WorldBusiness Insider'I don't see any way around it': Former Navy SEAL McRaven says retaliation for assassination of top Iranian nuclear scientist all but certain
Days after the assassination of Mohsen Fakhrizadeh, a top Iranian nuclear scientist, retired US Navy Adm. William McRaven said that retaliation is all but inevitable. "The Iranians are going to be in a position where they have to retaliate. I don't see any way around it," McRaven, former head of US Special Operations Command and the Navy SEAL who oversaw the bin Laden raid, said on ABC's "This Week."
PoliticsNational ReviewTrump Lawyer Says Krebs Should Be ‘Taken Out at Dawn and Shot’ for Defending Election
Trump campaign lawyer Joe diGenova declared Monday that the Trump administration's former cybersecurity chief deserves to be put to death for claiming that the presidential election was the “most secure” in the country's history. President Trump fired Chris Krebs, his head of cybersecurity, earlier this month after Krebs disputed Trump's claim that the 2020 election was rigged against him. Krebs found himself at odds with the president after he called the election the “most secure in United States history.”
WorldThe TelegraphSwitzerland halves new infections without national lockdown as pubs and restaurants stay open
Switzerland is emerging as a model for how the coronavirus can be contained without a national lockdown, after daily new infections halved since the start of November despite pubs, restaurants, gyms and sports remaining open in much of the country. The figures were hailed as a triumph for the “Swiss special way” by Swiss government doctors last week, and will be seen as evidence that regional tiers can work in the UK. Rather than ordering a general lockdown, Switzerland allowed regions to decide their own measures and only the worst-hit imposed tough restrictions.
HealthThe IndependentLeaked documents show China lied about Covid-19 case totals and mishandled pandemic
China underreported Covid-19 numbers by more than half as it downplayed the severity of the virus and their failure to quickly diagnose cases in the early stages of the pandemic, according to leaked documents. A series of revelations in 117 pages of internal documents from the Hubei Provincial Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, obtained by CNN, shows how the Chinese Communist Party withheld vital information as the world grappled to contain the rapidly spreading virus. On 10 February, China publicly reported 2,478 new confirmed cases while privately reporting 5,918 new cases - a 139 per cent difference.
WorldBusiness InsiderNorth Korean leader Kim Jong Un may have already received an unapproved coronavirus vaccine
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un received a COVID-19 vaccination from the Chinese government, Japanese intelligence sources told a Washington DC-based Korea expert. Kim's health has been the subject of rumors throughout his nine-year rule of the country. The 36-year-old dictator is a frequent smoker and obese, according to South Korean lawmakers, fueling speculation that he would experience complications if he were to contract COVID-19.
PoliticsNational ReviewArizona Certifies Election Results for Biden as Giuliani Pushes Unfounded Fraud Claims
Arizona certified its presidential election results in favor of President-elect Joe Biden on Monday as Rudy Giuliani urged Republican state legislators at a hearing in Phoenix to override the certification. Arizona's Secretary of State Katie Hobbs commended her state for conducting “easily the smoothest” and “most secure election in recent history” even amid the coronavirus pandemic. “Despite the unprecedented challenges, Arizonans showed up for our democracy,” Hobbs, a Democrat, said.
WorldAssociated PressUproar in France over proposed limits on filming police
French activists fear that a proposed new security law will deprive them of a potent weapon against abuse — cellphone videos of police activity — threatening their efforts to document possible cases of police brutality, especially in impoverished immigrant neighborhoods. French President Emmanuel Macron's government is pushing a new security bill that makes it illegal to publish images of police officers with intent to cause them harm, amid other measures. Critics fear the new law could hurt press freedoms and make it more difficult for all citizens to report on police brutality.
HealthINSIDERAn Oregon cancer nurse was put on leave after boasting on TikTok about ignoring COVID-19 rules
A cancer nurse at Salem Hospital in Oregon was placed on administrative leave after posting a TikTok making light of coronavirus guidance, the hospital said in a statement Saturday. The hospital did not name the nurse, but the Statesman Journal identified her as Ashley Grames. The TikTok showed the nurse wearing scrubs and includes the caption: "When my co workers find out I still travel, dont wear a mask when I am out and let my kids have play dates."
