere is that more obvious than a place called Minden, Nev. — a small town near the California border where Donald Trump brought his traveling dog-and-pony show on Saturday night, exactly one month before Election Day. Amid the political cacophony and nonsense that accompanies The Former Guy — at 6 p.m. Pacific, to be precise — the rally attendees probably heard it: a loud siren, coming from the direction of the fire station downtown. The practice began in the 1920s — not coincidentally, heyday of a Ku Klux Klan revival in America — and heralded the so-called sundown laws in Minden and surrounding Douglas County that required locals belonging to the native Washoe Tribe to get off the streets at night, or else be arrested. “Skins, it’s time to go home,” an 82-year-old member of the Washoe People named Wyatt Vernon recalled in a 2020 article. “Get out of town.” The “sundown law’ was finally repealed in the 1970s, and yet Minden never stopped blasting the whistle at 6 p.m., alternately claiming it’s an emergency test or else copping to a warped historical tribute. Said the Minden town manager J.D. Frisby: “There’s a lot of sentimental feelings nostalgic to that siren.” It must have been 6 p.m. — metaphorically, if not actually — when first-term Alabama GOP Sen. Tommy Tuberville took the stage at Saturday’s Trump rally, encouraging voters to go Republican in Nevada’s neck-and-neck Senate election which may decide who controls that body in 2023. Tuberville surely drowned out the noise from the fire station with his own six-alarm siren appeal to voters’ darkest instincts — taking the greatest hits from a Republican fall campaign that has increasingly fallen back on racist fearmongering and making it much, much worse. “They want to take over what you’ve got,” Tuberville warmed up the pro-Trump crowd — “they” his amorphous term that could have meant Democrats, or Black people, or the Washoe People, or some other “Other” — in what the journalist Matthew Chapman noted is a literal echo of language used by the KKK to rile up Southerners in the 1960s. The Alabama senator made his pitch for Nevadans to elect Republican Adam Laxalt, the challenger with 2022′s best shot at unseating a Democratic incumbent in Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto, by echoing the new party line that Democrats are “pro-crime,” in a year when voters are more alarmed than usual about that issue. But then he took it next-level by leaving no doubt who he wants his audience to see as the criminals. “They want to control what you have!” Tuberville told the assembled Trumpists. “They want crime because they want to take over what you’ve got! They want to have reparations because they think the people that do the crime are owed that. Bullshit!” The crowd roared. “They’re not owed that.” » READ MORE: Racist ‘Willie Horton’-style fearmongering on crime may win midterms for GOP Suddenly, the ambiguity surrounding “they” was all cleared up, since the main (although not only) group that’s made a case for reparations are African Americans, once enslaved and then subject to racial apartheid, especially in Tuberville’s Alabama and the rest of the Deep South. A U.S. senator was openly equating Blackness with criminality, layering on the outrageous claim that “they” have the nerve to demand reparations while taking your stuff. ‘I mean, I’ve watched and listened to A LOT of old George Wallace speeches,” Tom Moon, a columnist for Alabama Political Reporter, wrote on Twitter. “You’d be hard pressed to find many that were worse than this. In 2022. Just disgusting.” Tuberville’s Minden speech was so blatantly racist that — just a few short years ago — it’s easy to imagine at least a few Republican Party elders condemning it. But on this Sunday morning in October 2022, the silence so far has been as loud as that Minden fire siren. A political party that weeks ago was in full panic mode after its overreaches on the Supreme Court and abortion rights had energized young and women Democrats has now found its footing with the same appeal to white supremacy as the “nostalgia” for an era of “sundown” laws. Still, a part of me finds this so disappointing because of a personal connection to Alabama that I still carry with me. In the early 1980s, when I was just starting my odyssey through journalism in my early 20s, I spent more than three years as a reporter at the Birmingham News. It was an interesting place and a fascinating time, and as a young, optimistic and, with hindsight, naïve young man I initially took away more from the part of the glass that looked half full to me — not what remained half-empty. To be sure, it was a conservative time — the dawn of the “Reagan revolution” — and I saw firsthand the birth of massive megachurches in the Birmingham suburbs and the growing ties between their new Moral Majority and the GOP. Wallace was also restored as governor when I lived there. I even wrote about a camp in the Alabama woods that trained mercenaries to fight against leftists in Central America. But the many forward-looking friends I made — at the newspaper and in the comparatively cosmopolitan city of Birmingham — and the rise of Black politicians like Birmingham’s first American American mayor, Richard Arrington, who were empowered by the 1965 Voting Rights Act, had me telling friends and family back North that, barely a generation after the end of legal