- PoliticsYahoo News
What the Kavanaugh confirmation hearings reveal about Kamala Harris
Kamala Harris's unsparing questioning of Brett Kavanaugh when the then D.C. Circuit Court judge was nominated to the Supreme Court by President Trump won the senator praise for her prosecutorial skill. Critics at the time, however, said Harris's treatment of Kavanaugh was an obvious and out-of-line attempt to raise her political profile. “She was extraordinarily nasty to Kavanaugh — Judge Kavanaugh then, now Justice Kavanaugh,” Trump told reporters on Tuesday during a briefing at the White House, not long after Joe Biden, the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee, announced Harris as his running mate.
- U.S.USA TODAY
43 felony charges, new task forces: Here's what Chicago is doing to combat potential looting
Prosecutors approved 43 felony charges in connection with looting across Chicago earlier this week, and city officials laid out a series of plans Friday that they say would prevent future incidents. "What happened Sunday night into Monday morning should never have happened," Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot said in a press conference Friday afternoon. "There can never be any place in Chicago where businesses are afraid to open, where residents and visitors are afraid to travel and shop, or where employees are afraid to go to work."
- U.S.The Independent
Chainsaw-wielding men covered in blood arrested on Toronto beach
Witnesses alleged that they menaced and “charged” at various people gathered at Toronto's Cherry Beach on Sunday morning, before police quickly intervened, responding to reports of a large fight. The gatherings have become weekly occurrences during the coronavirus pandemic and are thought to be frequented by protestors against face coverings and lockdown measures. Footage showed the two men covered in blood from apparent head wounds, wielding the running saws and shouting “who hit me”.
- U.S.NBC News
Scorching temperatures in Death Valley will shatter records in West, southwest
You know it's hot when Death Valley, California, breaks high temperature records. More than 34 million people are under excessive heat watches and warnings across California and the Southwest. This heat event will be especially dangerous due to higher than normal humidity due to tropical moisture streaming into the region from what was Hurricane Elida, which has since dissipated.
- U.S.Business Insider
The US said federal agents have seized millions of dollars in bitcoin from terrorist groups al-Qaeda and Hamas
Federal agents have seized millions of dollars worth of bitcoin that terrorist organizations were using to carry out their violent campaigns, the US Department of Justice said Thursday. As part of the operation, officials also seized a website and four Facebook pages that ISIS was using to sell fake personal protective equipment. The seizure was just one part of a broader crackdown on the financial operations behind terrorist groups.
- U.S.Reuters
U.S. judge dismisses NRA lawsuit challenging gun shop closures in New York state
A federal judge on Friday dismissed the National Rifle Association's lawsuit challenging New York's decision to close gun stores in the state in the early stages of the coronavirus pandemic. The decision came eight days after New York Attorney General Letitia James filed a lawsuit seeking to dissolve the gun rights group, accusing senior leaders of corruption including the improper diversion of millions of dollars. U.S. District Judge Mae D'Agostino said the NRA lacked standing to challenge on behalf of its members a March 20 executive order by Governor Andrew Cuomo requiring gun stores to close in the state because they were "non-essential" businesses.
- U.S.NY Daily News
More than 50 Confederate symbols moved, taken down in wake of George Floyd's death, study says
In the months since George Floyd died in Minneapolis while in police custody, protests have rippled across the United States, with hundreds of demonstrators rallying against systemic racism and calling for justice. Among some of the more prominent changes sparked by Floyd's death is the speedy removal and renaming of landmarks and monuments representing the Confederacy. The tally does not include Mississippi voting to remove the Confederate flag from its state flag nor toppled monuments that have racist connotations but no ties to the Confederacy.
- WorldAFP
Venezuela jails 15 for decades over botched invasion
Venezuela on Friday sentenced 15 people to more than two decades in prison over a failed invasion plot that President Nicolas Maduro has said was an attempt to overthrow him. Amongst those jailed for 24 years was capitan Antonio Sequea, accused of leading the operation, said Attorney General Tarek William Saab. Maduro claimed it was a plot to assassinate him and install opposition leader Juan Guaido in his place, and Caracas accused US President Donald Trump of being directly responsible for the raid, in which eight attackers were allegedly killed.