U.S.The IndependentCharles Manson follower has parole blocked by California governor
A Charles Manson follower convicted over the notorious 1969 La Bianca killings has her parole blocked for a fourth time by a California governor. Leslie Van Houten, 71, is serving a life sentence for helping the late Manson kill Los Angeles grocer Leno LaBianca and his wife, Rosemary, in August 1969. Members of Manson's cult — including Van Houten, who was just 19 at the time — smeared the couple's blood n the walls after fatally stabbing them.
PoliticsNational ReviewTrump Campaign Election Litigation Appears to End in Pennsylvania While Proceeding in Georgia
If you can follow that argument, then you can grasp the Republican challenge to the 2020 election in Pennsylvania that was rejected by the commonwealth's supreme court on Saturday night. Meantime in Georgia, attorneys Lin Wood and Sidney Powell are pressing on with a lawsuit filed, not on behalf of the president directly, but on behalf of Trump supporters, including members of the Republican-nominated Electoral College slate that would have cast the state's votes if Trump had won.
WorldAssociated PressRed Cross chief urges vaccine 'fake news' fight
The head of the world's largest humanitarian network is urging governments and institutions to combat “fake news” about COVID-19 vaccines which has become “a second pandemic” and start building trust in communities around the world about the critical importance of vaccinating people. Francesco Rocca, president of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, said in a virtual briefing to the U.N. Correspondents Association on Monday that “to beat this pandemic, we also have to defeat the parallel pandemic of distrust.” In a quarter of countries, Rocca said, the study found that the acceptance rate for a vaccine against the coronavirus was near or below 50 percent, with Japan dropping from 70 percent to 50 percent acceptance, and France dropping from 51 percent to 38 percent acceptance.
PoliticsBusiness InsiderBiden's decision to pick Neera Tanden for a top economic role exposes an ongoing rift with Bernie Sanders-allied progressives
President-elect Joe Biden has angered both progressive Democrats and Republicans with his announcement that he will nominate Neera Tanden to direct the Office of Management and Budget. Tanden, the head of the influential liberal think tank Center for American Progress, is a longtime advisor to Hillary Clinton and has made numerous enemies among both progressive Democrats and Republicans. While some Republicans insisted Tanden wouldn't be confirmed by the Senate, a slew of progressives aligned with Sen. Bernie Sanders slammed Tanden's likely nomination as divisive.
U.S.The IndependentMother of teenager killed by police is shot during funeral service, report says
The funeral of a Florida teenager ended abruptly on Saturday afternoon after an unknown gunman fired bullets at the service, hitting the deceased's mother. People gathered to honour Sincere Pierce, 18, at Riverview Memorial Gardens in Cocoa, Florida – who was one of two teenage victims in the 13 November killing by a Brevard County deputy officer. Gunfire rang out just as the pastor finished his prayers for Mr Pierce and friends and loved ones were placing flowers on his casket.
PoliticsReutersSenate confirms two Trump picks for energy regulation panel
The U.S. Senate on Monday confirmed two of President Donald Trump's picks for the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), in a move that could secure a Republican majority on the panel through June. The Senate passed Mark Christie, a Republican, and Allison Clements, a Democrat, by voice vote to FERC, an independent panel of the Energy Department. The panel regulates the transmission of electricity and natural gas across states and reviews large energy projects such as liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminals.
PoliticsBusiness InsiderAndrew Yang reportedly named in a New York City mayoral poll, fueling speculation he may run on a 3rd-party line in 2021
A new poll for the New York City mayoral race included the former Democratic presidential candidate Andrew Yang, according to Politico. Yang was said to be listed in an online poll gauging enthusiasm for a third-party candidate in the Big Apple in 2021. Amid ongoing speculation over his political future, the former Democratic presidential candidate Andrew Yang appeared in an online poll about the coming New York City mayoral race.
U.S.TheGrioDC detective killed by wife in murder-suicide, authorities say
The bodies of Timothy Eugene Francis and Christina Lynn Francis were found in their Maryland home Friday. The bodies of 50-year-old Timothy Eugene Francis and Christina Lynn Francis, 41, were found in their Waldorf, Maryland home on Friday. Authorities confirmed that the weapon used was a handgun, and there were multiple guns in the home.
- NewsKGO – San Francisco
SF grandma flips table to defend business from angry customer
"She grabbed a jug of five-pound hand sanitizer and launched it at me while I was holding my son." That's when the nearly 60-year-old grandma grabbed whatever she could including a table, flipped it, and pushed it toward the woman to defend her family and her business.
