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Opinion | How Criminal Trials Of Leaders Can Bring The Country Together https://digitalarkansasnews.com/opinion-how-criminal-trials-of-leaders-can-bring-the-country-together/ Maya Steinitz is a law professor at the University of Iowa and the author of “The Case for an International Court of Civil Justice.” The Mar-a-Lago document investigation, as well as the New York attorney general’s civil fraud complaint against Donald Trump and his family members, alleging acts that could amount to criminal fraud, have revived a debate that has been ongoing since the 2020 election: Assuming there is the sufficient amount of evidence of criminality that ordinarily leads prosecutors to indictment, does the potential defendant’s status as a former president warrant special treatment — namely, an exemption from prosecution not provided for in the Constitution? Those opposing prosecution say that such a meting out of justice would backfire, galvanizing Trump’s base. Some go so far as to suggest that seeing the former president “decked out in full orange, successfully prosecuted and dragged off to prison” would be a spectacle “more commonly associated with third world nations or undemocratic states.” Growing up in Israel, in the shadow of the world’s longest-running conflict, I often considered whether it is better to forgo prosecution in favor of other forms of accountability and healing. As a young lawyer writing a doctoral thesis on international-dispute resolution, I served for a time at the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda and, later, as an adviser to the emerging government of what is now the Republic of South Sudan. For several years I’ve convened a course on international conflict resolution in Jerusalem, bringing together Jewish, Arab and international students, many from conflict zones, to talk about conflict and justice. That experience has convinced me, as it has others, that criminally prosecuting leaders can help heal polarized countries. Some 30 years of research in transitional justice — the multidisciplinary study of how societies can constructively emerge from conflict and assert or reassert democratic values — provides evidence that, contrary to the understandable worry that a trial would be divisive, trials can instead help heal. In fact, they are considered one of the main methods to bring about “truth and reconciliation.” Examples of such “transitional trials” include the prosecutions of Slobodan Milosevic in the aftermath of the Balkan wars, and of Augusto Pinochet for human rights violations committed during his presidency of Chile. In a less dramatic example of alleged corruption (rather than human-rights violations and war crimes), former prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu is facing criminal charges in a deeply divided Israel. In Italy, former prime minister Silvio Berlusconi has been convicted of tax fraud. The reasons trials help promote reconciliation are many. Trials are a performative affair. They are, among other things, a drama in which conflict is enacted and resolved. As such, they can compel attention in a way that pierces the disinformation bubble that has contributed to this era’s divisiveness. A trial of a former U.S. president is certain to be covered by news outlets that lean both right and left. The same would be true of a trial of a sitting president’s son, should federal prosecutors decide to charge Hunter Biden with tax crimes or a false statement related to a gun purchase. Criminal trials are also easily understood by most, if not all, of the population. Consider how memorable and enduring was the trial of O.J. Simpson. Or recall President Bill Clinton’s infamous testimony about the nature of his relationship with Monica Lewinsky. Now, compare that with how impenetrable the Mueller report was, and how little traction its findings have found in the general discourse, let alone the popular imagination. Trials are about the establishment of truth through evidence, beyond reasonable doubt. The truth gathered and amplified through the drama of a trial creates a historical record and shapes the collective memory. Trials are a stage upon which individuals with firsthand knowledge can be compelled to testify about what they know, and must do so truthfully under penalty of perjury. Trials are as much about educating the public about wrongs that have been done as they are about seeking retribution for harms done (though they are about that as well). At trial, the defendant gets to testify and be heard, and has the opportunity to compel the testimony of others. Milosevic, for instance, used his stage at The Hague to great effect. Any defense to alleged crimes that Trump — or, again, Hunter Biden — might testify to, without committing perjury, would similarly be amplified through the trial. High-profile criminal trials should not be the only or the primary tool of reconciliation on our path to national healing. Bipartisan dialogue and resurrecting the tradition of appointing members of the opposing party to the Cabinet are examples of important measures that should be put into practice, no matter who holds office. But the bar to clear for any decision to prosecute should not be any lower when it comes to former president Trump, or any other politician or politician’s family member, than the one for everyday Americans. Nor should the bar be any higher in a rule-of-law society, especially not in a divided country in need of truth and reconciliation. Assuming sufficient evidence of criminality, Trump should face prosecution. The same is true for Hunter Biden. To borrow from a favorite courtroom drama, we can handle the truth. We need to, even, so we can start to heal. Read More Here

Chris Wallace Says He Became ‘a Bit Bored’ Covering Politics https://digitalarkansasnews.com/chris-wallace-says-he-became-a-bit-bored-covering-politics/ Veteran journalist Chris Wallace said he became “a bit bored” with politics after years of political coverage, leading him to his CNN show that incorporates different interests and guests from different backgrounds. Wallace said on HBO’s “Real Time with Bill Maher” on Friday that he was not bored during the Trump administration because it was always interesting, despite it being a “show.”  He said someone was responsible for monitoring tweets while he hosted “Fox News Sunday” because something would change between the time he arrived at the studio at 6 a.m. and when his show started at 9 a.m.  Wallace said he spent a lot of time in 2021 “slicing the salami thinner and thinner” about the “marginal” difference between different versions of policy proposals like President Biden’s Build Back Better plan, and it “became kind of a bore.”  Wallace left Fox News last year after hosting the network’s main Sunday morning news show for two decades. Wallace was first slated to host a show on CNN’s now-defunct streaming platform CNN+. However, after new ownership of the company was announced, CNN+ was shut down. “Who’s Talking to Chris Wallace?” now airs on both CNN and HBO. Maher responded that Biden and Build Back Better are boring, but the political process is “supposed to be a bore.”  “That’s why we elected him,” Maher said, referring to Biden. “Let’s get back to boring and normal.”  Wallace asserted that “boring is not good” as the host of a Sunday talk show. He added that he is “interested in a lot of stuff” and pointed to Maher having a mix of guests on “Real Time.” The lineup for Wallace’s show, which airs weekly on CNN Sunday nights, is set to feature a wide range of guests inside and outside of politics, including former Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer, former baseball player Alex Rodriguez and singer Shania Twain.  Read More Here

Flynn, Gingrich Testimony Sought In Georgia Election Probe – The National Herald https://digitalarkansasnews.com/flynn-gingrich-testimony-sought-in-georgia-election-probe-the-national-herald/ ATLANTA (AP) — The Georgia prosecutor investigating whether then-President Donald Trump and others illegally tried to interfere in the 2020 election filed paperwork Friday seeking to compel testimony from a new batch of Trump allies, including former U.S. House Speaker Newt Gingrich and former national security adviser Michael Flynn. Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis filed petitions in court seeking to have Gingrich and Flynn, as well as former White House lawyer Eric Herschmann and others, testify next month before a special grand jury that’s been seated to aid her investigation. They join a string of other high-profile Trump allies and advisers who have been called to testify in the probe. Rudy Giuliani, the former New York mayor and Trump attorney who’s been told he could face criminal charges in the probe, testified in August. Attorneys John Eastman and Kenneth Chesebro have also appeared before the panel. U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham’s attempt to fight his subpoena is pending in a federal appeals court. And paperwork has been filed seeking testimony from others, including former White House chief of staff Mark Meadows. Flynn didn’t immediately respond to email and phone messages seeking comment, and his lawyer also didn’t immediately return an email seeking comment. Gingrich referred questions to his attorney, who declined to comment. Herschmann could not immediately be reached. Willis has said she plans to take a monthlong break from public activity in the case leading up to the November midterm election, which is one month from Saturday. FILE – Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich speaks before former President Donald Trump at an America First Policy Institute agenda summit at the Marriott Marquis in Washington, July 26, 2022. The Georgia prosecutor investigating whether then-President Donald Trump and others illegally tried to interfere in the 2020 election filed paperwork Friday, Oct. 7, seeking to compel testimony from a new batch of Trump allies, including former U.S. House Speaker Newt Gingrich and former national security adviser Michael Flynn. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik, File) Each of the petitions filed Friday seeks to have the potential witnesses appear in November after the election. But the process for securing testimony from out-of-state witnesses sometimes takes a while, so it appears Willis is putting the wheels in motion for activity to resume after her self-imposed pause. Compelling testimony from witnesses who don’t live in Georgia requires Willis to use a process that involves getting judges in the states where they live to order them to appear. The petitions she filed Friday are essentially precursors to subpoenas. Fulton County Superior Court Judge Robert McBurney, who’s overseeing the special grand jury, signed off on the petitions, certifying that each person whose testimony is sought is a “necessary and material” witness for the investigation. The petition for Gingrich’s testimony relies on “information made publicly available” by the U.S. House committee that’s investigating the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol. It says he was involved along with others associated with the Trump campaign in a plan to run television ads that “repeated and relied upon false claims about fraud in the 2020 election” and encouraged members of the public to contact state officials to push them to challenge and overturn the election results based on those claims. Gingrich was also involved in a plan to have Republican fake electors sign certificates falsely stating that Trump had won the state and that they were the state’s official electors even though Democrat Joe Biden had won, the petition says. The petition seeking Flynn’s testimony says he appeared in an interview on conservative cable news channel Newsmax and said Trump “could take military capabilities” and place them in swing states and “basically re-run an election in each of those states.” He also met with Trump, attorney Sidney Powell and others at the White House on Dec. 18, 2020, for a meeting that, according to news reports, “focused on topics including invoking martial law, seizing voting machines, and appointing Powell as special counsel to investigate the 2020 election,” Willis wrote. Willis in August filed a petition seeking testimony from Powell. Herschmann, who featured prominently in the House committee hearings on the Capitol attack, was a senior adviser to Trump from August 2020 through the end of his term and “was present for multiple meetings between former President Trump and others related to the 2020 election,” Willis wrote in the petition seeking his testimony. She wrote that the House committee also revealed that Herschmann had “multiple conversations” with Eastman, Giuliani, Powell “and others known to be associated with the Trump Campaign, related to their efforts to influence the results of the November 2020 elections in Georgia and elsewhere.” Specifically, he had a “heated conversation” with Eastman “concerning efforts in Georgia,” she added. Willis also filed petitions Friday to compel testimony from Jim Penrose and Stephen Cliffgard Lee. She identified Penrose as “a cyber investigations, operations and forensics consultant” who worked with Powell and others known to be associated with the Trump campaign in late 2020 and early 2021. He also communicated with Powell and others regarding an agreement to hire data solutions firm SullivanStrickler to copy data and software from voting system equipment in Coffee County, about 200 miles southeast of Atlanta, as well as in Michigan and Nevada, Willis wrote. Penrose did not immediately respond to an email and phone message seeking comment. Willis wrote in a petition seeking Lee’s testimony that he was part of an effort to pressure elections worker Ruby Freeman, who was the subject of false claims about election fraud in Fulton County. He could not immediately be reached for comment. Special grand juries are impaneled in Georgia to investigate complex cases with large numbers of witnesses and potential logistical concerns. They can compel evidence and subpoena witnesses for questioning and, unlike regular grand juries, can also subpoena the target of an investigation to appear before it. When its investigation is complete, the special grand jury issues a final report and can recommend action. It’s then up to the district attorney to decide whether to ask a regular grand jury for an indictment. — By KATE BRUMBACK Associated Press Read More Here

New Biden Counterterror Strategy Puts Limits On Drone Use https://digitalarkansasnews.com/new-biden-counterterror-strategy-puts-limits-on-drone-use-2/ WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden on Friday formally issued new guidance curtailing the use of armed drones outside of war zones as part of a new counterterrorism strategy that places a greater priority on protecting civilian lives. The new policies require presidential approval before a suspected terrorist is added to the U.S. government’s target list for potential lethal action, including drone strikes and special operations raids, according to a senior administration official who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss the classified memoranda. The new guidance returns U.S. policies to where they were at the end of the Obama administration, and it reverses former President Donald Trump’s more permissive rules that allowed lower-level officials more leeway when launching deadly strikes. Biden had issued temporary restrictions on the U.S. military and intelligence community requiring presidential sign-off for lethal actions outside of war zones when he took office. The new policies and strategy, which resulted from a review that began shortly after Inauguration Day last year, formalize the directive. The strategy would require a subsequent president looking to reverse the new action in order to rescind Biden’s directive. “President Biden’s formal counterterrorism guidance directs his administration to be discerning and agile in protecting Americans against evolving global terrorist challenges,” said White House Homeland Security Adviser Liz Sherwood-Randall in a statement. The president’s guidance on use of lethal action and capture operations outside areas of active hostilities “requires that U.S. counterterrorism operations meet the highest standards of precision and rigor, including for identifying appropriate targets and minimizing civilian casualties,” she said. The guidance comes a day after U.S. forces killed three senior Islamic State leaders in two separate military operations in Syria Thursday, including a rare ground raid in a portion of the northeast that is controlled by the Syrian regime, U.S. officials said. Under Biden’s guidelines, though, Syria is considered a conflict zone where specific presidential approval isn’t necessarily required. Strikes in Afghanistan, where the U.S. in August killed al-Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahri at Biden’s direction, would require presidential approval. The policy change was first reported by The New York Times. Show Full Article © Copyright 2022 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Read More Here

GOP Looks For Veto-Proof Majorities In Wisconsin Legislature https://digitalarkansasnews.com/gop-looks-for-veto-proof-majorities-in-wisconsin-legislature/ MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Wisconsin Republicans are hoping Tim Michels will defeat Democratic Gov. Tony Evers in November, but even if Evers prevails they could still reshape the battleground state by winning enough seats in the Legislature to override vetoes. If Republicans can flip five seats in the Assembly and one in the Senate they’ll have the two-thirds majority they need. They would be free to rework state politics at will, including the state budget and election administration. “My first goal is to elect Tim Michels,” Assembly Speaker Robin Vos said. “If for some reason we are unsuccessful in defeating Evers, a veto-proof majority is the second priority. Evers is a major stumbling block. It’s about being able to get things done that the people of Wisconsin want.” Evers has blocked almost every piece of major GOP legislation over the last four years, including proposals that would have tightened restrictions on absentee voting and unemployment benefits, expanded the right to carry concealed weapons and curtailed the government’s ability to respond to COVID-19. Democrats are aware of the risk. “There is no higher priority than making sure Gov. Evers stays in his role and we hold onto the veto,” said Morgan Hess, executive director of the Assembly Democratic Campaign Committee. The GOP has controlled the Legislature for the last decade thanks to district boundaries the party drew in 2011 to consolidate its power. The U.S. Supreme Court this spring upheld district lines Republicans redrew last year to reflect census changes, a major ruling that solidified their grip on both houses for the next decade. The party that controls the White House typically fares poorly in midterm elections. And Republican strength has been growing in rural areas. The GOP’s plan for winning a supermajority targets a handful of open seats and Democratic incumbents in rural districts. Republicans hold a 57-38 advantage in the Assembly with four open seats held by outgoing Republicans. They need 66 seats to gain a two-thirds majority. If they hold all their seats and flip five they’ll get it. On the Senate side, Republicans go into Election Day with a 21-12 majority. Twenty-two seats would give them a supermajority. Republicans are targeting four seats held by retiring Democrats, including two Assembly seats and one Senate seat in far northwestern Wisconsin along Lake Superior. That region has leaned liberal for decades, but it’s overwhelmingly rural. The Democratic Assembly incumbents, Nick Milroy and Beth Meyers, narrowly defeated GOP challengers in 2020. Both decided earlier this year to retire, with Milroy saying he wanted to spend more time with his children and Meyers citing the five-and-a-half hour drive to the Capitol in Madison. The Senate incumbent, Janet Bewley, narrowly defeated Republican Dane Deutsch with 51% of the vote to win the seat in 2014. Her race against James Bolen in 2020 was just as close. She decided this year not to seek reelection. Running to replace her are Democrat Kelly Westlund, a former staff member for U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin and a one-time congressional candidate, and Republican Romaine Quinn, a former state representative. Westlund said the new district boundaries include a larger portion of Republican-leaning Burnett County. She said the GOP is going for what she called a “three-fer” with the three open seats in northwestern Wisconsin, and acknowledged that Democrats face an uphill climb in such a rural area. “They’ve drawn this line around the district trying to make it more and more red,” Westlund said. “We’re not taking anything for granted. We’re knocking on doors every single day. I don’t think people realize how much is at stake at times.” Quinn’s campaign didn’t respond to a message. The other open Assembly seat in Republican crosshairs is in Oshkosh, about 50 miles (80 kilometers) south of Green Bay in northeastern Wisconsin. Assembly Democratic Minority Leader Gordon Hintz won the seat in 2007, but former President Donald Trump won the county in 2016 and 2020 and Hintz announced earlier this year he was done. A handful of Democratic incumbents in rural districts are in the Republicans’ sights as well, including state Rep. Steve Doyle and Sen. Jeff Smith in west-central Wisconsin and Rep. Katrina Shankland in central Wisconsin. Doyle’s district covers eastern La Crosse County and most of Monroe County. Trump won Monroe County in 2016 and 2020 but lost La Crosse County to Hillary Clinton in 2016 and Joe Biden in 2020, due largely to the Democratic-leaning city of La Crosse. Doyle’s district doesn’t include the city, which makes him vulnerable to the rural vote. This time around he faces challenger Ryan Huebsch, the son of Republican Mike Huebsch. The senior Huebsch held the seat from 1995 until 2011, when he resigned to take a job in Gov. Scott Walker’s administration. Doyle won a special election later that year to take the open seat. Doyle said Republicans have targeted him ever since, but the stakes are higher with Evers’ veto authority potentially on the line. “I’ve always been a Democrat in a Republican-leaning district,” he said. “I’ve always known I have to work twice as hard as anyone else. That sense of urgency has been there since 2011. I knock on doors election years and non-election years. That has continued, and (it has been) very intense in that regard.” Ryan Huebsch said he’s working to win an Assembly seat and isn’t worried about achieving a veto-proof majority. Smith won his seat with just 51% of the vote in 2018. He faces former police officer and bull rider David Estenson in November. Shankland, meanwhile, will have to contend again with Republican opponent Scott Soik, a gun shop owner she defeated by 3,500 votes in 2020. The district includes most of rural Portage County, which Clinton and Biden won in 2016 and 2020. But this spring conservative John Pavelski won the county executive race, giving Republicans hope. Shankland said she understands Democrats must protect Evers’ veto powers. She said she has been campaigning at meet-and-greets and knocking on doors until 1 a.m. most days, mindful of her vulnerability as Republicans eye the rural votes that might come their way. “I think they probably looked at the voting patterns over the last decade and wanted to set their sights here,” Shankland said. Soik didn’t return messages left on his cellphone. “When you’re looking for seats to flip, you look for the low-hanging fruit, and more rural districts are low-hanging fruit for Republicans,” University of Wisconsin-La Crosse political scientist Anthony Chergosky said. “Republicans essentially dominate rural Wisconsin. So much is based on geography. The question here is can Democrats make a last stand in some of these rural districts they have to protect?” Read More Here

