- NewsUSA TODAY
Supreme Court allows Trump's partial ban on transgender troops in military to take effect
WASHINGTON – The Supreme Court will allow President Donald Trump's partial ban on transgender people serving in the military to take effect while court challenges continue. Responding to Justice Department requests, the high court Tuesday cleared away lower court actions that blocked the controversial policy from being implemented for nearly a year. The court's four liberal justices – Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Stephen Breyer, Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan – said they would have continued to block the policy.
- NewsThe National Review
Covington Catholic HS Closed Tuesday to Protect Students from Backlash
Covington Catholic High School cancelled classes Tuesday in response to the torrent of outrage and harassment directed at a group of its students who were captured on video in a tense confrontation with an elderly Native American man near the Lincoln Memorial during Saturday's March for Life. “After meeting with local authorities, we have made the decision to cancel school and be closed on Tuesday, January 22, in order to ensure the safety of our students, faculty and staff,” read an email from school principal Robert Rowe to parents, obtained by Fox 19. Students, parents, faculty and staff are not to be on campus for any reason.
WorldReutersEx-U.S. marine jailed in Russia for spying was misled: lawyer
The lawyer for a former U.S. marine accused of spying by Russia said on Tuesday that his client had been misled before his arrest and believed that a thumb drive handed to him in a hotel room had contained holiday snaps rather than secret information. Russia's Federal Security Service detained Paul Whelan, who holds U.S., British, Canadian and Irish passports, in a Moscow hotel room on Dec. 28. Whelan appeared in a Moscow court on Tuesday, where a judge rejected releasing him on bail.
WorldAFPChina blasts US 'bullying' with Huawei CFO extradition bid
China on Wednesday accused the United States of "bullying behaviour" after US authorities confirmed plans to seek the extradition of a top Chinese telecom executive detained in Canada. The United States faces a January 30 deadline to file an extradition request for Huawei chief financial officer Meng Wanzhou, whose arrest last month sparked diplomatic tensions. "We will continue to pursue the extradition of defendant Ms Meng Wanzhou, and will meet all deadlines set by the US/Canada Extradition Treaty," said US Justice Department spokesman Marc Raimondi on Tuesday.
- U.S.KGO – San Francisco
Kentucky mother of newborn twins missing since leaving bar with men 3 weeks ago
If you know anything, we beg you, come forward': A Kentucky family is making an emotional plea to help find a mother of four who vanished.
- WorldAssociated Press
Romania president: plan to invalidate graft cases not legal
Romania's president said on Tuesday that a government decree that could invalidate hundreds of corruption cases involving senior officials is "crassly unconstitutional," a development that also prompted concern from the European Union. President Klaus Iohannis blasted the measure put forward this week by the justice minister, saying the ruling Social Democrats "don't care about Romania; they care about their own politicians with legal problems." Premier Viorica Dancila is considering the measure, which could lead to the suspension of trials and verdicts and lead to resentencing in the cases of some convictions.
- PoliticsYahoo News
Shutdown hits national security employees across government
Days after Christmas and the start of what is now the longest partial government shutdown in U.S. history, Maggie Feldman-Piltch, founder of a growing grassroots community of female national security professionals called #NatSecGirlSquad, reached out to members affected by the furloughs to offer support. Now, over a month since the shutdown began, Feldman-Piltch has fielded calls from more than 300 federal workers asking for help paying bills and vetting résumés, among other requests, she says. “It's very obvious that it's having a huge impact,” said Feldman-Piltch during a phone interview with Yahoo News.
- ScienceBGR News
The Moon was hit by a meteorite while you were staring at the 'Super Blood Wolf Moon' eclipse
Skywatchers had plenty to be excited about this past weekend thanks to a lunar eclipse that was visible from the Americas as well as parts of Europe, Africa, and Asia. It got the nickname “Super Blood Wolf Moon” thanks to a combination of labels that may or may not have much meaning, but it was an undeniably cool sight nonetheless. As it turns out, the eclipse was even more special than most observers had noticed, as the Moon was actually struck by a meteorite while everyone was gazing in wonder at its rusty appearance.
