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<p>How about we ask Mexico to do us a favor for once?</p>
<p>Not only has that sieve of a country sat back and watched as more than 100,000 desperate Hondurans, Guatemalans and Salvadorans streamed through on their northward search for a safer life, they have also taken decades of generous U.S. foreign assistance without so much as a what-can-we-do-for-you?</p>
<p>Well, here’s what they can do for us: They can expedite the judicial process for U.S. Marine Sgt. Andrew Tahmooressi, held in Mexico since the last day of March.</p>
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<p>He is due back in court in Tijuana this Monday, but without some high-powered attention being applied it’s unlikely he will be quickly released.</p>
<p>The quick backstory: As has happened before with Americans who are not familiar with U.S./Mexican border crossings, Tahmooressi (pronounced Taam-ah-REE-see) became confused by a graffiti-laden road sign south of San Diego. He accidentally wound up on a road from which there was no return and went straight into Mexico.</p>
<p>As Phil Dunn, a veteran trial lawyer who has been advising the Tahmooressi family explained to me, “Andrew asked the Mexican customs official if he could just turn around, that he had made a wrong turn.”</p>
<p>A border agent told Andrew to drive forward, a bit deeper into Mexico, where Tahmooressi was asked what he had in his vehicle. He honestly told them he had just moved to California and among all his worldly possessions in the car were three legally purchased and registered guns.</p>
<p>In Mexico, however, they were illegal. “That was their probable cause to detain Andrew,” Dunn told me.</p>
<p>Andrew immediately called 911 – he was still that close to the border – but he was told there was nothing California authorities could do for him since he was no longer on American soil. Mexican authorities, long incensed by American gun-running into their sovereign territory, descended on Tahmooressi.</p>
<p>This two-tour veteran of the Afghanistan war has been to hell and back. A resident of Florida, Tahmooressi had been in San Diego for less than a month receiving treatment for his post-traumatic stress disorder, diagnosed after his exposure to prolonged combat and a devastating roadside bomb attack on his fighting vehicle.</p>
<p>His mother, Jill, believes the mental confusion Andrew suffers probably contributed to his taking that wrong turn.</p>
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<p>Andrew, 25, was initially held inside one of Mexico’s most notoriously dangerous institutions, La Mesa prison in Tijuana, where he says vicious prisoners threatened to kill and rape him. He maintains he was beaten by guards, stripped naked and handcuffed in a standing position by both his ankles and wrists. Sleeping was next to impossible. It was like he was back in a war zone.</p>
<p>The Marine’s mother made early contacts with U.S. media and they produced a flurry of stories about Tahmooressi’s plight. Those stories helped win Andrew a transfer to a better prison with protective custody, where he now feels safer.</p>
<p>But media attention has faded and Mexico’s legal process to determine what to do with the Marine is painfully slow. He faces up to 20 years in prison.</p>
<p>So, I asked attorney Dunn, how much longer might it be before the Mexican judge hearing the case makes a decision about Andrew’s fate?</p>
<p>“We are not in Kansas anymore,” Dunn said. He explained that in the Mexican judicial system trials are not continuous. Rather, there is one day of testimony and the next one may come weeks later.</p>
<p>And what do officials in Washington say?</p>
<p>“They are very diplomatic,” Dunn said. “They have told us that the Secretaries of State of both nations have, ‘met face-to-face on this issue’… But we just have no idea what will happen or when.”</p>
<p>Jill Tahmooressi says, “I know (Secretary John Kerry) raised the issue on May 21. However, I would not label Sgt. Tahmooressi as an ‘issue.’ I would label him an urgent, grave, serious concern.”</p>
<p>This determined mother managed to gather the necessary number of signatures on a White House petition that is supposed to spark an automatic response from the president, but she hasn’t heard a word.</p>
<p>There’s no indication President Obama has even broached the subject of the sergeant with the president of Mexico.</p>
<p>Look, none of this is to say Tahmooressi shouldn’t have to face the music if he knowingly broke the laws of a foreign country. But just as it does here, Mexican law dictates that intent to commit a crime must be established.</p>
<p>That’s what Andrew’s defense attorney hopes to focus on during Monday’s hearing – that Tahmooressi, driving in an unfamiliar state, befuddled by confusing signs and his own illness simply made a mistake.</p>
<p>On July 9, the last time Jill returned from visiting her son, she says a U.S. customs agent stopped her to talk. “He said, ‘You know what? Last night a Mexican military (man) by mistake crossed our border – with his rifle – and we just sent him right back.”</p>
<p>The discussion left her wondering why our supposed friendly neighbor to the south doesn’t return the favor.</p>
<p>California Congressman Duncan Hunter wondered, too, and asked the Department of Homeland Security how often the tables have been turned.</p>
<p>The DHS reported that armed Mexican military troops and Mexican law enforcement officials have crossed the United States border more than 300 times since 2004 – and none was prosecuted by the U.S.</p>
<p>Maybe it’s time we stop being so nice to Mexico. Maybe it’s time we withhold some of the millions of dollars in aid we send to Mexico every year. Maybe someone at the State Department ought to simply say, “Hey, the guy is an American war hero. Do us a favor, let him come home.”</p>
<p><a href="" type="external">DianeDimond.com</a>; email to <a href="mailto:[email protected]" type="external">[email protected]</a>.</p>
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ask mexico us favor sieve country sat back watched 100000 desperate hondurans guatemalans salvadorans streamed northward search safer life also taken decades generous us foreign assistance without much whatcanwedoforyou well heres us expedite judicial process us marine sgt andrew tahmooressi held mexico since last day march advertisement due back court tijuana monday without highpowered attention applied unlikely quickly released quick backstory happened americans familiar usmexican border crossings tahmooressi pronounced taamahreesee became confused graffitiladen road sign south san diego accidentally wound road return went straight mexico phil dunn veteran trial lawyer advising tahmooressi family explained andrew asked mexican customs official could turn around made wrong turn border agent told andrew drive forward bit deeper mexico tahmooressi asked vehicle honestly told moved california among worldly possessions car three legally purchased registered guns mexico however illegal probable cause detain andrew dunn told andrew immediately called 911 still close border told nothing california authorities could since longer american soil mexican authorities long incensed american gunrunning sovereign territory descended tahmooressi twotour veteran afghanistan war hell back resident florida tahmooressi san diego less month receiving treatment posttraumatic stress disorder diagnosed exposure prolonged combat devastating roadside bomb attack fighting vehicle mother jill believes mental confusion andrew suffers probably contributed taking wrong turn advertisement andrew 25 initially held inside one mexicos notoriously dangerous institutions la mesa prison tijuana says vicious prisoners threatened kill rape maintains beaten guards stripped naked handcuffed standing position ankles wrists sleeping next impossible like back war zone marines mother made early contacts us media produced flurry stories tahmooressis plight stories helped win andrew transfer better prison protective custody feels safer media attention faded mexicos legal process determine marine painfully slow faces 20 years prison asked attorney dunn much longer might mexican judge hearing case makes decision andrews fate kansas anymore dunn said explained mexican judicial system trials continuous rather one day testimony next one may come weeks later officials washington say diplomatic dunn said told us secretaries state nations met facetoface issue idea happen jill tahmooressi says know secretary john kerry raised issue may 21 however would label sgt tahmooressi issue would label urgent grave serious concern determined mother managed gather necessary number signatures white house petition supposed spark automatic response president hasnt heard word theres indication president obama even broached subject sergeant president mexico look none say tahmooressi shouldnt face music knowingly broke laws foreign country mexican law dictates intent commit crime must established thats andrews defense attorney hopes focus mondays hearing tahmooressi driving unfamiliar state befuddled confusing signs illness simply made mistake july 9 last time jill returned visiting son says us customs agent stopped talk said know last night mexican military man mistake crossed border rifle sent right back discussion left wondering supposed friendly neighbor south doesnt return favor california congressman duncan hunter wondered asked department homeland security often tables turned dhs reported armed mexican military troops mexican law enforcement officials crossed united states border 300 times since 2004 none prosecuted us maybe time stop nice mexico maybe time withhold millions dollars aid send mexico every year maybe someone state department ought simply say hey guy american war hero us favor let come home dianedimondcom email dianedianedimondcom
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<p>NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — The head of the German union representing automotive workers is speaking out against Volkswagen working with anti-labor groups at its plant in Tennessee.</p>
<p>In a statement issued Friday in Frankfurt, Germany, IG Metall President Detlef Wetzel called on Volkswagen to “show its true colors” in officially recognizing the United Auto Workers union as its bargaining partner at the Chattanooga factory once the union proves it has signed up a majority of workers there.</p>
<p>“It is our objective to guarantee also under the politically difficult circumstances in the United States that labor union rights are respected and codetermination in the plant is possible,” Wetzel said.</p>
<p>Under German law, worker representatives hold half the seats on the board of Wolfsburg, Germany-based Volkswagen, which lends added weight to Wetzel’s position. It also appears to reflect some concern that a new company policy released this week could serve to undermine efforts by its U.S. ally, the United Auto Workers, to organize its first foreign automaker in the South.</p>
<p>Volkswagen management has been under heavy pressure from union representatives on the board because the U.S. plant stands alone among the automaker’s worldwide facilities without formal labor representation for workers. The company has voiced support for creating a German-style works council to represent both salaried and hourly workers, but says U.S. law requires it to work with an independent union to create one.</p>
<p>Volkswagen this week established guidelines for giving labor groups that sign up at least 15 percent of workers access to plant facilities and to regular meetings with management. While the policy would apply to the United Auto Workers, it could also benefit the American Council of Employees, an organization led by workers who spearheaded efforts to defeat the UAW in a union vote in February.</p>
<p>“IG Metall will not accept if Volkswagen treats the UAW just as one as those groups who have acted in the past resolutely against the union,” he said. “There must not be any cooperation between Volkswagen and anti-union groups or yellow unions.”</p>
<p>So-called yellow unions are organizations more focused on representing company interests than those of the workers. Sean Moss, the president of the American Council Employees in Chattanooga, has argued that the group opposes the UAW, but not unions as a whole. The group’s goal is to “present employees with a clear choice and an alternative to the Detroit-led failed alternative,” Moss said earlier this week.</p>
<p>The UAW decried the influence of Republican politicians and Washington-based anti-union groups in churning up the opposition in advance of the February election. The UAW ended up losing that vote 712-626, and soon filed a challenge with the National Labor Relations Board.</p>
<p>The UAW said earlier this week that it had signed a written agreement with VW management to abandon that complaint and to work toward landing the production of a new SUV at the plant in exchange for eventual recognition by the company as bargaining partner at the plant.</p>
<p>This week’s labor policy was seen as a key step toward gaining that status, but a lack of detail in the guidelines has left many questions unanswered.</p>
<p>Harvard University labor law professor Benjamin Sachs said the policy commits plant managers to regular meetings with labor groups, but doesn’t lay out any binding outcomes for those talks.</p>
<p>“On paper that’s not much of a commitment, you could satisfy that by sitting down, listening to what organizations have to say and then leaving,” he said. “That’s very different than what the law gives unions, which is a right to bargain.”</p>
<p>NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — The head of the German union representing automotive workers is speaking out against Volkswagen working with anti-labor groups at its plant in Tennessee.</p>
<p>In a statement issued Friday in Frankfurt, Germany, IG Metall President Detlef Wetzel called on Volkswagen to “show its true colors” in officially recognizing the United Auto Workers union as its bargaining partner at the Chattanooga factory once the union proves it has signed up a majority of workers there.</p>
<p>“It is our objective to guarantee also under the politically difficult circumstances in the United States that labor union rights are respected and codetermination in the plant is possible,” Wetzel said.</p>
<p>Under German law, worker representatives hold half the seats on the board of Wolfsburg, Germany-based Volkswagen, which lends added weight to Wetzel’s position. It also appears to reflect some concern that a new company policy released this week could serve to undermine efforts by its U.S. ally, the United Auto Workers, to organize its first foreign automaker in the South.</p>
<p>Volkswagen management has been under heavy pressure from union representatives on the board because the U.S. plant stands alone among the automaker’s worldwide facilities without formal labor representation for workers. The company has voiced support for creating a German-style works council to represent both salaried and hourly workers, but says U.S. law requires it to work with an independent union to create one.</p>
<p>Volkswagen this week established guidelines for giving labor groups that sign up at least 15 percent of workers access to plant facilities and to regular meetings with management. While the policy would apply to the United Auto Workers, it could also benefit the American Council of Employees, an organization led by workers who spearheaded efforts to defeat the UAW in a union vote in February.</p>
<p>“IG Metall will not accept if Volkswagen treats the UAW just as one as those groups who have acted in the past resolutely against the union,” he said. “There must not be any cooperation between Volkswagen and anti-union groups or yellow unions.”</p>
<p>So-called yellow unions are organizations more focused on representing company interests than those of the workers. Sean Moss, the president of the American Council Employees in Chattanooga, has argued that the group opposes the UAW, but not unions as a whole. The group’s goal is to “present employees with a clear choice and an alternative to the Detroit-led failed alternative,” Moss said earlier this week.</p>
<p>The UAW decried the influence of Republican politicians and Washington-based anti-union groups in churning up the opposition in advance of the February election. The UAW ended up losing that vote 712-626, and soon filed a challenge with the National Labor Relations Board.</p>
<p>The UAW said earlier this week that it had signed a written agreement with VW management to abandon that complaint and to work toward landing the production of a new SUV at the plant in exchange for eventual recognition by the company as bargaining partner at the plant.</p>
<p>This week’s labor policy was seen as a key step toward gaining that status, but a lack of detail in the guidelines has left many questions unanswered.</p>
<p>Harvard University labor law professor Benjamin Sachs said the policy commits plant managers to regular meetings with labor groups, but doesn’t lay out any binding outcomes for those talks.</p>
<p>“On paper that’s not much of a commitment, you could satisfy that by sitting down, listening to what organizations have to say and then leaving,” he said. “That’s very different than what the law gives unions, which is a right to bargain.”</p>
| false | 2 |
nashville tenn ap head german union representing automotive workers speaking volkswagen working antilabor groups plant tennessee statement issued friday frankfurt germany ig metall president detlef wetzel called volkswagen show true colors officially recognizing united auto workers union bargaining partner chattanooga factory union proves signed majority workers objective guarantee also politically difficult circumstances united states labor union rights respected codetermination plant possible wetzel said german law worker representatives hold half seats board wolfsburg germanybased volkswagen lends added weight wetzels position also appears reflect concern new company policy released week could serve undermine efforts us ally united auto workers organize first foreign automaker south volkswagen management heavy pressure union representatives board us plant stands alone among automakers worldwide facilities without formal labor representation workers company voiced support creating germanstyle works council represent salaried hourly workers says us law requires work independent union create one volkswagen week established guidelines giving labor groups sign least 15 percent workers access plant facilities regular meetings management policy would apply united auto workers could also benefit american council employees organization led workers spearheaded efforts defeat uaw union vote february ig metall accept volkswagen treats uaw one groups acted past resolutely union said must cooperation volkswagen antiunion groups yellow unions socalled yellow unions organizations focused representing company interests workers sean moss president american council employees chattanooga argued group opposes uaw unions whole groups goal present employees clear choice alternative detroitled failed alternative moss said earlier week uaw decried influence republican politicians washingtonbased antiunion groups churning opposition advance february election uaw ended losing vote 712626 soon filed challenge national labor relations board uaw said earlier week signed written agreement vw management abandon complaint work toward landing production new suv plant exchange eventual recognition company bargaining partner plant weeks labor policy seen key step toward gaining status lack detail guidelines left many questions unanswered harvard university labor law professor benjamin sachs said policy commits plant managers regular meetings labor groups doesnt lay binding outcomes talks paper thats much commitment could satisfy sitting listening organizations say leaving said thats different law gives unions right bargain nashville tenn ap head german union representing automotive workers speaking volkswagen working antilabor groups plant tennessee statement issued friday frankfurt germany ig metall president detlef wetzel called volkswagen show true colors officially recognizing united auto workers union bargaining partner chattanooga factory union proves signed majority workers objective guarantee also politically difficult circumstances united states labor union rights respected codetermination plant possible wetzel said german law worker representatives hold half seats board wolfsburg germanybased volkswagen lends added weight wetzels position also appears reflect concern new company policy released week could serve undermine efforts us ally united auto workers organize first foreign automaker south volkswagen management heavy pressure union representatives board us plant stands alone among automakers worldwide facilities without formal labor representation workers company voiced support creating germanstyle works council represent salaried hourly workers says us law requires work independent union create one volkswagen week established guidelines giving labor groups sign least 15 percent workers access plant facilities regular meetings management policy would apply united auto workers could also benefit american council employees organization led workers spearheaded efforts defeat uaw union vote february ig metall accept volkswagen treats uaw one groups acted past resolutely union said must cooperation volkswagen antiunion groups yellow unions socalled yellow unions organizations focused representing company interests workers sean moss president american council employees chattanooga argued group opposes uaw unions whole groups goal present employees clear choice alternative detroitled failed alternative moss said earlier week uaw decried influence republican politicians washingtonbased antiunion groups churning opposition advance february election uaw ended losing vote 712626 soon filed challenge national labor relations board uaw said earlier week signed written agreement vw management abandon complaint work toward landing production new suv plant exchange eventual recognition company bargaining partner plant weeks labor policy seen key step toward gaining status lack detail guidelines left many questions unanswered harvard university labor law professor benjamin sachs said policy commits plant managers regular meetings labor groups doesnt lay binding outcomes talks paper thats much commitment could satisfy sitting listening organizations say leaving said thats different law gives unions right bargain
| 688 |
<p>SEOUL (Reuters) - South Korean policymakers joined the global chorus of virtual-coin critics on Thursday, saying Seoul is considering shutting down domestic virtual currency exchanges as the new breed of market exposes users to speculative frenzy and crime.</p> A small toy figure is seen on representations of the Bitcoin virtual currency in this illustration picture, December 26, 2017. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration
<p>The country’s tough stance comes as policymakers from the United States to Germany struggle to come up with stricter regulation against money laundering and other crimes.</p>
<p>Responding to questions in parliament, South Korea’s chief of the Financial Services Commission said: “(The government) is considering both shutting down all local virtual currency exchanges or just the ones who have been violating the law.”</p>
<p>Separately, Bank of Korea Governor Lee Ju-yeol told a news conference that “cryptocurrency is not a legal currency and is not being used as such as of now.”</p>
<p>Regulators around the world are still debating how to address risks posed by cryptocurrencies, as bitcoin, the world’s most popular virtual currency, soared more than 1,700 percent last year.</p>
<p>Prices have plummeted since South Korea announced last week it may ban domestic cryptocurrency exchanges. On Wednesday, bitcoin slid 18 percent.</p>
<p>According to Bithumb, South Korea’s second-largest virtual currency exchange, the nation’s bitcoin trading price stood at 15,697,000 won ($14,690.69) as of 0314 GMT on Thursday.</p>
<p>On the Luxembourg-based Bitstamp exchange, bitcoin was traded at $11,750.</p>
<p>Hong Nam-ki, minister of the office for government policy co-ordination, said that opinions on cryptocurrency trading are sharply divided within the government, but vowed to make a decision on regulations during Thursday’s parliamentary session.</p>
<p>South Korea’s justice minister said last week the ministry was preparing a bill to ban cryptocurrency trading, which sent bitcoin prices sharply lower and threw the market into turmoil.</p>
<p>The shift toward tighter regulation sparked strong reaction from many South Koreans, thousands of whom signed a petition on the website of the presidential Blue House to stop a ban on cryptocurrency trading.</p>
<p>On Thursday, the BOK governor said the central bank had begun looking into the market’s impact on the economy.</p>
<p>“We have started looking at virtual currency from a long-term standpoint, as central banks could start issuing digital currencies in the future. This sort of research has begun at the Bank of International Settlements and we are part of that research.”</p>
<p>Additional reporting by Christine Kim; Editing by Sam Holmes and Jacqueline Wong</p> Our Standards:
<a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a>
<p>* Fnac Darty shares rise</p>
<p>* To roll out demo areas for Google products in France</p>
<p>PARIS, April 16 (Reuters) - French electronics retailer Fnac Darty said it would roll out demonstration areas for Google products and services in all its stores, as it speeds up the integration of Google’s voice assistant and to fend off challenges from Amazon.</p>
<p>The deal initially lifted shares in Fnac Darty by 1.9 percent, sending the stock - in which Germany group Ceconomy has a 24 percent stake - to the top of Paris’ SBF-120 index.</p>
<p>Fnac Darty shares later pared some of those gains to stand 0.6 percent higher by 0730 GMT.</p>
<p>The move comes as Google’s rival Amazon is also set to launch its own Alexa voice assistant in France this spring.</p>
<p>Fnac Darty said in a statement that customers would be able to explore Google’s range of products in hands-on areas ranging from 10-50 square metres.</p>
<p>People visiting Fnac Darty stores would also be able to examine options offered by the Google personal assistant, loaded on many devices such as the Google Home smart speaker or compatible smartphones, and the general Google ecosystem.</p>
<p>In March, French retailer Carrefour, which has a purchasing deal with Fnac Darty, said it had joined forces with Google to create an online voice assistant called “Lea” as part of the French retailer’s digital expansion.</p>
<p>Carrefour chief executive Alexandre Bompard, who joined last July and is the former boss of Fnac Darty, announced plans in January to invest 2.8 billion euros ($3.5 billion) in digital commerce by 2022, in the face of competition from Amazon.</p>
<p>$1 = 0.8113 euros Reporting by Dominique Vidalon; Editing by Sudip Kar-Gupta</p> Our Standards:
<a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a>