- WorldLA Times
The Beirut blast leveled historic neighborhoods. Some fear developers may finish the job
That one second equaled more than 15 years of war,” Dagher said, referring to the 1975-1990 civil war that made the Lebanese capital a byword for destruction. Dagher, a 60-year-old architect, had spent decades restoring his family's elegant two-story, 4,800-square-foot house that his great-grandfather had first completed in 1875. In the eastern Beirut neighborhood of Gemmayzeh, it stood as a jewel-like example of the late Ottoman and French Mandate houses of fin-de-siecle Lebanon, with its facade of three arches and wide balconies.
- U.S.Yahoo News Video
Bison violently attacks motorcyclist in South Dakota
A motorcyclist has survived a violent attack by a bison in the Black Hills of South Dakota, sheriff's officials said.
- LifestyleArchitectural Digest
You Need These High-Design Lawn Games to Maximize Summer Fun
Classic lawn games are perfect for enjoying what's left of summer 2020, plus they'll look great in your yard Originally Appeared on Architectural Digest
- PoliticsYahoo News
Trump says he is holding up coronavirus aid to block Postal Service funds for voting by mail
President Trump on Thursday said he is withholding approval for a coronavirus relief package because Democrats want to include funds for mail-in voting. The president said Democrats want $25 billion for the U.S. Postal Service, $3.5 billion of which would be used to shore up infrastructure amid logistical challenges caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, which is predicted to keep some voters from going to the polls in November. “They want $3.5 billion for something that will turn out to be fraudulent, that's election money basically,” Trump said in an interview with Fox Business host Maria Bartiromo.
- U.S.NBC News
Ghislaine Maxwell won't be moved to general jail population, prosecutors say
Federal prosecutors said in a court filing Thursday that the Bureau of Prisons has no plans to move Ghislaine Maxwell, longtime associate of Jeffrey Epstein, into the general population of the New York City jail despite her lawyers' claims that she is being held in “uniquely onerous” conditions. Attorneys for Maxwell, who is being held without bail while awaiting trial for allegedly recruiting and grooming girls for Epstein to abuse, said she was being subjected to round-the-clock surveillance and numerous body scans. Epstein died by suicide last summer at the federal detention center in Manhattan while awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges, and Maxwell's lawyers argue that the Bureau of Prisons is treating her worse than other inmates as a result.
- U.S.TODAY
3 women arrested for allegedly attacking a Chili's host for enforcing social distancing
Three women are accused of assaulting a 17-year-old restaurant hostess in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, because they were upset they could not all be seated together due to coronavirus social-distancing rules, police said. The incident occurred Sunday after a large group of women entered a Chili's restaurant and asked to be seated at the same table, Baton Rouge police said in a news release. "The employee advised the group that due to social distancing requirements, the business only allowed six at a table," the release said.
- WorldAssociated Press
Hong Kong media tycoon relieved he wasn't sent to China
Jimmy Lai had just finished his morning exercise and was catching up on the news when the police arrived. “There were 15, 20 policemen there, and they said I was under arrest and that they were from the national security department,” the Hong Kong media tycoon recounted in a live-streamed video chat Thursday. Lai, 71, said he was worried he could be sent to the mainland, where the legal system has fewer protections.
- PoliticsThe Independent
Hillary Clinton would 'consider' working for a Biden administration
Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said she would consider a role in Joe Biden's administration if the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee is elected in November. "I'm ready to help in any way I can because I think this will be a moment where every American – I don't care what party you are, I don't care what age, race, gender, I don't care – every American should want to fix our country," Ms Clinton said. "So if you're asked to serve, you should certainly consider that," she added during a virtual appearance at the 19th Represents Summit.
- WorldAFP
US says Iran forces board ship in international waters
Iranian forces boarded a tanker in international waters in the Gulf of Oman, using a helicopter and two ships to take over the vessel for several hours, US officials said. They also posted grainy black-and-white footage of the helicopter hovering low over the vessel and special forces personnel fast-roping onto the deck. "Today in international waters, Iranian forces, including two ships and an Iranian "Sea King" helicopter, overtook and boarded a ship called the 'Wila'," the US Central Command said in a tweet on Wednesday.