- SportsDelish
Tom Brady Fans: This Meal Delivery Program Lets You Eat Just Like Your Favorite QB
Whether you're a fan of meal delivery programs like Blue Apron and Hello Fresh or would rather stick to your own grocery shopping, a set of meals curated by top athletes sounds pretty promising, right? After all, the New England Patriots' quarterback could take home his sixth Super Bowl ring in less than two weeks. Purple Carrot notes on its site that "these recipes are taken directly from plant-based meals Tom and his family have personally enjoyed" or are "inspired by the TB12 nutritional guidelines that structure Tom's diet.
- PoliticsUSA TODAY
Supreme Court's inaction leaves DACA program for young migrants intact for now
WASHINGTON – The fate of the Dreamers – more than 700,000 undocumented immigrants who arrived in the United States as children – appears safe this year due to the Supreme Court's inaction. The justices Tuesday did not agree to give the Trump administration one last chance to end the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, known as DACA, which protects those immigrants from deportation and grants them work permits. President Donald Trump's effort has been on hold for a year following a federal district judge's nationwide injunction.
- NewsThe National Review
Kamala Harris Is Terrible on Criminal Justice
Although Harris seems to have a pretty good reputation among most liberals, her record on criminal justice issues is a dismal one. As a recent piece from Lara Bazelon in the New York Times details, Harris was far from the “progressive prosecutor” that she has tried to rebrand herself as in recent days. For example: When Harris was San Francisco's district attorney in 2010, she was condemned by a judge for staying silent about a police laboratory technician who had been accused of stealing drugs and “intentionally sabotaging” her work.
- SportsCar and Driver
Photos From Our Drive of the New 2020 Porsche 911
The new 992-generation Carrera S and 4S' familiarity masks significant re-engineering. From Car and Driver
WorldReutersHuawei calls for swift end to case of executive arrested in Canada
China's Huawei Technologies wants a quick resolution of the case of its former finance chief Meng Wanzhou, who is accused of violating U.S. sanctions on Iran and has been detained in Canada, its chairman said on Tuesday. The United States has told Canada it will request Meng's extradition, but has not said when it will do so, David MacNaughton, Canada's ambassador to the U.S., said in a Globe and Mail interview on Monday. "We are following this issue closely but haven't had direct contact with the authorities.
WorldAFPNetanyahu blocks Gaza aid funds after border flare-up
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has blocked millions in Qatari aid to the Gaza Strip in response to renewed border hostilities, risking increased tensions with the Palestinian territory's Islamist rulers Hamas during Israel's election campaign. Weeks of relative calm in the Gaza Strip ended Tuesday when Israeli soldiers were fired on along the border with the enclave in two separate incidents. In response Israeli tanks struck two Hamas positions in Gaza, killing one militant, while overnight Israeli fighter jets struck what the army said was a Hamas military camp in northern Gaza.
NewsAssociated PressThe Latest: Los Angeles teachers ratify deal by large margin
Los Angeles teachers have overwhelmingly ratified a new contract that ended a six-day strike. United Teachers Los Angeles announced Wednesday that 81 percent of union members who voted approved the deal. The Los Angeles teachers union and school district are being sued by a teacher who claims union dues are being deducted from her paychecks in violation of a U.S. Supreme Court ruling.
WorldReutersA century on, Basra's British-era shipyard going strong
Thousands of ships, including former dictator Saddam Hussein's yacht, have passed through the Iraqi shipyard's three docks, where a giant steam engine hauls them out of the water and up the century-old wooden tracks. Mohammed Adnan, who has been operating the huge steam engine for six years now, says it is not easy. "They say they [the British] brought in the wood from Burma... we tried to drill a 1.5 inch nail into it once, we couldn't," said Jassim Hussain Sabour, the shipyard's longest-serving worker.
- BusinessYahoo News
FBI agents say shutdown hinders fight against gangs and terrorism
The FBI Agents Association (FBIAA) repeated its call for the partial government shutdown to end, arguing that it is undermining the bureau's ability to protect the nation. On Tuesday, FBIAA released a report of first-person accounts from special agents in the field on how the shutdown is compromising their work on a host of issues, including terrorism, drugs, gangs and child trafficking. Victims from domestic minor-sex-trafficking cases are not receiving the attention they need and/or visits and counseling services,” one agent said.