<p>SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Singapore proposed on Monday allowing private home owners to let out their property for short-term rentals but with an annual cap of 90 days a year - part of a consultation process welcomed by rental service Airbnb.</p> FILE PHOTO: A woman talks on the phone at the Airbnb office headquarters in the SOMA district of San Francisco, California, U.S., August 2, 2016. REUTERS/Gabrielle Lurie/File Photo
<p>Private homes in Singapore are currently subject to a minimum rental period of three consecutive months, and such strict rules make the city-state one of the tougher markets in which Airbnb operates.</p>
<p>Two Airbnb hosts were fined S$60,000 ($45,800) each by a local court this month for unauthorized short-term letting.</p>
<p>Singapore’s proposal to limit rentals days is broadly in line with measures introduced by other cities such as Paris, London and Amsterdam. The city state has begun seeking public feedback on the proposal and other measures to regulate the sector.</p>
<p>Airbnb, which previously called Singapore’s regulatory framework “untenable” after news of the illegal rentals broke late last year, said on Monday it welcomed the consultation.</p>
<p>“We’re committed to reasonable solutions that will allow responsible home sharing to thrive in Singapore and welcome the opportunity to provide feedback through the consultation process,” said Mich Goh, head of public policy for Airbnb Singapore.</p>
<p>While Singapore has been an early adopter of the sharing economy, it is also keen to minimize any potential negative impact of allowing short-term rentals, as most of the wealthy but land-scarce city-state’s 5.6 million people live in public and private apartments.</p>
<p>The proposed rules require that a significant majority of owners in a condominium complex agree to the presence of short-term rentals in their development.</p>
<p>The government is also seeking feedback on issues such as what homes should qualify and the responsibilities of short-term accommodation companies, the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) said on Monday.</p>
<p>The URA said it will also consider the licensing of operators that advertise or market short-term rental units.</p>
<p>Responsibilities of such companies could include paying relevant taxes on revenue generated from business activities in Singapore and facilitating the collection of taxes from hosts.</p>
<p>The agency said it would consider factors such as the type of residential development and the character of the area when assessing applications for short-term rentals.</p>
<p>The public can provide feedback until May 31.</p>
<p>Reporting by Aradhana Aravindan; Editing by Miyoung Kim and Edwina Gibbs</p> Our Standards:
<a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a>
<p>SINGAPORE (Reuters Breakingviews) - Singapore is tapping the brakes on Southeast Asia’s ride-hailing mega-merger. Antitrust regulators won’t halt U.S. giant Uber’s deal with $6 billion local rival Grab, but have limited data-sharing and driver exclusivity contracts, at least while they review. That’s a sign of potholes ahead.</p> A ComfortDelgro taxi passes Uber and Grab offices in Singapore March 26, 2018. REUTERS/Edgar Su - RC19CDD8AF70
<p>&#160;&#160;&#160; This region of 650 million people, many of them keen smartphone users, makes an alluring market. But competing for paper-thin margins took its toll on Uber in terms of cash and manager hours burned. Last month it drew a line, and agreed to hand over its Southeast Asian operations to Grab in exchange for a 27.5 percent stake.</p>
<p>&#160;&#160;&#160;This is one of the highest profile transactions to land on the desk of the Competition and Consumer Commission of Singapore in years. So far its stance looks robust. That matters because the CCCS sets the tone not just in Singapore but for the wider region as well, at a time when major tech players here are expanding into food, payments and more.</p>
<p>&#160;&#160;&#160; Interim measures released on Friday are the closest indication yet of what the final decision might look like. They scrap exclusivity deals with new drivers and fleets, bar Grab from taking historic trip data from Uber and require pricing policies to remain unchanged. It’s easy to see why: earlier this month, a Grab outage in Singapore sent Uber fares surging.</p>
<p>&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;The restrictions are not crippling. There is already a delicate balance between consumers and drivers on price, for example. Helpfully for Grab, the antitrust regulator appears to think taxis, which account for 785,000 trips a day in Singapore, are part of the market. That’s more generous than considering only ride-hailing, which Grab and Uber dominate.</p>
<p>&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;But if Singapore, a wealthy, albeit small, market of 5.6 million people, has questions, larger markets may ask more. Concerns evident in the interim decision – how to protect the gains that have accrued to consumers from ride-hailing - are tricky to address. Price limits are a blunt tool, and monitoring policy is tough. More steps may be necessary.</p>
<p>&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;Regulators can hardly compel Uber to return. They need to figure out how to attract new entrants like Indonesian rival Go-Jek while preserving competitive tension. Barriers to entry here may be low in theory, but less so in practice, and scale is everything - ask Uber.</p> Breakingviews
<p>Reuters Breakingviews is the world's leading source of agenda-setting financial insight. As the Reuters brand for financial commentary, we dissect the big business and economic stories as they break around the world every day. A global team of about 30 correspondents in New York, London, Hong Kong and other major cities provides expert analysis in real time.</p>
<p>Sign up for a free trial of our full service at <a href="https://www.breakingviews.com/trial" type="external">https://www.breakingviews.com/trial</a> and follow us on Twitter <a href="https://twitter.com/breakingviews" type="external">@Breakingviews</a> and at <a href="https://www.breakingviews.com" type="external">www.breakingviews.com</a>. All opinions expressed are those of the authors.</p>
<p>TEL AVIV (Reuters) - Oracle Corp co-CEO Safra Catz said on Monday she expects an acceleration in the company’s cloud business after the software maker last month reported sales from its cloud business that fell short of Wall Street expectations.</p> FILE PHOTO: Safra A. Catz, Chief Executive Officer, Oracle, speaks at 2017 SelectUSA Investment Summit in Oxon Hill, Maryland, U.S., June 19, 2017. REUTERS/Joshua Roberts
<p>Catz told reporters in Tel Aviv that the company’s cloud business was impacted by a new model made available to customers three quarters ago that resulted in much higher than projected license growth.</p>
<p>“That makes the appearance of a lower number (for the cloud business) even though money is actually coming in to another bucket,” Catz said.</p>
<p>“As this evens out I think we are going to start seeing cloud acceleration again that is very significant but I don’t want to time that right now.”</p>
<p>Oracle last month said its quarterly cloud business revenue rose 31.7 percent to $1.57 billion, but fell short of the average analysts’ estimate of $1.59 billion, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.</p>
<p>Reporting by Tova Cohen; Editing by Steven Scheer</p> Our Standards:
<a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a>
| false | 2 |
seoul reuters south korean policymakers joined global chorus virtualcoin critics thursday saying seoul considering shutting domestic virtual currency exchanges new breed market exposes users speculative frenzy crime small toy figure seen representations bitcoin virtual currency illustration picture december 26 2017 reutersdado ruvicillustration countrys tough stance comes policymakers united states germany struggle come stricter regulation money laundering crimes responding questions parliament south koreas chief financial services commission said government considering shutting local virtual currency exchanges ones violating law separately bank korea governor lee juyeol told news conference cryptocurrency legal currency used regulators around world still debating address risks posed cryptocurrencies bitcoin worlds popular virtual currency soared 1700 percent last year prices plummeted since south korea announced last week may ban domestic cryptocurrency exchanges wednesday bitcoin slid 18 percent according bithumb south koreas secondlargest virtual currency exchange nations bitcoin trading price stood 15697000 1469069 0314 gmt thursday luxembourgbased bitstamp exchange bitcoin traded 11750 hong namki minister office government policy coordination said opinions cryptocurrency trading sharply divided within government vowed make decision regulations thursdays parliamentary session south koreas justice minister said last week ministry preparing bill ban cryptocurrency trading sent bitcoin prices sharply lower threw market turmoil shift toward tighter regulation sparked strong reaction many south koreans thousands signed petition website presidential blue house stop ban cryptocurrency trading thursday bok governor said central bank begun looking markets impact economy started looking virtual currency longterm standpoint central banks could start issuing digital currencies future sort research begun bank international settlements part research additional reporting christine kim editing sam holmes jacqueline wong standards thomson reuters trust principles fnac darty shares rise roll demo areas google products france paris april 16 reuters french electronics retailer fnac darty said would roll demonstration areas google products services stores speeds integration googles voice assistant fend challenges amazon deal initially lifted shares fnac darty 19 percent sending stock germany group ceconomy 24 percent stake top paris sbf120 index fnac darty shares later pared gains stand 06 percent higher 0730 gmt move comes googles rival amazon also set launch alexa voice assistant france spring fnac darty said statement customers would able explore googles range products handson areas ranging 1050 square metres people visiting fnac darty stores would also able examine options offered google personal assistant loaded many devices google home smart speaker compatible smartphones general google ecosystem march french retailer carrefour purchasing deal fnac darty said joined forces google create online voice assistant called lea part french retailers digital expansion carrefour chief executive alexandre bompard joined last july former boss fnac darty announced plans january invest 28 billion euros 35 billion digital commerce 2022 face competition amazon 1 08113 euros reporting dominique vidalon editing sudip kargupta standards thomson reuters trust principles singapore reuters singapore proposed monday allowing private home owners let property shortterm rentals annual cap 90 days year part consultation process welcomed rental service airbnb file photo woman talks phone airbnb office headquarters soma district san francisco california us august 2 2016 reutersgabrielle luriefile photo private homes singapore currently subject minimum rental period three consecutive months strict rules make citystate one tougher markets airbnb operates two airbnb hosts fined s60000 45800 local court month unauthorized shortterm letting singapores proposal limit rentals days broadly line measures introduced cities paris london amsterdam city state begun seeking public feedback proposal measures regulate sector airbnb previously called singapores regulatory framework untenable news illegal rentals broke late last year said monday welcomed consultation committed reasonable solutions allow responsible home sharing thrive singapore welcome opportunity provide feedback consultation process said mich goh head public policy airbnb singapore singapore early adopter sharing economy also keen minimize potential negative impact allowing shortterm rentals wealthy landscarce citystates 56 million people live public private apartments proposed rules require significant majority owners condominium complex agree presence shortterm rentals development government also seeking feedback issues homes qualify responsibilities shortterm accommodation companies urban redevelopment authority ura said monday ura said also consider licensing operators advertise market shortterm rental units responsibilities companies could include paying relevant taxes revenue generated business activities singapore facilitating collection taxes hosts agency said would consider factors type residential development character area assessing applications shortterm rentals public provide feedback may 31 reporting aradhana aravindan editing miyoung kim edwina gibbs standards thomson reuters trust principles singapore reuters breakingviews singapore tapping brakes southeast asias ridehailing megamerger antitrust regulators wont halt us giant ubers deal 6 billion local rival grab limited datasharing driver exclusivity contracts least review thats sign potholes ahead comfortdelgro taxi passes uber grab offices singapore march 26 2018 reutersedgar su rc19cdd8af70 160160160 region 650 million people many keen smartphone users makes alluring market competing paperthin margins took toll uber terms cash manager hours burned last month drew line agreed hand southeast asian operations grab exchange 275 percent stake 160160160this one highest profile transactions land desk competition consumer commission singapore years far stance looks robust matters cccs sets tone singapore wider region well time major tech players expanding food payments 160160160 interim measures released friday closest indication yet final decision might look like scrap exclusivity deals new drivers fleets bar grab taking historic trip data uber require pricing policies remain unchanged easy see earlier month grab outage singapore sent uber fares surging 160160160160the restrictions crippling already delicate balance consumers drivers price example helpfully grab antitrust regulator appears think taxis account 785000 trips day singapore part market thats generous considering ridehailing grab uber dominate 160160160160but singapore wealthy albeit small market 56 million people questions larger markets may ask concerns evident interim decision protect gains accrued consumers ridehailing tricky address price limits blunt tool monitoring policy tough steps may necessary 160160160160regulators hardly compel uber return need figure attract new entrants like indonesian rival gojek preserving competitive tension barriers entry may low theory less practice scale everything ask uber breakingviews reuters breakingviews worlds leading source agendasetting financial insight reuters brand financial commentary dissect big business economic stories break around world every day global team 30 correspondents new york london hong kong major cities provides expert analysis real time sign free trial full service httpswwwbreakingviewscomtrial follow us twitter breakingviews wwwbreakingviewscom opinions expressed authors tel aviv reuters oracle corp coceo safra catz said monday expects acceleration companys cloud business software maker last month reported sales cloud business fell short wall street expectations file photo safra catz chief executive officer oracle speaks 2017 selectusa investment summit oxon hill maryland us june 19 2017 reutersjoshua roberts catz told reporters tel aviv companys cloud business impacted new model made available customers three quarters ago resulted much higher projected license growth makes appearance lower number cloud business even though money actually coming another bucket catz said evens think going start seeing cloud acceleration significant dont want time right oracle last month said quarterly cloud business revenue rose 317 percent 157 billion fell short average analysts estimate 159 billion according thomson reuters ibes reporting tova cohen editing steven scheer standards thomson reuters trust principles
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<p>FILE – In this Jan. 15, 2004 file photo, Google CEO Eric Schmidt, top, and co-founders Sergey Brin, left, and Larry Page pose at the company’s headquarters in Mountain View, Calif. Google’s IPO 10 years ago launched the company on a trajectory that continues to reshape its business and much of the world in its orbit. (AP Photo/Ben Margot)</p>
<p>SAN FRANCISCO — Google’s IPO, a decade ago this week, launched the company on a trajectory that continues to reshape its business and much of the world in its orbit.</p>
<p>And CEO Larry Page is determined to push even further.</p>
<p>Page’s vision is that Google’s products and services will become the control center of people’s lives: The company’s driverless cars will chauffeur people around safer roads and deliver goods within hours of an online order. People won’t even have to bother leaving their homes, which will be made more comfortable and enjoyable through the use of smart appliances. Robots will handle tedious chores and other jobs, freeing up time for people to enjoy lives prolonged by health-management tools and disease-fighting breakthroughs engineered by Google. Internet-connected eyewear and watches will supplement the smartphones that ensure Google is a constant companion capable of anticipating questions and desires.</p>
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<p>Google’s big bets are fueled by Page’s belief that “… incrementalism leads to irrelevance over time, especially in technology, because change tends to be revolutionary, not evolutionary,” he wrote in May in Google’s annual letter to shareholders.</p>
<p>Although Page has been taking risks since he co-founded Google with Sergey Brin 1998, the stakes probably wouldn’t be as high if not for the company’s pivotal IPO on Aug. 19, 2004.</p>
<p>Besides raising about $1.2 billion in cash, the IPO empowered Google Inc. with a stock that the company used to attract more brainy engineers and buy promising companies such as YouTube. Google now employs 52,000 workers, some 20 times more than at the time of the IPO and has snapped up more than 250 companies in the past 10 years.</p>
<p>The ambitious expansion has extended Google’s empire far beyond the influential search engine that processes more than 100 billion queries each month and still brings in most of the company’s projected $67 billion in revenue this year. Google is also a leader in email, Web browsers, Internet video and mobile computing now.</p>
<p>The company already has amassed so much power that it has been the subject of broad antitrust investigations in the U.S. and Europe amid allegations that it uses its size and stature to stifle competition. The Federal Trade Commission absolved Google of wrongdoing last year while the European Commission is still examining the issue.</p>
<p>ROCKY ROAD TO WALL STREET</p>
<p>When Google filed its IPO paperwork in April 2004, the iconoclasm of Page and Brin shone through the legalese and standard boilerplate language. The duo included an “owner’s manual” that declared Google’s intent to remain an unconventional company that pampered its employees, made risky gambles on long-term projects at the expense of short-term earnings growth and paid little heed to the unwritten Wall Street rules that prod executives to offer financial forecasts each quarter.</p>
<p>In another break from tradition, Page and Brin set up a bidding process known as a “Dutch auction” designed to give a larger pool of investors an opportunity to determine the IPO price and buy the stock before it began trading on Nasdaq. This differed from the usual system that depends on bankers to set the IPO price and distribute the pre-trading shares to their preferred clients, who often expected to get them at a slight discount.</p>
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<p>Page and Brin didn’t help Google’s cause. They showed up to investor presentations in casual attire and then answered questions with off-the-cuff remarks that provided little information. Things got even more complicated when a Playboy interview done with Page and Brin in April came out in early August as the IPO was heading into the stretch. The piece revealed that Google hadn’t properly registered millions of its shares with California regulators. Officials initially viewed the interview as breach of rules that forbid companies from sharing key information outside of IPO documents, but eventually the agency backed down when Google included the entire Playboy interview in an amended filing.</p>
<p>Google’s IPO ended up being priced at $85, well below the company’s earlier target range of $108 to $135.</p>
<p>BOON FOR BARGAIN SHOPPERS</p>
<p>Investors who bought Google’s stock on the first day of trading have been richly rewarded. The shares rose 18 percent to close at slightly above $100 on in their Wall Street debut and have never fallen below the IPO price. Adjusted for a split completed earlier this year, Google’s stock has risen roughly 14-fold, leaving the company with a market value of nearly $400 billion. Only Exxon Mobil Corp. and Apple Inc. are worth more.</p>
<p>Apple didn’t fare quite as well as Google in the first decade after its December 1980 IPO. Apple’s stock merely tripled in value during its first 10 years of trading. By comparison, Microsoft Corp.’s stock had soared 90-fold a decade after its March 1986 IPO and Amazon.com Inc.’s stock had climbed 40-fold a decade after its May 1997 IPO.</p>
<p>Google’s performance helped stoke demand for the IPOs of other rapidly growing Internet companies. Facebook Inc. would never have been able to command a market value of $104 billion when it went public in May 2012, nor would Chinese e-commerce conglomerate Alibaba Group’s expected IPO value be at $150 billion if Google’s IPO hadn’t performed as well as it had, said longtime IPO expert and University of Florida finance professor Jay Ritter.</p>
<p>WIDENING THE WEALTH GAP</p>
<p>Google’s IPO turned most of the company’s roughly 2,500 employees at the time of the IPO into millionaires, including its head chef and masseuse. Even more wealth has been created as Google helped turn the Internet and mobile devices into gold mines for workers with programming skills and ingenuity.</p>
<p>But the high-tech boom has also created an ever-widening gap in the San Francisco Bay area between people employed in the industry and a sizable population of locals who increasingly have trouble making ends meet as the region’s cost of living steadily escalates.</p>
<p>“If you already own a home here, you are golden,” says Michael Kasperzak, a city councilman in Google’s hometown of Mountain View, California. “If you don’t, you are in a world of hurt.”</p>
<p>The median price of Mountain View houses stood a $1.33 million in June, a 72 percent increase from $775,000 a decade ago, according to research firm CoreLogic Dataquick. In nearby Palo Alto, the median price has nearly tripled during that time to $2.4 million and the median price has nearly doubled in other neighboring communities, such as Cupertino ($1.7 million) and Sunnyvale ($1.2 million).</p>
<p>It’s getting tougher to pay the rent, too. Apartment rents have nearly doubled during the past decade in the three counties where many Google and other high-tech workers live: In San Francisco the average is $3,229 per month; in San Mateo it’s $2,470; and in Santa Clara $2,321.</p>
<p>Google won’t give geographic breakdowns where its workers, but a substantial number of its nearly 50,000 employees are based in Mountain View. Even though Google deploys a fleet of shuttle buses in San Francisco and other parts of the Bay area to transport its workers to Mountain View, the traffic is so bad in the mornings and evenings that Kasperzak says the city may have to consider imposing tolls during the most heavily congested hours.</p>
<p>Despite the headaches, “it’s still pretty cool having one of the most recognizable brands in the world in your town,” says Kasperzak. He just wishes he wasn’t forced to sell his four shares of Google stock at a split-adjusted $150 a few years ago to avoid potential conflicts of interest.</p>
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file jan 15 2004 file photo google ceo eric schmidt top cofounders sergey brin left larry page pose companys headquarters mountain view calif googles ipo 10 years ago launched company trajectory continues reshape business much world orbit ap photoben margot san francisco googles ipo decade ago week launched company trajectory continues reshape business much world orbit ceo larry page determined push even pages vision googles products services become control center peoples lives companys driverless cars chauffeur people around safer roads deliver goods within hours online order people wont even bother leaving homes made comfortable enjoyable use smart appliances robots handle tedious chores jobs freeing time people enjoy lives prolonged healthmanagement tools diseasefighting breakthroughs engineered google internetconnected eyewear watches supplement smartphones ensure google constant companion capable anticipating questions desires advertisement googles big bets fueled pages belief incrementalism leads irrelevance time especially technology change tends revolutionary evolutionary wrote may googles annual letter shareholders although page taking risks since cofounded google sergey brin 1998 stakes probably wouldnt high companys pivotal ipo aug 19 2004 besides raising 12 billion cash ipo empowered google inc stock company used attract brainy engineers buy promising companies youtube google employs 52000 workers 20 times time ipo snapped 250 companies past 10 years ambitious expansion extended googles empire far beyond influential search engine processes 100 billion queries month still brings companys projected 67 billion revenue year google also leader email web browsers internet video mobile computing company already amassed much power subject broad antitrust investigations us europe amid allegations uses size stature stifle competition federal trade commission absolved google wrongdoing last year european commission still examining issue rocky road wall street google filed ipo paperwork april 2004 iconoclasm page brin shone legalese standard boilerplate language duo included owners manual declared googles intent remain unconventional company pampered employees made risky gambles longterm projects expense shortterm earnings growth paid little heed unwritten wall street rules prod executives offer financial forecasts quarter another break tradition page brin set bidding process known dutch auction designed give larger pool investors opportunity determine ipo price buy stock began trading nasdaq differed usual system depends bankers set ipo price distribute pretrading shares preferred clients often expected get slight discount advertisement page brin didnt help googles cause showed investor presentations casual attire answered questions offthecuff remarks provided little information things got even complicated playboy interview done page brin april came early august ipo heading stretch piece revealed google hadnt properly registered millions shares california regulators officials initially viewed interview breach rules forbid companies sharing key information outside ipo documents eventually agency backed google included entire playboy interview amended filing googles ipo ended priced 85 well companys earlier target range 108 135 boon bargain shoppers investors bought googles stock first day trading richly rewarded shares rose 18 percent close slightly 100 wall street debut never fallen ipo price adjusted split completed earlier year googles stock risen roughly 14fold leaving company market value nearly 400 billion exxon mobil corp apple inc worth apple didnt fare quite well google first decade december 1980 ipo apples stock merely tripled value first 10 years trading comparison microsoft corps stock soared 90fold decade march 1986 ipo amazoncom incs stock climbed 40fold decade may 1997 ipo googles performance helped stoke demand ipos rapidly growing internet companies facebook inc would never able command market value 104 billion went public may 2012 would chinese ecommerce conglomerate alibaba groups expected ipo value 150 billion googles ipo hadnt performed well said longtime ipo expert university florida finance professor jay ritter widening wealth gap googles ipo turned companys roughly 2500 employees time ipo millionaires including head chef masseuse even wealth created google helped turn internet mobile devices gold mines workers programming skills ingenuity hightech boom also created everwidening gap san francisco bay area people employed industry sizable population locals increasingly trouble making ends meet regions cost living steadily escalates already home golden says michael kasperzak city councilman googles hometown mountain view california dont world hurt median price mountain view houses stood 133 million june 72 percent increase 775000 decade ago according research firm corelogic dataquick nearby palo alto median price nearly tripled time 24 million median price nearly doubled neighboring communities cupertino 17 million sunnyvale 12 million getting tougher pay rent apartment rents nearly doubled past decade three counties many google hightech workers live san francisco average 3229 per month san mateo 2470 santa clara 2321 google wont give geographic breakdowns workers substantial number nearly 50000 employees based mountain view even though google deploys fleet shuttle buses san francisco parts bay area transport workers mountain view traffic bad mornings evenings kasperzak says city may consider imposing tolls heavily congested hours despite headaches still pretty cool one recognizable brands world town says kasperzak wishes wasnt forced sell four shares google stock splitadjusted 150 years ago avoid potential conflicts interest