'It's Not On The Level': Steve Schmidt Buries Maggie Haberman For Holding Back Info On Trump For Her Book https://digitalarkansasnews.com/its-not-on-the-level-steve-schmidt-buries-maggie-haberman-for-holding-back-info-on-trump-for-her-book/ Read More Here

Explosion Damages Crimea Bridge, Imperiling Russian Supply Route https://digitalarkansasnews.com/explosion-damages-crimea-bridge-imperiling-russian-supply-route/ Image A fire on the Kerch Strait Bridge in Crimea on Saturday.Credit…Reuters KRYVYI RIH, Ukraine — An explosion tore through the sole bridge linking the Russian-occupied Crimean Peninsula to Russia, collapsing a part of the span into the sea and imperiling a primary supply route for Russian troops fighting in the south of Ukraine. The 12-mile-long Kerch Strait Bridge is a cherished political project of President Vladimir V. Putin and had become a potent symbol of the claims that Mr. Putin makes to the peninsula, which his forces illegally seized from Ukraine in 2014. Mr. Putin presided over the opening of the bridge in 2018, personally driving a truck across. The extent of the damage was difficult to immediately assess, though any impediment to traffic on the bridge could have a profound effect on Russia’s ability to wage war in southern Ukraine. Videos showed the railroad burning and two of four lanes of roadway collapsed into the Black Sea, where waves lapped the asphalt. The Russian Railways company said all trains to and from Crimea have been temporarily canceled, the state news agency Tass reported. The bridge is the principal military supply route linking Russia with the Crimean Peninsula. Without it, the Russian military will be severely limited in its ability to bring fuel, equipment and ammunition to its units fighting an increasingly intense battle for the control of southern Ukraine. Russia still controls roads on overland routes from Russia into southern Ukraine, but those are within range of Ukrainian rocket artillery. The peninsula also holds special meaning for Mr. Putin, who has told his people that Crimea is a “sacred place” and Russia’s “holy land.” Russia’s National Anti-Terrorism Committee said in a statement that a truck had exploded on the bridge, igniting seven fuel cisterns being pulled by train on a parallel railroad crossing headed in the direction of Crimea and causing two car spans to partially collapse. Preliminary information suggested that three people were killed, Russia’s investigative committee said in a statement. While there were no immediate claims of responsibility, Russian and Ukrainian officials indicated that the fire was no accident. The Kremlin’s spokesman, Dmitri S. Peskov, referred to the episode as an “emergency” in a statement on Saturday, without assessing who was behind it. He said that Mr. Putin, who had celebrated his 70th birthday on Friday, had been briefed. “The president directed the prime minister to form a government commission to find out the causes of the incident and eliminate the consequences as soon as possible,” Mr. Peskov said, according to Russian state media. Occupation officials in Crimea left little doubt about who they thought was responsible. “Ukrainian vandals were able to reach the Crimean bridge with their bloody hands,” said Vladimir Konstantinov, the head of Crimea’s Kremlin-installed Parliament. Multiple Ukrainian officials and government agencies hinted, often slyly, that Ukrainian was responsible. Since early in the war, Kyiv has maintained a policy of ambiguity on attacks targeting Russian territory and some strikes on occupied land. “Crimea, the bridge, the beginning,” Mykhailo Podolyak, an adviser to Ukraine’s president, wrote on Twitter. “Everything illegal, must be destroyed. Everything stolen returned to Ukraine.” In a wink at claiming credit, the Security Service of Ukraine, known by its Ukrainian acronym S.B.U., issued a statement as a rephrased stanza of a poem by the country’s national poet, Taras Shevchenko. “Dawn, the bridge is burning beautifully,” the agency posted on Twitter. “A nightingale in Crimea meets the S.B.U.” A senior Ukrainian military official did not deny that Ukrainian forces were behind the attack but would not confirm it. “All I can say is that an echelon with fuel intended to supply occupation forces in the south of Ukraine was passing over the bridge,” the official said, speaking on the condition of anonymity because he did not have permission to speak to the news media. As a symbol of Mr. Putin’s claim on Ukrainian land, the bridge has been tightly bound with the Russian president’s political messaging at home. Its partial destruction, however, could play into Mr. Putin’s claims that Russia is under attack from a Western-armed Ukraine and help tamp down domestic opposition to Russia’s first wartime draft since World War II. Ukrainian officials have said they worried hitting the bridge could galvanize Russian support for the war. In recent weeks, military traffic heading across the bridge into Crimea has increased as Russia has raced tanks and artillery equipment to the front lines in the Kherson Region, which has been a focus of Ukraine’s counteroffensive against the Russian army. Russian troops have been in retreat, abandoning towns and villages and falling back toward the regional capital, Kherson. Maria Varenikova contributed reporting from Kryvyi Rih, Ukraine. Image The Kerch Strait Bridge in Crimea in 2019.Credit…Aleksey Nikolskyi/Sputnik, via Reuters The 12-mile Kerch Strait Bridge linking the Crimean Peninsula to Russia, which was badly damaged by an explosion on Saturday, is not just the primary supply route for Moscow’s forces fighting in southern Ukraine. It is also deeply symbolic for President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia, a pillar of his disputed claim to the Crimean Peninsula since the completion of the twin road spans in 2018. Mr. Putin presided over the bridge’s opening, personally driving a truck across what is a physical link between Russia and Crimea — land that Mr. Putin seized from Ukraine in 2014 and annexed to international outcry. Ukrainians loathe the bridge, whose symbolism and strategic importance for resupply has long made it a potential target. Over the summer, the Ukrainian military posted a taunting image on Twitter threatening to strike it with American-provided guided rockets. The video showed the launch vehicle, a High Mobility Artillery Rocket system, floating on a pink inflatable pool raft in the strait, and the bridge in the background. And at one point over the summer, it appeared to have been targeted: Russian officials said that a drone had triggered air defense systems. The Ukrainian government had no official comment at the time. The damage to the bridge could sever the single overland route to bring supplies from Russia to its bases in Crimea. Moscow had stepped up countermeasures to defend the structure, deploying a target ship — replete with an array of radar reflectors — to protect the bridge from attack and running drills to cover the bridge with a smoke screen. As well as military value, the structure holds deep symbolic significance for the Kremlin. After illegally annexing Crimea in 2014, Moscow vowed to physically connect the peninsula to Russia. For a century, talks of building a bridge across the strait — which runs between two mountain ranges, creating a fierce wind tunnel — had failed to result in action. But Mr. Putin put his weight behind the project, despite that and other engineering challenges, which include a seabed covered with some 250 feet of fine silt deposited by the alluvial flow from various rivers. During World War II, an ice floe unleashed during the spring thaw toppled a German military bridge that been hastily constructed across the waters to aid the Nazi war effort. In 2018, when the new bridge was opened, Mr. Putin hailed it a “remarkable” achievement that, he said, referring to a major city on the peninsula, “makes Crimea and legendary Sevastopol even stronger, and all of us are even closer to each other.” But after explosions at the Saki airfield on Crimea in August, the bridge served a different purpose: It was a quick escape route as the war came to the peninsula, with more than 38,000 cars crossing in one day, the most recorded since Mr. Putin declared it open. Image Smoke rising after explosions in Kharkiv early Saturday.Credit…Francisco Seco/Associated Press The city of Kharkiv in Ukraine’s northeast was rocked by explosions early Saturday, in what appeared to be the latest indiscriminate attack on civilian infrastructure by Russia. Photos of an explosion showed a red fireball lighting up the night sky, enveloped by a billowing cloud of dark smoke. Buildings, including a medical institution, were on fire, Kharkiv’s mayor, Igor Terekhov, wrote on Telegram. It was not immediately known whether there were deaths or injuries. Several towns and cities across Ukraine have been bombarded from the air, as well as with artillery and missile strikes this week, as Moscow’s troops have been forced to retreat across the country. Ukrainian officials and some military analysts said the attacks appeared to signal heightened determination by the Russian military to use its advantage in long-range munitions to exact costs for Moscow’s losses. Strikes in cities and towns across southern Ukraine, including Zaporizhzhia, Nikopol and Berislav along the Dnipro River, have landed in residential areas and turned apartment blocks to rubble. At least 22 civilians were killed and 32 injured in Russian attacks in a 24-hour span ending Friday morning, according to a senior official in the office of President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine. In the northeast, Ukrainian troops have recaptured nearly 500 towns and villages since early September in counterattacks that have pushed Russian forces out of most of Kharkiv Province, which was occupied early in the war. The regional police force said it had recovered more than 500 bodies of civilians and had found sites where it appeared that people had been tortured. Last month, Mr. Zelensky accused Russia of carrying out “deliberate and cynical strikes” in the region, knocking out critical infrastructure, to...

MHHS Suffers Loss At Little Rock Christian https://digitalarkansasnews.com/mhhs-suffers-loss-at-little-rock-christian/ The Mountain Home High School football team had another tough road trip on Friday. The Bombers went to Warrior Field and suffered a 45-13 loss to Little Rock Christian, the fifth-ranked team in Class 5A by the Arkansas Sports Media. The Warriors scored the first two touchdowns, one in each of the first two quarters. Mountain Home cut the margin back to seven just over a minute later on a run by Jacob Chenowith. Christian got back in the end zone with less than a minute left in the half. The Bombers responded with big plays and the Warriors being penalized. Mountain Home was able to get a field goal just before halftime, and they went into the locker room down 11. The second half couldn’t have started much worse for the Bombers as they went three-and-out inside their own 10, and Christian scored on their next possession. The Warriors went on to outscore Mountain Home 24-3 behind the ground game of Ronny Anokye and Aiden Sansom in the second half on their way to a 32-point victory. Chenowith had 10 carries for 43 yards for the Bombers. Cade Yates completed eight passes on 22 attempts for 102 yards, Jett Hannaford had three catches for 49 yards, and Brady Barnett added three receptions for 41 yards. For Christian, Ronny Anokye had 25 carries for 203 yards and two touchdowns, Sansom had nine rushes for 89 yards, and Walker White was 12-of-18 passing for 90 yards and two touchdowns. Mountain Home falls to 0-7 on the season and 0-5 in the 6A-West. The Warriors improve to 4-2 and 2-2. The Bombers’ next game will be in two weeks when they host Siloam Springs for homecoming. WebReadyTM Powered by WireReady® NSI Read More…

Friday Football Results Include Yellville-Summit Falling At Homecoming https://digitalarkansasnews.com/friday-football-results-include-yellville-summit-falling-at-homecoming/ Yellville-Summit’s homecoming was spoiled on Friday with its losing streak extended to three games. The Panthers fell to Quitman by a final of 54-16. Yellville-Summit drops to 4-3 on the season and 0-3 in the 3A-2, and they’ll travel to Salem next week. Salem went on the road and fell to another area team. The Greyhounds suffered a 43-21 loss to Melbourne, the third-ranked team in Class 3A by the Arkansas Sports Media. Salem falls to 4-3 on the year and 1-2 in the 3A-2. The Bearkatz improve to 6-0 and 2-0, and they’ll head to Perryville next Friday. Harrison went to Springdale and got beat 55-14 at the hands of Shiloh Christian, the fourth-ranked team in Class 5A. The Goblins fall to 3-3 overall and 1-2 in the 5A-West, and they’ll host Alma next week. On the eight-man level, Marshall had another rough outing on the road. The Bobcats went to Newark and lost to Cedar Ridge 40-22. Marshall drops to 1-6 on the season and 1-4 in the 4A/3A division, and they’ll host Genoa Central next Friday. Mountain View went into this week as the top-ranked team in Classes 4A/3A, and it appears they’ll stay that way. The Yellowjackets went to Hot Springs and routed Cutter-Morning Star 72-32. Mountain View improves to 6-0 overall and 5-0 in the 4A/3A division, and they’ll host Fountain Lake next week. WebReadyTM Powered by WireReady® NSI Read More Here

Friday’s Arkansas High School Football Scores https://digitalarkansasnews.com/fridays-arkansas-high-school-football-scores-5/ Alma 45, Pea Ridge 7 Batesville 37, Forrest City 6 Benton 58, Greene County Tech 0 Bentonville 42, Rogers Heritage 7 Bentonville West 34, Rogers 21 Bigelow 36, Hector 7 Blytheville 64, Highland 36 Booneville 55, Greenland 21 Bryant 42, Little Rock Central 0 Cabot 35, Conway 20 Camden Fairview 35, Magnolia 19 Cedar Ridge 40, Marshall 22 Cedarville 18, Hackett 12 Centerpoint 28, Magnet Cove 10 Charleston 42, Mansfield 7 Clarendon 20, McCrory 6 Clinton 38, Bauxite 35 Conway Christian 39, Decatur 0 DeWitt 32, Crossett 22 Des Arc 38, Marked Tree 14 Destiny Christian, Okla. 52, Trinity Christian 8 Dierks 20, Mineral Springs 8 Earle 44, Marianna Lee 0 East Poinsett County 44, Cross County 12 Elkins 56, Berryville 7 Farmington 58, Dardanelle 14 Fayetteville 60, Fort Smith Southside 20 Fordyce 61, Dollarway 14 Fort Smith Northside 36, Jonesboro 28 Fountain Lake 41, Subiaco Academy 34 Genoa Central 56, Rose Bud 6 Gentry 48, Green Forest 8 Glen Rose 33, Bismarck 18 Gosnell 26, Trumann 20 Gravette 43, Huntsville 14 Hampton 58, Baptist Prep 20 Har-Ber 49, Springdale 14 Harding Academy 41, Bald Knob 12 Harmony Grove 41, Dover 6 Hazen 51, England 8 Hillcrest Christian, Miss. 38, Parkers Chapel 22 Hot Springs 42, De Queen 7 Hoxie 42, Corning 0 Humphreys Academy, Miss. 52, Marvell Academy 16 Jessieville 50, Paris 21 Lake Hamilton 33, Greenbrier 14 Lake Village Lakeside 33, Drew Central 22 Lamar 36, Mayflower 21 Lavaca 31, West Fork 7 Lee Academy 52, Deer Creek School, Miss. 20 Little Rock Catholic 21, Sheridan 7 Little Rock Christian 45, Mountain Home 13 Little Rock Parkview 47, Hope 21 Lonoke 34, Cave City 21 Malvern 48, Ashdown 21 Marion 57, Searcy 28 Melbourne 43, Salem 21 Monticello 16, Hamburg 7 Mount Ida 72, Lafayette County 34 Mountain Pine 40, Spring Hill 32 Mountain View 72, Cutter-Morning Star 32 Murfreesboro 22, Horatio 8 Nashville 40, Mena 7 Nettleton 35, Paragould 0 Newport 52, Atkins 6 North Little Rock 50, Little Rock Southwest 6 Osceola 48, Palestine-Wheatley 0 Ozark 64, Lincoln 21 Pocahontas 49, Harrisburg 21 Pottsville 35, Central Arkansas Christian 34 Poyen 42, Foreman 0 Prairie Grove 30, Clarksville 6 Prescott 56, Fouke 7 Pulaski Academy 64, Siloam Springs 17 Pulaski Mills 19, Pine Bluff 18, OT Pulaski Robinson 35, Maumelle 30 Quitman 54, Yellville-Summit 16 Rison 36, Camden Harmony Grove 15 Rivercrest 42, Jonesboro Westside 14 Russellville 28, Van Buren 21 Shiloh Christian 55, Harrison 14 Smackover 28, Junction City 26 Southside Batesville 28, Brookland 3 Star City 43, Helena-West Helena 8 Strong 26, Marvell 14 Stuttgart 35, Riverview 7 Sylvan Hills 19, Jacksonville 14 Texarkana 39, Hot Springs Lakeside 31 Valley View 21, Wynne 20, OT Vilonia 17, Beebe 14 Walnut Ridge 44, Piggott 0 Warren 35, Dumas 0 West Memphis 37, El Dorado 30 White Hall 21, Morrilton 20 Woodlawn 57, Hermitage 0 POSTPONEMENTS AND CANCELLATIONS Brinkley vs. Rector, ppd. WebReadyTM Powered by WireReady® NSI Read More Here