PoliticsThe Daily BeastTrump’s Favorite—and Most Dangerous—COVID-19 Adviser Resigns
Scott Atlas, President Trump's special adviser on COVID-19 who pushed back on lockdowns and repeatedly downplayed the severity of the coronavirus pandemic, has submitted his resignation. The neuroradiologist, who lacked expertise in infectious disease, began his 130-day position as a special government employee in August, and his gig was set to expire this week. Atlas has fielded fierce criticism for his efforts to downplay the pandemic and block states from enacting their own measures to combat the worsening outbreak, including enacting mask mandates and social distancing guidelines.
PoliticsPolitico‘They’ll freeze them out’: Democrats fear Senate Republicans will block Biden’s judges
It's also Joe Biden's chance to reshape the courts. Should Senate Republicans win the fight to keep their majority, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell will have unilateral authority to stifle Biden's picks to the federal judiciary, weakening Democrats' hopes to make up for four years of confirming conservative judges and two years of a McConnell blockade during President Barack Obama's final years. While an increasing number of Republicans say they're willing to work with Biden on his Cabinet nominees, Senate Minority Whip Dick Durbin isn't optimistic about GOP cooperation on judicial nominees.
U.S.TheGrioHouston police search home after woman’s body found in car following chase
Investigators in Houston searched a home in the city after discovering the body of Briana Tierra Johnson in the trunk of a car at the end of a police chase. A white Honda being driven by Victor Campbell Jr. was spotted speeding Saturday in Chambers County, Texas. When state troopers tried to pull him over, he sped off, sparking the chase that ended in a crash near a church resale shop and the unearthing of Johnson's corpse.
PoliticsThe IndependentMillionaire Kelly Loeffler mocked for ad claiming she knows what it ‘feels like waiting on that paycheck’
Millionaire Senator Kelly Loeffler was mocked for an ad claiming she knows what “it feels like waiting on that paycheck. Ms Loeffler, who is fighting to retain her Georgia seat, is married to the chairman of the New York Stock Exchange, Jeffrey Sprecher. She is reportedly the wealthiest member of congress with a fortune estimated at between $800m and $1bn, according to Forbes.
PoliticsThe Daily BeastBen Shapiro Whines There Are Not Enough Men on Biden’s White House Comms Team
Ben Shapiro is not impressed with Joe Biden's all-female communications team. During his daily podcast taping on Monday, the conservative Daily Wire founder initiated what will likely be the first of many attacks on the president-elect's new White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki for congratulating the women who will make up her office. Shapiro began by mocking Psaki for highlighting how “honored” she was to work for a man who “injected empathy and humanity” into nearly every meeting they sat in together during the Obama administration.
CelebrityINSIDERA mom of 10 died days after delivering her first biological daughter
Sonya Harlow was raising ten children, but had wanted a biological daughter. Eleven days after giving birth to her daughter, Harlow died, likely due to postpartum complications. Women in the United States are more likely than women in other developed countries to die during pregnancy or the postpartum period.
U.S.NBC NewsOregon teen gunned down in hotel parking lot following dispute over loud music
A dispute over loud music ended with a 47-year-old Oregon man fatally shooting a Black teenager in a hotel parking lot just days before Thanksgiving, police said. The shooting happened in front of the Stratford Inn in Ashland, about 16 miles north of the California-Oregon border, in the early morning hours of Nov. 23, authorities said. Aidan Ellison, 19, was staying at the hotel with his friend Sara Jones and her cousin when the young man couldn't sleep that night.
PoliticsBusiness InsiderA group of incoming GOP House members, calling themselves the 'Freedom Force,' are trying to counter Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez's 'Squad'
A group of incoming Republican House members are banding together in a bid to recreate the buzz around the "Squad," the Democratic Party's cohort of progressive representatives elected in 2018. The newly-elected Republicans are calling themselves the "Freedom Force." The group says it opposes socialism, and some members have claimed the Democratic left "hates" its values of love of country, support for business, and respect for God.
“This metastasizing debt crisis has had tremendous social costs. An entire generation has been set back.”
“It is not the government’s job to step in and rescue those who took on more debt than their future incomes would support.”
“Many student-borrowers need relief, but well-off borrowers who are thriving — thanks to their college degrees — do not.”
“It will stimulate the lagging economy. And though not everyone will directly benefit, the country as a whole will improve.”
“Canceling student debt would cost billions of dollars each year and would exacerbate, not lessen, economic inequalities.”