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<p>HELENA, Mont. (AP) — Montana wildlife officials decided Thursday against shipping 145 bison captured from Yellowstone National Park to the Bronx zoo and other locations across the nation, choosing to send them to an American Indian reservation within the state.</p>
<p>The Fish and Wildlife Commission voted to transfer the bison to Fort Peck Indian Reservation instead of following a recommendation to divide the animals among the reservation, a New York-based wildlife consortium, Oklahoma's Cherokee Nation and the state of Utah. The bison are now being held on a ranch owned by media mogul Ted Turner under a five-year agreement that comes to an end next month, adding urgency to finding them a new home.</p>
<p>Commissioners said they are confident in the Fort Peck tribes' ability to manage the bison after successfully handling the one previous relocation of 63 Yellowstone bison in 2012. Commissioners also wanted to keep the animals in the state in anticipation of a Montana bison conservation plan to be completed next year.</p>
<p>Commissioner Larry Wetsit, a Fort Peck tribal member, said he is certain the tribes will work with the other groups interested in the bison.</p>
<p>"It's always been the intent of the tribe to re-establish buffalo somewhere," Wetsit said. "It's always been our goal, and we will always work with others to ensure that does happen."</p>
<p>An environmental analysis of the relocation proposal is pending. Thursday's vote is conditional on the completion of that analysis.</p>
<p>Yellowstone bison are considered extremely valuable because they are one of the few wild herds left that have no cattle genes. These 145 bison were captured a decade ago under an experimental program to start new herds using the genetically pure Yellowstone animals.</p>
<p>They spent years in quarantine to make sure they weren't carrying the disease brucellosis, which has caused problems for the cattle industry.</p>
<p>The Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks agency's recommendations would have given the Wildlife Conservation Society 10 bison for zoos in the Bronx, Queens and Ohio. That recommendation was in recognition of the Bronx zoo being the founder of the American Bison Society, Montana Wildlife Division Administrator Ken McDonald said.</p>
<p>The society was instrumental in conserving the last bison before they were wiped out in North America.</p>
<p>The state agency recommended only 70 of the bison go to Montana's Fort Peck Indian Reservation, with 35 to Oklahoma's Cherokee Nation and the remaining 30 to Utah's Division of Wildlife.</p>
<p>A fifth applicant, the private American Prairie wildlife reserve in north-central Montana, was dropped from consideration after wildlife officials said they wouldn't relocate bison to nontribal lands in the state until the bison conservation plan is completed.</p>
<p>HELENA, Mont. (AP) — Montana wildlife officials decided Thursday against shipping 145 bison captured from Yellowstone National Park to the Bronx zoo and other locations across the nation, choosing to send them to an American Indian reservation within the state.</p>
<p>The Fish and Wildlife Commission voted to transfer the bison to Fort Peck Indian Reservation instead of following a recommendation to divide the animals among the reservation, a New York-based wildlife consortium, Oklahoma's Cherokee Nation and the state of Utah. The bison are now being held on a ranch owned by media mogul Ted Turner under a five-year agreement that comes to an end next month, adding urgency to finding them a new home.</p>
<p>Commissioners said they are confident in the Fort Peck tribes' ability to manage the bison after successfully handling the one previous relocation of 63 Yellowstone bison in 2012. Commissioners also wanted to keep the animals in the state in anticipation of a Montana bison conservation plan to be completed next year.</p>
<p>Commissioner Larry Wetsit, a Fort Peck tribal member, said he is certain the tribes will work with the other groups interested in the bison.</p>
<p>"It's always been the intent of the tribe to re-establish buffalo somewhere," Wetsit said. "It's always been our goal, and we will always work with others to ensure that does happen."</p>
<p>An environmental analysis of the relocation proposal is pending. Thursday's vote is conditional on the completion of that analysis.</p>
<p>Yellowstone bison are considered extremely valuable because they are one of the few wild herds left that have no cattle genes. These 145 bison were captured a decade ago under an experimental program to start new herds using the genetically pure Yellowstone animals.</p>
<p>They spent years in quarantine to make sure they weren't carrying the disease brucellosis, which has caused problems for the cattle industry.</p>
<p>The Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks agency's recommendations would have given the Wildlife Conservation Society 10 bison for zoos in the Bronx, Queens and Ohio. That recommendation was in recognition of the Bronx zoo being the founder of the American Bison Society, Montana Wildlife Division Administrator Ken McDonald said.</p>
<p>The society was instrumental in conserving the last bison before they were wiped out in North America.</p>
<p>The state agency recommended only 70 of the bison go to Montana's Fort Peck Indian Reservation, with 35 to Oklahoma's Cherokee Nation and the remaining 30 to Utah's Division of Wildlife.</p>
<p>A fifth applicant, the private American Prairie wildlife reserve in north-central Montana, was dropped from consideration after wildlife officials said they wouldn't relocate bison to nontribal lands in the state until the bison conservation plan is completed.</p>
| false | 2 |
helena mont ap montana wildlife officials decided thursday shipping 145 bison captured yellowstone national park bronx zoo locations across nation choosing send american indian reservation within state fish wildlife commission voted transfer bison fort peck indian reservation instead following recommendation divide animals among reservation new yorkbased wildlife consortium oklahomas cherokee nation state utah bison held ranch owned media mogul ted turner fiveyear agreement comes end next month adding urgency finding new home commissioners said confident fort peck tribes ability manage bison successfully handling one previous relocation 63 yellowstone bison 2012 commissioners also wanted keep animals state anticipation montana bison conservation plan completed next year commissioner larry wetsit fort peck tribal member said certain tribes work groups interested bison always intent tribe reestablish buffalo somewhere wetsit said always goal always work others ensure happen environmental analysis relocation proposal pending thursdays vote conditional completion analysis yellowstone bison considered extremely valuable one wild herds left cattle genes 145 bison captured decade ago experimental program start new herds using genetically pure yellowstone animals spent years quarantine make sure werent carrying disease brucellosis caused problems cattle industry montana fish wildlife parks agencys recommendations would given wildlife conservation society 10 bison zoos bronx queens ohio recommendation recognition bronx zoo founder american bison society montana wildlife division administrator ken mcdonald said society instrumental conserving last bison wiped north america state agency recommended 70 bison go montanas fort peck indian reservation 35 oklahomas cherokee nation remaining 30 utahs division wildlife fifth applicant private american prairie wildlife reserve northcentral montana dropped consideration wildlife officials said wouldnt relocate bison nontribal lands state bison conservation plan completed helena mont ap montana wildlife officials decided thursday shipping 145 bison captured yellowstone national park bronx zoo locations across nation choosing send american indian reservation within state fish wildlife commission voted transfer bison fort peck indian reservation instead following recommendation divide animals among reservation new yorkbased wildlife consortium oklahomas cherokee nation state utah bison held ranch owned media mogul ted turner fiveyear agreement comes end next month adding urgency finding new home commissioners said confident fort peck tribes ability manage bison successfully handling one previous relocation 63 yellowstone bison 2012 commissioners also wanted keep animals state anticipation montana bison conservation plan completed next year commissioner larry wetsit fort peck tribal member said certain tribes work groups interested bison always intent tribe reestablish buffalo somewhere wetsit said always goal always work others ensure happen environmental analysis relocation proposal pending thursdays vote conditional completion analysis yellowstone bison considered extremely valuable one wild herds left cattle genes 145 bison captured decade ago experimental program start new herds using genetically pure yellowstone animals spent years quarantine make sure werent carrying disease brucellosis caused problems cattle industry montana fish wildlife parks agencys recommendations would given wildlife conservation society 10 bison zoos bronx queens ohio recommendation recognition bronx zoo founder american bison society montana wildlife division administrator ken mcdonald said society instrumental conserving last bison wiped north america state agency recommended 70 bison go montanas fort peck indian reservation 35 oklahomas cherokee nation remaining 30 utahs division wildlife fifth applicant private american prairie wildlife reserve northcentral montana dropped consideration wildlife officials said wouldnt relocate bison nontribal lands state bison conservation plan completed
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<p>Jan 24 (Reuters) - Range Resources Corp:</p> * RANGE ANNOUNCES 26 PCT INCREASE IN PROVED RESERVES
<p>* FUTURE DEVELOPMENT COSTS FOR PROVED UNDEVELOPED RESERVES ARE ESTIMATED TO BE $0.38 PER MCFE Source text for Eikon: Further company coverage:</p> Our Standards:
<a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a>
<p>(Reuters) - Salesforce.com Inc ( <a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=CRM.N" type="external">CRM.N</a>) is in advanced discussions to acquire U.S. software maker MuleSoft Inc ( <a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=MULE.N" type="external">MULE.N</a>), people familiar with the matter told Reuters on Tuesday, as it looks to expand its offerings beyond customer relationship management software.</p> FILE PHOTO - The Salesforce logo is pictured on a building in San Francisco, California, U.S. October 12, 2016. REUTERS/Lily Jamali/File Photo
<p>The acquisition, which could be worth more $6 billion, would be Salesforce’s biggest ever deal, illustrating Chief Executive Marc Benioff’s push to supplement the company’s cloud-based portfolio with new technology.</p>
<p>A deal could be announced as soon as this week, the sources said, cautioning that negotiations had not been finalized and that an agreement was not certain.</p>
<p>The sources asked not to be identified because the negotiations are confidential. Salesforce and MuleSoft declined to comment.</p>
<p>MuleSoft shares jumped more than 20 percent to $39.88 after Reuters reported the talks, giving the company a market value of $5.3 billion. Salesforce shares were up 0.3 percent at $125.31.</p>
<p>Based in San Francisco, MuleSoft makes software that automatically integrates disparate data, devices and applications to help companies’ networks run faster. It could help Salesforce win business from customers which are not yet ready to transition their systems to the cloud.</p>
<p>Buying MuleSoft would help Salesforce build a larger enterprise apps ecosystem around its own products, Barclays Plc ( <a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=BARC.L" type="external">BARC.L</a>) analysts wrote in a research note, adding that MuleSoft could command a premium given its rapid growth and good fit.</p>
<a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=CRM.N" type="external">Salesforce.com Inc</a> 125.63 CRM.N New York Stock Exchange +0.65 (+0.52%) CRM.N MULE.N BARC.L KO.N MCD.N
<p>Salesforce Ventures, the company’s venture capital arm, led a $128 million funding round in MuleSoft in 2015.</p>
<p>MuleSoft has more than 1,000 customers, including Coca-Cola Co ( <a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=KO.N" type="external">KO.N</a>), McDonald’s Corp ( <a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=MCD.N" type="external">MCD.N</a>), Spotify and Unilever ( <a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=ULVR.L" type="external">ULVR.L</a>). It went public about a year ago.</p>
<p>Salesforce holds more than 18 percent of the global customer relationship management software market, followed by Oracle Corp ( <a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=ORCL.N" type="external">ORCL.N</a>) with 9.4 percent, according to 2016 figures provided by research firm IDC.</p>
<p>Alphabet Inc’s ( <a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=GOOGL.O" type="external">GOOGL.O</a>) Google acquired a competitor of MuleSoft called Apigee Corp in a $625 million deal in 2016.</p>
<p>Reporting by Liana B. Baker and Greg Roumeliotis in New York; Additional reporting by Stephen Nellis in San Francisco; Editing by Bill Rigby</p> Our Standards:
<a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a>
<p>WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States is advancing toward the first transfer of a prisoner from the Guantanamo Bay detention center under U.S. President Donald Trump, the U.S. military told Reuters on Monday, a move that would repatriate the detainee to Saudi Arabia.</p>
<p>The transfer of 43-year-old Ahmed Muhammed Haza al-Darbi appeared to have stalled in February, when he became eligible but was not repatriated, as allowed under the terms of al-Darbi’s 2014 plea bargain agreement.</p>
<p>The U.S. military said at the time it was waiting for assurances from Saudi Arabia’s government to move forward on his departure.</p>
<p>On Monday, the Pentagon suggested that process was back on track. Navy Commander Sarah Higgins, a spokeswoman, said the Defense Department was “reviewing information received from Saudi Arabia regarding al-Darbi’s transfer.”</p>
<p>“The transfer process is moving forward,” Higgins said. “I have no further information on transfer timing.”</p>
<p>She did not elaborate.</p>
<p>Al-Darbi’s transfer would decrease the prisoner population at the detention center in Cuba to 40 from 41 - despite Trump’s campaign pledge to “to load it up with some bad dudes.”</p>
<p>The prison, which was opened by Republican President George W. Bush to hold terrorism suspects captured overseas after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks came to symbolize harsh detention practices that opened the United States to accusations of torture.</p>
<p>U.S. officials have not ruled out again adding to the prisoner population and have acknowledged trouble repatriating Islamic State fighters being held by U.S.-backed forces in Syria, raising the possibility that Guantanamo Bay could be seen as a viable option in the future.</p>
<p>The news of progress in al-Darbi’s case came before a high-profile trip to Washington by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman, his first visit to the United States as Saudi heir apparent.</p>
<p>The crown prince is due to meet Trump at the White House on Tuesday, in a visit that is expected to see both countries publicly emphasize their strong security ties, even as those ties come under intensifying scrutiny in Congress.</p> FILE PHOTO: A soldier stands guard in a tower overlooking Camp Delta at Guantanamo Bay naval base in a December 31, 2009 file photo provided by the US Navy. REUTERS/US Navy/Spc. Cody Black/Handout via Reuters ‘MESSAGE OF HOPE’
<p>Al-Darbi became eligible for repatriation under the terms of his 2014 plea bargain agreement, in which he admitted to his role in a 2002 attack of against a French-flagged oil tanker off the coast of Yemen, and agreed to cooperate with U.S. authorities. He has been held at Guantanamo Bay for 15 years.</p>
<p>Ramzi Kassem, a law professor at the City University of New York who has been al-Darbi’s lead defense counsel since 2008, told Reuters that a Trump administration move to honor the 2014 agreement would be significant and would be noticed by other inmates.</p>
<p>“Mr. Darbi’s transfer to Saudi custody would send a qualified message of hope to other prisoners that leaving Guantanamo is possible,” Kassem said.</p>
<p>He said the message was qualified in part because “the U.S. government has no interest in prosecuting three quarters of the detainees left today,” which would make them ineligible for such agreements.</p>
<p>Critics of the U.S. military detention system say that militants can be best prosecuted in civilian courts and have seized on the high costs of housing inmates at Guantanamo Bay as one argument why indefinite detention is misguided.</p>
<p>Trump’s predecessor, Barack Obama, reduced the inmate population to 41 from 242, but fell short of fulfilling his promise to close the jail before leaving office last year.</p>
<p>Trump signed an order in January to keep the Guantanamo Bay detention center open and hinted in his State of the Union address to Congress that Islamic State or al Qaeda fighters could be added to the prison population</p>
<p>Trump also asked the Pentagon to re-examine the U.S. military’s detention policy.</p>
<p>The U.S. military has long struggled with what to do about prisoners of war in an open-ended battle against Islamist extremism, in which militants have come from all corners of the world to fight in places like Syria.</p>
<p>In February, U.S. officials expressed concerns about the lack of a clear path on how to deal with foreign fighters for Islamic State who were detained by the U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces.</p>
<p>U.S. officials say there are hundreds of foreign fighters and thousands of Syrian Islamic State militants in SDF hands.</p>
<p>Reporting by Phil Stewart and Idrees Ali; Editing by Peter Cooney</p> Our Standards:
<a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a>
<p>WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Conservative U.S. Supreme Court justices on Tuesday signaled sympathy toward Christian-based facilities that argued that a California law requiring them to post signs disclosing the availability of state-subsidized abortions and birth control violates their right to free speech.</p> Opponents of a California law, requiring anti-abortion pregnancy centers to post signs notifying women of the availability of state-funded contraception and abortion, hold a rally in front of the U.S. Supreme Court in Washington, U.S., March 20, 2018. REUTERS/Andrew Chung
<p>Several of the justices on a court that has a 5-4 conservative majority expressed concerns that the law was fashioned in order to specifically target the centers, which are staunchly opposed to abortion.</p>
<p>Even some of the liberal justices voiced concern over parts of the law during an hour-long argument in an appeal by a group of non-profit facilities called crisis pregnancy centers of a lower court ruling upholding the Democratic-backed 2015 law.</p>
<p>Conservative Justice Samuel Alito said that even if the law is neutral on its face, it contains so many exemptions that it appears to target only those with anti-abortion views.</p>
<p>“Is it possible to infer intentional discrimination?” Alito asked California deputy solicitor general Joshua Klein.</p>
<p>Liberal Justice Elena Kagan pressed Klein on the same concerns, wondering whether the law was applied only to “speakers whose speech we don’t much like.”</p>
<p>Klein told the justices that the law was applied where it would be most useful to pregnant women.</p>
<p>The case represents a crossroads of two contentious issues: abortion and the breadth of the right to freedom of speech under the U.S. Constitution’s First Amendment. The Supreme Court legalized abortion in 1973, and the wider issue of abortion rights is not at issue in the case.</p>
<p>Crisis pregnancy centers say they offer legitimate health services but that it is their mission to steer women with unplanned pregnancies away from abortion. They accuse California of forcing them to advertise for abortion even though they oppose it.</p>
<p>California says some crisis pregnancy centers mislead women by presenting themselves as full-service reproductive healthcare facilities and the law helps ensure these clients are made aware of abortion services available elsewhere.</p>
<p>The San Francisco-based 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the law in 2016 after it was challenged by some of these facilities, finding the statute did not discriminate based on viewpoint.</p> Anti-abortion rights demonstrators stand by a pile of discarded protest signs as they rally outside as the U.S. Supreme Court hears oral arguments in the abortion case National Institute of Family and Life Advocates (NIFLA) v. Becerra, in Washington, U.S. March 20, 2018. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst FACT ACT
<p>California’s Reproductive FACT Act, passed by a Democratic-led legislature and signed by Democratic Governor Jerry Brown, requires centers licensed as family planning facilities to post or distribute notices that the state has programs offering free or low-cost birth control and abortion services. The law requires unlicensed facilities with no medical provider on staff to disclose that fact.</p>
<p>Some justices said the law’s application to unlicensed facilities could be unconstitutional. Justice Anthony Kennedy, a conservative who sometimes joins his liberal colleagues in important cases, suggested that if the statute required unlicensed centers to add that disclosure to a billboard that simply stated “Choose Life” - a slogan for people who oppose abortion - it would violate the First Amendment.</p> Slideshow (6 Images)
<p>Liberal Justice Sonia Sotomayor agreed that such an advertising requirement would be wrong.</p>
<p>Abortion rights advocates say the roughly 2,700 U.S. anti-abortion pregnancy centers, including around 200 in California, far outnumber facilities providing abortions.</p>
<p>Demonstrators on both sides of the dispute rallied outside the courthouse on a rainy morning.</p>
<p>The California challengers are the National Institute of Family and Life Advocates, an umbrella group for crisis pregnancy centers, and two such facilities in San Diego County. The plaintiffs had told the lower courts that they would not comply with the law.</p>
<p>A win for them could make it harder for Democratic-governed states to impose rules on crisis pregnancy centers, but also could help abortion rights advocates challenge laws in Republican-governed states that impose certain requirements on abortion clinics.</p>
<p>California said its law does not force crisis pregnancy centers to refer women for abortions, nor does it prevent them from voicing their views on abortion. The state told the justices in legal papers that some centers use incomplete or false medical advice to try to prevent women from having an abortion. Some resemble medical clinics, down to lab coats worn by staff, to try to confuse women into thinking they are at a center offering all options, the state added.</p>
<p>The facilities deny using deceptive tactics.</p>
<p>A ruling is due by the end of June.</p>
<p>Reporting by Andrew Chung; Additional reporting by Lawrence Hurley; Editing by Will Dunham</p> Our Standards:
<a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a>
<p>SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - British data analytics firm Cambridge Analytica is at the center of controversy in the United States and Britain after two newspapers reported on Sunday that the company harvested personal data about Facebook users beginning in 2014.</p> FILE PHOTO: CEO of Cambridge Analytica, Alexander Nix, speaks during the Web Summit, Europe's biggest tech conference, in Lisbon, Portugal, November 9, 2017. REUTERS/Pedro Nunes/File Photo
<p>Best known for assisting the 2016 presidential campaign of U.S. President Donald Trump, Cambridge Analytica is now facing a government search of its London office, questions from U.S. state authorities, and a demand by Facebook that it submit to a forensic audit.</p>
<p>Here is some of what is known about the company.</p> HOW DID IT START?