Michael Flynn’s ReAwaken Roadshow Recruits ’Army Of God’ | EDGE Media Network https://digitalarkansasnews.com/michael-flynns-reawaken-roadshow-recruits-army-of-god-edge-media-network/ People in the audience pray during the ReAwaken America Tour at Cornerstone Church in Batavia, N.Y., Friday, Aug. 12, 2022  (Source:AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster) By the time the red, white and blue-colored microphone had been switched off, the crowd of 3,000 had listened to hours of invective and grievance. “We’re under warfare,” one speaker told them. Another said she would “take a bullet for my nation,” while a third insisted, “They hate you because they hate Jesus.” Attendees were told now is the time to “put on the whole armor of God.” Then retired three-star Army general Michael Flynn, the tour’s biggest draw, invited people to be baptized. Scores of people walked out of the speakers’ tent to three large metal tubs filled with water. While praise music played in the background, one conference-goer after another stepped in. Pastors then lowered them under the surface, welcoming them into their movement in the name of Jesus Christ. One woman wore a T-shirt that read “Army of God.” Flynn warned the crowd that they were in the midst of a “spiritual war” and a “political war” and urged people to get involved. ReAwaken America was launched by Flynn, a former White House national security adviser, and Oklahoma entrepreneur Clay Clark a few months after the Jan. 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol failed to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election. Attendees and speakers still insist — against all evidence and dozens of court rulings — that Donald Trump rightfully won. Since early last year, the ReAwaken America Tour has carried its message of a country under siege to tens of thousands of people in 15 cities and towns. The tour serves as a traveling roadshow and recruiting tool for an ascendant Christian nationalist movement that’s wrapped itself in God, patriotism and politics and has grown in power and influence inside the Republican Party. In the version of America laid out at the ReAwaken tour, Christianity should be at the center of American life and institutions. Instead, it’s under attack, and attendees need to fight to restore the nation’s Christian roots. It’s a message repeated over and over at ReAwaken — one that upends the constitutional ideal of a pluralist democracy. But it’s a message that is taking hold. A poll by the University of Maryland conducted in May found that 61% of Republicans support declaring the U.S. to be a Christian nation. “Christian nationalism really undermines and attacks foundational values in American democracy. And that is a promise of religious freedoms for all,” said Amanda Tyler, executive director of the Baptist Joint Committee, which advocates for religious freedom. She said the ReAwaken cause is “a partisan political cause, and the cause here is to spread misinformation, to perpetuate the big lie and to have a different result next time in the next election.” This story is part of an ongoing investigation from The Associated Press and the PBS series “Frontline” that includes the upcoming documentary “Michael Flynn’s Holy War,” premiering Oct. 18 on PBS and online. ReAwaken acts as a petri dish for Christian nationalism and pushes the idea that there’s a battle underway between good and evil forces. Those who are considered evil include government officials and Democrats. It’s “a pep rally on spiritual steroids.” said Kristin Kobes Du Mez, a history professor at Calvin University in Michigan, who studies evangelicalism. ReAwaken often appears in churches with speakers addressing attendees from the pulpit. The Batavia show was staged on the grounds of a church, after faith and community leaders in nearby Rochester told organizers they weren’t welcome. Inside a revival tent set up outside, people sat in white folding chairs packed so tightly the rows between were nearly impassable. From the stage, speakers stirred up fear and hatred. Immigrants are rushing over the border “to take your place,” one said. Homosexuals and pedophiles are classified in the same category: sinful people who don’t honor God. Life-saving vaccines are creating “a damn genocide.” “The enemy wants to muzzle you,” another speaker warned. “He wants to shut your mouth.” Clark, the Tour’s principal organizer and emcee, opened the Batavia show bellowing: “Good morning, New York! And good morning, New York Attorney General Letitia James!” The greeting was a reference to a letter James’ sent to Flynn and Clark warning them against violent or unlawful conduct. “I want you to look around and you’ll see a group of people that love this country dearly,” he said. “At this Reawaken America Tour, Jesus is King (and) President Donald J. Trump is our president.” The AP and Frontline bought tickets for the Batavia event after Clark invited “Frontline” to attend one of the tour’s shows. Reporters spent two days listening to speakers and observing the events from inside. On the second day, security escorted a “Frontline” reporter from the grounds because, he was told, Flynn believed he intended to cover the event unfavorably. When an AP reporter began interviewing people attending the event at the end of the second day, she was also reported to security. While smaller in scale, the ReAwaken shows are similar in tone to the rallies Trump holds. Grievance and contempt for government institutions are regular themes. ReAwaken speakers have included Trump’s sons, Eric and Don Jr., Trump confidant Roger Stone, and Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., who has spread anti-vaccine misinformation. For a tour stop scheduled later this month in Pennsylvania, Republican gubernatorial nominee Doug Mastriano is listed as a speaker. In Batavia, Greg Locke, a Tennessee pastor, and Eric Trump declared in back-to-back remarks that the FBI’s court-authorized search of Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida for classified records showed how the U.S. government has been weaponized against its citizens. “Third world Gestapo stuff,” said Eric Trump. After he finished speaking, a group gathered to pray over him. Other speakers promoted bizarre theories. One claimed President John F. Kennedy was assassinated in 1963 because he threatened to expose a plot to enslave every man, woman and child in the U.S. Another said a Hebrew prophet foretold 2,500 years ago the exact date the U.S. Supreme Court would overturn Roe v. Wade, taking away the constitutional right to abortion. There were frequent personal attacks on Democrats, with no remark apparently off limits. Clark questioned the gender of former first lady Michelle Obama. Locke called Democrats “baby-butchering mongrels.” The volatile combination of politics, Christianity and conspiracy theory pushed at the ReAwaken tour could eventually tip into political violence, several political and religious scholars told AP. Samuel Perry, a sociologist at the University of Oklahoma, has done numerous surveys measuring Christian nationalist ideology. In an August 2021 survey, about half of white Americans who most strongly identified with Christian nationalism said they believe things are getting so bad that “real patriots” may have to resort to violence. “I think all of us believe that America is on the verge of ending,” Clark told AP. ___ Flynn is a constant presence at ReAwaken America events. He is painted as a martyr on the far right — the retired general who paid a price for working for Trump. That status has made him the Tour’s star attraction. Offstage, people flock to Flynn to take photos, trade trinkets or tell him how much it means to them that he is there. He hops onstage frequently to speak or even bang a gong to welcome Eric Trump. An AP/Frontline investigation published last month reported that Flynn has used public appearances to energize voters, political endorsements to build alliances, and a network of nonprofit groups — one of which has projected spending $50 million — to advance his movement. The irony of Flynn’s aura as a populist warrior is glaring. He was the ultimate Washington insider before being fired by Trump in February 2017 for lying about contacts he had with Russians. Now, Flynn leads a crusade against the same government establishment that employed him for years and which gave him access to many of its deepest secrets. “So now, he’s a spiritual general,” said Anthea Butler, a scholar of American religion and politics at the University of Pennsylvania. Butler said that the way Flynn and ReAwaken join Christian nationalism to the idea of spiritual warfare is dangerous because it suggests there are “demonic” people in government, and Christians need to act to save the country. “If people are talking about spiritual warfare and are talking about taking up arms and stuff, then I think you should be very worried,” she said. Flynn’s battlefield experience, she added, enhances his credibility. Who exactly the United States needs to be saved from is displayed on a huge monitor on the ReAwaken America stage. The show’s villains include former President Barack Obama and Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates, but the principal foe at the center of the monitor is less familiar. He’s an 84-year-old German economist and engineer named Klaus Schwab, who heads the World Economic Forum, a global think tank in Switzerland, that holds an annual gathering of the world’s business and political elites in Davos, Switzerland, to discuss ways of building a better future. During the COVID-19 pandemic, Schwab unveiled an initiative called The Great Reset that envisioned sweeping changes to how societies and economies work. Even though Schwab and The World Economic Forum have no policymaking power, ReAwaken America participants see his plan, which spoke of “greater government interference” and a “green economy,” as an assault on America’s foundations. The other side of the giant monitor has ph...

AP News In Brief At 6:04 A.m. EDT https://digitalarkansasnews.com/ap-news-in-brief-at-604-a-m-edt-4/ Blast hits Crimea bridge, key supply route in Russia’s war KHARKIV, Ukraine (AP) — A truck bomb Saturday caused a fire and the collapse of a section of a bridge linking Russia-annexed Crimea with Russia, Russian officials said, damaging a key supply artery for Moscow’s faltering war effort in southern Ukraine. The speaker of Crimea’s Kremlin-backed regional parliament immediately accused Ukraine, though the Kremlin didn’t apportion blame. Ukrainian officials have repeatedly threatened to strike the bridge and some lauded the attack, but Kyiv stopped short of claiming responsibility. The bombing came a day after Russian President Vladimir Putin turned 70, dealing him a humiliating blow that could lead him to up the ante in his war on Ukraine. Russia’s National Anti-Terrorism Committee said that the truck bomb caused seven railway cars carrying fuel to catch fire, resulting in a “partial collapse of two sections of the bridge.” The 19-kilometer (12-mile) bridge across the Kerch Strait linking the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov opened in 2018 and is the longest in Europe. The $3.6 billion project is a tangible symbol of Moscow’s claims on Crimea and has provided an essential link to the Crimean Peninsula, which Russia annexed from Ukraine in 2014. Biden’s ‘Armageddon’ talk edges beyond bounds of US intel WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden’s warning that the world is at risk of a nuclear “Armageddon” was designed to send an unvarnished message that no one should underestimate the extraordinary danger if Russia deploys tactical nuclear weapons in its war against Ukraine, administration officials said Friday. The president’s grim assessment, delivered during a Democratic fundraiser on Thursday night, rippled around the globe and appeared to edge beyond the boundaries of current U.S. intelligence assessments. U.S. security officials continue to say they have no evidence that Vladimir Putin has imminent plans for a nuclear strike. Biden veered into talk about Ukraine at the end of his standard fundraising remarks, saying that Putin was “not joking when he talks about the use of tactical nuclear weapons or biological or chemical weapons.” “We have not faced the prospect of Armageddon since Kennedy and the Cuban Missile Crisis,” he added. He suggested the threat from Putin is real “because his military is — you might say — significantly underperforming.” White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre on Friday did not directly respond to a question about whether Biden had gone into the event intending to invoke Armageddon, as the White House sought to clarify the president’s off-the-cuff comments. Mourners pray at Thai temple filled by children’s keepsakes UTHAI SAWAN, Thailand (AP) — Grief-stricken families prayed Saturday morning at a Buddhist temple filled with children’s keepsakes, flowers and photos of the smiling toddlers who were slain as they napped on blankets at a day care center in northeastern Thailand. Coffins containing the 36 killed, 24 of them children and most of them preschoolers, were released Friday and placed inside Wat Rat Samakee and two other temples in the town nestled among rice paddies in one of Thailand’s poorest regions. Several mourners stayed at Wat Rat Samakee overnight in the tradition of keeping company for those who died young. “All the relatives are here to make merit on behalf of those who died,” said Pensiri Thana, an aunt of one of the victims, referring to an important Buddhist practice. She was among those staying the night at the temple. “It is a tradition that we keep company with our young ones. It is our belief that we should be with them so they are not lonely.” The massacre left no one untouched in the small town, but community officials found helping others was helping assuage their own grief, at least momentarily. ‘I love you, mommy’: 4-year-old Thai day care victim mourned UTHAI SAWAN, Thailand (AP) — The little girl’s nickname was Plai Fon. In Thai, it means “the end of the rainy season” — a time of happiness. And then in one horrible burst of violence, the happiness that the chubby-cheeked 4-year-old had symbolized for her adoring family was shattered. In its place is an unfathomable agony over what happened to Plai Fon in a massacre that began at her Thai day care center and left 36 people, plus the killer, dead. “When she woke up, she would say, ‘I love you, mommy and daddy and brother,’” her 28-year-old mother, Tukta Wongsila, recalled of her daughter’s usual morning routine. Tukta’s grief over the memory soon stole her breath away. At least 24 of the victims of Thursday’s gun and knife attack in northeast Thailand were children, mostly preschoolers. One day after their short lives were snuffed out, their desperate families spent hours outside an administrative office near the day care center, waiting for their children’s bodies to be released. Authorities had told the families to gather at the office so they could process compensation claims and meet the prime minister. But Tukta didn’t care about forms or formalities. She just wanted her little girl. Herschel Walker centers pitch to Republicans on ‘wokeness’ EMERSON, Ga. (AP) — Herschel Walker pitches himself as a politician who can bridge America’s racial and cultural divides because he loves everyone and overlooks differences. “I don’t care what color you are,” Georgia’s Republican Senate nominee, who is Black, told an overwhelmingly white crowd recently in Bartow County, north of Atlanta. “This is a good place,” Walker said of the United States, “and a way we make it better is by coming together.” Yet the former University of Georgia football star who calls all Georgians “my family” has staked out familiar conservative ground on America’s most glaring societal fissures, seemingly contradicting his promises of unity. Walker says those who don’t share his vision of the country can leave, and he blasts his opponent, Sen. Raphael Warnock, and the Democratic Party as the real purveyors of division. Their “wokeness” on race, transgender rights and other issues, Walker insists, threatens U.S. power and identity. “Senator Warnock believes America is a bad country full of racist people,” Walker says in one ad, a claim based on Warnock, who is also Black, acknowledging institutional racism during his sermons as a Baptist minister. “I believe we’re a great country full of generous people,” Walker concludes. That approach isn’t surprising in a state controlled for most of its history by white cultural conservatives, and it aligns Walker with many high-profile Republicans, including former President Donald Trump and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis. But Walker’s arguments make for a striking contrast in a Senate contest featuring two Black men born in the Deep South during or immediately following the civil rights movement. National Guard struggles as troops leave at faster pace WASHINGTON (AP) — Soldiers are leaving the Army National Guard at a faster rate than they are enlisting, fueling concerns that in the coming years units around the country may not meet military requirements for overseas and other deployments. For individual states, which rely on their Guard members for a wide range of missions, it means some are falling short of their troop totals this year, while others may fare better. But the losses comes as many are facing an active hurricane season, fires in the West and continued demand for units overseas, including combat tours in Syria and training missions in Europe for nations worried about threats from Russia. According to officials, the number of soldiers retiring or leaving the Guard each month in the past year has exceeded those coming in, for a total annual loss of about 7,500 service members. The problem is a combination of recruiting shortfalls and an increase in the number of soldiers who are opting not to reenlist when their tour is up. The losses reflect a broader personnel predicament across the U.S. military, as all the armed services struggled this year to meet recruiting goals. And they underscore the need for sweeping reforms in how the military recruits and retains citizen soldiers and airmen who must juggle their regular full-time jobs with their military duties. Maj. Gen. Rich Baldwin, chief of staff of the Army National Guard, said the current staffing challenges are the worst he’s seen in the last 20 years, but so far the impact on Guard readiness is “minimal and manageable.” Ukrainian authorities take stock of ruins in liberated Lyman LYMAN, Ukraine (AP) — Ukrainian authorities are just beginning to sift through the wreckage of the devastated city of Lyman in eastern Ukraine as they assess the humanitarian toll, and possibility of war crimes, from a months-long Russian occupation. Few of the buildings in the city in the Donetsk region — an area which Moscow illegally claimed as Russian territory last week following a staged “referendum” — have survived without damage, and most houses are without basic utilities. Walls around the town bear graffitied reminders of the four-month occupation by Russian troops, with words like “Russia,” “USSR” and “Russian World” scrawled on surfaces that are riddled by bullets. Mark Tkachenko, communications inspector for the Kramatorsk district police of the Donetsk region, said Friday that authorities are still searching for the bodies of civilians amid the destruction, and trying to determine causes of death. “They will look at when people died and how they died. If it was in the period when the city was occupied and they have injuries from Kalashnikov rifles, then of course, it’s a war crime,” Tkachenko told The Associated Press. Johnson, Barnes polished in 1st Wisconsin Senate debate MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Republican Sen. Ron Johnson and his Democratic challenger Lt. Gov. Mandela Barnes stuck to their scripts — ...