segregation, things were really improving in the American South. And so Tommy Tuberville is living proof of just how wrong I was. Instead, the current holder of Alabama’s Class 2 U.S. Senate seat is reviving the legacy of the notorious politician who occupied it from 1920-31, James Thomas “Cotton Tom” Heflin, who in addition to his Klan-revival-era views that “God Almighty intended the negro to be the servant of the white man,” famously shot and wounded a Black man in a D.C. streetcar altercation, had the charges dismissed, and later bragged about it. Look, the issue that Tuberville raised about reparations for African Americans for past wrongs is both fraught and highly complicated in every sense — political, financial, legal. But there is something rich about a politician like Tuberville — clearly grasping for the mantle of the segregationist Wallace as well as Birmingham’s notorious 1960s law enforcement chief Bull Connor, who treated the “them” of Black people seeking their civil and economic rights as “criminals” by siccing fierce dogs or blasting them with fire hoses — now claiming that Black people are not owed anything. It gets even more outrageous when you remember that, pre-politics, Tuberville made millions of dollars in a modern industry that critics have aptly compared to a plantation: college football. Tuberville was earning more than $2 million a year in his last pre-Senate gig at the University of Cincinnati — money earned on the backs of student athletes who aren’t paid a dime and who (43% at college football’s top level in 2020) are disproportionately Black. He literally made his fortune off the free labor of people that on Saturday he shamelessly branded as criminals trying to “take what you’ve got.” Coaches like Tuberville (disproportionately white, of course) are often the highest paid employees of America’s public universities like Auburn or Texas Tech. They are paid much more than faculty who are actual rocket scientists, even as Tuberville — elected to the Senate in 2020 despite thinking World War II was fought to defeat socialism and not knowing the three branches of federal government — is clearly no rocket scientist. To be brutally honest, Tuberville is a mediocrity who — whatever you think of his mixed record as a football coach — got to his lofty Senate perch more on his whiteness than any claim to merit. In winning that 2020 election, he rode that white privilege to beat one of those decent, forward-looking Alabamians — Doug Jones, who courageously revived the case and prosecuted the KKK goons behind the 1963 church bombing that killed four Black girls — of the kind who’d given me hope back in the 1980s. But it turns out those whistles from our racist past — and present — that still ring at 6 p.m. are much harder to silence than I could ever have imagined. » READ MORE: SIGN UP: The Will Bunch Newsletter Read More Here

Trump's Visit To Small Nevada Town Highlights Importance Of Rural Voters To State Republicans – ABC17NEWS https://digitalarizonanews.com/trumps-visit-to-small-nevada-town-highlights-importance-of-rural-voters-to-state-republicans-abc17news/ By Dan Merica, CNN When former President Donald Trump touched down in Minden, Nevada, on Saturday to campaign for a slate of Republican candidates, he landed in a town of just under 3,500 people — about 0.1% of the state’s population. It’s a tiny stop for the former President, who rode stronger-than-expected turnout in rural stretches of the country like Minden to the White House in 2016. But it highlights just how important rural counties are to Nevada Republicans such as Senate nominee Adam Laxalt and gubernatorial hopeful Joe Lombardo in the critical midterm elections. “We believe that rural Nevada is the key to turning our state back,” Laxalt said during a stop late last year in Winnemucca, a mining town of under 8,000 people in northern Humboldt County. Nevada, which Trump lost twice, represents one of the biggest tests for Democratic power in the 2022 midterms. The party holds all but one statewide office in Nevada, and Democratic presidential nominees have carried the state in every election since 2008, buoyed by the strength of the late Democratic Senate leader Harry Reid‘s so-called Reid Machine. But those Democratic margins have been declining and after closures around the coronavirus pandemic dramatically affected Nevada’s tourism-centric economy, Republicans see a strong chance to make gains in the state, hanging their hopes on Lombardo’s bid to unseat Democratic Gov. Steve Sisolak and Laxalt’s challenge to Democratic Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto. A CNN poll released on Thursday found no clear leader in either race: Laxalt and Lombardo had the support of 48% of likely voters compared with 46% for Cortez Masto and Sisolak. The same poll was littered with warning signs for Democrats. Forty-four percent of registered Nevada voters said the country would be better off if Republicans are in control of Congress, compared with 35% who said it wouldn’t be. More Republican voters in Nevada said they were extremely motivated to vote — 62% versus 52% for Democrats. And 41% of voters said the economy was the most important issue in the midterms, something Republicans have used to hammer Democrats. Nevada has been home to one of the most dramatic and politically important urban-rural divides in recent years. And that split