- WorldThe Daily Beast
Paris Declared ‘Red Zone’ as Second COVID Wave Hits Spain and France
ROME—Europe is bracing for a second wave of COVID-19 as the busy tourist season reaches its peak this weekend. In France, the government on Friday declared the cities of Paris and Marseilles and the surrounding regions “red zones” after a spike in new cases sent authorities scrambling to contain outbreaks largely driven by visiting tourists and careless young people. On Thursday, France reported more than 2,500 new infections of COVID-19 for the second day in a row, taking the country back to mid-April levels, when much of Europe was on lockdown.
- U.S.Miami Herald
Eagle rips propeller off mapping drone, sends it plunging into Lake Michigan, agency says
A bald eagle met a $950 drone mid-air last month and attacked the contraption, sending it plummeting into Lake Michigan, officials said Thursday. Hunter King with the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy — also known as EGLE — was piloting the drone on a mission to map erosion along the shoreline on July 21. The drone had been in flight for seven minutes on its fourth day when King noticed satellite reception had gotten spotty near Escanaba in the Upper Peninsula, the agency said.
- WorldReuters
U.S. Navy carrier conducted exercises in South China Sea on Aug. 14
A U.S. Navy aircraft carrier conducted exercises in the contested South China Sea on Friday, the U.S. navy said in a statement. A strike group led by the USS Ronald Reagan conducted flight operations and high-end maritime stability operations and exercises, the statement said. "Integration with our joint partners is essential to ensuring joint force responsiveness and lethality, and maintaining a free and open Indo-Pacific," U.S. Navy Commander Joshua Fagan, Task Force 70 air operations officer aboard USS Ronald Reagan, was quoted as saying.
- PoliticsBusiness Insider
Defying precedent, Trump says he will give Republican convention speech from the White House lawn
President Trump told the New York Post on Thursday that he would likely give his Republican National Convention speech from the White House lawn. The Republican National Convention was planned for Charlotte, North Carolina, but some events were moved to Jacksonville, Florida, over disagreements about capacity and social distancing with the governor.
- U.S.USA TODAY
A beloved lesbian baker in Detroit got a homophobic cake order. Here's why she made it anyway.
As a Black, openly gay woman, April Anderson said she is no stranger to discrimination. It was a disturbing slap in the face to Anderson and her wife and business partner, Michelle. “We are so used to being Black lesbian women,” Anderson said.
- LifestyleCBS News
Perseids meteor shower captured in stunning photos worldwide
The best meteor shower of the year brought with it stunning fireballs and bright trails of dust that illuminated the night sky this week. Millions of people around the world marveled as the Perseids meteor shower peaked Tuesday and Wednesday — a spectacular conclusion to a summer filled with cosmic phenomena that included a once-in-a-lifetime comet. The annual meteor shower is popular for bringing up to 100 meteors per hour, bright tails of color and explosive fireballs.
- WorldBBC
Nigerian police rescue Kano man locked up in his parents' garage
A Nigerian man has been rescued from the garage of his parents' house in the northern city of Kano, where he had been locked up for three years, police say. Ahmed Aminu, 30, was discovered after a police raid on the family's residence. Mr Aminu's father and step-mother have been arrested and police say further investigations are under way.
- PoliticsThe Independent
AOC responds to apparent Democratic party convention speech snub: 'Eternity is in it'
Firebrand lawmaker Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has hit back at an alleged snub by the Democratic party after being given just 60 seconds to deliver a speech a next week's convention. AOC responded on Twitter by posting the poem 'I have only just a minute', written by the late Dr Benjamin E. Mays, an American Baptist minister and civil rights leader. AOC's message appears to be that she intends to make full use of her convention speech – regardless of long she has been given.
“It may be a campaign tactic, but older workers, be forewarned. Ageism runs deep in our culture.”
“Genuine concerns about the capacities of people who want the world’s most powerful job mingle bizarrely with insults.”
“Joe Biden and Donald Trump are both old. But the media should not be making mental illness a campaign issue, on either side.”
“The Trump campaign is now betting his reelection’s already slim chances on Biden proving Trump’s diagnosis is right.”
“The nightmare scenario for Democrats is that, at a pivotal moment, Biden will struggle to put together a coherent thought.”