Flynn, Gingrich Testimony Sought In Georgia Election Probe https://digitalarkansasnews.com/flynn-gingrich-testimony-sought-in-georgia-election-probe/ ATLANTA (AP) — The Georgia prosecutor investigating whether then-President Donald Trump and others illegally tried to interfere in the 2020 election filed paperwork Friday seeking to compel testimony from a new batch of Trump allies, including former U.S. House Speaker Newt Gingrich and former national security adviser Michael Flynn. Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis filed petitions in court seeking to have Gingrich and Flynn, as well as former White House lawyer Eric Herschmann and others, testify next month before a special grand jury that’s been seated to aid her investigation. They join a string of other high-profile Trump allies and advisers who have been called to testify in the probe. Rudy Giuliani, the former New York mayor and Trump attorney who’s been told he could face criminal charges in the probe, testified in August. Attorneys John Eastman and Kenneth Chesebro have also appeared before the panel. U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham’s attempt to fight his subpoena is pending in a federal appeals court. And paperwork has been filed seeking testimony from others, including former White House chief of staff Mark Meadows. Flynn didn’t immediately respond to email and phone messages seeking comment, and his lawyer also didn’t immediately return an email seeking comment. Gingrich referred questions to his attorney, who declined to comment. Herschmann could not immediately be reached. Willis has said she plans to take a monthlong break from public activity in the case leading up to the November midterm election, which is one month from Saturday. Each of the petitions filed Friday seeks to have the potential witnesses appear in November after the election. But the process for securing testimony from out-of-state witnesses sometimes takes a while, so it appears Willis is putting the wheels in motion for activity to resume after her self-imposed pause. Compelling testimony from witnesses who don’t live in Georgia requires Willis to use a process that involves getting judges in the states where they live to order them to appear. The petitions she filed Friday are essentially precursors to subpoenas. Fulton County Superior Court Judge Robert McBurney, who’s overseeing the special grand jury, signed off on the petitions, certifying that each person whose testimony is sought is a “necessary and material” witness for the investigation. The petition for Gingrich’s testimony relies on “information made publicly available” by the U.S. House committee that’s investigating the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol. It says he was involved along with others associated with the Trump campaign in a plan to run television ads that “repeated and relied upon false claims about fraud in the 2020 election” and encouraged members of the public to contact state officials to push them to challenge and overturn the election results based on those claims. Gingrich was also involved in a plan to have Republican fake electors sign certificates falsely stating that Trump had won the state and that they were the state’s official electors even though Democrat Joe Biden had won, the petition says. The petition seeking Flynn’s testimony says he appeared in an interview on conservative cable news channel Newsmax and said Trump “could take military capabilities” and place them in swing states and “basically re-run an election in each of those states.” He also met with Trump, attorney Sidney Powell and others at the White House on Dec. 18, 2020, for a meeting that, according to news reports, “focused on topics including invoking martial law, seizing voting machines, and appointing Powell as special counsel to investigate the 2020 election,” Willis wrote. Willis in August filed a petition seeking testimony from Powell. Herschmann, who featured prominently in the House committee hearings on the Capitol attack, was a senior adviser to Trump from August 2020 through the end of his term and “was present for multiple meetings between former President Trump and others related to the 2020 election,” Willis wrote in the petition seeking his testimony. She wrote that the House committee also revealed that Herschmann had “multiple conversations” with Eastman, Giuliani, Powell “and others known to be associated with the Trump Campaign, related to their efforts to influence the results of the November 2020 elections in Georgia and elsewhere.” Specifically, he had a “heated conversation” with Eastman “concerning efforts in Georgia,” she added. Willis also filed petitions Friday to compel testimony from Jim Penrose and Stephen Cliffgard Lee. She identified Penrose as “a cyber investigations, operations and forensics consultant” who worked with Powell and others known to be associated with the Trump campaign in late 2020 and early 2021. He also communicated with Powell and others regarding an agreement to hire data solutions firm SullivanStrickler to copy data and software from voting system equipment in Coffee County, about 200 miles southeast of Atlanta, as well as in Michigan and Nevada, Willis wrote. Penrose did not immediately respond to an email and phone message seeking comment. Willis wrote in a petition seeking Lee’s testimony that he was part of an effort to pressure elections worker Ruby Freeman, who was the subject of false claims about election fraud in Fulton County. He could not immediately be reached for comment. Special grand juries are impaneled in Georgia to investigate complex cases with large numbers of witnesses and potential logistical concerns. They can compel evidence and subpoena witnesses for questioning and, unlike regular grand juries, can also subpoena the target of an investigation to appear before it. When its investigation is complete, the special grand jury issues a final report and can recommend action. It’s then up to the district attorney to decide whether to ask a regular grand jury for an indictment. Copyright 2022 Scripps Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. 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The Memo: Biden’s ‘armageddon’ Warning Raises Fresh Questions https://digitalarkansasnews.com/the-memo-bidens-armageddon-warning-raises-fresh-questions/ President Biden’s warning about the possibility of ‘armageddon’ rumbling from the battlefields of Ukraine has scrambled an already complicated picture in the eight-month conflict. Biden made the sharp warning during an appearance at a Democratic fundraiser on Thursday.  But White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre, asked Friday if there were any new intelligence assessments that had caused Biden to “ratchet up the level of concern,” responded: “No.” Jean-Pierre sought to cast the president’s words as a general warning about the dangers of an escalation and as a riposte to Russian President Vladimir Putin’s saber-rattling — not as an actual prediction that there would be a nuclear attack. “We have not seen any reason to adjust our own strategic nuclear posture, nor do we have indications that Russia is preparing to imminently use nuclear weapons,” the press secretary told reporters on board a short Air Force One flight to Hagerstown, Md. The debate over Biden’s comments is in many ways a classic Washington back-and-forth, focused on the question of whether the president’s words were out of whack with intelligence assessments and whether the White House will now have to walk them back. But the bigger picture is more important, and starker. Ukraine has made startling gains against Russian forces in recent weeks, taking back enormous swathes of territory that Putin’s troops once held.  Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky claimed late Thursday night that his forces had liberated more than 500 square kilometers of territory since the beginning of this month alone, after having run up much bigger gains throughout September. But the Ukrainian gains have had the grimly ironic effect of making Putin more desperate— and more willing to countenance the kinds of tactics that have not previously been used since the Kremlin launched the invasion in February. Putin has announced a compulsory mobilization effort that could yield 300,000 troops, and four faux referenda in eastern regions of Ukraine have been held.  The regions are largely under armed occupation and so the results — which purportedly showed two of the regions voting by 99 percent and 98 percent, respectively, to become part of Russia — were rejected by the international community.  In tandem, Putin has ramped up fears that he is prepared to use some form of nuclear weapon. “Our country has various means of destruction,” he said last month. “When the territorial integrity of our country is threatened … we will certainly use all the means at our disposal.”  The Russian president added, “It’s not a bluff.”  In a speech last week, he said that the United States had created a “precedent” for the use of nuclear weapons by its atomic bomb attacks on the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki during the Second World War. The idea that Putin might use nuclear weapons causes outrage for obvious reasons. But it has also stirred discussion as to what the United States and its allies might do in response. The Biden administration has been adamant that it will not put American “boots on the ground” in Ukraine, even as it backs Kyiv with billions of dollars in military aid.  National security adviser Jake Sullivan said last month that the U.S. had warned Russia that there would be “catastrophic” consequences in the event of such a move. But it’s simply not clear what those consequences might be. Experts advance various different ideas, most of which stop short of a direct American military attack. “I would expect NATO would respond through the Ukrainians,” said Robert Wilkie, who served as under secretary of Defense during the Trump administration and is now a distinguished national security fellow at the America First Policy Institute.  He suggested this could be done by using weapons supplied by the U.S. and other Western powers “to complete the encirclement of Putin’s troops in Crimea — meaning weapons would be used to take out their lines of retreat there, but NATO forces would never touch the ground in Ukraine.” Joel Rubin, who served as a deputy assistant secretary of State during the Obama administration, cautioned against the idea that the use of nuclear weapons by Putin would necessarily be expected to bring a symmetrical and instant response. “There is a narrative from some folks that if he uses nukes, we have to use nukes. But there is no winner in a nuclear war — everyone loses,” Rubin said.  Instead, he suggested, “all options would be available and nuclear would be one of them, but that is not the preferred choice. There would certainly be new moves to completely cut Russia off from every actor on the planet, whereas now China and Saudi Arabia are still giving oxygen to this leader.” “Maybe that would be enough,” Rubin added of such isolation. “Who knows?” The element of uncertainty, however, is one of the most unsettling elements of the current moment. In some ways, it is the kind of scenario for which Biden is well-prepared.  He was steeped in foreign policy throughout his decades in the Senate, including a stretch as chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee. His career has been long enough to encompass an era when there were real worries about nuclear war with the Soviet Union. Biden’s handling of the Russian invasion of Ukraine has won a degree of approval even from some ideological opponents, especially regarding his effectiveness in assembling and maintaining an international coalition. On the other hand, there is a legitimate question of whether he overstepped with the “armageddon” remark, perhaps raising the very tensions he is seeking to ease. Wilkie, the Trump administration veteran, called it “very disturbing” that Biden would make such a remark apparently off-the-cuff at a fundraising dinner. The gravity of the situation, Wilkie argued, “demands going to the American people and explaining what’s at issue and what’s at stake — instead of these off-script, ‘I’m a tough guy’ moments.” But even Wilkie acknowledged that, for Putin, the nuclear threats were “a sign of desperation.” The worry, across Washington and the world, is where that desperation might lead. The Memo is a reported column by Niall Stanage. Read More Here

Herschel Walker's Abortion Controversy And The Fight For Senate Control https://digitalarkansasnews.com/herschel-walkers-abortion-controversy-and-the-fight-for-senate-control/ Herschel Walker. Illustrated | Getty Images The Daily Beast reported this week that Georgia GOP Senate nominee Herschel Walker, who supports banning abortion, once urged a girlfriend to get an abortion and paid for it. The woman provided a canceled check and get-well card from Walker as proof. Walker called the report a lie, and the nation’s most powerful Republicans rallied behind him. Former President Donald Trump said Walker, once a beloved University of Georgia football star, “is being slandered and maligned.” Sen. Rick Scott (R-Fla.), the head of the Senate GOP’s campaign arm, said Democrats are afraid Walker will beat incumbent Sen. Raphael Warnock and help Republicans win control of the Senate, so they “have cranked up the smear machine.” Republican National Committee Chair Ronna McDaniel called the report “an attempt to distract from Warnock’s record.” It’s easy to understand why Walker, a former NFL player and Donald Trump’s hand-picked Georgia Senate candidate, matters so much. The Senate is evenly split 50-50, but controlled by Democrats thanks to Vice President Kamala Harris’ tie-breaking vote. If Republicans can score a net gain of just one seat in next month’s midterms, they get the gavel. And Warnock, running for reelection in a state where the GOP remains strong, is one of the most vulnerable Democrats this year. Aggregated polls show him just two percentage points ahead of Walker. Polling analysts at FiveThirtyEight have calculated that if Walker wins in Georgia, Republicans have a 60-in-100 chance to win the Senate. If Warnock wins, Democrats have an 89-in-100 chance of retaining control. How has The Daily Beast’s bombshell affected the fight for Senate control? This is a major setback for the GOP Walker has never been “a nimble candidate,” says Amanda Marcotte at Salon. But even by the former NFL player’s low standards, this was “a major fumble.” His own son is calling him a liar, and the woman in question now says she is the mother of one of Walker’s kids. Since “the aftermath of Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health, the decision used by the Trump-shaped Supreme Court to overturn Roe v. Wade,” abortion has been the issue that changed the game, rallying voters, especially women, behind Democrats fighting for abortion rights and giving Democrats hope they can limit or avoid the usual losses for a new president’s party in the midterms. Walker, who has already faced credible allegations of domestic violence and fathering children out of wedlock, has put abortion rights front and center in the campaign’s final stretch. “It certainly sounds like there’s an irresponsible person in this extremely typical abortion story. But it’s not the woman who had the abortion.” In the eyes of Republicans, like Walker, who believe that abortion is murder, Walker’s ex is accusing him of “financing the execution of his own baby,” says Steve Benen at MSNBC’s MaddowBlog. Republicans are willing to abandon such a “cringe-worthy” candidate when it suits them. Look at how fast the National Republican Congressional Committee cut off Ohio congressional candidate J.R. Majewski when he was caught making sketchy claims about his military service. But he’s running for the House, where the GOP expects to win a majority with or without him. Republicans are throwing their family values out the window for Walker. With Senate control at stake, they see him as “too big to fail.” The belief Walker is being smeared might help Republicans If anything, the early indications are that this is helping Walker’s campaign, says John Gizzi at Newsmax. In the 36 hours after The Daily Beast disclosed the allegation, “which Walker branded false, the onetime University of Georgia football great had what his campaign called a ‘record-breaking’ fund-raising day: $182,000, $50,000 of which came in during Walker’s appearances on Sean Hannity’s TV program to answer the charges” in front of millions of Fox News viewers. National Republicans are showing the same “unbending support.” This won’t cost Walker GOP votes Picking Walker over Warnock is still an easy decision for the GOP base, says Henry Olsen in The Washington Post. “Warnock is a solidly progressive Democrat who has largely backed his party’s agenda. That’s disqualifying for any partisan Republican. Warnock also unreservedly supports abortion rights, even reiterating his support for them in responding to Monday’s bombshell report.” Besides, Walker is not the only politician “trying to live down embarrassing” stories. Pennsylvania Democratic Senate nominee John Fetterman “detained an unarmed Black jogger with a shotgun in 2013.” And “let’s not forget the Republicans’ tortured defenses of the extremely flawed Donald Trump,” who deflected negative reporting all the way to the White House. Walker’s campaign manager has made the same point, says Frank Bruni in The New York Times, noting that Trump got blindsided with that Access Hollywood tape with the 2016 election looming and still won. “Is this the new G.O.P. pep talk? Buck up, folks, if we could propel a professed and proud groper of women’s genitals across the finish line, we can rescue any ethical delinquent!” By this logic, the only takeaway from something as damning as Trump’s Access Hollywood tape is that it proves to the GOP base “that desperate Democrats will do anything to try to destroy a Republican candidate but won’t necessarily succeed.” That transforms what should be a scandal “from source of shame to badge of honor, from bombshell to balm.” Their fans see the contents of the abortion claim about Walker, and Trump’s tape, in which he boasted about sexually assaulting women, “are peripheral piffle.” So far, this doesn’t change the math The latest revelations about Walker haven’t changed the odds in the Georgia Senate race, “at least not yet,” says Nathaniel Rakich at FiveThirtyEight. He’s accused of doing something hypocritical, not illegal. The distinction matters to voters. More importantly, Walker has already been hit with “multiple previous scandals,” including an ex-wife accusing him of threatening to kill her, reports of three previously unacknowledged children, and various business and personal misdeeds. “Democrats have been airing ads for weeks reminding voters of Walker’s past scandals,” and Warnock’s polling lead has remained thin. There’s still time for some voters to switch sides before Election Day. But if you were going to jump ship, you’d probably have done it already. We’ll soon see whether Walker’s “enormous reservoir of goodwill holds after the latest allegation,” says Karl Rove in The Wall Street Journal. But his race is just one of four considered critical in the fight for Senate control. Former Nevada attorney general Adam Laxalt is challenging Democratic Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto for another seat Republicans hope to flip. But in Wisconsin and Pennsylvania, Democrats are hoping to snatch seats now in GOP hands. “To win, the GOP candidates don’t need to be the most popular, just more in tune with what voters care about” Republicans have reasons for optimism, judging by the polls. But “key races ar.e still up in the air. The next 4 1/2 weeks will be rocky, and Nov. 8 a long night.” You may also like Texas error means National Guard troops deployed in Abbott’s border mission face surprise tax payments Survey reveals less than half of Americans plan to get flu shot this season 4 members of California family, including baby, found dead 2 days after abduction Read More Here