- NewsTime
See Niagara Falls Transform Into an Icy Wonderland Amid Bone-Chilling Cold
The frigid winter storm that plunged much of the northeast into bone-chilling cold this week has had a dramatic impact on Niagara Falls. Visitors to the world-famous waterfall on the U.S.-Canada border are sharing photos that show parts of its rushing waters frozen into creeping icicles. Images taken from the top of the falls show trees and pathways coated in thick sheets of snow and ice.
- NewsYahoo News
Trump keeps fueling story of Kentucky students' confrontation with Native American
President Trump on Tuesday fueled the controversy over a confrontation last week between a group of Kentucky high school students and an elderly Native American protester, using it to bash one of his favorite targets: the media. Nick Sandmann and the students of Covington have become symbols of Fake News and how evil it can be,” Trump tweeted. That followed a Monday evening tweet that also supported the students: “Looking like Nick Sandman [sic] & Covington Catholic students were treated unfairly with early judgements proving out to be false — smeared by media.
- NewsUSA TODAY
Norwegian Cruise Line denies claim crew member used passenger's cabin for sex
Norwegian Cruise Line is denying a British couple's allegation that they found a crew member having sex in their cabin during a recent voyage. In a statement sent to USA TODAY, the Miami-based line suggested a thorough investigation of the allegation had proved it untrue. The thorough investigation undertaken, including full review of security footage of the corridor where the stateroom was located, does not corroborate the allegation," the line said in the statement.
- LifestyleBGR News
Amazon's rare discount on the only Instant Pot with a built-in sous vide somehow isn't sold out
Yesterday afternoon we told you about a killer sale that popped up on Amazon. The $160 Instant Pot 8 Qt Aura Pro Multi-Use Programmable Multicooker with Sous Vide is the only multi-use cooker that Instant Pot makes with a built-in sous vide function, and it almost never goes on sale. Thanks to a $32 clippable coupon on Amazon, it dropped to an all-time low of $127.99.
- WorldReuters
A time-limited Brexit backstop would be useless: EU's Barnier
A temporary safeguard to avoid erecting a physical border between Ireland and Northern Ireland after Brexit would serve no purpose, the EU's chief negotiator Michel Barnier said on Wednesday. In an interview to newspapers Le Monde, Rzeczpospolita and Luxemburger Wort, Barnier said the current backstop proposal over the border was the only option on the table. quot;The question of limiting the backstop in time has already been discussed twice by European leaders.
WorldAFPVenezuelan opposition rejoices as lawmaker proclaims himself president
Tens of thousands of opposition protesters burst into ecstatic cheering and shouts of joy in the streets of Caracas on Wednesday after parliament leader Juan Guaido proclaimed himself interim president. "What's happened today fills us with hope, what these people have today is hope, it is a clear need for us so we can move forward," said Jose Gregorio Flores, a 43-year-old university professor walking in the anti-government march called by Guaido. While other protesters around him honked car horns and waved Venezuelan flags from the back of motorcycles, Flores said it was a moment to think about the 2.3 million Venezuelans who had emigrated since 2015 in the midst of an economic collapse overseen by unpopular President Nicolas Maduro.
- U.S.KTRK – Houston
Teen arrested in fatal shooting of boyfriend in west Harris County
A 17-year-old girl is under arrest in the shooting that killed her boyfriend in west Harris County.
WorldAssociated PressIsrael: Advanced missile defense system successfully tested
Israel said Tuesday that it has successfully tested the country's advanced missile defense system capable of defending against long-range ballistic missile threats. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu toured an Israeli aerospace facility following the test and leveled a thinly veiled warning at Iran, just days after Israel struck Iranian military targets in neighboring Syria. "Our enemies who seek to destroy us should know that Israel's clenched fist will reach all those who wish ill upon us and we will settle accounts with them," Netanyahu said.