<p>Cambridge Analytica is an offshoot of SCL Group, a government and military contractor that says it works on everything from food security research to counter-narcotics to political campaigns. SCL was founded more than 25 years ago, according to its website.</p>
<p>Cambridge Analytica was created around 2013 initially with a focus on U.S. elections, with $15 million in backing from billionaire Republican donor Robert Mercer and a name chosen by future Trump White House adviser Steve Bannon, the New York Times reported.</p>
<p>The company, which the New York Times reported was staffed by mostly British workers then, assisted Republican Senator Ted Cruz’s presidential campaign before helping Trump’s.</p> WHAT DO THEY DO?
<p>Cambridge Analytica markets itself as providing consumer research, targeted advertising and other data-related services to both political and corporate clients.</p>
<p>It does not list its corporate clients but on its website describes them as including a daily newspaper that wanted to know more about its subscribers, a women’s clothing brand that sought research on its customers and a U.S. auto insurer interested in marketing itself.</p>
<p>Britain’s Channel 4 News reported on Monday, based on secretly recorded video, that Cambridge Analytica secretly stage-managed Kenya President Uhuru Kenyatta’s campaigns in the hotly contested 2013 and 2017 elections. Cambridge Analytica denied the report.</p>
<p>The company’s website lists five office locations in New York, Washington, London, Brazil and Malaysia.</p> WHEN DID IT FIRST GET ATTENTION?
<p>After Trump won the White House in 2016, in part with the firm’s help, Cambridge Analytica CEO Alexander Nix went to more clients to pitch his services, the Times reported last year. The company boasted it could develop psychological profiles of consumers and voters which was a “secret sauce” it used to sway them more effectively than traditional advertising could.</p>
<p>Rival consultants and campaign aides, though, expressed doubts about the company’s claims. Brad Parscale, who ran Trump’s digital operations in 2016, said the campaign did not use Cambridge Analytica’s data, relying instead on voter data from a Republican National Committee operation.</p> WHAT IS IT ACCUSED OF?
<p>Cambridge Analytica beginning in 2014 obtained data on 50 million Facebook users via means that deceived both the users and Facebook, the New York Times and London’s Observer reported on Saturday.</p>
<p>The data was harvested by an application developed by a British academic, Aleksandr Kogan, the newspapers said. Some 270,000 people downloaded the application and logged in with their Facebook credentials, according to Facebook. The application gathered their data and data about their friends, and then Kogan passed the data to Cambridge Analytica, according to both Cambridge Analytica and Facebook.</p>
<p>Cambridge Analytica said on Saturday that it did not initially know Kogan violated Facebook’s terms, and that it deleted the data once it found out in 2015. Kogan could not be reached for comment.</p>
<p>The data, though, was not deleted, the two newspapers reported on Saturday. Cambridge Analytica said that the allegation was not true. Facebook said it was investigating to verify the accuracy of the claim.</p> Related Video WHAT HAPPENS NEXT?
<p>Facebook said it was pressing Cambridge Analytica for answers, after getting assurances from the firm in 2015 that it had deleted all data. Facebook has hired forensic auditors from the firm Stroz Friedberg to help.</p>
<p>While Facebook investigates, the social network said it was suspending Cambridge Analytica, its parent SCL, Kogan and another man, Christopher Wylie, formerly of Cambridge Analytica, from its platform for violating Facebook rules.</p>
<p>Facebook’s probe, though, may have to wait until government authorities complete their investigation. The UK Information Commissioner’s Office is pursuing a warrant to search Cambridge Analytica’s office and asked Facebook’s auditors to stand down in the meantime, according to Facebook.</p>
<p>Attorneys general from the U.S. states of Massachusetts and Connecticut have launched investigations into how the Facebook data was handled, and the attorney general’s office in California, where Facebook is based, said it had concerns.</p>
<p>Reporting by David Ingram</p> Our Standards:
<a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a>
| false | 2 |
jan 24 reuters range resources corp range announces 26 pct increase proved reserves future development costs proved undeveloped reserves estimated 038 per mcfe source text eikon company coverage standards thomson reuters trust principles reuters salesforcecom inc crmn advanced discussions acquire us software maker mulesoft inc mulen people familiar matter told reuters tuesday looks expand offerings beyond customer relationship management software file photo salesforce logo pictured building san francisco california us october 12 2016 reuterslily jamalifile photo acquisition could worth 6 billion would salesforces biggest ever deal illustrating chief executive marc benioffs push supplement companys cloudbased portfolio new technology deal could announced soon week sources said cautioning negotiations finalized agreement certain sources asked identified negotiations confidential salesforce mulesoft declined comment mulesoft shares jumped 20 percent 3988 reuters reported talks giving company market value 53 billion salesforce shares 03 percent 12531 based san francisco mulesoft makes software automatically integrates disparate data devices applications help companies networks run faster could help salesforce win business customers yet ready transition systems cloud buying mulesoft would help salesforce build larger enterprise apps ecosystem around products barclays plc barcl analysts wrote research note adding mulesoft could command premium given rapid growth good fit salesforcecom inc 12563 crmn new york stock exchange 065 052 crmn mulen barcl kon mcdn salesforce ventures companys venture capital arm led 128 million funding round mulesoft 2015 mulesoft 1000 customers including cocacola co kon mcdonalds corp mcdn spotify unilever ulvrl went public year ago salesforce holds 18 percent global customer relationship management software market followed oracle corp orcln 94 percent according 2016 figures provided research firm idc alphabet incs googlo google acquired competitor mulesoft called apigee corp 625 million deal 2016 reporting liana b baker greg roumeliotis new york additional reporting stephen nellis san francisco editing bill rigby standards thomson reuters trust principles washington reuters united states advancing toward first transfer prisoner guantanamo bay detention center us president donald trump us military told reuters monday move would repatriate detainee saudi arabia transfer 43yearold ahmed muhammed haza aldarbi appeared stalled february became eligible repatriated allowed terms aldarbis 2014 plea bargain agreement us military said time waiting assurances saudi arabias government move forward departure monday pentagon suggested process back track navy commander sarah higgins spokeswoman said defense department reviewing information received saudi arabia regarding aldarbis transfer transfer process moving forward higgins said information transfer timing elaborate aldarbis transfer would decrease prisoner population detention center cuba 40 41 despite trumps campaign pledge load bad dudes prison opened republican president george w bush hold terrorism suspects captured overseas sept 11 2001 attacks came symbolize harsh detention practices opened united states accusations torture us officials ruled adding prisoner population acknowledged trouble repatriating islamic state fighters held usbacked forces syria raising possibility guantanamo bay could seen viable option future news progress aldarbis case came highprofile trip washington saudi crown prince mohammed bin salman first visit united states saudi heir apparent crown prince due meet trump white house tuesday visit expected see countries publicly emphasize strong security ties even ties come intensifying scrutiny congress file photo soldier stands guard tower overlooking camp delta guantanamo bay naval base december 31 2009 file photo provided us navy reutersus navyspc cody blackhandout via reuters message hope aldarbi became eligible repatriation terms 2014 plea bargain agreement admitted role 2002 attack frenchflagged oil tanker coast yemen agreed cooperate us authorities held guantanamo bay 15 years ramzi kassem law professor city university new york aldarbis lead defense counsel since 2008 told reuters trump administration move honor 2014 agreement would significant would noticed inmates mr darbis transfer saudi custody would send qualified message hope prisoners leaving guantanamo possible kassem said said message qualified part us government interest prosecuting three quarters detainees left today would make ineligible agreements critics us military detention system say militants best prosecuted civilian courts seized high costs housing inmates guantanamo bay one argument indefinite detention misguided trumps predecessor barack obama reduced inmate population 41 242 fell short fulfilling promise close jail leaving office last year trump signed order january keep guantanamo bay detention center open hinted state union address congress islamic state al qaeda fighters could added prison population trump also asked pentagon reexamine us militarys detention policy us military long struggled prisoners war openended battle islamist extremism militants come corners world fight places like syria february us officials expressed concerns lack clear path deal foreign fighters islamic state detained usbacked syrian democratic forces us officials say hundreds foreign fighters thousands syrian islamic state militants sdf hands reporting phil stewart idrees ali editing peter cooney standards thomson reuters trust principles washington reuters conservative us supreme court justices tuesday signaled sympathy toward christianbased facilities argued california law requiring post signs disclosing availability statesubsidized abortions birth control violates right free speech opponents california law requiring antiabortion pregnancy centers post signs notifying women availability statefunded contraception abortion hold rally front us supreme court washington us march 20 2018 reutersandrew chung several justices court 54 conservative majority expressed concerns law fashioned order specifically target centers staunchly opposed abortion even liberal justices voiced concern parts law hourlong argument appeal group nonprofit facilities called crisis pregnancy centers lower court ruling upholding democraticbacked 2015 law conservative justice samuel alito said even law neutral face contains many exemptions appears target antiabortion views possible infer intentional discrimination alito asked california deputy solicitor general joshua klein liberal justice elena kagan pressed klein concerns wondering whether law applied speakers whose speech dont much like klein told justices law applied would useful pregnant women case represents crossroads two contentious issues abortion breadth right freedom speech us constitutions first amendment supreme court legalized abortion 1973 wider issue abortion rights issue case crisis pregnancy centers say offer legitimate health services mission steer women unplanned pregnancies away abortion accuse california forcing advertise abortion even though oppose california says crisis pregnancy centers mislead women presenting fullservice reproductive healthcare facilities law helps ensure clients made aware abortion services available elsewhere san franciscobased 9th us circuit court appeals upheld law 2016 challenged facilities finding statute discriminate based viewpoint antiabortion rights demonstrators stand pile discarded protest signs rally outside us supreme court hears oral arguments abortion case national institute family life advocates nifla v becerra washington us march 20 2018 reutersjonathan ernst fact act californias reproductive fact act passed democraticled legislature signed democratic governor jerry brown requires centers licensed family planning facilities post distribute notices state programs offering free lowcost birth control abortion services law requires unlicensed facilities medical provider staff disclose fact justices said laws application unlicensed facilities could unconstitutional justice anthony kennedy conservative sometimes joins liberal colleagues important cases suggested statute required unlicensed centers add disclosure billboard simply stated choose life slogan people oppose abortion would violate first amendment slideshow 6 images liberal justice sonia sotomayor agreed advertising requirement would wrong abortion rights advocates say roughly 2700 us antiabortion pregnancy centers including around 200 california far outnumber facilities providing abortions demonstrators sides dispute rallied outside courthouse rainy morning california challengers national institute family life advocates umbrella group crisis pregnancy centers two facilities san diego county plaintiffs told lower courts would comply law win could make harder democraticgoverned states impose rules crisis pregnancy centers also could help abortion rights advocates challenge laws republicangoverned states impose certain requirements abortion clinics california said law force crisis pregnancy centers refer women abortions prevent voicing views abortion state told justices legal papers centers use incomplete false medical advice try prevent women abortion resemble medical clinics lab coats worn staff try confuse women thinking center offering options state added facilities deny using deceptive tactics ruling due end june reporting andrew chung additional reporting lawrence hurley editing dunham standards thomson reuters trust principles san francisco reuters british data analytics firm cambridge analytica center controversy united states britain two newspapers reported sunday company harvested personal data facebook users beginning 2014 file photo ceo cambridge analytica alexander nix speaks web summit europes biggest tech conference lisbon portugal november 9 2017 reuterspedro nunesfile photo best known assisting 2016 presidential campaign us president donald trump cambridge analytica facing government search london office questions us state authorities demand facebook submit forensic audit known company start cambridge analytica offshoot scl group government military contractor says works everything food security research counternarcotics political campaigns scl founded 25 years ago according website cambridge analytica created around 2013 initially focus us elections 15 million backing billionaire republican donor robert mercer name chosen future trump white house adviser steve bannon new york times reported company new york times reported staffed mostly british workers assisted republican senator ted cruzs presidential campaign helping trumps cambridge analytica markets providing consumer research targeted advertising datarelated services political corporate clients list corporate clients website describes including daily newspaper wanted know subscribers womens clothing brand sought research customers us auto insurer interested marketing britains channel 4 news reported monday based secretly recorded video cambridge analytica secretly stagemanaged kenya president uhuru kenyattas campaigns hotly contested 2013 2017 elections cambridge analytica denied report companys website lists five office locations new york washington london brazil malaysia first get attention trump white house 2016 part firms help cambridge analytica ceo alexander nix went clients pitch services times reported last year company boasted could develop psychological profiles consumers voters secret sauce used sway effectively traditional advertising could rival consultants campaign aides though expressed doubts companys claims brad parscale ran trumps digital operations 2016 said campaign use cambridge analyticas data relying instead voter data republican national committee operation accused cambridge analytica beginning 2014 obtained data 50 million facebook users via means deceived users facebook new york times londons observer reported saturday data harvested application developed british academic aleksandr kogan newspapers said 270000 people downloaded application logged facebook credentials according facebook application gathered data data friends kogan passed data cambridge analytica according cambridge analytica facebook cambridge analytica said saturday initially know kogan violated facebooks terms deleted data found 2015 kogan could reached comment data though deleted two newspapers reported saturday cambridge analytica said allegation true facebook said investigating verify accuracy claim related video happens next facebook said pressing cambridge analytica answers getting assurances firm 2015 deleted data facebook hired forensic auditors firm stroz friedberg help facebook investigates social network said suspending cambridge analytica parent scl kogan another man christopher wylie formerly cambridge analytica platform violating facebook rules facebooks probe though may wait government authorities complete investigation uk information commissioners office pursuing warrant search cambridge analyticas office asked facebooks auditors stand meantime according facebook attorneys general us states massachusetts connecticut launched investigations facebook data handled attorney generals office california facebook based said concerns reporting david ingram standards thomson reuters trust principles
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<p>ASPEN, Colo. (AP) — His first name, loosely translated into English, means " <a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/Bae3iTtg1xa/?hl=en&amp;taken-by=ayumuhirano1129" type="external">Walk the Dream</a> ." No wonder, then, that back home in Japan, expectations soar nearly as high as snowboarder Ayumu Hirano's <a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/BXNQxSEAw_c/?hl=en&amp;taken-by=ayumuhirano1129" type="external">jumps</a> above the halfpipe.</p>
<p>Hirano stands at only 5-foot-3 (1.61 meters) but his newest tricks are huge. He's been working on stringing together back-to-back 1440s — a 1440 is the toughest trick in the halfpipe — and if he pulls it off next month at the Winter Olympics in South Korea, he could find himself at the top of the podium — above Shaun White, above Australia's Scotty James, above defending champion Iouri Podladtchikov (iPod for short) and all the other contenders in snowboarding's signature event.</p>
<p>Hirano already has a silver medal — earned at the Sochi Games four years ago. Gold would not be too big of a stretch, especially if White were to have another off day, the likes of which he endured when he finished fourth in 2014.</p>
<p>Too much hype? By now, there's really no such thing <a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/BUwM5obg5_E/?hl=en&amp;taken-by=ayumuhirano1129" type="external">for Hirano</a> , who caught White's eye when he was young.</p>
<p>"He had a tough go of things because he was like 14 or so and they were like, 'You're going to be the next big thing,'" said White, who will face Hirano this week at the Winter X Games in an Olympics preview. "It's hard to be the up-and-coming rider to, all of sudden, they're comparing you to me. It's a lot to live up to those expectations. So, he's kinda made his way and he's having his breakout. He's an interesting rider. He's the guy who wins, or sometimes he won't make finals. It's interesting to watch. ... Really happy for him."</p>
<p>On a picturesque December day, <a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/BROieSzAWSO/?hl=en&amp;taken-by=ayumuhirano1129" type="external">Hirano walked</a> through the village at Copper Mountain, Colorado, without anyone even casting a second glace in his direction. He appreciates this sort of anonymity. Back home, it's not the same. Ever since he strapped on a snowboard and started going big, he's drawn attention. Burton snowboards saw his videos on YouTube and handed him an endorsement contract when he was in fourth grade.</p>
<p>And yet, his mission remains simple: Make his country even more aware of what exactly he does. Snowboarding made its Olympic debut at the Nagano Games in Japan, and ever since, the country has been trying to cash in on its potential in the sport. Riders like White have curtailed some of the success, at least at the highest level. But Hirano and Taku Hiraoka finished 2-3 at the last Olympics and another Japanese rider, 16-year-old Yuto Totsuka, has been going big in the lead-up to this year's games, as well.</p>
<p>Hirano, who is only 19, views himself as not only the present in Japanese snowboarding, but someone who can inspire the next generation.</p>
<p>"That's why I'm aiming for that gold, so more people can see how great snowboarding can be," Hirano said through a translator as he sipped coffee inside a restaurant.</p>
<p>Want to make Hirano grin? Ask him about his first name. He gets that quite a bit.</p>
<p>"I've been snowboarding since I was 4, so maybe my parents did have this in mind in hopes that I would walk to my dream," he said. "They just wanted what was best for me."</p>
<p>At first, he was a skateboarder, with his father building a skateboard ramp behind a surf shop he owned for Hirano and his older brother, Eiju, to practice. Hirano's surfing career never really flourished, though, after his brother had an accident while surfing.</p>
<p>"Since I was so small, I barely remember what happened," Hirano said. "But we stepped away from surfing and got into skateboarding and snowboarding."</p>
<p>The closest halfpipe to his house as a kid was about an hour away. It wasn't anywhere near regulation size, but that didn't matter. The small halfpipe became his playground.</p>
<p>"I used to do about 280 runs a day for practice," said Hirano, who's from Murakami, Japan. "Right now, I can't even imagine doing that."</p>
<p>His idols were fellow Japanese rider Kazuhiro Kokubo and, of course, White.</p>
<p>Hirano's big breakthrough was in 2013, when he captured silver at Winter X as a 14-year-old. White talked glowingly at the time of the kid everyone needed to keep their eye on.</p>
<p>"It was just a life-changing moment for me," said Hirano, who is back to full health after lacerating his kidney and liver, along with hurting his knee, during a fall in the halfpipe at the Burton U.S. Open last March. "That was a moment I was competing with the best in the world. I think that was the contest which kind of changed my mentality toward what my goals are and where I want to be from here on as a professional. It really opened up my mind."</p>
<p>Then along came Sochi a year later, when "Walk the Dream" found himself stepping onto the Olympic podium.</p>
<p>To take the next step, Hirano will need to nail the back-to-back 14s. If he does, and soars as high above the halfpipe as he usually does — and he usually rivals White in that area — there could be a gold medal waiting for him after the Olympic final on Feb. 14.</p>
<p>"It's a great opportunity for me to show what I'm capable," Hirano said, "and let the world know who I am."</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>AP National Writer Eddie Pells contributed.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>More AP Olympic coverage: https://wintergames.ap.org</p>
<p>ASPEN, Colo. (AP) — His first name, loosely translated into English, means " <a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/Bae3iTtg1xa/?hl=en&amp;taken-by=ayumuhirano1129" type="external">Walk the Dream</a> ." No wonder, then, that back home in Japan, expectations soar nearly as high as snowboarder Ayumu Hirano's <a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/BXNQxSEAw_c/?hl=en&amp;taken-by=ayumuhirano1129" type="external">jumps</a> above the halfpipe.</p>
<p>Hirano stands at only 5-foot-3 (1.61 meters) but his newest tricks are huge. He's been working on stringing together back-to-back 1440s — a 1440 is the toughest trick in the halfpipe — and if he pulls it off next month at the Winter Olympics in South Korea, he could find himself at the top of the podium — above Shaun White, above Australia's Scotty James, above defending champion Iouri Podladtchikov (iPod for short) and all the other contenders in snowboarding's signature event.</p>
<p>Hirano already has a silver medal — earned at the Sochi Games four years ago. Gold would not be too big of a stretch, especially if White were to have another off day, the likes of which he endured when he finished fourth in 2014.</p>
<p>Too much hype? By now, there's really no such thing <a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/BUwM5obg5_E/?hl=en&amp;taken-by=ayumuhirano1129" type="external">for Hirano</a> , who caught White's eye when he was young.</p>
<p>"He had a tough go of things because he was like 14 or so and they were like, 'You're going to be the next big thing,'" said White, who will face Hirano this week at the Winter X Games in an Olympics preview. "It's hard to be the up-and-coming rider to, all of sudden, they're comparing you to me. It's a lot to live up to those expectations. So, he's kinda made his way and he's having his breakout. He's an interesting rider. He's the guy who wins, or sometimes he won't make finals. It's interesting to watch. ... Really happy for him."</p>