Arkansas Medical Marijuana Sales On Record Pace https://digitalarkansasnews.com/arkansas-medical-marijuana-sales-on-record-pace/ Medical marijuana plants are shown during a media tour of the Curaleaf medical cannabis cultivation and processing facility in Ravena, N.Y., in this Aug. 22, 2019 file photo. (AP/Hans Pennink) Arkansans spent $23.9 million on medical marijuana in September, putting the state on a record pace for sales this year, according to a report Friday from the Department of Finance and Administration. In total, the state’s 38 dispensaries sold 4,571 pounds of medical marijuana in September, the most of any month this year, selling on average $800,000 of cannabis each day. Arkansas is on pace to reach at least $265 million in annual medical marijuana sales which would be a record since licensed dispensaries opened in the state in May 2019. So far in 2022, dispensaries in Arkansas sold $205 million worth of medical cannabis. Natural Relief Dispensary in Sherwood led the state in sales, selling 431 pounds of medical marijuana in September. Suite 443 in Hot Springs came in second at 407 pounds. The numbers indicate a growing demand for medical marijuana since voters approved a constitutional amendment legalizing it in 2016. So far there are 92,035 people with active medical marijuana ID cards according to the Finance Department. The Finance Department reported September sales from dispensaries in the state as follows: • Suite 443, Hot Springs: 407.34 pounds • Green Springs Medical, Hot Springs: 204.36 pounds • Arkansas Natural Products, Clinton: 71.94 pounds • Greenlight Dispensary, Helena: 30.32 pounds • Native Green, Hensley: 37.69 pounds • Fiddler’s Green, Mountain View: 104.01 pounds • The Releaf Center, Bentonville: 295.60 pounds • The Source, Bentonville: 133.85 pounds • Acanza, Fayetteville: 144.50 pounds • Harvest, Conway: 209.10 pounds • Purspirit Cannabis, Fayetteville: 194.92 pounds • NEA Full Spectrum, Brookland: 135.58 pounds • 420 Dispensary, Russellville: 51.01 pounds • Fort Cannabis, Fort Smith: 85.82 pounds • Good Day Farm, Texarkana: 57.34 pounds • SuperFarm, Texarkana: 42.20 pounds • Plant Family Therapeutics, Mountain Home: 194.66 pounds • Berner’s by Good Day Farm, Little Rock: 139.68 pounds • Curaleaf, Little Rock: 67.02 pounds • Custom Cannabis, Alexander: 109.19 pounds • Natural Relief Dispensary, Sherwood: 431.75 pounds • Body and Mind Dispensary, West Memphis: 114.37 pounds • Delta Cannabis, West Memphis: 102.50 pounds • Good Day Monticello: 35.78 pounds • Enlightened Cannabis for People, Arkadelphia: 26.12 pounds • Enlightened Cannabis for People, Heber Springs: 76.74 pounds • Enlightened Cannabis for People, Morrilton: 56.86 pounds • Enlightened Cannabis for People, Clarksville: 46.07 pounds • Greenlight West Memphis: 48.65 pounds • High Bank Cannabis, Pine Bluff: 168.31 pounds • Zen Leaf, El Dorado: 51.41 pounds • Spring River Dispensary, Hardy: 113.53 pounds • Native Green Little Rock: 58.47 pounds • Hash Co., Pine Bluff: 10.53 pounds • Osage Creek Dispensary, Fayetteville: 76.08 pounds • The Treatment Cannabis Dispensary, Pine Bluff: 48.39 pounds • CROP, Jonesboro: 303.44 pounds • Good Day Farm, Van Buren: 86.66 pounds. The debate over marijuana legalization has become a major issue as the state is set to vote on whether or not to legalize the drug for recreational use in November. And, on Thursday, President Joe Biden announced he would issue pardons for thousands of people convicted of “simple possession” of marijuana under federal law. In response, Gov. Asa Hutchinson said that by issuing pardons for marijuana possession Biden “has waived the flag of surrender in the fight to save lives from drug abuse.” “The Department of Justice should not issue blanket pardons, but each case should be looked at individually,” Hutchinson said in a statement. “As Governor I have issued hundreds of pardons to those who have been convicted of drug offenses. But in this time of rising crime there should a clear record of law-abiding conduct before pardons are issued.” Read More Here

Former Fayetteville Council Candidate Testifies Against Oath Keeper Leader In Jan. 6 Trial https://digitalarkansasnews.com/former-fayetteville-council-candidate-testifies-against-oath-keeper-leader-in-jan-6-trial/ John Zimmerman of Fayetteville testified in the third day of testimony in the case against Oath Keepers founder Stewart Rhodes. Alanna Durkin Richer and Michael Kunzelman  |  The Associated Press WASHINGTON — John Zimmerman of Fayetteville, North Carolina, who was a City Council candidate in May, testified on Thursday at the criminal trial of Oath Keepers founder Stewart Rhodes. This was the third day of testimony in the case against Rhodes and four others charged with seditious conspiracy.  regarding the attack on the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. Authorities said the right-wing extremist group crafted a detailed, drawn-out plot following the 2020 election to stop the transfer of power from then-President Donald Trump to Democrat Joe Biden, who won the election. According to several news accounts of Zimmerman’s testimony, Zimmerman had been a member of the Oath Keepers and the head of the group’s chapter in Cumberland County. But he became disenchanted with Rhodes at a rally in Washington in November 2020 and quit the group. Rhodes, from Granbury, Texas, and the others are accused of spending weeks plotting to use violence in a desperate campaign to keep Trump in the White House. The others on trial are Thomas Caldwell of Berryville, Virginia; Kenneth Harrelson of Titusville, Florida; Jessica Watkins of Woodstock, Ohio; and Kelly Meggs of Dunnellon, Florida. The trial is expected to last several weeks. Authorities say the Oath Keepers organized paramilitary training and stashed weapons with “quick reaction force” teams at a Virginia hotel in case they were needed before members stormed the Capitol alongside hundreds of other Trump supporters. Rhodes’ lawyers have said the Oath Keepers leader will testify that his actions leading up to Jan. 6 were in preparation for orders he believed were coming from Trump, but never did. Rhodes has said he believed Trump was going to invoke the Insurrection Act and call up a militia to support his bid to hold power. The defense says the Oath Keepers often set up quick reaction forces for events but they were only to be used to protect against violence from antifa activists or in the event Trump invoked the Insurrection Act. Zimmerman in his testimony described getting a quick reaction force ready for the “Million MAGA March” in Washington on Nov. 14, 2020, in case Trump invoked the Insurrection Act. Thousands of Trump supporters that day gathered at Freedom Plaza along Pennsylvania Avenue in Washington to rally behind Trump’s false election claims. Zimmerman told jurors that the Oath Keepers stashed at least a dozen rifles and several handguns in his van parked at Arlington National Cemetery to serve as the quick reaction force. He said they never took the guns into Washington. Zimmerman wasn’t in the city on Jan. 6 because he was recovering from the coronavirus, and he said that after the Nov. 14 event, the North Carolina Oath Keepers split from Rhodes. Zimmerman said the split came over Rhodes’ suggestion that the Oath Keepers wear disguises to entice antifa activists to attack them so the Oath Keepers could give them a “beat down.” Zimmerman said Rhodes suggested dressing up as older people or mothers pushing strollers and putting weapons in the stroller. “I told him ‘No, that’s not what we do,’” Zimmerman said. “That’s entrapment. That’s illegal.” Zimmerman also told the jury that Rhodes previously had said he was in contact with a Secret Service agent. Rhodes claimed to have the agent’s number and to have spoken with the agent about the logistics of a September 2020 rally that then-President Donald Trump held in Fayetteville. More:Thousands of die-hard Trump supporters from all over country attend Fayetteville rally Zimmerman could not say for sure that Rhodes was speaking to someone with the Secret Service — only that Rhodes told him he was — and it was not clear what they were discussing. Zimmerman said Rhodes wanted to find out the “parameters” that the Oath Keepers could operate under during the election-year rally. The significance of the detail in the government’s case is unclear. Trump’s potential ties to extremist groups have been a focus of the House committee investigating the riot at the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. Another Oath Keeper expected to testify against Rhodes has claimed that after the riot, Rhodes phoned someone seemingly close to Trump and made a request: Tell Trump to call on militia groups to fight to keep him in power. Authorities have not identified that person; Rhodes’ lawyer says the call never happened. A Secret Service spokesperson said the agency is aware that “individuals from the Oath Keepers have contacted us in the past to make inquiries.” The agency said that when creating a security plan for events, it is “not uncommon for various organizations to contact us concerning security restrictions and activities that are permissible in proximity to our protected sites.” Jurors also heard testimony from a man who secretly recorded a Nov. 9, 2020, conference call held by Rhodes in which the leader rallied his followers to prepare for violence and go to Washington. The man, Abdullah Rasheed, said he began recording the call with hundreds of Oath Keepers members because Rhodes’ rhetoric made it sound like “we were going to war with the United States government.” Rasheed said he tried to get in touch with authorities, including the U.S. Capitol Police and the FBI, about the call but that no one called him back until “after it all happened.” An FBI agent has testified that the bureau received a tip about the call in November 2020, and when asked if the FBI ever conducted an interview, he said ”not to my knowledge.” The man contacted the FBI again in March 2021, was interviewed and gave authorities the recording of the call. In a separate case on Thursday, Jeremy Joseph Bertino of North Carolina became the first member of the Proud Boys extremist group to plead guilty to seditious conspiracy in the Jan. 6 attack. Three Oath Keeper members have also pleaded guilty to the charge. Paul Woolverton of The Fayetteville Observer contributed to this report. Read More Here

Massive Explosion Cripples Crimea's Kerch Bridge, Russian Officials Say | CNN https://digitalarkansasnews.com/massive-explosion-cripples-crimeas-kerch-bridge-russian-officials-say-cnn/ CNN  —  In a major blow for Russia, at least one explosion has severely damaged the Kerch bridge connecting the annexed Crimean peninsula with the Russian Federation. The explosion early Saturday caused parts of Europe’s longest bridge to collapse, according to images and video from the scene. The exact cause of the explosion is unclear. Russian officials said a fuel truck exploded, but two spans of the road crossing in the direction of Crimea appear to have collapsed. A subsequent fire engulfed a train of fuel trucks on a separate part of the bridge. Russian President Vladimir Putin immediately ordered a “government commission” to examine the Kerch Bridge “emergency” in Crimea, Russian state media TASS reported. The heads of Russia’s Ministry of Emergency Situations and the Ministry of Transport are now at the scene of the incident, according to TASS. Sergey Aksenov, the Russian-appointed Head of Crimea, confirmed that “two spans of the roadbed of the part [of the bridge] from Krasnodar to Kerch, collapsed” after a large explosion. Aksenov said that “at the same time, fuel tanks caught fire. Now two locomotives are approaching” to remove the burning train, he said. Video and images from the bridge show several charred rail fuel trucks. “As soon as the fire is extinguished, it will be possible to assess the extent of damage to the bridge and pillars, and it will be possible to talk about the timing of the restoration of traffic,” Aksenov said. Images of the Kerch bridge posted on social media appear to show a portion of the roadway of the vehicle and rail bridge had fallen into the waters below it. Flames are seen burning from rail cars above. It’s unclear yet if there were casualties. The tanker was located on the 19-kilometer (11 mile) long bridge – strategically important because it links Russia’s Krasnodar region with the Crimean Peninsula, which was annexed by Russia from Ukraine in 2014. The bridge spans the Kerch Strait, which connects the Black Sea to the Sea of Azov, on which sit key Ukrainian ports, including Mariupol. For Russia, the bridge symbolizes the physical “reunification” of Crimea with the Russian mainland. The bridge carries much of Crimea’s needs – such as fuel and goods – and has been used regularly to supply weapons and fuel to Russian forces. No further details on the timing or scope of the commission have been announced. The decision comes after Putin “received reports from [Russian Prime Minister] Mikhail Mishustin, [Russian Deputy Prime Minister] Marat Khusnullin, the heads of the Ministry of Emergency Situations, the Ministry of Transport, and heads of law enforcement agencies in connection with the emergency on the Crimean bridge,” TASS reported, citing Putin’s press secretary Dmitry Peskov. Russian state media RIA Novosti said that there are “no projections for the timing of the restoration of the Crimean bridge yet,” also citing Peskov. Work is “underway to extinguish the fire,” the adviser to the Russian administration head of occupied Crimea, Oleg Kryunchkov, said in a Telegram post, adding that the bridge’s “shipping arches were not damaged.” An official in Crimea blamed “Ukrainian vandals” for the explosion on Kerch bridge in a post on Telegram. “Ukrainian vandals somehow managed to get their bloody paws on the Crimean bridge. And now they have something to be proud of, in 23 years of their economic activity, they did not manage to build anything deserving of interest in Crimea. But they did succeed in damaging the roadbed of the Russian bridge,” Chairman of the State Council of the Republic of Crimea Vladimir Konstantinov said. “Such is the whole essence of the Kiev regime and the Ukrainian state … Of course, the causes of the accident will be investigated, and the damage will be repaired swiftly,” he added. CNN cannot independently verify Konstantinov’s claim. Ukrainian officials responded to the explosion Saturday without directly acknowledging that Ukraine was responsible for the explosion. “Air defense of the Russian Federation, are you sleeping?” the Navy of the Armed Forces of Ukraine said on Facebook, alongside a video showing a section of the bridge’s road that had been completely destroyed. “Russian illegal construction is starting to collapse and catch fire. The reason is simple: if you build something explosive, sooner or later, it will explode. And this is just the beginning,” David Arakhamia, the head of Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky’s party in parliament and a member of Kyiv’s negotiating team with Russia, said in a Telegram statement about the incident In an interview in August, a senior Ukrainian military commander said the Kerch bridge was a legitimate target. “This is a necessary measure in order to deprive them (Russia) of the opportunity to provide reserves and reinforce their troops from Russian territory,” Maj. Gen. Dmytro Marchenko said in an interview with RBC-Ukraine. Also Thursday, Oleksii Hromov, a senior official with the General Staff, said that since September 21, Ukrainian troops had managed to advance 55 kilometers in the north-east, “establish control over 93 settlements, [and] take control over more than 2,400 square kilometers.” Hromov appeared to be referencing gains in Kharkiv region that were made before September 21 but only confirmed later. “In the Kherson direction, the enemy is trying to counter-attack at the expense of reserves in order to restrain the advance of our troops and regain lost positions. Since October 1, 29 settlements have been taken under [our] control,” he said. Hromov said Russia had stepped up its use of Iranian-made attack drones. “Since September 30, the enemy used 46 “Shahed 136” kamikaze drones to strike military facilities, civilian infrastructure and troop positions, 24 of those drones were destroyed.” In total, Russia had used 86 “Shahed 136” drones, Hromov said. Meanwhile, a cargo train in Ilovaisk in the Russian-occupied Donetsk region was hit by a “powerful explosion” Saturday morning, according to the adviser to Mariupol Mayor Petro Andrushenko. “Not only Crimea. Not only fuel tanks. There is also a cargo train in Ilovaisk. Locals report a rather powerful explosion and subsequent detonation at night. The occupiers now have big problems with supplies from both sides,” Andrushenko said. Pro-Russian authorities in the self-declared republic of Donetsk confirmed the cargo train incident, releasing video Saturday showing the fire’s aftermath at a local railway station. On Thursday, US President Joe Biden expressed caution about the dangers stemming from Putin’s nuclear threats as his military continued to experience military setbacks in Ukraine. “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 Thursday evening during remarks at a Democratic fundraiser in New York 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. “I’m trying to figure out what is Putin’s off ramp?” Biden said during the event, “Where does he find a way out? Where does he find himself in a position that he does not not only lose face but lose significant power within Russia?” The Kerch bridge is able to handle 40,000 cars a day and to move 14 million passengers and 13 million tons of cargo per year, state news agency RIA Novosti reported when the bridge opened in 2018. Russian special forces masked in camouflage without unit insignia seized Crimea in a lightning operation in February 2014. Initially, Russia denied that its troops had carried out the mission. Later, it acknowledged that the so-called “little green men” were indeed Russian units. The West responded swiftly with crippling economic sanctions. After the bridge opened, the United States condemned its construction as illegal. “Russia’s construction of the bridge serves as a reminder of Russia’s ongoing willingness to flout international law,” according to a US State Department statement at the time. “The bridge represents not only an attempt by Russia to solidify its unlawful seizure and its occupation of Crimea, but also impedes navigation by limiting the size of ships that can transit the Kerch Strait, the only path to reach Ukraine’s territorial waters in the Sea of Azov.” Ukrainian officials echoed those sentiments following the explosion. “Crimea, the bridge, the beginning. Everything illegal must be destroyed, everything stolen must be returned to Ukraine, everything occupied by Russia must be expelled,” Mykhailo Podoliak, who is an adviser to Ukraine’s leader. Read More Here