could prove even more pivotal in November, given the tightness of the Senate and gubernatorial contests. Rural voters make up a tiny fraction of Nevada’s electorate, with the state’s major urban centers — Clark County, home to Las Vegas, and Washoe County, home to Reno — making up nearly 90% of Nevada’s population of some 3.1 million. According to a study by Iowa State University, Nevada’s rural population fell from nearly 20% of the state in 1970 to less than 6% in 2010. The urbanization of Nevada has long allowed Democratic candidates in the state to run on one strategy: Run up the vote total around Las Vegas, win narrowly or at least stay competitive in the Reno area and lose big in rural Nevada. Cortez Masto, the first Latina elected to the Senate, followed this strategy in 2016 when she lost every Nevada county, except Clark, but still won a first term by over 2 points. In recent years, that strategy paid even greater dividends as Washoe County, the second largest in the state, has tilted toward Democrats. Democratic presidential candidates have carried Washoe County in the last four presidential elections, while Sisolak and the state’s junior senator, Jacky Rosen, both won the county in 2018. That has put more pressure on Nevada Republicans to not only close the gap in Clark and Washoe counties but to also boost as much turnout as possible in rural areas. Whether that “rural first” strategy can even lead to wins any more is an open question, according to David Damore, a political science professor at University of Nevada, Las Vegas. “It’s a huge part of the Republican playbook, but every year it is smaller and smaller,” he said of GOP attempts to turn out rural voters. “It’s all about cutting the margin in Clark. What has happened is, even though Trump did that last time, Washoe is becoming more liberal. … It is a little bit of a whack-a-mole game for Republicans.” Testing the strategy Laxalt knows the pressure he faces firsthand. When he successfully ran for state attorney general in 2014, he became the only statewide candidate in recent decades to lose both Clark and Washoe counties but win the election when he narrowly defeated Democrat Ross Miller. Laxalt did what a statewide Republican candidate needed do in Nevada in that race: He kept the margins down in Clark and Washoe — losing the former by less than 6 points and the latter by 1 point — and posted strong margins across the rest of the state. Laxalt also knows it’s not a perfect strategy. Nevada’s increased urbanization has put a strain on that rural-focused strategy as evidenced by Laxalt’s 4-point loss to Sisolak in 2018. In that race, Laxalt once again lost both Clark and Washoe, but this time by wider margins, including losing the Las Vegas area by nearly 14 points. Laxalt, on multiple tours through rural Nevada during his Senate campaign, has stressed the area’s importance to his success. At the same time, he’s had to walk a fine line between raising false claims about the validity of the 2020 election, including Republican concerns about vote-counting in Clark County, and the need to boost rural turnout. Laxalt has done so by raising baseless questions about Clark County elections while stressing to rural voters that their votes matter. “In the end of the day, rural Nevada can provide 75,000-vote cushions, so rural Nevada still matters,” he told an audience in Fallon in late 2021. “Rural Nevada is discouraged. They think Vegas is all that matters. Not true. The vote block out of rural Nevada still makes a huge difference.” Brian Freimuth, a spokesman for Laxalt, said in a statement that the Republican’s effort “is the most well-traveled campaign in the state” and has “hosted events in every rural county, dozens of rural meet & greets, a cattle drive, and events with ranchers and farmers.” “Rural Nevadans know that Adam’s record on water rights, the second amendment, sage grouse, and fighting federal overreach make him the best candidate in this race,” said Freimuth. Cortez Masto, arguably the most vulnerable Democratic Senate incumbent in the country, has focused much of her campaign on tying Laxalt to Trump. Laxalt, who was a co-chair of Trump’s 2020 campaign in Nevada, was central to filing election lawsuits seeking to overturn the presidential result in the state, which Biden won by 2 points. Those lawsuits did not change the election result. Cortez Masto has also looked to cut into Laxalt’s advantage in rural areas. A former state attorney general herself, she embarked on a rural tour of Nevada in August, campaigning in communities such as Ely, Elko, Winnemucca and Fallon — all with populations of less than 20,000 people. “When I became your US senator, it was just as important to me to get out and talk to Nevadans, because here’s the deal: To me, it is about all of us succeeding and that rising tide lifting all of us,” she said in Ely. “At the end of the day, your party affiliation, your background is about making sure your families are successful, your businesses are successful, we’re all in this together.” Cortez Masto has been endorsed by several rural Republican leaders, such as former Winnemucca Mayor Di An Putnam and Ely Mayor Nathan Robertson, who said in a statement that the incumbent will “continue working hard in the Senate to champion issues important to all rural Nevadans.” In response to a question from CNN about Trump rallying with Laxalt in rural Nevada, Cortez Masto spokesman Josh Marcus-Blank said, “No one did more to overturn the 2020 election for Donald Trump than Adam Laxalt, and he is once again being rewarded.” The-CNN-Wire & © 2022 Cable News Network, Inc., a Warner Bros. Discovery Company. All rights reserved. Read More Here