<p>On a picturesque December day, <a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/BROieSzAWSO/?hl=en&amp;taken-by=ayumuhirano1129" type="external">Hirano walked</a> through the village at Copper Mountain, Colorado, without anyone even casting a second glace in his direction. He appreciates this sort of anonymity. Back home, it's not the same. Ever since he strapped on a snowboard and started going big, he's drawn attention. Burton snowboards saw his videos on YouTube and handed him an endorsement contract when he was in fourth grade.</p>
<p>And yet, his mission remains simple: Make his country even more aware of what exactly he does. Snowboarding made its Olympic debut at the Nagano Games in Japan, and ever since, the country has been trying to cash in on its potential in the sport. Riders like White have curtailed some of the success, at least at the highest level. But Hirano and Taku Hiraoka finished 2-3 at the last Olympics and another Japanese rider, 16-year-old Yuto Totsuka, has been going big in the lead-up to this year's games, as well.</p>
<p>Hirano, who is only 19, views himself as not only the present in Japanese snowboarding, but someone who can inspire the next generation.</p>
<p>"That's why I'm aiming for that gold, so more people can see how great snowboarding can be," Hirano said through a translator as he sipped coffee inside a restaurant.</p>
<p>Want to make Hirano grin? Ask him about his first name. He gets that quite a bit.</p>
<p>"I've been snowboarding since I was 4, so maybe my parents did have this in mind in hopes that I would walk to my dream," he said. "They just wanted what was best for me."</p>
<p>At first, he was a skateboarder, with his father building a skateboard ramp behind a surf shop he owned for Hirano and his older brother, Eiju, to practice. Hirano's surfing career never really flourished, though, after his brother had an accident while surfing.</p>
<p>"Since I was so small, I barely remember what happened," Hirano said. "But we stepped away from surfing and got into skateboarding and snowboarding."</p>
<p>The closest halfpipe to his house as a kid was about an hour away. It wasn't anywhere near regulation size, but that didn't matter. The small halfpipe became his playground.</p>
<p>"I used to do about 280 runs a day for practice," said Hirano, who's from Murakami, Japan. "Right now, I can't even imagine doing that."</p>
<p>His idols were fellow Japanese rider Kazuhiro Kokubo and, of course, White.</p>
<p>Hirano's big breakthrough was in 2013, when he captured silver at Winter X as a 14-year-old. White talked glowingly at the time of the kid everyone needed to keep their eye on.</p>
<p>"It was just a life-changing moment for me," said Hirano, who is back to full health after lacerating his kidney and liver, along with hurting his knee, during a fall in the halfpipe at the Burton U.S. Open last March. "That was a moment I was competing with the best in the world. I think that was the contest which kind of changed my mentality toward what my goals are and where I want to be from here on as a professional. It really opened up my mind."</p>
<p>Then along came Sochi a year later, when "Walk the Dream" found himself stepping onto the Olympic podium.</p>
<p>To take the next step, Hirano will need to nail the back-to-back 14s. If he does, and soars as high above the halfpipe as he usually does — and he usually rivals White in that area — there could be a gold medal waiting for him after the Olympic final on Feb. 14.</p>
<p>"It's a great opportunity for me to show what I'm capable," Hirano said, "and let the world know who I am."</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>AP National Writer Eddie Pells contributed.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>More AP Olympic coverage: https://wintergames.ap.org</p>
| false | 2 |
aspen colo ap first name loosely translated english means walk dream wonder back home japan expectations soar nearly high snowboarder ayumu hiranos jumps halfpipe hirano stands 5foot3 161 meters newest tricks huge hes working stringing together backtoback 1440s 1440 toughest trick halfpipe pulls next month winter olympics south korea could find top podium shaun white australias scotty james defending champion iouri podladtchikov ipod short contenders snowboardings signature event hirano already silver medal earned sochi games four years ago gold would big stretch especially white another day likes endured finished fourth 2014 much hype theres really thing hirano caught whites eye young tough go things like 14 like youre going next big thing said white face hirano week winter x games olympics preview hard upandcoming rider sudden theyre comparing lot live expectations hes kinda made way hes breakout hes interesting rider hes guy wins sometimes wont make finals interesting watch really happy picturesque december day hirano walked village copper mountain colorado without anyone even casting second glace direction appreciates sort anonymity back home ever since strapped snowboard started going big hes drawn attention burton snowboards saw videos youtube handed endorsement contract fourth grade yet mission remains simple make country even aware exactly snowboarding made olympic debut nagano games japan ever since country trying cash potential sport riders like white curtailed success least highest level hirano taku hiraoka finished 23 last olympics another japanese rider 16yearold yuto totsuka going big leadup years games well hirano 19 views present japanese snowboarding someone inspire next generation thats im aiming gold people see great snowboarding hirano said translator sipped coffee inside restaurant want make hirano grin ask first name gets quite bit ive snowboarding since 4 maybe parents mind hopes would walk dream said wanted best first skateboarder father building skateboard ramp behind surf shop owned hirano older brother eiju practice hiranos surfing career never really flourished though brother accident surfing since small barely remember happened hirano said stepped away surfing got skateboarding snowboarding closest halfpipe house kid hour away wasnt anywhere near regulation size didnt matter small halfpipe became playground used 280 runs day practice said hirano whos murakami japan right cant even imagine idols fellow japanese rider kazuhiro kokubo course white hiranos big breakthrough 2013 captured silver winter x 14yearold white talked glowingly time kid everyone needed keep eye lifechanging moment said hirano back full health lacerating kidney liver along hurting knee fall halfpipe burton us open last march moment competing best world think contest kind changed mentality toward goals want professional really opened mind along came sochi year later walk dream found stepping onto olympic podium take next step hirano need nail backtoback 14s soars high halfpipe usually usually rivals white area could gold medal waiting olympic final feb 14 great opportunity show im capable hirano said let world know ___ ap national writer eddie pells contributed ___ ap olympic coverage httpswintergamesaporg aspen colo ap first name loosely translated english means walk dream wonder back home japan expectations soar nearly high snowboarder ayumu hiranos jumps halfpipe hirano stands 5foot3 161 meters newest tricks huge hes working stringing together backtoback 1440s 1440 toughest trick halfpipe pulls next month winter olympics south korea could find top podium shaun white australias scotty james defending champion iouri podladtchikov ipod short contenders snowboardings signature event hirano already silver medal earned sochi games four years ago gold would big stretch especially white another day likes endured finished fourth 2014 much hype theres really thing hirano caught whites eye young tough go things like 14 like youre going next big thing said white face hirano week winter x games olympics preview hard upandcoming rider sudden theyre comparing lot live expectations hes kinda made way hes breakout hes interesting rider hes guy wins sometimes wont make finals interesting watch really happy picturesque december day hirano walked village copper mountain colorado without anyone even casting second glace direction appreciates sort anonymity back home ever since strapped snowboard started going big hes drawn attention burton snowboards saw videos youtube handed endorsement contract fourth grade yet mission remains simple make country even aware exactly snowboarding made olympic debut nagano games japan ever since country trying cash potential sport riders like white curtailed success least highest level hirano taku hiraoka finished 23 last olympics another japanese rider 16yearold yuto totsuka going big leadup years games well hirano 19 views present japanese snowboarding someone inspire next generation thats im aiming gold people see great snowboarding hirano said translator sipped coffee inside restaurant want make hirano grin ask first name gets quite bit ive snowboarding since 4 maybe parents mind hopes would walk dream said wanted best first skateboarder father building skateboard ramp behind surf shop owned hirano older brother eiju practice hiranos surfing career never really flourished though brother accident surfing since small barely remember happened hirano said stepped away surfing got skateboarding snowboarding closest halfpipe house kid hour away wasnt anywhere near regulation size didnt matter small halfpipe became playground used 280 runs day practice said hirano whos murakami japan right cant even imagine idols fellow japanese rider kazuhiro kokubo course white hiranos big breakthrough 2013 captured silver winter x 14yearold white talked glowingly time kid everyone needed keep eye lifechanging moment said hirano back full health lacerating kidney liver along hurting knee fall halfpipe burton us open last march moment competing best world think contest kind changed mentality toward goals want professional really opened mind along came sochi year later walk dream found stepping onto olympic podium take next step hirano need nail backtoback 14s soars high halfpipe usually usually rivals white area could gold medal waiting olympic final feb 14 great opportunity show im capable hirano said let world know ___ ap national writer eddie pells contributed ___ ap olympic coverage httpswintergamesaporg
| 960 |
<p>SANTA MONICA, Calif. (AP) — It was a good night for women at the Critics’ Choice Awards, which honored women-centered stories like “Big Little Lies,” ″The Handmaid’s Tale” and “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel.” ″Wonder Woman” was named best action movie and star Gal Gadot accepted a special award for challenging gender stereotypes.</p>
<p>Yet the industry’s ongoing sexual misconduct crisis remained an element of the ceremony as James Franco won an acting award early in the evening, hours after a <a href="http://beta.latimes.com/business/hollywood/la-fi-ct-james-franco-allegations-20180111-htmlstory.html" type="external">report</a> detailed new misconduct allegations against “The Disaster Artist” star and director. Franco did not attend Thursday’s presentation at the Barker Hangar in Santa Monica, California, and his award was presented during a pre-telecast section broadcast only online.</p>
<p>Franco won a similar award at the Golden Globes earlier in the week, where most women dressed in black to protest sexual harassment. More women dressed in color on Thursday, but their determination to end gender discrimination remained just as fierce.</p>
<p>At the Critics’ Choice Awards in Santa Monica, stars including Diane Kruger, Guillermo del Toro and Joseph Fiennes react to the news that Mark Wahlberg was reportedly paid over 1,500 times more than his co-star Michelle Williams for reshoots on “All the Money in the World.” (Jan. 12)</p>
<p>“I want to share this award with all the women and men who stand for what’s right, standing for those who can’t stand or speak for themselves,” Gadot said as she accepted the second annual #SeeHer award. “My promise to you is: I will never be silenced. We will continue to band together to make strides, uniting for equality.”</p>
<p>Guillermo del Toro’s fantasy romance, “The Shape of Water,” was the top film winner with four awards. Del Toro, who was also named best director, closed the show Thursday night by shouting that he’s always believed in the equality of women.</p>
<p />
<p>“Let me tell you one thing, if you don’t do that, you don’t know what you’re missing,” he said.</p>
<p>“The Shape of Water,” which led all nominees with 14 bids, also claimed the best picture prize, along with score and production design honors.</p>
<p>Olivia Munn hosted the dinner ceremony, which was broadcast live on the CW network. The actress, who has spoken publicly about her own experiences with sexual misconduct in the entertainment industry, led the audience in a toast. Joined by actress Niecey Nash, they raised a glass “to all the good guys in Hollywood,” who held meetings in conference rooms rather than hotel rooms.</p>
<p>“Congratulations for doing what you’re supposed to do!” Nash said.</p>
<p>“Big Little Lies” received four awards: best limited series, as well as acting honors for Nicole Kidman, Alexander Skarsgard and Laura Dern.</p>
<p>Kidman thanked the entertainment community “who show up to make really fantastic films and TV and let us do what we love.”</p>
<p>“I love being an actor,” said the 50-year-old Oscar winner. “Thank you for letting me do it all the way through to this age and beyond.”</p>
<p>Stories about women also won in comedy categories. “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel” was named best comedy series, and star Rachel Brosnahan won best actress in a comedy.</p>
<p>As she accepted her award, Brosnahan noted that even though women aren’t wearing black like most did at the Golden Globe Awards earlier in the week, she said the fight to eradicate sexual harassment continues.</p>
<p>“Let’s not lose focus,” she said, urging viewers to support the Time’s Up initiative. “Let’s keep this going.”</p>
<p>Presenter Chris Hemsworth noted that women have had a stellar year at the box office.</p>
<p>“The three biggest movies of 2017 in North America were ‘Star Wars: The Last Jedi,’ ‘Beauty and the Beast’ and ‘Wonder Woman,’” which all feature female protagonists, he said. “The biggest comedy was a female ensemble, ‘Girls Trip,’ and the biggest independent movie was written and directed by Greta Gerwig.”</p>
<p>Hemsworth presented the best actress award to an absent Frances McDormand for “Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri.” The film also won for acting ensemble and supporting actor for Sam Rockwell.</p>
<p>Double winners Thursday included “I, Tonya,” ″Darkest Hour,” ″Get Out” and “Coco.”</p>
<p>“I, Tonya” brought acting accolades for star Margot Robbie and supporting actress Allison Janney. “Darkest Hour” won awards for makeup and lead actor for Gary Oldman. “Get Out” was named best sci-fi or horror film, and writer-director Jordan Peele claimed original screenplay honors. “Coco” won animated feature and original song for “Remember Me.”</p>
<p>Many Critics’ Choice Awards winners also took home Golden Globes, including McDormand, Rockwell, Oldman, Brosnahan and the stars of “Big Little Lies.” Hollywood’s awards season continues through March 4, when the Academy Awards are presented.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>Follow AP Entertainment Writer Sandy Cohen at <a href="http://www.twitter.com/APSandy" type="external">www.twitter.com/APSandy</a> .</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>This story has been corrected to reflect that the Academy Awards are on March 4.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>For full coverage of awards season, visit: <a href="" type="internal" /> <a href="" type="internal">https://apnews.com/tag/AwardsSeason</a></p>
<p>SANTA MONICA, Calif. (AP) — It was a good night for women at the Critics’ Choice Awards, which honored women-centered stories like “Big Little Lies,” ″The Handmaid’s Tale” and “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel.” ″Wonder Woman” was named best action movie and star Gal Gadot accepted a special award for challenging gender stereotypes.</p>
<p>Yet the industry’s ongoing sexual misconduct crisis remained an element of the ceremony as James Franco won an acting award early in the evening, hours after a <a href="http://beta.latimes.com/business/hollywood/la-fi-ct-james-franco-allegations-20180111-htmlstory.html" type="external">report</a> detailed new misconduct allegations against “The Disaster Artist” star and director. Franco did not attend Thursday’s presentation at the Barker Hangar in Santa Monica, California, and his award was presented during a pre-telecast section broadcast only online.</p>
<p>Franco won a similar award at the Golden Globes earlier in the week, where most women dressed in black to protest sexual harassment. More women dressed in color on Thursday, but their determination to end gender discrimination remained just as fierce.</p>
<p>At the Critics’ Choice Awards in Santa Monica, stars including Diane Kruger, Guillermo del Toro and Joseph Fiennes react to the news that Mark Wahlberg was reportedly paid over 1,500 times more than his co-star Michelle Williams for reshoots on “All the Money in the World.” (Jan. 12)</p>
<p>“I want to share this award with all the women and men who stand for what’s right, standing for those who can’t stand or speak for themselves,” Gadot said as she accepted the second annual #SeeHer award. “My promise to you is: I will never be silenced. We will continue to band together to make strides, uniting for equality.”</p>
<p>Guillermo del Toro’s fantasy romance, “The Shape of Water,” was the top film winner with four awards. Del Toro, who was also named best director, closed the show Thursday night by shouting that he’s always believed in the equality of women.</p>
<p />
<p>“Let me tell you one thing, if you don’t do that, you don’t know what you’re missing,” he said.</p>
<p>“The Shape of Water,” which led all nominees with 14 bids, also claimed the best picture prize, along with score and production design honors.</p>
<p>Olivia Munn hosted the dinner ceremony, which was broadcast live on the CW network. The actress, who has spoken publicly about her own experiences with sexual misconduct in the entertainment industry, led the audience in a toast. Joined by actress Niecey Nash, they raised a glass “to all the good guys in Hollywood,” who held meetings in conference rooms rather than hotel rooms.</p>
<p>“Congratulations for doing what you’re supposed to do!” Nash said.</p>
<p>“Big Little Lies” received four awards: best limited series, as well as acting honors for Nicole Kidman, Alexander Skarsgard and Laura Dern.</p>
<p>Kidman thanked the entertainment community “who show up to make really fantastic films and TV and let us do what we love.”</p>
<p>“I love being an actor,” said the 50-year-old Oscar winner. “Thank you for letting me do it all the way through to this age and beyond.”</p>
<p>Stories about women also won in comedy categories. “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel” was named best comedy series, and star Rachel Brosnahan won best actress in a comedy.</p>
<p>As she accepted her award, Brosnahan noted that even though women aren’t wearing black like most did at the Golden Globe Awards earlier in the week, she said the fight to eradicate sexual harassment continues.</p>
<p>“Let’s not lose focus,” she said, urging viewers to support the Time’s Up initiative. “Let’s keep this going.”</p>
<p>Presenter Chris Hemsworth noted that women have had a stellar year at the box office.</p>
<p>“The three biggest movies of 2017 in North America were ‘Star Wars: The Last Jedi,’ ‘Beauty and the Beast’ and ‘Wonder Woman,’” which all feature female protagonists, he said. “The biggest comedy was a female ensemble, ‘Girls Trip,’ and the biggest independent movie was written and directed by Greta Gerwig.”</p>
<p>Hemsworth presented the best actress award to an absent Frances McDormand for “Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri.” The film also won for acting ensemble and supporting actor for Sam Rockwell.</p>
<p>Double winners Thursday included “I, Tonya,” ″Darkest Hour,” ″Get Out” and “Coco.”</p>
<p>“I, Tonya” brought acting accolades for star Margot Robbie and supporting actress Allison Janney. “Darkest Hour” won awards for makeup and lead actor for Gary Oldman. “Get Out” was named best sci-fi or horror film, and writer-director Jordan Peele claimed original screenplay honors. “Coco” won animated feature and original song for “Remember Me.”</p>
<p>Many Critics’ Choice Awards winners also took home Golden Globes, including McDormand, Rockwell, Oldman, Brosnahan and the stars of “Big Little Lies.” Hollywood’s awards season continues through March 4, when the Academy Awards are presented.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>Follow AP Entertainment Writer Sandy Cohen at <a href="http://www.twitter.com/APSandy" type="external">www.twitter.com/APSandy</a> .</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>This story has been corrected to reflect that the Academy Awards are on March 4.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>For full coverage of awards season, visit: <a href="" type="internal" /> <a href="" type="internal">https://apnews.com/tag/AwardsSeason</a></p>
| false | 2 |
santa monica calif ap good night women critics choice awards honored womencentered stories like big little lies handmaids tale marvelous mrs maisel wonder woman named best action movie star gal gadot accepted special award challenging gender stereotypes yet industrys ongoing sexual misconduct crisis remained element ceremony james franco acting award early evening hours report detailed new misconduct allegations disaster artist star director franco attend thursdays presentation barker hangar santa monica california award presented pretelecast section broadcast online franco similar award golden globes earlier week women dressed black protest sexual harassment women dressed color thursday determination end gender discrimination remained fierce critics choice awards santa monica stars including diane kruger guillermo del toro joseph fiennes react news mark wahlberg reportedly paid 1500 times costar michelle williams reshoots money world jan 12 want share award women men stand whats right standing cant stand speak gadot said accepted second annual seeher award promise never silenced continue band together make strides uniting equality guillermo del toros fantasy romance shape water top film winner four awards del toro also named best director closed show thursday night shouting hes always believed equality women let tell one thing dont dont know youre missing said shape water led nominees 14 bids also claimed best picture prize along score production design honors olivia munn hosted dinner ceremony broadcast live cw network actress spoken publicly experiences sexual misconduct entertainment industry led audience toast joined actress niecey nash raised glass good guys hollywood held meetings conference rooms rather hotel rooms congratulations youre supposed nash said big little lies received four awards best limited series well acting honors nicole kidman alexander skarsgard laura dern kidman thanked entertainment community show make really fantastic films tv let us love love actor said 50yearold oscar winner thank letting way age beyond stories women also comedy categories marvelous mrs maisel named best comedy series star rachel brosnahan best actress comedy accepted award brosnahan noted even though women arent wearing black like golden globe awards earlier week said fight eradicate sexual harassment continues lets lose focus said urging viewers support times initiative lets keep going presenter chris hemsworth noted women stellar year box office three biggest movies 2017 north america star wars last jedi beauty beast wonder woman feature female protagonists said biggest comedy female ensemble girls trip biggest independent movie written directed greta gerwig hemsworth presented best actress award absent frances mcdormand three billboards outside ebbing missouri film also acting ensemble supporting actor sam rockwell double winners thursday included tonya darkest hour get coco tonya brought acting accolades star margot robbie supporting actress allison janney darkest hour awards makeup lead actor gary oldman get named best scifi horror film writerdirector jordan peele claimed original screenplay honors coco animated feature original song remember many critics choice awards winners also took home golden globes including mcdormand rockwell oldman brosnahan stars big little lies hollywoods awards season continues march 4 academy awards presented ___ follow ap entertainment writer sandy cohen wwwtwittercomapsandy ___ story corrected reflect academy awards march 4 ___ full coverage awards season visit httpsapnewscomtagawardsseason santa monica calif ap good night women critics choice awards honored womencentered stories like big little lies handmaids tale marvelous mrs maisel wonder woman named best action movie star gal gadot accepted special award challenging gender stereotypes yet industrys ongoing sexual misconduct crisis remained element ceremony james franco acting award early evening hours report detailed new misconduct allegations disaster artist star director franco attend thursdays presentation barker hangar santa monica california award presented pretelecast section broadcast online franco similar award golden globes earlier week women dressed black protest sexual harassment women dressed color thursday determination end gender discrimination remained fierce critics choice awards santa monica stars including diane kruger guillermo del toro joseph fiennes react news mark wahlberg reportedly paid 1500 times costar michelle williams reshoots money world jan 12 want share award women men stand whats right standing cant stand speak gadot said accepted second annual seeher award promise never silenced continue band together make strides uniting equality guillermo del toros fantasy romance shape water top film winner four awards del toro also named best director closed show thursday night shouting hes always believed equality women let tell one thing dont dont know youre missing said shape water led nominees 14 bids also claimed best picture prize along score production design honors olivia munn hosted dinner ceremony broadcast live cw network actress spoken publicly experiences sexual misconduct entertainment industry led audience toast joined actress niecey nash raised glass good guys hollywood held meetings conference rooms rather hotel rooms congratulations youre supposed nash said big little lies received four awards best limited series well acting honors nicole kidman alexander skarsgard laura dern kidman thanked entertainment community show make really fantastic films tv let us love love actor said 50yearold oscar winner thank letting way age beyond stories women also comedy categories marvelous mrs maisel named best comedy series star rachel brosnahan best actress comedy accepted award brosnahan noted even though women arent wearing black like golden globe awards earlier week said fight eradicate sexual harassment continues lets lose focus said urging viewers support times initiative lets keep going presenter chris hemsworth noted women stellar year box office three biggest movies 2017 north america star wars last jedi beauty beast wonder woman feature female protagonists said biggest comedy female ensemble girls trip biggest independent movie written directed greta gerwig hemsworth presented best actress award absent frances mcdormand three billboards outside ebbing missouri film also acting ensemble supporting actor sam rockwell double winners thursday included tonya darkest hour get coco tonya brought acting accolades star margot robbie supporting actress allison janney darkest hour awards makeup lead actor gary oldman get named best scifi horror film writerdirector jordan peele claimed original screenplay honors coco animated feature original song remember many critics choice awards winners also took home golden globes including mcdormand rockwell oldman brosnahan stars big little lies hollywoods awards season continues march 4 academy awards presented ___ follow ap entertainment writer sandy cohen wwwtwittercomapsandy ___ story corrected reflect academy awards march 4 ___ full coverage awards season visit httpsapnewscomtagawardsseason