Sherwood Man Sentenced To 2 1/2 Years For Role In Shootout That Led To Brother’s Death https://digitalarkansasnews.com/sherwood-man-sentenced-to-2-1-2-years-for-role-in-shootout-that-led-to-brothers-death/ A 22-year-old Sherwood man accused of participating in a College Station shootout in which his brother was killed has accepted a 2½-year prison sentence. Corenthia Chef “Peanut” Davie of Sherwood, a 32-year-old father of two, was killed by gunshots to his face and shoulder during the March 2020 incident, which began as a fight between Davie’s sister and another woman at the basketball court at 4200 Frazier Pike, according to authorities. Davie’s brother, Steve Cokley III of Sherwood, pleaded guilty to aggravated assault in exchange for the 30-month term imposed by Pulaski County Circuit Judge Karen Whatley, sentencing papers filed on Monday show. He faced up to six years on the Class D felony charge. Under the conditions of his plea agreement, negotiated by deputy prosecutor Hannah Johnston and defense attorney Will James, his prison sentence will run concurrently with a 35-month federal sentence Cokley received in November after pleading guilty to possession of an unregistered firearm, a rifle with a sawed-off barrel that Cabot police seized from him in a September 2020 encounter. Investigators believe the fatal violence grew out of a fight between 31-year-old Charity Unique Duckett, a sister of Davie and Cokley, and another woman, although the nature of the dispute was not made clear. A crowd had gathered to watch the fight. A woman who tried to stop the fight was struck from behind by Cokley, who was in turn knocked to the ground by part of the crowd that opposed Duckett, according to arrest reports. Three people tried to hold Cokley down, but 33-year-old Carrington Akins of Sherwood, another brother to Davie and Cokley, intervened and Cokley was able to regain his footing and start shooting, authorities said. Court records show that Pulaski County sheriff’s deputies obtained a cellphone video of the shooting that showed Davie standing in the middle of the court holding what appears to be an AK-47 before a shirtless man walks up behind him and points a gun at him, court filings show. The recording then shows Cokley firing at a crowd of people running away before shifting back to the basketball court where Davie’s body can be seen. Witnesses identified the shirtless man as 20-year-old Derek Jermaine Parks of Little Rock. He was arrested on a first-degree murder count but prosecutors declined to charge him. Davie was killed about 20 months after his mother was killed at the family’s home in Sherwood in a shootout that police said involved Cokley. Authorities say 46-year-old Regina Annice Jackson, a mother of six, was killed by 22-year-old Zereak Zernell Oliver of Little Rock while he tried to steal a Ruger AR-556 rifle from Cokley. According to Sherwood police, Oliver and another man had gone to the house to buy the AR-15-style rifle from Cokley. Police said that Oliver, trying to take the weapon by force, fired a pistol into the home with Cokley returning fire with the gun, known on the street as a “chopper.” Authorities said Oliver and the other man fled the home in Oliver’s car, which led to a high-speed police chase into Little Rock. During the pursuit, someone in the vehicle threw out a backpack containing a 9 mm pistol, which matched a spent shell casing found in front of Jackson’s home, according to police. Oliver is currently awaiting trial on charges of first-degree murder, committing a terroristic act, fleeing and evidence tampering. Read More…

OPEC+ Oil Output Cut Shows Widening Rift Between Biden And Saudi Royals https://digitalarkansasnews.com/opec-oil-output-cut-shows-widening-rift-between-biden-and-saudi-royals/ WASHINGTON/LONDON, Oct 8 (Reuters) – The OPEC+ organization’s decision this week to cut oil production despite stiff U.S. opposition has further strained already tense relations between President Joe Biden’s White House and Saudi Arabia’s royal family, once one of Washington’s staunchest Middle East allies, according to interviews with about a dozen government officials and experts in Washington and the Gulf. The White House pushed hard to prevent the OPEC output cut, these sources said. Biden hopes to keep U.S. gasoline prices from spiking again ahead of midterm elections in which his Democratic party is struggling to maintain control of the U.S. Congress. Washington also wants to limit Russia’s energy revenue during the Ukraine war. The U.S. administration lobbied OPEC+ for weeks. In recent days, senior U.S. officials from energy, foreign policy and economic teams urged their foreign counterparts to vote against an output cut, according to two sources familiar with the discussions. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com Amos Hochstein, Biden’s top energy envoy, along with national security official Brett McGurk and the administration’s special envoy to Yemen Tim Lenderking, traveled to Saudi Arabia last month to discuss energy issues, including the OPEC+ decision. They failed to prevent an output cut, just as Biden did after his own July visit. US officials “tried to position it as ‘us versus Russia,'” said one source briefed on the discussions, telling Saudi officials they needed to make a choice. That argument failed, the source said, adding that the Saudis said that if the United States wanted more oil on the markets, it should start producing more of its own. The United States is the world’s No. 1 oil producer and also its top consumer, according to data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration. The Saudi government media office CIC did not respond to Reuters emailed requests for comment about the discussions. “We are concerned first and foremost with the interests of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and then the interests of the countries that trusted us and are members of OPEC and the OPEC + alliance,” Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz told Saudi TV Wednesday. OPEC weighs its interests with “those of the world because we have an interest in supporting the growth of the global economy and providing energy supplies in the best way,” he said. Washington’s handling of the Iran nuclear deal and withdrawal of support for a Saudi-led coalition’s offensive military operations in Yemen have upset Saudi officials, as have actions against Russia after the February 2022 invasion of Ukraine. A U.S. push for a price cap on Russian oil is causing uncertainty, Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman told Bloomberg TV after the OPEC cut, noting the “lack of details and the lack of clarity” about how it will be implemented. A source briefed by Saudi officials said the kingdom views it as “a non-market price-control mechanism, that could be used by a cartel of consumers against producers.” A Biden-directed sale of 180 million barrels of oil in March from the U.S. Strategic Petroleum Reserve put downward pressure on oil prices. In March, OPEC+ said it would stop using data from the International Energy Agency (IEA), a Western oil watchdog, due to Saudi-led concerns the United States had too much influence. On Thursday, Biden called the Saudi decision “a disappointment”, adding Washington could take further action in the oil market. “Look it’s clear that OPEC Plus is aligning with Russia,” White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said on Wednesday. She would not elaborate on how the output cut would affect U.S.-Saudi relations. In the U.S. Congress, Biden’s Democrats called for the withdrawal of U.S. troops from Saudi Arabia and spoke about taking back weapons. “I thought the whole point of selling arms to the Gulf States despite their human rights abuses, nonsensical Yemen War, working against US interests in Libya, Sudan etc, was that when an international crisis came, the Gulf could choose America over Russia/China,” Senator Chris Murphy, a Democrat, said on Twitter. Saudi minister of state for foreign affairs Adel Al-Jubeir, said in remarks to Fox News on Friday when asked about the U.S. criticism: “Saudi Arabia does not politicize oil or oil decisions.” “With due respect, the reason you have high prices in the United States is because you have a refining shortage that has been in existence for more than 20 years,” he added. CROWN PRINCE AND BIDEN Weeks after Biden took office as president, Washington released a report tying the 2018 killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi to Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. The prince, son of King Salman, 86, has denied ordering the killing but acknowledged it took place “under my watch”. The prince became prime minister last month and his lawyers have been arguing in a U.S. court that this makes him immune from prosecution in the Khashoggi death. Biden’s trip to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, in July for a Gulf summit was aimed at patching up relations, but he also levied harsh criticism of bin Salman over Khashoggi’s murder. Ben Cahill, a senior fellow at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, said the Saudis hope the production cuts will give OPEC+ control over oil prices and ensure enough oil revenue to protect their country from a recession. “The macroeconomic risk is getting worse all the time, so they have to respond,” Cahill said. “They are aware that a cut will irritate Washington, but they are managing the market.” Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com Reporting By Steve Holland, Timothy Gardner and Jarrett Renshaw in Washington; Dmitry Zhdannikov in London, Aziz El Yaakoubi in Riyadh, Ghaida Ghantous in Dubai and Ahmed Tolba in Cairo. Editing by Heather Timmons, David Gregorio and Jane Merriman Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles. Read More Here

Donald Trump https://digitalarkansasnews.com/donald-trump-3/ From coal miner’s daughter to presidential adviser – Dr Fiona Hill has returned to the North East to receive her honorary doctorate with hopes of inspiring others. Dr Hill visited the University of Sunderland’s city campus on October 5 where she spoke about her experiences serving as Russian advisor to three US presidents, before she was made a senior director for Europe and Russia on the country’s National Security Council by Donald Trump. But despite working for top officials on the other side of the world, Dr Hill said it is her roots in the North East that kept her grounded, and gave her the steely grit and determination needed to succeed. Read more: North Shields couple slapped with fine after getting stuck for hours in gridlocked Tesco car park “I cannot express what a huge honour this is for me. I just wish my and mam and dad were here to see this,” said Fiona. “My dad left school at 14 and always wanted that education, and so always pushed me towards this, and I know he would be thrilled by this honorary degree from Sunderland. He always supported the football team, and my mum worked in Sunderland at the Royal Infirmary, it was her first nursing job. Dr Fiona Hill at Hope Street XChange (Image: David Wood) “This city meant a lot to them and I’m delighted to be able to come back here today and share my own story. This really is a special place with very special people. This is a huge honour and I’m so grateful.” She was awarded an honorary doctorate of laws “in recognition of her outstanding contribution to public service in the US at the highest level”, the university said. Dr Hill later found herself at the centre of a global news story, as she was called upon to give evidence at Mr Trump’s first impeachment hearing in 2019. And it was once again her strong upbringing that helped her to remain calm under such extreme circumstances, taking a leaf from her father’s book, who first went down the pit aged 14. “We were delighted to award Fiona Hill an honorary doctorate of laws as it was our way of acknowledging the extraordinary global achievements of this remarkable woman from the north east of England,” said the university’s vice chancellor and chief executive Sir David Bell. “We look forward to developing a warm and productive relationship with Fiona in the months and years to come.” Dr Hill, who grew up in Bishop Auckland, County Durham, recently released her book, ‘There Is Nothing for You Here: Finding Opportunity in the 21st Century’, documenting her life from her upbringing to the peak of her success in America. Read more: Sunderland woman who feared she couldn’t afford bills becomes award-winning makeup artist Demand for North East addiction charity soars during cost of living crisis Meet Stumpy – the young duck in desperate need of a prosthetic leg after his dropped off Matfen Hall workers could lose their jobs as hotel closes for second part of refurbishment Eye condition caused Cullercoats mum to lose her sight when her baby was just three months old Read More Here

US Tightens Policy On Counter-Terrorism Drone StrikesSEXI News https://digitalarkansasnews.com/us-tightens-policy-on-counter-terrorism-drone-strikessexi-news/ WASHINGTON: President Biden’s administration has tightened policy regarding counter-terrorism drone strikes, US media reports say. The policy requires presidential approval before adding a suspected terrorist to the list of people who may be targeted in a return to more centralized control of decisions about targeted killing operations. Trump had given commanders in the field more authority to decide who to target. Biden has signed a classified policy limiting drone strikes outside traditional war zones, with former President Donald Trump tightening the rules, according to officials. The policy, which the White House sent to the Pentagon and the CIA, institutionalizes a version of the temporary limits that Biden’s team put in place as a stopgap to reduce risks to civilians while the administration asked Trump Anti-terrorist policies were reviewed. The statement of the policy, along with a classified new counter-terrorism strategy memorandum signed by President Biden, states that the United States intends to launch fewer drone strikes and commando raids from recognized war zones than in recent days. . The Biden administration’s rules apply to attacks in poorly governed locations where terrorists are active but the United States does not consider “areas of active hostilities.” Only Iraq and Syria – where US forces and allies are fighting Islamic State remnants – are currently considered traditional war zones where the new rules will not apply and commanders in the region order counter-terrorist air strikes or raids without demand. Latitude to give. White House approval, the official said. That means the rules will limit such operations in many other countries where the United States has conducted drone strikes in recent years, including Afghanistan, Somalia and Yemen as well as Pakistan’s tribal region, according to analysts. The number of counter-terrorist raids and drone strikes in many affected countries has decreased in recent years. The last US drone strikes in Pakistan and Yemen were in 2018 and 2019. This summer, a US drone strike in Afghanistan killed al Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahari. notes Read More Here

Jackie Calmes: No Matter What Happens In The Midterms, Republicans Won https://digitalarkansasnews.com/jackie-calmes-no-matter-what-happens-in-the-midterms-republicans-won/ Brace yourself: Voting is underway and we’re just one month away from what will likely be the most consequential midterm elections in years. Certainly the most consequential of the 10 cycles I’ve covered over four decades, perhaps second only to the 1994 elections that gave Republicans control of both houses of Congress for the first time in 40 years. Whatever the outcome — whether Republicans win majorities in the House and Senate, one chamber or neither — one thing is all but certain: Win or lose, the result won’t be good for the party’s long-term health or for the country’s. That’s because a loss won’t be the shellacking the Republicans need to reform and turn from their antidemocratic path. And if they win, well, they’ll just triple down. Only voters’ total repudiation might force Republicans to reckon with Trumpism. When a party is humiliated, its partisans look inward and correct course, as Democrats did after the Reagan era. A comeuppance didn’t work to change Republicans after 2020, when President Trump lost, because the party made gains in other contests. (So much for Democrats’ supposed rigging of the election.) By most accounts, Republicans won’t be repudiated this year either. They only need net gains of five seats in House races and one in Senate contests to take over Congress. They’ve been favored from the start to capture the House, though it’s no longer a sure thing. This despite their sorry record during this two-year Congress, which began with nearly two-thirds of Republicans voting against certifying President Biden’s election, even amid the blood and breakage left by Trump’s insurrectionists that day. The Senate is up for grabs. Polls suggest Republicans in swing states have either closed their summer gap against their Democratic rivals (Pennsylvania, Georgia, Colorado) or pulled slightly ahead (Wisconsin, Nevada). The tightening was expected in marquee races with Democratic front-runners — notably John Fetterman’s run in Pennsylvania against Mehmet Oz and Sen. Raphael Warnock’s bid for reelection in Georgia against Herschel Walker. (That was before this week’s reports alleging that the purportedly antiabortion Walker paid a longtime girlfriend, one of four women to have a child with him, to abort a pregnancy.) Overall, Republican voters are falling in line as Nov. 8 approaches. Money is flowing to candidates in tight races, notably from Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell’s fundraising committee. And nasty ads are airing on Republicans’ behalf, many blaming Democrats for crime. A new one in North Carolina unabashedly throws down the race card against Democrat Cheri Beasley, an African American former chief justice of the state Supreme Court who is running against Trumpist Rep. Ted Budd to take a Republican-held seat. Historical trends are at play against Democrats, too, of course. Midterm elections have favored the party out of power for over a century. Several factors potentially make this cycle unique, however, and give Democrats hope: There’s the backlash against the Supreme Court’s Dobbs ruling overturning Roe vs. Wade and red states’ rush to ban most or all abortions, and then there’s the looming presence of Trump. Republicans are saddled with a defeated president so narcissistic that he can’t stand to have an election that’s not about him. His sore-loser prominence on rally platforms and in the media, together with the record unpopularity of a right-wing Supreme Court he shaped, has Republicans in swing states on the defensive in a way that’s unusual for the party out of power. This week the New York Times’ election data-cruncher, Nate Cohn, wrote that while the likeliest outcome remains a Republican House majority, “the idea that Democrats can hold the House is not as ridiculous, implausible or far-fetched as it seemed before the Dobbs ruling.” The Cook Political Report’s update on Wednesday agreed a Republican House majority was “the likeliest outcome,” yet its more restrained forecast had Republicans picking up barely what they need. As for the Senate, the analysts at FiveThirtyEight.com posted a piece Thursday with the headline “Democrats are slightly favored to win the Senate.” Even the worst-case scenarios for Republicans, however, don’t suggest an outcome that would spur them to break from far-right extremism. Their intransigence reflects more than just polarization. What’s at work is a “calcification” of politics rooted in voters’ racial, national, ethnic and religious outlooks, three political scientists wrote last month in the Washington Post about tribalism in both parties. “Voters are increasingly tied to their political loyalties and values. They have become less likely to change their basic political evaluations or vote for the other party’s candidate,” according to John Sides of Vanderbilt and Chris Tausanovitch and Lynn Vavreck of UCLA. Take Walker — he should be a dead man walking, what with the abortion allegation piled on all the other evidence he’s unfit for the Senate. Yet his party support hasn’t eroded, perhaps because Trump has so discredited accurate media reporting among Republicans that Georgia’s conservative voters simply cannot accept the allegation as anything but fake news. Here’s another belief that has calcified among Republicans: the “Big Lie.” On Thursday the Washington Post reported that a majority of Republican nominees for the House, Senate and key statewide offices — 299 in all, in every region and nearly every state — deny or question Biden’s election. Most are likely to win — they are running for safe Republican seats — giving them some role in certifying future elections, whether as governors, election administrators or members of Congress. That doesn’t bode well for our democracy. Americans have seen this movie. We may see it again. ____ Read More Here