Trump Speaks Via Video At Rally Of Global Far-Right In Spain – KESQ https://digitalarizonanews.com/trump-speaks-via-video-at-rally-of-global-far-right-in-spain-kesq/ By JOSEPH WILSON and ALICIA LEÓN Associated Press MADRID (AP) — Former U.S. President Donald Trump has thrown his weight behind Spain’s far-right in a video shown at a rally in Madrid. The rally for the far-right Vox party also featured messages from Italy’s Giorgia Meloni and Hungary’s Viktor Orban. In a recording that lasted under 40 seconds made while Trump was on an plane, Trump twice thanked Spain’s Vox party and its leader Santiago Abascal for the “great job” they do. Vox rails against gender equality laws and unauthorized immigration from Africa and embraces the legacy of Spain’s former right-wing dictatorship. Meloni, Orban and other right-wing leaders from Europe and the Americas also spoke. BE PART OF THE CONVERSATION News Channel 3 is committed to providing a forum for civil and constructive conversation. Please keep your comments respectful and relevant. You can review our Community Guidelines by clicking here If you would like to share a story idea, please submit it here. Read More Here

UK Archbishop ‘concerned’ Over Embassy Move To Jerusalem https://digitalarizonanews.com/uk-archbishop-concerned-over-embassy-move-to-jerusalem/ British Prime Minister Liz Truss has told her Israeli counterpart Yair Lapid she is weighing the possible relocation from Tel Aviv. Published On 9 Oct 20229 Oct 2022 The archbishop of Canterbury has expressed reservations about a potential move of the British embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, media outlet Jewish News reported. UK Prime Minister Liz Truss told her Israeli counterpart, Yair Lapid, that she is weighing the relocation when they met last month at the United Nations in New York. Such a decision would follow the same move by former US President Donald Trump in 2018. Truss recently described herself as a “huge Zionist” and a “huge supporter of Israel”. “The archbishop is concerned about the potential impact of moving the British embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem before a negotiated settlement between Palestinians and Israelis has been reached,” a spokesperson for Archbishop Justin Welby said in a statement. “He is in touch with Christian leaders in the Holy Land and continues to pray for the peace of Jerusalem,” it said. Israeli police vans are seen parked in front of the British embassy in Tel Aviv on August 31, 2006 [File: Gil Cohen Magen/Reuters] The statement from Welby came a day after Cardinal Vincent Nichols, archbishop of Westminster, also called on Truss to decide against moving the embassy to Jerusalem. “Such a relocation of the UK embassy would be seriously damaging to any possibility of lasting peace in the region and to the international reputation of the United Kingdom,” he posted on Twitter. “Pope Francis and the leaders of churches in the Holy Land have long called for the international Status Quo on Jerusalem to be upheld, in accordance with the relevant UN resolutions,” he said. Talk of moving the embassy was also condemned by the Arab League. “I reiterate our rejection and condemnation of any unilateral decisions that might breach the legal or the historical status of the holy city of Jerusalem or to recognise Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, which is the occupying power, according to international law,” Arab League Secretary General Ahmed Aboul Gheit said in a video address last week. “I call upon the British government to abide by the two-state solution and refrain from taking any illegal action that could compromise this formula as a basis for the final settlement,” he said. Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh expressed his own concern last week. “Any change in the status quo in Jerusalem would undermine the two-state solution and will be considered a tacit recognition of the city’s annexation to Israel, which will encourage the occupying state,” Shtayyeh said. The UK has had its Israel embassy in Tel Aviv for decades despite Israel designating Jerusalem as its capital. US embassy move Trump provoked controversy by announcing he would relocate the US embassy to Jerusalem in 2017 and officially did so a year later. The move infuriated Palestinians and spurred international condemnation. Previous American presidents and the leaders of nearly every other country have refrained from opening embassies in Jerusalem until the city’s final status is resolved through Israeli-Palestinian negotiations. Palestinian leaders see East Jerusalem as the capital of their future state. The Trump administration also closed the US consulate in Jerusalem, an office that for years had served as the de facto embassy to the Palestinians. The current secretary of state, Antony Blinken, has pledged to reopen it, a move Israel said would challenge its sovereignty over Jerusalem. The US, Kosovo, Honduras and Guatemala are the only governments with embassies in Jerusalem. Source : Al Jazeera and news agencies Read More Here