| 1,014 |
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<p />
<p>The other is a quiet bit of sidewalk in front of a nondescript high-rise surrounded by $3 million condos and a slew of government offices.</p>
<p>Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton set up their national campaign headquarters seven miles apart from each other. The journey from a showman’s gleaming showplace to a tired old building where Brooklynites have their blood work done is a mere 25-minute ride on the No. 5 Lexington Avenue Express.</p>
<p>But like the candidates themselves, the nerve centers of the two campaigns could hardly be more different – and that goes for the voters gathered outside them, too. The sidewalk outside Trump Tower is teeming with people who believe the country is close to the edge, barely kept from going under. Outside Clinton’s offices at One Pierrepont Plaza, there is no crowd, and the people on the street show no enthusiasm – they’re not particularly with her or with him.</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p>
<p>Ron Slay, taking his lunch break in the leafy Brooklyn park, hasn’t seen any evidence of the Clinton campaign’s presence. That’s pretty much what he’d expect from Clinton.</p>
<p>“She’s quiet, he’s in the limelight. He’s sensationalism and she’s somebody a lot of people don’t like, so she’s laying low.”</p>
<p>Slay, 70, a college administrator who got jazzed about Bernie Sanders’ campaign earlier this year, feels like maybe he should vote for Clinton – “just because I’m scared of Donald Trump.” But then he’ll find himself flirting with a third-party protest vote. “Why should I vote for Clinton just to stop someone? Why should I let them force me to make a negative vote?” And then again, he’ll think about how Trump always seemed to get things done in New York – repairing the Central Park ice skating rink lickety-split and under-budget when the city government had failed to do so.</p>
<p>Slay talks through his options for the umpteenth time – and after 20 minutes, he is no closer to a decision.</p>
<p>Seven miles away, no one is talking through any situation for 20 minutes. More like 20 seconds of yelling, finger-pointing and good old New York-style dismissive arm-waves. A guy shaking a Trump-Pence sign shouts about George Soros, the opium wars and, for some reason, Franklin Roosevelt’s grandfather.</p>
<p>Beneath the shouting, there is one area of agreement: The conversations at home have gotten too volatile, too troubling, and many people say they’ve had to cut off all talk of politics.</p>
<p>“We just don’t discuss it anymore,” says Priscilla Allen, a visitor from Dallas who stopped by Trump Tower in search of campaign buttons. “My husband is vehemently pro-Trump and my son is even more conservative, but my daughter is more liberal, and she thinks Trump is crazy.” Allen believes Trump is “the worst person we could have selected – the business with him and those women, well, you don’t talk like that if you haven’t done it.” Yet she supports him because “Hillary is dishonest. But I wouldn’t call her that to her face, like he does.”</p>
<p>She shakes her head. All she could get in the building were a couple of bumper stickers, which makes her wonder. “He’s probably not going to win because he doesn’t know how to run a campaign,” Allen says. “It’s a shame. The whole thing, a shame.”</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p>
<p>On the same sidewalk, the same sentiment, from the opposite direction: “We have friends we got into it with, and we agreed not to get together again till after the election,” says Mike Reynolds, a recently retired oil and gas sales manager from the Denver area. “It’s kind of scary how much they hate Hillary. I don’t get that: The last eight years have been great – real estate’s better, my 401(k)’s great. What’s there to complain about? There’s nothing that could make me vote for him.”</p>
<p>His daughter Kelly, a New York nurse, says she’s had to unfollow Clinton-hating Facebook friends who were posting a cascade of “Lock her up” diatribes. Yet father and daughter maintain that all this animosity – even the bloodcurdling shouting they’re watching in front of Trump Tower – will likely drift away once the campaign finally ends.</p>
<p>Try telling that to Barbara Smucker and Amelia Arcamone Makinano, regulars on this sidewalk who have never spoken to each other.</p>
<p>Smucker comes into the city from Levittown, Long Island, three days a week to stand in front of Trump Tower waving her hand-drawn sign: “Trump Will Destroy America.”</p>
<p>Makinano stands 30 feet away, holding an oversize American flag. She has a sticker that says, “Hillary for Prison ’16.”</p>
<p>Even if Clinton wins handily, Smucker says, “Trump and Giuliani and all of them aren’t going away. We’re so divided and Trump is spreading hate. People I know are unfriending everyone who disagrees with them about Trump. When the Trump people yell at me, give me the finger, I just don’t get into debates with them. I just stand and hold my sign.”</p>
<p>Makinano, a retired public school teacher who lives in Queens, campaigned for Clinton in 2008 but has come to believe that the former secretary of state is a criminal. It’s a view Makinano says she cannot express at her union meetings “because we’re so outnumbered, and they boo anyone who’s not for Hillary.”</p>
<p>Living in New York, Makinano says, the only place she feels safe talking about her admiration of Trump is at home, with her husband. “My friends and I don’t talk about politics; it’s the only way we can be friends.” She hopes the animosity she sees every day will subside after November. She’s not sure it can.</p>
<p>Back in Brooklyn, Karen Bissessar stares across to Clinton’s headquarters and shakes her head. The city school system employee is still undecided.</p>
<p>“I’ll end up choosing the lesser of two evils,” she says. “But it’s hard because they’re so, so – unprofessional. If you were interviewing for a job, you wouldn’t act like they do in the debates. All this stuff coming out about her and the emails. And the way Trump talks – it’s playground talk, finger-pointing and name-calling.”</p>
<p>A few park benches away, Lisa King, who works in a real estate office near Clinton’s building, thinks about the Democratic nominee and wonders why “she can’t make people comfortable with her the way Obama makes you feel.” And then she wonders about Trump: “He’s bold enough to say what people think, but he’s an aggressor, and that makes people angry.”</p>
<p>Finally, she thinks about her daughter, who is 16 and following the campaign closely: “She thinks both of them could be cordial and keep away from cheap shots, and just talk to us like we’re adults. All I could tell her was, I wish we could have that.”</p>
<p>campaign-headquarters</p>
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quiet bit sidewalk front nondescript highrise surrounded 3 million condos slew government offices donald trump hillary clinton set national campaign headquarters seven miles apart journey showmans gleaming showplace tired old building brooklynites blood work done mere 25minute ride 5 lexington avenue express like candidates nerve centers two campaigns could hardly different goes voters gathered outside sidewalk outside trump tower teeming people believe country close edge barely kept going outside clintons offices one pierrepont plaza crowd people street show enthusiasm theyre particularly advertisement ron slay taking lunch break leafy brooklyn park hasnt seen evidence clinton campaigns presence thats pretty much hed expect clinton shes quiet hes limelight hes sensationalism shes somebody lot people dont like shes laying low slay 70 college administrator got jazzed bernie sanders campaign earlier year feels like maybe vote clinton im scared donald trump hell find flirting thirdparty protest vote vote clinton stop someone let force make negative vote hell think trump always seemed get things done new york repairing central park ice skating rink licketysplit underbudget city government failed slay talks options umpteenth time 20 minutes closer decision seven miles away one talking situation 20 minutes like 20 seconds yelling fingerpointing good old new yorkstyle dismissive armwaves guy shaking trumppence sign shouts george soros opium wars reason franklin roosevelts grandfather beneath shouting one area agreement conversations home gotten volatile troubling many people say theyve cut talk politics dont discuss anymore says priscilla allen visitor dallas stopped trump tower search campaign buttons husband vehemently protrump son even conservative daughter liberal thinks trump crazy allen believes trump worst person could selected business women well dont talk like havent done yet supports hillary dishonest wouldnt call face like shakes head could get building couple bumper stickers makes wonder hes probably going win doesnt know run campaign allen says shame whole thing shame advertisement sidewalk sentiment opposite direction friends got agreed get together till election says mike reynolds recently retired oil gas sales manager denver area kind scary much hate hillary dont get last eight years great real estates better 401ks great whats complain theres nothing could make vote daughter kelly new york nurse says shes unfollow clintonhating facebook friends posting cascade lock diatribes yet father daughter maintain animosity even bloodcurdling shouting theyre watching front trump tower likely drift away campaign finally ends try telling barbara smucker amelia arcamone makinano regulars sidewalk never spoken smucker comes city levittown long island three days week stand front trump tower waving handdrawn sign trump destroy america makinano stands 30 feet away holding oversize american flag sticker says hillary prison 16 even clinton wins handily smucker says trump giuliani arent going away divided trump spreading hate people know unfriending everyone disagrees trump trump people yell give finger dont get debates stand hold sign makinano retired public school teacher lives queens campaigned clinton 2008 come believe former secretary state criminal view makinano says express union meetings outnumbered boo anyone whos hillary living new york makinano says place feels safe talking admiration trump home husband friends dont talk politics way friends hopes animosity sees every day subside november shes sure back brooklyn karen bissessar stares across clintons headquarters shakes head city school system employee still undecided ill end choosing lesser two evils says hard theyre unprofessional interviewing job wouldnt act like debates stuff coming emails way trump talks playground talk fingerpointing namecalling park benches away lisa king works real estate office near clintons building thinks democratic nominee wonders cant make people comfortable way obama makes feel wonders trump hes bold enough say people think hes aggressor makes people angry finally thinks daughter 16 following campaign closely thinks could cordial keep away cheap shots talk us like adults could tell wish could campaignheadquarters
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<p>One of my goals in writing this column is to spark chatter about ethics issues. My hope is you will TALK about ethics in response to what I write. You may bounce around some of these issues with your colleagues at the water cooler or over lunch. Or you may express your view via cyberspace to anyone who reads the lists, boards and forums.</p>
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<p>My <a href="" type="internal">recent column on journalists who become activists on war and peace issues</a> brought me quite a few e-mails and it continues to generate spirited conversation on <a href="" type="internal">our Poynter Online&#160;feedback forum</a> and in e-mail.</p>
<p>Some posters challenged my belief that it is unwise for journalists to take public positions on such issues.</p>
<p>Tony Tharp thought my position misguided. "What's to lose here? Would our occupational trade really be worse off if reporters went out into the world and took part in it? I doubt it."&#160;</p>
<p>Becky Blanton argued that, "For anyone to say they are 'neutral' is a lie. No one is neutral. It is free speech, not unbiased speech, that made America great. The threat to the 'truth' is not impassioned, involved journalists. The threat to the truth is journalists who care more about the bottom line than about free speech. We forget that for those who think --&#160;who know how to think -- opinions are liberating."</p>
<p>And Michael Burton suggests that, "The real danger is not a handful of journalists protesting the war, but the thousands who are not investigating the causes and consequences of such a war."</p>
<p>Among those who agreed with my position was Steven Gardner who says essential trust is lost when journalists become activists. "At times it can feel like I am being strangled when I am unable to express my view on a matter. But that's my job. I've wanted to take part in marches, debates, etc. But to do so would allow my sources to draw conclusions about my biases. Frankly, I'd rather keep them guessing until I get an editorial page gig. The issue is trust. Readers in large numbers don't trust us anyway, but having a reporter participate in a peace march and then report on the event doesn't help."</p>
<p>And James Gillespie, a non-journalist, thought my views were "on target." Gillespie wrote, "I agree with the divorce of political activism and interjection of personal beliefs for the journalist … Apart from judges, I can think of no profession that needs to observe this line [more] than journalists."</p>
<p>Some forum posters posed questions back to me.</p>
<p>Adriel Hampton asked, "Bob, does prior military service prohibit a journalist from covering war or politics?"</p>
<p>As I pointed out in my column, I don't believe any journalist is truly objective, as we all bring our life experiences, beliefs and biases with us. However, I believe it's ethically problematic when our background or our feelings lead to "action" that creates a competing loyalty with our journalistic duty.</p>
<p>I do not think prior military service disqualifies a journalist from covering war or politics any more than a journalist's prior experience as a student, hospital orderly or athlete would prohibit covering education, health or sports issues and events.</p>
<p>I don't believe any journalist is truly objective.The key is "prior experience," as opposed to current participation. Additionally, the journalist -– in consultation with her or his editor -– should examine whether that background experience has created any continuing loyalties that might compromise independent reporting.</p>
<p>Good journalists can use their life experiences to help them understand a particular issue or event in purposeful ways that justifiably serve their reporting. Military veterans, for instance, may bring unique insight that allows them to better understand weapons systems or battlefield tactics, just as a science reporter who once worked in a genetics lab might have greater knowledge that produces better questions and more contextual stories.</p>
<p>Among the other questions -– both direct and rhetorical –- that were posed back to me was one from Judy B., who asked "…if you would have thought journalists should have followed professional ethics and been content writing news stories, knowing what some of them must have known about the Holocaust. I would hope not. There is a line for each person, on each issue; a point at which we must act for ourselves, for our principles, not as messengers or proxies for others. Otherwise, we are but vessels, shells."</p>
<p>The ongoing debates about war and peace literally force journalists to think hard about these matters of independence, activism, neutrality and participation. I hope you'll keep talking about the ethics of these matters.</p>
<p>And, while you are at it, here are three other issues I've written about that have some new tangents for you consider and talk about.</p>
<p>I understand why they did this, to give an authentic "voice" to Hussein's words that would match, not distract from, the message. I'm not sure why CBS couldn't have used a legitimate translator to accomplish that goal rather than hire an actor who played the Arabic part.</p>
<p>A while back, <a href="" type="internal">I wrote about the revised New York Times code of ethics</a>. I said the Times' "standards are tough and they should be."</p>
<p>Now we learn about a case where <a href="http://www.nyjournalnews.com/newsroom/030603/b0106belkin.html" type="external">the code has been applied to a Times columnist</a> who had planned to speak at a political fund-raiser. Lisa Belkin has discovered that's a "no-no."</p>
<p>I find one of the most interesting elements of this case to be the assertion by columnist Lisa Belkin that "she was unaware of the new Code of Conduct policy" until it was raised in relation to her planned speaking engagement. Belkin, by the way, says she supports the code.</p>
<p>My question -– Why hasn't The Times done a better job of getting the word out to its journalists? Standards are of little good if the folks affected aren't aware of what is expected of them.</p>
<p>And finally, there's a new twist on the Bob Greene case <a href="" type="internal">. I wrote about the demise of the former Chicago Tribune and syndicated columnist last fall</a> after revelations about his very personal relationship with a high school student who had sought his journalistic guidance and mentoring.</p>
<p>This week, USA Today's Peter Johnson wrote <a href="http://www.usatoday.com/usatonline/20030305/4918050s.htm" type="external">a provocative column</a> asking, "Does Bob Greene deserve redemption?"</p>
<p>That's a fascinating question that should prompt some Talk About Ethics.</p>
<p><a href="" type="internal">&#160;[ What ethical issues are you talking about? ]</a></p>
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one goals writing column spark chatter ethics issues hope talk ethics response write may bounce around issues colleagues water cooler lunch may express view via cyberspace anyone reads lists boards forums recent column journalists become activists war peace issues brought quite emails continues generate spirited conversation poynter online160feedback forum email posters challenged belief unwise journalists take public positions issues tony tharp thought position misguided whats lose would occupational trade really worse reporters went world took part doubt it160 becky blanton argued anyone say neutral lie one neutral free speech unbiased speech made america great threat truth impassioned involved journalists threat truth journalists care bottom line free speech forget think 160who know think opinions liberating michael burton suggests real danger handful journalists protesting war thousands investigating causes consequences war among agreed position steven gardner says essential trust lost journalists become activists times feel like strangled unable express view matter thats job ive wanted take part marches debates etc would allow sources draw conclusions biases frankly id rather keep guessing get editorial page gig issue trust readers large numbers dont trust us anyway reporter participate peace march report event doesnt help james gillespie nonjournalist thought views target gillespie wrote agree divorce political activism interjection personal beliefs journalist apart judges think profession needs observe line journalists forum posters posed questions back adriel hampton asked bob prior military service prohibit journalist covering war politics pointed column dont believe journalist truly objective bring life experiences beliefs biases us however believe ethically problematic background feelings lead action creates competing loyalty journalistic duty think prior military service disqualifies journalist covering war politics journalists prior experience student hospital orderly athlete would prohibit covering education health sports issues events dont believe journalist truly objectivethe key prior experience opposed current participation additionally journalist consultation editor examine whether background experience created continuing loyalties might compromise independent reporting good journalists use life experiences help understand particular issue event purposeful ways justifiably serve reporting military veterans instance may bring unique insight allows better understand weapons systems battlefield tactics science reporter worked genetics lab might greater knowledge produces better questions contextual stories among questions direct rhetorical posed back one judy b asked would thought journalists followed professional ethics content writing news stories knowing must known holocaust would hope line person issue point must act principles messengers proxies others otherwise vessels shells ongoing debates war peace literally force journalists think hard matters independence activism neutrality participation hope youll keep talking ethics matters three issues ive written new tangents consider talk understand give authentic voice husseins words would match distract message im sure cbs couldnt used legitimate translator accomplish goal rather hire actor played arabic part back wrote revised new york times code ethics said times standards tough learn case code applied times columnist planned speak political fundraiser lisa belkin discovered thats nono find one interesting elements case assertion columnist lisa belkin unaware new code conduct policy raised relation planned speaking engagement belkin way says supports code question hasnt times done better job getting word journalists standards little good folks affected arent aware expected finally theres new twist bob greene case wrote demise former chicago tribune syndicated columnist last fall revelations personal relationship high school student sought journalistic guidance mentoring week usa todays peter johnson wrote provocative column asking bob greene deserve redemption thats fascinating question prompt talk ethics 160 ethical issues talking
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<p>The Trump era is a perilous new landscape for corporate America. Companies are feeling political pressure like never before, squeezed on one side by consumers who are boycotting products with any ties to the administration and on the other by the outspoken, social media-loving president.</p>
<p>For most companies, the decision to get political used to be made after long, careful deliberations among a company’s leader, public relations team, lawyers and lobbyists. Now, in an increasingly divided America, companies may have no choice but to move quickly.</p>
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<p>“You have to understand your customers in real time because political ramifications are happening instantly,” said Matt Friedman, a crisis communications adviser based near Detroit who has worked with public and private companies. “Each business now has to look at where their customer fits into the political divide and how their company values align to what the president is doing on a day-to-day basis.”</p>