Karlie Kloss, Joshua Kushner Stay Mum On Ye's SKIMS Allegations As They Step Out In New York City https://digitalarkansasnews.com/karlie-kloss-joshua-kushner-stay-mum-on-yes-skims-allegations-as-they-step-out-in-new-york-city/ Karlie Kloss and her husband Joshua Kushner stayed mum on Kanye “Ye” West’s recent allegations regarding Kushner’s investment in Kim Kardashian’s shapewear and clothing company SKIMS. During an appearance on “Tucker Carlson Tonight” Thursday, the 45-year-old told Carlson that he wasn’t informed that he had a smaller stake in his ex-wife’s company than Kushner. He alleged that he was kept in the dark about the fact that Kusher owned 10% of SKIMS while West himself only held a 5% stake in the company, which is valued at $3.2 billion as of January 2022. However, the 30-year-old supermodel and the 37-year-old businessman remained silent when questioned about West’s statements by paparazzi who filmed them as they stepped out in New York City on Friday. “You know, I had dinner with Ivanka [Trump], Jared [Kushner], and Josh [Kushner] and a couple of days later, I found out that Josh Kushner had 10 percent of SKIMS, which is a line that I had developed with Kim and I had a lot of issues with the imagery of SKIMS,” the “Flashing Lights” hitmaker told Carlson. YE DECLARES ‘WAR’ ON DIDDY OVER ‘WHITE LIVES MATTER’ SHIRT CRITICISM: ‘YOU GUYS ARE BREAKING MY HEART’ He continued, “So, I found out after this dinner that Josh Kushner had 10 percent of SKIMS, and I had five percent of SKIMS… and I’m sure Jared [Kushner] still has a piece of that.” “I said, ‘Hey, Josh, what if I had 10 percent of [Kushner’s wife] Karlie Kloss’ lingerie shapewear swimsuit line, and you have five percent of it, and you didn’t know? How would that make you feel?'” The Yeezy entrepreneur also shared, “As a person that has really built something from nothing, when I sit across the table from Josh Kushner, and he just feels so entitled to that idea and this person has never brought anything of value other than so-called being a good venture capitalist, I have a major — I have a major issue with that.” Representatives for Kushner and Kloss had no comment. Kardashian, 41, and Swedish entrepreneur Jens Grede founded SKIMS in 2019. In April 2021, Kardashian told the New York Times that Ye was “super involved” in the beginning. The “Kardashians” star explained that her then-husband had offered “frank criticism” of the SKIMS packaging. Kushner’s firm Thrive Capital led the $154 million financing of SKIMS during the company’s Series A round of funding in April 2021, per Crunchbase. Thrive Capital also participated in SKIMS’ Series B rounding of funding in January 2022, which raised $240 million. West also took aim at Kushner on Thursday, ahead of his appearance on “Tucker Carlson Tonight.” In a now-deleted Instagram post, Ye wrote, “F—K JOSH KUSHNER.” “WHAT IF I HAD 10% OF KARLIE KLOSS UNDERWEAR LINE WITHOUT YOU KNOWING,” he continued. “AND YOU ONLY HAD 5%.” CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP FOR THE ENTERTAINMENT NEWSLETTER “WITHOUT YOU KNOWING”. Ye also referred to Kushner’s brother Jared and his wife Ivanka Trump in the post. Jared and Ivanka both served as senior advisors to the latter’s father U.S. President Donald Trump during his administration. “JARED WAS HOLDING TRUMP BACK,” he wrote. “IVANKA IS FIRE,” West added. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP Fox New Digital’s Will Mendelson contributed to this report. Read More Here

Time For Americans To Stand For A New Moral Core – Fair Observer https://digitalarkansasnews.com/time-for-americans-to-stand-for-a-new-moral-core-fair-observer/ It sure seems that royalty sells in America. Amid the pomp and ritual, Queen Elizabeth II got some recognition for avoiding tyrannical solutions to confronting her country’s diminished role in the world.  Yet, with all those castles and all those soldiers, it sure seemed like the queen could have done something to avoid the UK’s break with the EU. But the old lady wouldn’t go there, even though she probably realized what a bad idea Brexit happened to be. So, while the UK took a breather from falling apart to bury Elizabeth II, Americans seemed to welcome a similar breather in the hopeful march toward Trump’s indictment. Sharing the international stage with the queen, the war in Ukraine slogs on with cheerleaders continuing to applaud the plucky Ukrainians. Death and destruction continue, badly needed grain shipments rot in silos and ports, and a cold European winter is about to set in with limited fuel options. Even as the usual killing fields suffer carnage, climate change continues to wreak havoc. Children continue to go to bed hungry and preventable disease festers. Cheap Labor Fuels an Exploitative Economy  Now inflation is added to the mix and is producing excessive hand wringing over the economy in the US and elsewhere. Curiously, this angst seems most acute among those impacted the least. For poor people and poor nations, the global economic system is what it has always been – rigged to serve those with resources at the expense of those without resources.  Meanwhile, there is little sign in the US that major lifestyle changes are afoot among the middle class and surely none to be found among the wealthy. Packed airports and stadiums are a far better barometer of economic hardship than trying to figure out if bottom round is replacing T-bone steak in shopping baskets. As is often the case, the working poor are present in the inflation discussion but absent from the solution. Watching six-figure news readers carry on about inflation after just getting back from their summer vacations is laughable but only further obscures the depth of the problem for those with limited or no income and rising fixed expenses that they can’t meet. So, this would be a good time in America to talk about raising the federal minimum wage. That minimum wage is still $7.25 per hour or a whopping $290 for a 40-hour work week. Even so, it seems in America that it is never a good time to raise minimum wages across the board to ensure a living wage adjusted for inflation. The real problem with this good idea is that the cost of the basic services in our communities would likely go up. Imagine having to pay more to the people who clean houses, mow lawns, pick up trash, and generally make our lives easier. While many bitch about the cost of that T-bone steak, the working poor suck it up, work longer hours and multiple jobs, and eat a lot of beans and pasta. And here is the point: those working poor are shielding the rest of us from what should be the real inflationary costs of our collective excesses and corporate greed. But now there is another catch. There don’t seem to be enough workers hanging around waiting for low wages to fill the low-paying jobs that support those excesses and corporate greed, so we are now doubly screwed. Prices are going up and basic services are going down. However, the long-term solution that seems most popular with many, except the working poor, is for the working poor to have more poor babies and then continue to provide the poor education, indecent housing, and unreliable health care that will ensure another generation of low-wage workers. Or, how about immigration reform?  Instead of waiting for new American poor babies to grow up, Americans could figure out how to parse out immigrants to communities in need of low-wage workers, gin up some dormitory housing, open a food pantry so they can eat, and then pay them a wage that looks good to them while knocking out any likelihood of low-wage inflationary pressures. Both McDonalds and your lawn will thrive anew. The Limits of the Right Maybe you can see where this is heading. I want Governor Ron DeSantis to denude Florida of as many hardworking immigrants as he can find. Like international sister cities, America could develop its own sister sanctuaries program matching a sanctuary for White racists and Christian nationalists with another sanctuary that would welcome the Black and Brown immigrants so abhorrent to those racist Florida communities. Using the DeSantis model, a matching sanctuary community would be found to welcome the diverse, hardworking, often skilled, low-wage workers that a significant segment of Floridians apparently wants shipped out of state. This would be good news, as well, for those looking for immigrants from White racist communities in Texas and Arizona. We start there, and the movement grows. All of sudden, politicians willing to cruelly demonize immigrants would find their constituents trash on their overgrown lawns. Then think how inconvenient it would be if a good portion of those low-wage Latino workers in restaurants and country clubs headed out of town to a real welcoming sanctuary community somewhere else. While this all sounds fanciful, it just might work to break the back of the resistance to a humane and inclusive American immigration policy. This would be putting inflationary pressures to good use and remind those doing all the hand wringing that they are doing so at the expense of the working poor. Maybe, with all of this wreckage around us, there will be a slowly creeping understanding that America’s self-delusional “exceptionalism” is just that and nothing more – self-delusion. Fantasy works sometimes in the movies, but it won’t last in real life. Maybe it took a warped Supreme Court, a dysfunctional Congress, an exposed insurrection, an unraveling rule of law, and a plane load of defrauded immigrants seeking asylum to finally begin to undermine the fantasy. A New Moral Core for America Women and thoughtful young people seem to be deciding that they are tired of rich White men and the people they buy trampling on the simple notions of access to meaningful healthcare and the freedom for women to make life choices for themselves. Many seem even more energized about losing access to their own healthcare than they ever were about making sure that everybody had access to meaningful healthcare in the first place. But they care now. Also, there is some evidence that when essential governance is really threatened, Americans will awaken to protect and promote the governmental institutions required to confront existential problems like climate change and required to ensure the minimum infrastructure and basic services at the core of desirable community life. It is possible that this will be enough in the weeks ahead to see the shameless right-wing vacuum collapse and suck Trump, his acolytes, his family, and his friends into the vortex. However, if their cruelty prevails and the nation’s government continues at a stalemate, there certainly will be additional suffering in the land. If you have any doubts about any of this, you are likely beyond hope.  But this may be the moment to actually think about the kind of community in which you want to live and who is most likely to lead you there. Think about the gun nut governors working to ensure that another school massacre comes to a neighborhood near you. Think about children without enough to eat and immigrant children bussed like cattle to be someone else’s problem. Think about all of this and more. It is way past time for Americans to start standing for something with a clear moral core. Put the inflationary hand wringing on hold long enough to vote for a nation that we can start to be proud of. This could, at the least, provide a foundation for confronting the corporate greed, political corruption, White racism and White Christian nationalism that stand in the way of realizing an equality of opportunity and the social and racial justice needed to achieve it. *[This article was first published on the author’s blog, Hard Left Turn.] The views expressed in this article are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect Fair Observer’s editorial policy. Read More Here

Arkansas Postcard Past https://digitalarkansasnews.com/arkansas-postcard-past-5/ Blytheville, 1920: Friday’s feature showed the school building to the left in 1910. A decade later the town had built a new, “modern” school annex, adjoining on the right. Blytheville, 1920: Friday’s feature showed the school building to the left in 1910. A decade later the town had built a new, “modern” school annex, adjoining on the right. In 1920 the average Arkansas schoolteacher earned $476 a year, $200 more than a decade earlier. The population of the city had risen to 6,500; it had 13,735 as of 2020. Arkansas Postcard Past, P.O. Box 2221, Little Rock, AR 72203 ADVERTISEMENT Sponsor Content Read More…

Voters To Clarify Separation Of Powers With Amendment 1 https://digitalarkansasnews.com/voters-to-clarify-separation-of-powers-with-amendment-1/ — Members of the West Virginia Senate were prepared to sit as the court of impeachment in 2018 when articles were presented against state Supreme Court justices, but the proceedings were halted by court order. CHARLESTON – West Virginia voters will decide on a constitutional amendment in November that could make it clear that impeachment powers lie exclusively with the Legislature, but opponents believe it could provide no recourse for future political retributions. Voters have four state constitutional amendments on the ballot when early voting starts on Oct. 26 and on election day on Nov. 8, including Amendment 1. Amendment 1 would add language to the Constitution stating “courts have no authority or jurisdiction to intercede or intervene in or interfere with impeachment proceedings of the House of Delegates or the Senate.” Amendment 1 also clarifies that no judgements rendered by the Senate in an impeachment trial can be appealed or reviewed by circuit courts, the new Intermediate Court of Appeals or the state Supreme Court of Appeals. Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Charles Trump, R-Morgan, said Amendment 1 was a response by the Legislature to actions taken in 2018 by an appointed panel of judges acting as the Supreme Court after former justice Margaret Workman filed a lawsuit to halt her impeachment trial in the Senate after the House of Delegates filed articles of impeachment against all the justices of the high court at that time. “I and many others always thought the Constitution was clear…it was never in anyone’s imagination that the judiciary could intervene or intercede in that process,” Trump said. “It is critically important that we maintain the constitutional checks and balances…and that we don’t create a super-authority in a single branch of government that has authority over the other two in all cases.” Isaac Sponaugle is an attorney and a former Democratic member of the House of Delegates from Pendleton County. He led the opposition in the House to the articles of impeachment against Workman, Davis, and Walker. He is concerned Amendment 1 would insulate lawmakers from scrutiny if they decide to violate an official’s due process rights in future impeachment proceedings. “In essence, the amendment would strip away due process rights for an individual going through the impeachment process,” Sponaugle said. Gov. Jim Justice called a special session June 2018 for the Legislature to start impeachment proceedings after months of reports and audits showing waste, fraud and abuse by several justices, including former justices Loughry and Menis Ketchum, both of whom were charged by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia. Ketchum resigned in July 2018 and pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud prior to impeachment proceedings. Loughry was convicted of 11 charges in U.S. District Court in October 2018. In August 2018, the House adopted 11 articles of impeachment against Loughry, Workman, Davis and Walker. Davis resigned the day after impeachment before she could be tried in the Senate. Only Walker, who now serves as chief justice, faced an impeachment trial at the beginning of October 2018. She was acquitted and censured in the one catch-all impeachment charge that accused all four justices of maladministration. Workman, who was next to be tried before the Senate on her impeachment charges, filed suit before the Supreme Court. An all-appointed Supreme Court panel made up of circuit court judges put a stop to Workman’s impeachment trial in a 3-2 decision in October 2018. The judges stated in their ruling that the House did not follow its own impeachment rules it adopted to impeach Workman, Walker and the other justices. The court also argued the House violated the separation of powers by citing the Canons of Judicial Ethics in several of the impeachment charges. The Senate and House appealed the Supreme Court decision to the U.S. Supreme Court in 2019. After arguments by both Workman and the Legislature were submitted, the U.S. Supreme Court declined to review the state Supreme Court’s ruling on the constitutional issues raised by its halting of the impeachment trials. Trump said Workman’s attorneys also filed motions before the Senate acting as the impeachment court raising issues with how the House conducted itself when crafting the articles of impeachment. Those arguments were valid to make, but they should have been made during the impeachment trial instead of the state Supreme Court, he said. “There were arguments that were raised by then-justice Workman that I would characterize as non-frivolous arguments about whether or not there were defects in the way the articles of impeachment were adopted in the House of Delegates,” Trump said. “But the place to make those arguments – and the only place to make those arguments – was the West Virginia Senate, which has the sole constitutional authority to try impeachments.” But Sponaugle said that future impeachment proceedings would benefit from having third-party scrutiny to step in. While he believes that the courts can’t overrule the Senate if it rules in favor of an article of impeachment, Sponaugle does believe the courts have a right to step in if the House violates its own rules it uses to come up with articles of impeachment. “The whole point of due process is when the state acting here, it would be the Legislature, the proceedings have to be fair,” Sponaugle said. “The state can set whatever rules it wants to set, but they need to follow the rules. If you don’t follow your own rules, that’s when due process kicks in.” Trump also cited a 2010 state Supreme Court decision in Holmes v. Clawges, where justices ruled in favor of the Legislature in a matter where a circuit court tried to force the Legislature to remove mention of a pardon from its official journals. Trump believes the appointed Supreme Court in 2018 ignored prior precedents upholding the Legislature’s authority over its own procedures. “It is a fundamental principle of constitutional law that under the Separation of Powers doctrine, courts have no authority– by mandamus, prohibition, contempt or otherwise — to interfere with the proceedings of either house of the Legislature,” Ketchum wrote in the majority opinion at the time. “That is the standing syllabus point…that governs the question of whether or not the judiciary can just interject itself into those proceedings,” Trump said. “The court itself eight years before said absolutely not under any circumstances. That’s what separation of powers requires, that the three branches of government stay in their own lane.” Sponaugle agrees with Trump that the courts can’t interfere with the internal rules of the House and Senate. It’s when the House and Senate act outside of those rules when the courts should have jurisdiction. “There are checks and balances on all three branches of government,” Sponaugle said. “There would be no checks and balances with Amendment 1. There would just be one body that would be weighing in on it. I think the judiciary has a very limited check in regards to impeachment proceedings and judgements, but I do think it’s a good check. At the end of the day, you want to make sure these are good checks on the proceedings. If you eliminate that and if there are no guardrails, then anything can happen.” Regardless of what happens with Amendment 1, Trump does not want to go through another impeachment process of state elected officers anytime soon. “I hope with all my heart that no future legislature or the citizens of West Virginia never again have to go through a situation where high judicial officials of the state are impeached and have to undergo impeachment trials,” Trump said. “I hope there is never any future circumstances when this occurs.” (Adams can be contacted at sadams@newsandsentinel.com) Today’s breaking news and more in your inbox Read More Here