<p>The predicament for companies was on display ahead of Trump’s first White House meeting Friday with his business forum, a group that includes General Motors CEO Mary Barra, JP Morgan CEO Jamie Dimon and a dozen others. The night before, Uber’s Travis Kalanick told his employees he’d decided to quit the council because his presence on it was being “misinterpreted” as an endorsement of the president.</p>
<p>“I spent a lot of time thinking about this and mapping it to our values,” Kalanick told employees in an internal memo obtained by The Associated Press.</p>
<p>Disney CEO Bob Iger didn’t attend either; instead he was at a company board meeting in California.</p>
<p>A seat on a high-profile White House council, no matter the political party in power, has previously been a can’t-pass-up sign of prestige. It’s a direct way for a company to express opinions to the president — far less fraught than trying to gain access through lobbying or donating money.</p>
<p>Trump said he intends to take advice from the council, which he said would meet regularly to discuss policies. Trump said he’d be seeking guidance on his plans to roll back the financial services legislation known as the Dodd-Frank bill from JP Morgan’s Dimon.</p>
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<p>“There’s nobody better to tell me about Dodd-Frank than Jamie,” he said Friday.</p>
<p>But an audience with this president, at least at this stage, brings with it customer complications. No doubt weighing into Kalanick’s decision to give up that influence was the boycott the ride-sharing company, popular in urban, largely Democratic areas, had been experiencing all week.</p>
<p>That campaign went viral on social media Saturday night when people perceived Uber as trying to break a taxi strike to and from New York’s John F. Kennedy Airport that was in response to Trump’s executive order suspending the country’s refugee program. It didn’t let up even after Uber publicly condemned Trump’s executive order and contributed to relief groups.</p>
<p>Shannon Coulter, one of the organizers of the “Grab Your Wallet” social media effort to encourage boycotts of companies tied to Trump, said she would only be satisfied when Kalanick resigned from the presidential forum, saying: “This is not a ‘seat at the table’ moment. This is a flip-the-table moment.”</p>
<p>Grab Your Wallet claimed another victory Thursday night when Nordstrom announced it had stopped selling first daughter Ivanka Trump’s fashion line. The company cited the brand’s performance. The department store was one of Grab Your Wallet’s first targets. Neiman Marcus also appears to have stopped selling her jewelry.</p>
<p>“Companies have been late to the game with realizing how much ire it can create to associate with a person like Donald,” Coulter said.</p>
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<p>While the anti-Trump boycotters cheered Nordstrom, angry Trump supporters deluged the company with angry messages on Twitter — some saying they were now prepared to begin their own boycott.</p>
<p>Nordstrom spent the night responding to hundreds of them, with messages like: “We’re so sorry to disappoint you. It’s not a political decision for us.”</p>
<p>Maine-based retailer L.L. Bean faced the flip side of that. Linda Bean, one of many family members involved in the company, gave money to a pro-Trump super PAC during the campaign, prompting Grab Your Wallet to call for a boycott, which in turn prompted Trump to weigh in with a bit of social-media marketing.</p>
<p>“Thank you to Linda Bean of L.L. Bean for your great support and courage. People will support you even more now. Buy L.L. Bean,” Trump tweeted last month, a few weeks before taking office.</p>
<p>When they make a move that could be perceived as a knock on the president, companies like Nordstrom must calculate not only the financial impact of angering Trump supporters but also the possibility that Trump himself could take notice — spiraling the crisis to another level.</p>
<p>Robert Passikoff, president of Brand Keys Inc., said CEOs are especially vulnerable now because technology allows people to protest and vent their anger without organizing a march, or even leaving their home. Among those who can weigh in with a few finger taps: the leader of the free world.</p>
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<p>“The direct communication from the president of the United States, with attacks on specific brands and specific people, is not something we’ve ever seen before,” he said.</p>
<p>Just how much this new, perilous environment for CEOs will actually affect business in the long term is difficult to know.</p>
<p>Shares of Lockheed fell sharply after the president tweeted in December that the cost of its F-35 fighter jets was “out of control,” then fell again after he complained about the military contractor at a news conference the next month.</p>
<p>The stock quickly recovered both times.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>Associated Press writers Bernard Condon in New York and Jill Colvin in Washington contributed to this report.</p>
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trump era perilous new landscape corporate america companies feeling political pressure like never squeezed one side consumers boycotting products ties administration outspoken social medialoving president companies decision get political used made long careful deliberations among companys leader public relations team lawyers lobbyists increasingly divided america companies may choice move quickly advertisement understand customers real time political ramifications happening instantly said matt friedman crisis communications adviser based near detroit worked public private companies business look customer fits political divide company values align president daytoday basis predicament companies display ahead trumps first white house meeting friday business forum group includes general motors ceo mary barra jp morgan ceo jamie dimon dozen others night ubers travis kalanick told employees hed decided quit council presence misinterpreted endorsement president spent lot time thinking mapping values kalanick told employees internal memo obtained associated press disney ceo bob iger didnt attend either instead company board meeting california seat highprofile white house council matter political party power previously cantpassup sign prestige direct way company express opinions president far less fraught trying gain access lobbying donating money trump said intends take advice council said would meet regularly discuss policies trump said hed seeking guidance plans roll back financial services legislation known doddfrank bill jp morgans dimon advertisement theres nobody better tell doddfrank jamie said friday audience president least stage brings customer complications doubt weighing kalanicks decision give influence boycott ridesharing company popular urban largely democratic areas experiencing week campaign went viral social media saturday night people perceived uber trying break taxi strike new yorks john f kennedy airport response trumps executive order suspending countrys refugee program didnt let even uber publicly condemned trumps executive order contributed relief groups shannon coulter one organizers grab wallet social media effort encourage boycotts companies tied trump said would satisfied kalanick resigned presidential forum saying seat table moment flipthetable moment grab wallet claimed another victory thursday night nordstrom announced stopped selling first daughter ivanka trumps fashion line company cited brands performance department store one grab wallets first targets neiman marcus also appears stopped selling jewelry companies late game realizing much ire create associate person like donald coulter said advertisement antitrump boycotters cheered nordstrom angry trump supporters deluged company angry messages twitter saying prepared begin boycott nordstrom spent night responding hundreds messages like sorry disappoint political decision us mainebased retailer bean faced flip side linda bean one many family members involved company gave money protrump super pac campaign prompting grab wallet call boycott turn prompted trump weigh bit socialmedia marketing thank linda bean bean great support courage people support even buy bean trump tweeted last month weeks taking office make move could perceived knock president companies like nordstrom must calculate financial impact angering trump supporters also possibility trump could take notice spiraling crisis another level robert passikoff president brand keys inc said ceos especially vulnerable technology allows people protest vent anger without organizing march even leaving home among weigh finger taps leader free world advertisement direct communication president united states attacks specific brands specific people something weve ever seen said much new perilous environment ceos actually affect business long term difficult know shares lockheed fell sharply president tweeted december cost f35 fighter jets control fell complained military contractor news conference next month stock quickly recovered times ___ associated press writers bernard condon new york jill colvin washington contributed report
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<p>Stopping them is difficult, since many give little advance indication they are planning attacks.</p>
<p>FBI Director Christopher Wray has said the FBI considers the most pressing domestic terrorism threats to be homegrown violent extremists radicalized by Islamic State and other radical Islamist groups, and lone-wolf attackers who aren’t connected to any other people or groups. Cultists, “sovereign citizens” who don’t believe government constraints apply to them and those motivated by racial hatred are a lesser but persistent concern, the FBI says.</p>
<p>Matthew Heiman, a former lawyer with the National Security Division at the Justice Department, agrees with Wray that homegrown Islamist extremists are the top threat.</p>
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<p>“If you look at the numbers, the repetition and the consistency, I think that’s No. 1 by a long stretch,” Heiman said, citing attacks in San Bernardino, Calif., Orlando, Fla., Fort Hood, Texas, and New York City. While there are other attacks every year, Heiman said other movements are not as consistent.</p>
<p>Some object to the categories as artificial and counterproductive.</p>
<p>“There’s this focus on categorizing ideology, rather than focusing on methodology for committing these acts of violence, said Michael German, a former FBI official who worked in counterterrorism. “It springs from this necessity to categorize in order to distribute resources in an organized way, but we then come to believe those categories are real. This whole concept of a radical Islam, which includes very different groups such as ISIS, Al-Qaida, Hezbollah … it has nothing to do with keeping Americans safer.”</p>
<p>Still, while there may be disagreement about the framing, no one questions that the United States needs to be on the lookout for potential attackers. And the FBI’s view will carry the day when it comes to allocating money and manpower to the task.</p>
<p>Here’s how the FBI sees the threats:</p>
<p>–– Homegrown violent terrorists: Violent extremists wanting to fight for Islamic State, or those who aspire to attack the United States from within, continue to be at the top of the FBI’s watch list, with the threats amplified by “a surge in terrorist propaganda and training available via the internet and social networking media,” Wray said in testimony to a House committee last month. Online recruitment and indoctrination mean that it’s no longer necessary for terrorist organizations to sneak operatives into the country to recruit others and act.</p>
<p>That’s a big change from the environment of a decade ago, Wray said.</p>
<p>In 2017, jihadist attacks killed more people than other domestic extremist groups, with five attacks in the U.S. in which 17 people died in total, according to Joshua Freilich, co-creator of the Extremist Crime Database. Figures on deaths attributable to terrorist groups vary slightly because of differences in the criteria for labeling something a terrorist act. Freilich said his database defines such attacks as ideologically motivated homicides, or “incidents where the offenders — either wholly or partly — committed the attack to further their extremist beliefs.”</p>
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<p>Interspersed attacks with comparably low fatalities have become the norm for those committed under the umbrella of radical Islamic groups, according to Heiman, largely because Islamic State has overtaken Al-Qaida in prominence.</p>
<p>“Al-Qaida was planning these epic, dramatic attacks. You compare that to the Islamic State, and their approach is ‘here’s what we’d like, you go out and figure out how to do it,'” Heiman said. “So then you get individuals picking up whatever they can, bats or cars or firearms, without a lot of training in how to get those mass casualties.”</p>
<p>While that means it’s less likely we’ll see repeats of 9/11 with thousands or even hundreds of deaths, attacks by individuals are also much harder to pinpoint, Heiman said.</p>
<p>German, however, sees the depiction of radicalization put forth by the FBI as misleading. He said in most cases it’s far more likely that such terrorists are individuals already planning violent action and looking for an ideology to pin it on than it is that they are recruited. And law enforcement too readily categorizes people of color based on flimsy evidence such as a few internet searches, German said.</p>
<p>He compared Omar Mateen, the Orlando shooter who killed 49 people in 2016 at a gay nightclub, who pledged allegiance to ISIS, with James Holmes, the Aurora, Colo., shooter who killed 12 people in 2012 at a screening of “The Dark Knight Rises.” Mateen’s attack was seen as an obvious ideological attack against gay people, while “no one suggested Holmes was motivated by a hatred for Batman, or those who watch it.”</p>
<p>–– Lone-wolf attacks: “We are most concerned about the lone offender attacks, primarily shootings, as they have served as the dominant mode for lethal domestic extremist violence,” Wray said in November.</p>
<p>Lone-wolf attacks are a significant problem for law enforcement by their nature. If an American is planning an attack alone, it’s “almost impossible to detect that, unless they open up about their feelings to family and friends,” Heiman said.</p>
<p>“We might not have as many large-scale attacks, but we have a steady drip of these attacks with one or two actors that come in with a highly destructive weapon, or drive a car into a crowd, and it’s still a significant loss of life,” Heiman said.</p>
<p>The most destructive example of a lone offender in 2017 was Stephen Paddock’s shootings in Las Vegas that killed 58 people. While Paddock’s motive is unknown, meaning the attack it hasn’t been classified as terrorism, it’s emblematic of German’s critique of the emphasis placed on these categories. Regardless of whether Paddock was a terrorist or a criminal, his attack was still catastrophic.</p>
<p>Additionally, while mass shootings represent significant loss of life, the numbers still aren’t comparable to the number of non-terrorist homicides, German said. There were about 17,000 homicides in the U.S. in 2016, according to the FBI, and 40 percent of them are unsolved.</p>
<p>–– Other extremist movements: “Domestic extremist movements collectively pose a steady threat to the United States,” Wray said in November. “We anticipate law enforcement, racial minorities, and the U.S. government will continue to be significant targets for many domestic extremist movements.”</p>
<p>White supremacists, sovereign citizens, black nationalists, radical religious and other cultist groups fall into this grouping. The FBI recently leaked to the public a counterterrorism report that identified a “black identity extremist” threat, saying those extremists were likely to increasingly target police officers over perceived racial injustice. Many — including German — criticized the report’s definition as too broad and worried it was being used to target nonviolent protestors, such as members of Black Lives Matter.</p>
<p>Far-left domestic extremist groups (which include black nationalists) killed eight people in 2017, according to Freilich’s database, while nine people were killed in attacks by far-right domestic extremist groups (which include white supremacists and sovereign citizens) but the FBI has no category for “white identity extremists.”</p>
<p>——</p>
<p>©2017 McClatchy Washington Bureau</p>
<p>Visit the McClatchy Washington Bureau at <a href="http://www.mcclatchydc.com" type="external">www.mcclatchydc.com</a></p>
<p>Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.</p>
<p>_____</p>
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stopping difficult since many give little advance indication planning attacks fbi director christopher wray said fbi considers pressing domestic terrorism threats homegrown violent extremists radicalized islamic state radical islamist groups lonewolf attackers arent connected people groups cultists sovereign citizens dont believe government constraints apply motivated racial hatred lesser persistent concern fbi says matthew heiman former lawyer national security division justice department agrees wray homegrown islamist extremists top threat advertisement look numbers repetition consistency think thats 1 long stretch heiman said citing attacks san bernardino calif orlando fla fort hood texas new york city attacks every year heiman said movements consistent object categories artificial counterproductive theres focus categorizing ideology rather focusing methodology committing acts violence said michael german former fbi official worked counterterrorism springs necessity categorize order distribute resources organized way come believe categories real whole concept radical islam includes different groups isis alqaida hezbollah nothing keeping americans safer still may disagreement framing one questions united states needs lookout potential attackers fbis view carry day comes allocating money manpower task heres fbi sees threats homegrown violent terrorists violent extremists wanting fight islamic state aspire attack united states within continue top fbis watch list threats amplified surge terrorist propaganda training available via internet social networking media wray said testimony house committee last month online recruitment indoctrination mean longer necessary terrorist organizations sneak operatives country recruit others act thats big change environment decade ago wray said 2017 jihadist attacks killed people domestic extremist groups five attacks us 17 people died total according joshua freilich cocreator extremist crime database figures deaths attributable terrorist groups vary slightly differences criteria labeling something terrorist act freilich said database defines attacks ideologically motivated homicides incidents offenders either wholly partly committed attack extremist beliefs advertisement interspersed attacks comparably low fatalities become norm committed umbrella radical islamic groups according heiman largely islamic state overtaken alqaida prominence alqaida planning epic dramatic attacks compare islamic state approach heres wed like go figure heiman said get individuals picking whatever bats cars firearms without lot training get mass casualties means less likely well see repeats 911 thousands even hundreds deaths attacks individuals also much harder pinpoint heiman said german however sees depiction radicalization put forth fbi misleading said cases far likely terrorists individuals already planning violent action looking ideology pin recruited law enforcement readily categorizes people color based flimsy evidence internet searches german said compared omar mateen orlando shooter killed 49 people 2016 gay nightclub pledged allegiance isis james holmes aurora colo shooter killed 12 people 2012 screening dark knight rises mateens attack seen obvious ideological attack gay people one suggested holmes motivated hatred batman watch lonewolf attacks concerned lone offender attacks primarily shootings served dominant mode lethal domestic extremist violence wray said november lonewolf attacks significant problem law enforcement nature american planning attack alone almost impossible detect unless open feelings family friends heiman said might many largescale attacks steady drip attacks one two actors come highly destructive weapon drive car crowd still significant loss life heiman said destructive example lone offender 2017 stephen paddocks shootings las vegas killed 58 people paddocks motive unknown meaning attack hasnt classified terrorism emblematic germans critique emphasis placed categories regardless whether paddock terrorist criminal attack still catastrophic additionally mass shootings represent significant loss life numbers still arent comparable number nonterrorist homicides german said 17000 homicides us 2016 according fbi 40 percent unsolved extremist movements domestic extremist movements collectively pose steady threat united states wray said november anticipate law enforcement racial minorities us government continue significant targets many domestic extremist movements white supremacists sovereign citizens black nationalists radical religious cultist groups fall grouping fbi recently leaked public counterterrorism report identified black identity extremist threat saying extremists likely increasingly target police officers perceived racial injustice many including german criticized reports definition broad worried used target nonviolent protestors members black lives matter farleft domestic extremist groups include black nationalists killed eight people 2017 according freilichs database nine people killed attacks farright domestic extremist groups include white supremacists sovereign citizens fbi category white identity extremists 2017 mcclatchy washington bureau visit mcclatchy washington bureau wwwmcclatchydccom distributed tribune content agency llc _____
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<p>* QTRLY GROSS REVENUE 19.6 MILLION PESOS VERSUS 14.1 MILLION PESOS A YEAR AGO Source text for Eikon: Further company coverage: ([email protected])</p> Our Standards:
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<p>LAS VEGAS/HONG KONG (Reuters) - Best Buy Co Inc, the largest U.S. consumer electronics retailer, will cut ties with China’s Huawei Technologies Co Ltd, a person familiar with the matter said, amid heightened scrutiny on Chinese tech firms in the United States.</p> FILE PHOTO: A Best Buy store is seen in Los Angeles, California, U.S., March 13, 2017. REUTERS/Lucy Nicholson/File Photo
<p>Best Buy will stop selling Huawei’s devices over the next few weeks, according to the person with knowledge of the matter, a setback for the Chinese telecommunications giant as it looks to expand in the U.S. market.</p>
<p>The move, after similar actions from U.S. carriers including AT&amp;T Inc, comes as U.S. scrutiny of Chinese tech firms grows amid simmering tensions over U.S.-China trade and concerns of security.</p>
<p>A Best Buy spokesman told Reuters the firm could not comment on specific contracts with vendors. “We make decisions to change what we sell for a variety of reasons,” he said.</p>
<p>Huawei said in emailed comments on Thursday that it valued its relationship with Best Buy but could not discuss details of its partnership with the U.S. firm.</p> The Huawei logo is seen during the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Spain, February 26, 2018. REUTERS/Yves Herman
<p>“Huawei currently sells its products through a range of leading consumer electronics retailers in the U.S.,” the firm said, adding its products met the “highest security, privacy and engineering standards in the industry”.</p>
<p>Earlier this year, AT&amp;T was forced to scrap a plan to offer Huawei handsets after some members of Congress lobbied against the idea with federal regulators, sources told Reuters. Verizon Communications Inc also ended its plans to sell Huawei phones last year, according to media reports.</p>
<p>Last month two Republican Senators introduced legislation that would block the U.S. government from buying or leasing telecommunications equipment from Huawei or Chinese peer ZTE Corp, citing concern the firms would use their access to spy on U.S. officials.</p>
<p>The tougher climate in the United States has forced Huawei to sell its flagship smartphone Mate 10 Pro - its challenger to the iPhone - in the United States only through open channels.</p>
<p>U.S tech and electronics website CNET.com first reported the termination of the agreement on Wednesday.</p>
<p>Reporting by Nandita Bose in LAS VEGAS and Sijia Jiang in HONG KONG; additional reporting by Abinaya Vijayaraghavan in Bengaluru; Writing by Adam Jourdan; Editing by Sunil Nair &amp; Shri Navaratnam</p> Our Standards:
<a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a>
<p>SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Facebook Inc Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg apologized on Wednesday for mistakes his company made in how it handled data belonging to 50 million of its users and promised tougher steps to restrict developers’ access to such information.</p>
<p>The world’s largest social media network is facing growing government scrutiny in Europe and the United States about a whistleblower’s allegations that London-based political consultancy Cambridge Analytica improperly accessed user information to build profiles on American voters that were later used to help elect U.S. President Donald Trump in 2016.</p>