How Ukrainians, Targeting By Drone, Attacked Russian Artillery In Kherson https://digitalarkansasnews.com/how-ukrainians-targeting-by-drone-attacked-russian-artillery-in-kherson/ October 8, 2022 at 1:00 a.m. EDT A Ukrainian soldier who goes by the call name ”Viter” carries a Leleka-100 drone about to be launched, and carefully navigates his way through a field on Thursday in the Kherson region, Ukraine, seeded with Russian mines. (Heidi Levine for The Washington Post) KHERSON REGION, Ukraine — The discovery was made by two Ukrainian soldiers staring wide-eyed at their laptop screens, set up in the trunk of their SUV. They sat on a makeshift bench, the large plastic case for their drone. What they were looking at was some 25 miles away, deep into Russian-occupied Ukrainian territory. It was a Russian artillery battery positioned in a thin slice of tree line. The drone operator, Leonid Slobodian, started counting out loud as he zoomed in and took screenshots of the findings. He saw at least five guns, trucks that probably carried ammunition inside and counterbattery radar. This was what the Ukrainian military calls a “fat” target. Beside him, Oleksandr Kapli fired off a voice message to the members of the 128th Mountain Assault Brigade also watching a live stream of the drone camera. “We need to smash this from front to back,” Kapli said into his phone. Then the expletive-ridden response: “Send all of the footage and we’ll [mess] it up.” Drone video obtained by The Washington Post shows Russian forces coming under fire from Ukrainian artillery on Oct. 6, 2022. (Video: Courtesy of “Falcon” unit of the Kryvyi Rih Territorial Defense Forces) Russian forces in Ukraine’s southern Kherson region are attempting to hold the front line near the town of Dudchany after a strategic retreat along the Western bank of the Dnieper River. Ukraine’s military, meanwhile, is trying to take back even more ground before reinforcements from Russian President Vladimir Putin’s mobilization arrive. The “Falcon” unit of the Kryvyi Rih Territorial Defense Forces on Thursday allowed Washington Post journalists a rare look at a day of battle here through the lens of their Ukrainian-made Leleka-100 drone, which looks like a small, gray plane. Moscow has more weapons than Kyiv, so strikes on “fat” targets — armored vehicles, ammunition reserves and artillery — like the one the Falcon unit identified on Thursday is how Ukraine can weaken its enemy and advance. In the Kherson region, where the terrain is flat with wide-open fields, hiding that sort of equipment from reconnaissance drones is a challenge for each side — one that will only increase as the leaves fall and winter arrives. On Thursday, the Falcon unit was able to see through the trees. It located the Russian artillery battery, helped Ukraine’s own artillery target it, and then watched as parts of it were destroyed. “Our task is to determine how many reserves are coming in, how strong these Russian fortifications now are, and to track all of the military equipment,” Kapli said. “Then we convey all of that to artillery forces, and they shell everything possible.” Russian forces are now massing near the town of Mylove, Kapli said, to defend their stronghold in the occupied town of Nova Kakhovka, on the opposite bank of the river. There, Moscow has seized a hydroelectric power plant that controls a vital water supply to Crimea, which Russia illegally annexed in 2014. The artillery battery the Falcon unit spotted was near the neighboring village of Chervonyi Yar. A second drone flight confirmed the equipment was still in place, and Slobodian passed along more screenshots of the site, reading out its coordinates. Neither he, Kapli, nor most of the rest of their unit had any combat experience before Russia’s full-scale invasion. Slobodian and Garry Wagner, who operates the drone with him, were cameramen for Ukrainian television channels before the war. After collecting donations, Falcon’s commander, Oleh Lyadenko, in April purchased the Leleka drone, which can fly about 25 miles and stay in the air for two hours before it needs a battery change. Sometimes, the 128th brigade asks for Falcon to check certain locations, or to follow a Russian column of tanks to see where they go. Other times, the drone operators make their own finds. The recent Russian retreat allowed the unit to move forward into recently liberated villages and fly over territory previously out of their camera’s range. On Thursday, they launched their drone from a trench line the Russians had used for themselves until this week. While the drone was flying, some of the soldiers took careful steps around the neighboring field, shooting at still unexploded mines. During one of the Leleka’s flights, they noticed on the screen a second, longer trench line nearby. Two of the soldiers went to explore it, returning with souvenirs — baseball caps with patches of the Russian flag and a “Z,” the symbol for Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The retreating Russians left crates of pear juice behind, which the unit has been drinking with smirks on their faces. With the help of a Starlink satellite internet system, they worked from 8 a.m. until sunset. Around 2:45 p.m., they launched the drone for its penultimate flight of the day. Within minutes, it spotted smoke on the horizon, near where they identified the enemy artillery battery for the 128th brigade. But as it got closer, Slobodian realized it was a neighboring tree line. The Russians had attempted to hide their equipment there, too, and a different reconnaissance drone had spotted it. Ideally, this is how it should work, Kapli said — one drone following another so coverage is never lost and more targets are marked. As long as something was burning, everyone in the unit was happy. Falcon’s job now was to keep its camera trained on the area and confirm that the U.S.-provided artillery was striking accurately as shells landed along the tree line. Soldiers crowded around the computer screen and cheered as they watched the explosions in real time. “At least we have something to be happy about today,” Kapli said in a voice note to his comrade in the 128th brigade. “Grilled meat,” Slobodian deadpanned as another explosion flashed across the screen. Then one strike hit a Russian Ural truck, creating a massive mushroom cloud over the spot. It had been filled with ammunition. The men watching the screen erupted, too. Now the enemy had fewer shells to attack with — and fewer guns to fire them. “That was a nuclear explosion,” Kapli exclaimed between laughs. “We’ve been fighting for a while now, but an explosion like that, I haven’t seen.” Slobodian rubbed his hands together. The “fat” position they discovered would be next. Smoke rose over the trees again. At least one of the Russian 152-mm guns were damaged, they suspected. Their drone was running out of battery power and needed to turn back, but the day had been successful. By Friday, they had moved on to new targets, recording overhead video of a Russian tank burning on the side of a different field. War in Ukraine: What you need to know The latest: Russian President Vladimir Putin signed decrees Friday to annex four occupied regions of Ukraine, following staged referendums that were widely denounced as illegal. Follow our live updates here. The response: The Biden administration on Friday announced a new round of sanctions on Russia, in response to the annexations, targeting government officials and family members, Russian and Belarusian military officials and defense procurement networks. President Volodymyr Zelensky also said Friday that Ukraine is applying for “accelerated ascension” into NATO, in an apparent answer to the annexations. In Russia: Putin declared a military mobilization on Sept. 21 to call up as many as 300,000 reservists in a dramatic bid to reverse setbacks in his war on Ukraine. The announcement led to an exodus of more than 180,000 people, mostly men who were subject to service, and renewed protests and other acts of defiance against the war. The fight: Ukraine mounted a successful counteroffensive that forced a major Russian retreat in the northeastern Kharkiv region in early September, as troops fled cities and villages they had occupied since the early days of the war and abandoned large amounts of military equipment. Photos: Washington Post photographers have been on the ground from the beginning of the war — here’s some of their most powerful work. How you can help: Here are ways those in the U.S. can support the Ukrainian people as well as what people around the world have been donating. Read our full coverage of the Russia-Ukraine war. Are you on Telegram? Subscribe to our channel for updates and exclusive video. Read More Here

Traffic To Reroute Starting Tuesday For Roundabout Construction In West Fayetteville https://digitalarkansasnews.com/traffic-to-reroute-starting-tuesday-for-roundabout-construction-in-west-fayetteville-2/ A detour sign awaits posting Friday as traffic passes along Deane Street in front of the nearly complete Fayetteville Police Department headquarters in Fayetteville. Visit nwaonline.com/221008Daily/ for today’s photo gallery. (NWA Democrat-Gazette/Andy Shupe) FAYETTEVILLE — Traffic will be rerouted as the city installs a roundabout near the site of the new police headquarters. Closings and detours will begin Tuesday as the roundabout construction begins where Porter Road and Stephen Carr Memorial Boulevard meet at Deane Street, according to a city news release. Porter Road from Sycamore Street to Deane Street will be closed for crews to work. A small section of Sycamore Street runs west of Porter Road. Work is scheduled to take until mid-December. Traffic on Porter Road will be routed to Skylar Drive and Sang Avenue to the east. Lanes will be shifted on Stephen Carr Memorial Boulevard and Deane Street to allow traffic to continue to pass through, the release says. Work is ongoing to build a police headquarters and fire substation northeast of Stephen Carr Memorial Boulevard and Deane Street. The roundabout is part of a larger project to create a continuous trail route with street improvements from where Interstate 49 meets Stephen Carr Memorial Boulevard east to Gregory Park, near Sycamore Street and College Avenue. For more information, contact Public Works Director Chris Brown at 575-8207 or cbrown@fayetteville-ar.gov.     Traffic passes Friday along Deane Street and Stephen Carr Memorial Boulevard past a partially constructed roundabout in front of the nearly complete Fayetteville Police Department headquarters in Fayetteville. Visit nwaonline.com/221008Daily/ for today’s photo gallery. (NWA Democrat-Gazette/Andy Shupe)    Read More Here

No. 5 Cabot Stifles No. 2 Conway https://digitalarkansasnews.com/no-5-cabot-stifles-no-2-conway/ By Jeff Halpern | Photos by Tommy Land  CABOT — Earlier in the week, Cabot head coach Scott Reed said his team would have to find a way to dictate tempo and not let the Conway Wampus Cats march the ball up and down the field at a quick pace.  Friday night, his team did exactly what he wanted them to do in a 35-20 victory over No. 2-ranked Conway at Panther Stadium. The fifth-ranked Panthers (5-1, 3-0 7A-Central) held the ball for 63 plays, including 48 on the ground where they had 245 yards rushing, picked up 23 firsts downs and didn’t turn the ball over. They held Conway to 69 yards rushing, harassed Conway quarterback Donovyn Omolo into a 20-38 passing game for 135 yards with 2 interceptions. Cabot also recovered two fumbles, one of which sealed the game at the 5:27 mark of the fourth quarter when Evion Jimmerson scored from six yards out. “This is huge for our program,” said Reed. “Our kids played really well tonight. The thing is we got the game at our pace. That score is the way we needed the game to. We were outstanding at running the ball and playing great defense.”  Two years ago, Conway won 52-49 and a year ago the Wampus Cats won 57-21, extending their winning streak over Cabot to six games. Friday night was a different story. “We are playing better defensively than any time since I’ve been here,” said Reed. “That is one thing I felt gave us a chance to move up. A year ago, we had a hard time in space and people could throw the ball and really run. This group is playing very well.” Abe Owen completed 9-of-15 passes for 65 yards and 1 touchdown to Gavin Reardon and rushed for 92 yards on 21 carries and 3 touchdowns. Jimmerson, despite missing most of the second half after getting hit in the back, rushed for 97 yards on 15 carries. Conway head coach Keith Fimple, who said earlier in the week that his team’s experience in big games, would not allow them to become overwhelmed, saw his team give a very uncharacteristic performance. “We did a lot of things tonight that we don’t normally do,” said Fimple. “We had a lot of penalties (12 for 123 yards including five penalties for either personal fouls or unsportsmanlike conduct). They beat us in every phase, offense, defense and special teams and we turned the ball over four times which hurt us. “It never seemed like we got into a rhythm and felt very comfortable. Hats off to Scott Reed and Cabot.” Conway’s first two possessions told the story of the game. On the Wampus Cats’ second play of the game, Omolo was intercepted by Gavin Vest, who returned the ball 16 yard to the Conway 29. However, two false-start penalties pushed Cabot back to the Conway 31 and the Panthers were forced to punt. Seven plays later, Omolo was intercepted by Jadyn Whaley at the Cabot 47. This time, the Panthers took advantage with Owen scoring from five yards out at the 3:41 mark of the first quarter. Kade Martin’s extra point was good and Cabot led 7-0. After a Conway punt, the Panthers needed four plays to get into the end zone when Owen scored five yards out at the 1:41 mark. Martin’s kick was good and Cabot was up 14-0. Conway finally got on the board at the 11:16 mark of the second quarter when Omolo threw 10 yards to Rome Fields on fourth down. Adrian Mejia’s kick was good and the Wampus Cats were down 14-7. After a Cabot punt, Conway moved to the Cabot 30 yards in 11 plays. Facing fourth and eight, Omolo’s pass to Cris O’Neal was broken up by Andrew Rohauer at the 7:25 mark. Cabot turned around and kept the ball on the ground for nine plays, ending with Owen scoring from a yard out at the 3:01 mark. Martin’s kick was good, and it was 21-7. Conway marched 57 yards in 8 plays with Omolo sneaking in from a yard out at the 1:26 mark. Mejia’s kick was blocked, leaving the score at 21-13. After both teams started the second half with punts, Cabot kept the ball for 10 plays with Owen handling the ball on six plays, the last one being a 11-yard touchdown pass to Reardon when he started to his right and threw back to his left at the 6:05 mark of the third quarter. Martin’s kick was good and Cabot led 28-13. “Abe is a winner,” said Reed. “He’s a great leader and great competitor. He doesn’t force the ball. When he get the opportunity, he’ll stick in in there on the ground.” Conway had its only big play of the night one play later when Omolo found O’Neal down the seam for an 84-yard touchdown at the 5:31 mark. Mejia’s kick was good and it was 28-20. Two plays after Omolo sneaked his way for a first down on fourth and one from its 11 with 7:15 left in the game, he fumbled, and Cabot recovered at the Conway 18. After two unsportsmanlike-conduct penalties moved the ball to the Cabot 4, Jimmerson scored from six yards out with 5:27 left to set the final margin after Martin’s extra point. Cabot had one last shot, but Carr fumbled on the Cabot 19 with 4:24 left and the Panthers, aided by two Conway penalties, ran out the clock. “We have a lot left to do,” said Reed. “We’re going to enjoy this tonight. Coach Fimple has an heck of a team. Tonight was our night.” Fimple said it is important for his team to get ready for Fort Smith Northside next week, adding that there is no time in the 7A-Central to sulk after a defeat. Read More Here