<p>“This was a major breach of trust. I’m really sorry this happened. We have a basic responsibility to protect people’s data,” Zuckerberg said in an interview with CNN, breaking a public silence since the scandal erupted at the weekend.</p>
<p>Zuckerberg said in a post on Facebook the company "made mistakes, there's more to do, and we need to step up and do it." ( <a href="http://bit.ly/2DHAlUJ" type="external">bit.ly/2DHAlUJ</a>)</p>
<p>He said the social network planned to conduct an investigation of thousands of apps that have used Facebook’s platform, restrict developer access to data, and give members a tool that lets them to disable access to their Facebook data more easily.</p>
<p>His plans did not represent a big reduction of advertisers’ ability to use Facebook data, which is the company’s lifeblood.</p>
<p>Zuckerberg said he was open to additional government regulation and happy to testify before the U.S. Congress if he was the right person.</p>
<p>“I’m not sure we shouldn’t be regulated,” he told CNN. “I actually think the question is more what is the right regulation rather than yes or no, should it be regulated? ... People should know who is buying the ads that they see on Facebook.”</p>
<p>Zuckerberg said Facebook was committed to stopping interference in the U.S. midterm election in November and elections in India and Brazil.</p> INVESTOR FEARS
<p>Facebook shares pared gains on Wednesday after Zuckerberg’s post, closing up 0.7 percent. The company has lost more than $45 billion of its stock market value over the past three days on investor fears that any failure by big tech firms to protect personal data could deter advertisers and users and invite tougher regulation.</p>
<p>Zuckerberg told the New York Times in an interview published on Wednesday he had not seen a “meaningful number of people” deleting their accounts over the scandal.</p>
<p>Facebook representatives, including Deputy Chief Privacy Officer Rob Sherman, met U.S. congressional staff for nearly two hours on Wednesday and planned to continue meetings on Capitol Hill on Thursday. Facebook was unable to answer many questions, two aides who attended the briefing said.</p> Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg speaks during the Alumni Exercises following the 366th Commencement Exercises at Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts, U.S., May 25, 2017. REUTERS/Brian Snyder
<p>Zuckerberg told the website Recode that fixes to protect users' data would cost "many millions of dollars." ( <a href="http://bit.ly/2IJbYJS" type="external">bit.ly/2IJbYJS</a>)</p>
<p>The whistleblower who launched the scandal, Christopher Wylie, formerly of Cambridge Analytica, said on Twitter he had accepted invitations to testify before U.S. and UK lawmakers.</p>
<p>The German government said Facebook must explain whether the personal data of the country’s 30 million users were protected from unlawful use by third parties, according to a report in the Funke group of German regional newspapers.</p> Slideshow (5 Images) ‘SCAPEGOAT’
<p>On Tuesday, the board of Cambridge Analytica suspended its Chief Executive Alexander Nix, who was caught in a secret recording boasting that his company played a decisive role in Trump’s victory.</p>
<p>However, the academic who provided the data disputed that on Wednesday.</p>
<p>“I think what Cambridge Analytica has tried to sell is magic, and they’ve made claims that this is incredibly accurate and it tells you everything there is to tell about you. But I think the reality is it’s not that,” psychologist Aleksandr Kogan, an academic at Cambridge University, told the BBC in an interview.</p>
<p>Kogan, who gathered the data by running a survey app on Facebook, also said he was being made a scapegoat by Facebook and Cambridge Analytica. Both companies have blamed Kogan for alleged data misuse.</p> Related Coverage
<a href="/article/us-facebook-cambridge-analytica-leave-eu/what-are-the-links-between-cambridge-analytica-and-a-brexit-campaign-group-idUSKBN1GX2IO" type="external">What are the links between Cambridge Analytica and a Brexit campaign group?</a>
<a href="/article/us-facebook-cambridge-analytica-germany/germany-summons-facebook-over-user-data-safety-concerns-report-idUSKBN1GY006" type="external">Germany summons Facebook over user data safety concerns: report</a>
<a href="/article/us-facebook-cambridge-analytica-brazil/brazil-prosecutors-open-investigation-into-cambridge-analytica-idUSKBN1GX35A" type="external">Brazil prosecutors open investigation into Cambridge Analytica</a>
<p>Only 300,000 Facebook users responded to Kogan’s quiz, but that gave the researcher access to those people’s Facebook friends as well, who had not agreed to share information, producing details on 50 million users.</p>
<p>Facebook has said it subsequently made changes that prevent people from sharing data about friends and maintains that no breach occurred because the original users gave permission. Critics say that it essentially was a breach because data of unsuspecting friends was taken.</p>
<p>Analysts have raised concerns that the incident will reduce user engagement with Facebook, potentially lessening its clout with advertisers. Three Wall Street brokerages cut their price targets.</p>
<p>“Investors now have to consider whether or not the company will conclude that it has grown in a manner that has proven to be untenable,” said Pivotal Research Group analyst Brian Wieser.</p>
<p>The company has risen more than 550 percent in value in the past five years.</p>
<p>Reporting by David Ingram; Additional reporting by Dustin Volz and David Shepardson in WASHINGTON and Kate Holton in LONDON; Writing by Susan Thomas; Editing by Bill Rigby, Lisa Shumaker and Paul Tait</p> Our Standards:
<a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a>
<p>PFLUGERVILLE, Texas (Reuters) - The serial bomber whose deadly attacks terrorized Austin, Texas, for weeks left a 25-minute video “confession” on a cell phone found after he blew himself up on Wednesday as officers closed in to make an arrest, police said.</p>
<p>Mark Conditt, 23, an unemployed man from the suburb of Pflugerville, detailed how he made all seven bombs that have been accounted for - five that exploded, one that was recovered before it went off and a seventh that he detonated as officers rushed his vehicle early on Wednesday.</p>
<p>But the video failed to reveal a coherent motive for the attacks spread over the past three weeks, police said.</p>
<p>“He does not at all mention anything about terrorism, nor does he mention anything about hate, but instead it is the outcry of a very challenged young man, talking about challenges in his personal life,” Austin Police Chief Brian Manley told reporters.</p>
<p>“I would classify this as a confession,” Manley said.</p>
<p>Conditt, who had never before been in trouble with the law, killed two people and wounded five with a campaign of violence that began on March 2, authorities said.</p>
<p>Based on their search of the suspect’s home and his video statement, authorities said they felt confident that there were no other bombs and that the public was safe from further harm.</p>
<p>FBI special agent Christopher Combs said investigators believe the suspect would have continued his attacks had he not been apprehended.</p>
<p>Police recovered a “target list” of addresses for future bombings, the Los Angeles Times reported, citing U.S. Representative Michael McCaul of Texas, the Republican chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee.</p>
<p>Even so, the video gave no explanation for the individuals and addresses singled out as recipients of the bombs that were planted or shipped, Manley said.</p>
<p>Police previously said they had considered the possibility that the attacks were racially motivated, noting that the first several victims, including the two who died, were either African-American or Hispanic.</p>
<p>Conditt likely recorded the video between 9 p.m. and 11 p.m. on Tuesday. According to Manley, Conditt said he believed police “were getting very close to him,” and he was right. Authorities filed a criminal complaint and issued an arrest warrant around that time.</p>
<p>By Wednesday morning, police had tracked Conditt to a hotel and were waiting for the arrival of tactical units and equipment before they planned to make an arrest, Manley said. But then Conditt drove away.</p>
<p>Police followed and decided to stop him before he got on the highway. Just as officers approached the vehicle, the explosion went off, Manley said. There was also some police shooting.</p> Texas blast suspect Mark Anthony Conditt is seen in this undated handout photo released by Austin Community College in Austin, Texas, U.S. March 21, 2018. Austin Community College/Handout via REUTERS
<p>“This can never be called a happy ending, but it’s a damn good one for the people of this community, the people of the state of Texas,” Travis County District Attorney Margaret Moore told reporters.</p>
<p>Residents in Austin, a city of 1 million people and a liberal enclave of university students and tech companies, voiced relief that the hunt for the serial bomber was over.</p>
<p>“I am going to be leery and extra careful tomorrow at work, but I feel relieved now,” said Jesus Borjon, 44, an employee of parcel delivery firm UPS, who lives in Pflugerville.</p>
<p>Austin was hosting thousands of out-of-town visitors for its annual South by Southwest festival of music, film and technology when the first bombings occurred.</p> Slideshow (24 Images) TRAIL OF CLUES
<p>The trail of clues leading hundreds of investigators to the serial bomber ranged from store receipts and fragments of booby-trapped packages to surveillance video of the suspect in a hat and wig.</p>
<p>Experts scoured the suspect’s home for further evidence on Wednesday, removing explosive materials and bomb components.</p>
<p>“I wouldn’t call it a bomb-making factory, but there’s definitely components consistent with what we’ve seen in all these other devices,” Fred Milanowski, special agent in charge of Houston office of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, told reporters.</p>
<p>Investigators evacuated a four-block radius around Conditt’s house while they searched the home, which Conditt shared with two roommates who had been detained for questioning. Conditt moved in a year ago after leaving his parents’ home about a mile (1.6 km) away, public records showed.</p> Related Coverage
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<p>One law enforcement official involved in the investigation but speaking on condition of anonymity told Reuters that some of the materials found in remnants of the bombs were traced back to where they had been sold.</p>
<p>The source also said investigators, once they had identified Conditt as a potential suspect, obtained a warrant to monitor his Google search history.</p>
<p>Surveillance video showed the suspect in a hat and a blond wig, as he prepared to ship one of two booby-trapped packages he was known to have sent through FedEx Corp’s delivery service, according to the source.</p>
<p>He used the alias “Kelly Killmore” to ship those packages, ABC News reported, citing unnamed law enforcement sources.</p>
<p>Conditt, who was home-schooled, described himself as a conservative but said he was not politically inclined, according to blog posts he wrote as part of a U.S. politics class at Austin Community College. He attended from 2010 to 2012 and had no record of any disciplinary actions, the school said.</p>
<p>Reporting by Jon Herskovitz; Additional reporting by Jim Forsyth in San Antonio, Brendan O'Brien in Milwaukee, Mark Hosenball in Washington, Jonathan Allen and Gina Cherelus in New York and Steve Gorman in Los Angeles; Writing by Daniel Trotta; Editing by Rosalba O'Brien, Peter Cooney &amp; Simon Cameron-Moore</p> Our Standards:
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<p>TOKYO (Reuters) - The U.S. dollar slipped on Thursday after the Federal Reserve did not signal a faster pace of rate hikes this year while worries about a coming announcement on tariffs from U.S. President Donald Trump dented Asian shares.</p> U.S. Dollar banknotes are seen in this photo illustration taken February 12, 2018. REUTERS/Jose Luis Gonzalez/Illustration
<p>MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan .MIAPJ0000PUS fell 0.1 percent, erasing earlier gains of up to 0.7 pct, which were led by South Korea <a href="/finance/markets/index?symbol=.KS11" type="external">.KS11</a> and Taiwan <a href="/finance/markets/index?symbol=.TWII" type="external">.TWII</a> hitting six-week highs. Japan's Nikkei <a href="/finance/markets/index?symbol=.N225" type="external">.N225</a> gained 0.4 percent.</p>
<p>Wall Street stock indexes ended the day lower, with the S&amp;P 500 <a href="/finance/markets/index?symbol=.SPX" type="external">.SPX</a> losing 0.18 percent and the Nasdaq Composite <a href="/finance/markets/index?symbol=.IXIC" type="external">.IXIC</a> 0.26 percent.</p>
<p>The U.S. Federal Reserve raised interest rates on Wednesday and forecast two more hikes for 2018 in its first policy meeting under Chairman Jerome Powell.</p>
<p>Given that some investors had expected it to project three more rate hikes, the guidance was perceived by some as less hawkish than anticipated, a positive factor for risk assets in general, though analysts noted the Fed was upbeat on the economy overall.</p>
<p>Fed policymakers notched up rate projections for 2019 and 2020 and also raised the estimated longer-term “neutral” interest rate a touch, suggesting the current tightening cycle could go on longer than previously thought.</p>
<p>“They also forecast three hikes next year and two more in 2020 and clearly revised up the growth forecast as well,” said Norihiro Fujito, senior investment strategist at Mitsubishi UFJ Morgan Stanley Securities.</p>
<p>“So the picture looks different when you look at longer-term projections. That explains the complicated reaction by markets. The prospects of continued rate hikes may cap shares,” he added.</p>
<p>The yield on two-year U.S. notes yield slipped back to 2.299 percent US2YT=RR from 9 1/2-year high of 2.366 percent hit on Wednesday while the 10-year yield dipped to 2.872 percent US10YT=RR after an initial spike to 2.936 percent.</p>
<p>That pushed the U.S. dollar lower in the currency market, with the dollar index .DXY =USD testing this month’s low after suffering its biggest fall in two months on Wednesday.</p>
<p>The euro <a href="/finance/currencies/quote?srcCurr=EUR&amp;destCurr=USD" type="external">EUR=</a> gained 0.2 percent to $1.2363, extending its recovery from a near three-week low of $1.2240 touched earlier in the week.</p>
<p>The dollar shed 0.4 percent to 105.66 yen <a href="/finance/currencies/quote?srcCurr=JPY&amp;destCurr=USD" type="external">JPY=</a>, turning down on the week to edge closer to its 16-month low of 105.24 on March 2.</p>
<p>The British pound hit a 1 1/2-month high of $1.4171, building on Wednesday’s one-percent gains.</p> A man walks past an electronic stock quotation board outside a brokerage in Tokyo, Japan, February 9, 2018. REUTERS/Toru Hanai
<p>Strong UK wage data published on Wednesday cemented expectations that the Bank of England will likely signal a May rate hike later in the day at a monetary policy meeting.</p>
<p>Bucking the trend, the Hong Kong dollar <a href="/finance/currencies/quote?srcCurr=HKD&amp;destCurr=USD" type="external">HKD=D4</a> hit a 33-year low of 7.8469 per U.S. dollar, inching closer to the lower end of the Hong Kong Monetary Authority's targeted trading band of 7.75-7.85.</p>
<p>But most market participants do not see this bout of weakness as a threat or attack on Hong Kong’s dollar peg, unlike instances in the past.</p>
<p>With the Fed meeting over, investors are watching Trump, who is due to sign a memo on imposing tariffs on Chinese imports at 1630 GMT on Thursday.</p>
<a href="/finance/markets/index?symbol=.KS11" type="external">Korea Exchange</a> 2505.57 .KS11 Korea Stock Exchange +20.60 (+0.83%) .KS11 .TWII .N225 .SPX .IXIC
<p>Concerns about a trade war between the world’s two largest economies have kept many investors on guard.</p>
<p>U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer said on Wednesday the tariffs would target China’s high-technology sector and could also include restrictions on Chinese investments in the United States.</p>
<p>Investors worry such a move could trigger countermeasures by China, possibly causing a vicious cycle of escalating retaliation.</p>
<p>Shares on China's exchanges were lower, the with Shanghai Composite Index <a href="/finance/markets/index?symbol=.SSEC" type="external">.SSEC</a> slipping 0.8 percent to two-week lows.</p>
<p>“China’s equity market is relatively domestic. We estimate that on average more than 80 percent of revenues are generated in China while only a marginal share comes from the U.S. Still, there would be first-order casualties if trade tensions escalated. In the front line would be firms with significant exposure to the US, mostly in the tech and consumer</p>
<p>sectors,” wrote analysts at Societe Generale.</p>
<p>In the energy market, oil prices stood near six-week highs and closed in on a 3-year peak set in late January, helped by a surprise decline in U.S. inventories, strong compliance on OPEC production cuts, and persistent concerns on the nuclear pact with Iran.</p>
<p>U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures CLc1 rose to as high as $65.74 per barrel CLc1, not far from its January peak of $66.66, having gained almost five percent so far this week.</p>
<p>In contrast, copper fell to three-month low of $6,702 per tonne CMCU3 the previous day before bouncing back to $6,817.</p>
<p>Reporting by Hideyuki Sano; Editing by Eric Meijer and Richard Borsuk</p> Our Standards:
<a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a>
| false | 2 |
jan 24 reuters boulevard holdings inc qtrly net loss tax 30 million pesos versus profit 612867 pesos qtrly gross revenue 196 million pesos versus 141 million pesos year ago source text eikon company coverage bangalorenewsroomthomsonreuterscom standards thomson reuters trust principles las vegashong kong reuters best buy co inc largest us consumer electronics retailer cut ties chinas huawei technologies co ltd person familiar matter said amid heightened scrutiny chinese tech firms united states file photo best buy store seen los angeles california us march 13 2017 reuterslucy nicholsonfile photo best buy stop selling huaweis devices next weeks according person knowledge matter setback chinese telecommunications giant looks expand us market move similar actions us carriers including atampt inc comes us scrutiny chinese tech firms grows amid simmering tensions uschina trade concerns security best buy spokesman told reuters firm could comment specific contracts vendors make decisions change sell variety reasons said huawei said emailed comments thursday valued relationship best buy could discuss details partnership us firm huawei logo seen mobile world congress barcelona spain february 26 2018 reutersyves herman huawei currently sells products range leading consumer electronics retailers us firm said adding products met highest security privacy engineering standards industry earlier year atampt forced scrap plan offer huawei handsets members congress lobbied idea federal regulators sources told reuters verizon communications inc also ended plans sell huawei phones last year according media reports last month two republican senators introduced legislation would block us government buying leasing telecommunications equipment huawei chinese peer zte corp citing concern firms would use access spy us officials tougher climate united states forced huawei sell flagship smartphone mate 10 pro challenger iphone united states open channels us tech electronics website cnetcom first reported termination agreement wednesday reporting nandita bose las vegas sijia jiang hong kong additional reporting abinaya vijayaraghavan bengaluru writing adam jourdan editing sunil nair amp shri navaratnam standards thomson reuters trust principles san francisco reuters facebook inc chief executive mark zuckerberg apologized wednesday mistakes company made handled data belonging 50 million users promised tougher steps restrict developers access information worlds largest social media network facing growing government scrutiny europe united states whistleblowers allegations londonbased political consultancy cambridge analytica improperly accessed user information build profiles american voters later used help elect us president donald trump 2016 major breach trust im really sorry happened basic responsibility protect peoples data zuckerberg said interview cnn breaking public silence since scandal erupted weekend zuckerberg said post facebook company made mistakes theres need step bitly2dhaluj said social network planned conduct investigation thousands apps used facebooks platform restrict developer access data give members tool lets disable access facebook data easily plans represent big reduction advertisers ability use facebook data companys lifeblood zuckerberg said open additional government regulation happy testify us congress right person im sure shouldnt regulated told cnn actually think question right regulation rather yes regulated people know buying ads see facebook zuckerberg said facebook committed stopping interference us midterm election november elections india brazil investor fears facebook shares pared gains wednesday zuckerbergs post closing 07 percent company lost 45 billion stock market value past three days investor fears failure big tech firms protect personal data could deter advertisers users invite tougher regulation zuckerberg told new york times interview published wednesday seen meaningful number people deleting accounts scandal facebook representatives including deputy chief privacy officer rob sherman met us congressional staff nearly two hours wednesday planned continue meetings capitol hill thursday facebook unable answer many questions two aides attended briefing said facebook founder mark zuckerberg speaks alumni exercises following 366th commencement exercises harvard university cambridge massachusetts us may 25 2017 reutersbrian snyder zuckerberg told website recode fixes protect users data would cost many millions dollars bitly2ijbyjs whistleblower launched scandal christopher wylie formerly cambridge analytica said twitter accepted invitations testify us uk lawmakers german government said facebook must explain whether personal data countrys 30 million users protected unlawful use third parties according report funke group german regional newspapers slideshow 5 images scapegoat tuesday board cambridge analytica suspended chief executive alexander nix caught secret recording boasting company played decisive role trumps victory however academic provided data disputed wednesday think cambridge analytica tried sell magic theyve made claims incredibly accurate tells everything tell think reality psychologist aleksandr kogan academic cambridge university told bbc interview kogan gathered data running survey app facebook also said made scapegoat facebook cambridge analytica companies blamed kogan alleged data misuse related coverage links cambridge analytica brexit campaign group germany summons facebook user data safety concerns report brazil prosecutors open investigation cambridge analytica 300000 facebook users responded kogans quiz gave researcher access peoples facebook friends well agreed share information producing details 50 million users facebook said subsequently made changes prevent people sharing data friends maintains breach occurred original users gave permission critics say essentially breach data unsuspecting friends taken analysts raised concerns incident reduce user engagement facebook potentially lessening clout advertisers three wall street brokerages cut price targets investors consider whether company conclude grown manner proven untenable said pivotal research group analyst brian wieser company risen 550 percent value past five years reporting david ingram additional reporting dustin volz david shepardson washington kate holton london writing susan thomas editing bill rigby lisa shumaker paul tait standards thomson reuters trust principles pflugerville texas reuters serial bomber whose deadly attacks terrorized austin texas weeks left 25minute video confession cell phone found blew wednesday officers closed make arrest police said mark conditt 23 unemployed man suburb pflugerville detailed made seven bombs accounted five exploded one recovered went seventh detonated officers rushed vehicle early wednesday video failed reveal coherent motive attacks spread past three weeks police said mention anything terrorism mention anything hate instead outcry challenged young man talking challenges personal life austin police chief brian manley told reporters would classify confession manley said conditt never trouble law killed two people wounded five campaign violence began march 2 authorities said based search suspects home video statement authorities said felt confident bombs public safe harm fbi special agent christopher combs said investigators believe suspect would continued attacks apprehended police recovered target list addresses future bombings los angeles times reported citing us representative michael mccaul texas republican chairman house homeland security committee even video gave explanation individuals addresses singled recipients bombs planted shipped manley said police previously said considered possibility attacks racially motivated noting first several victims including two died either africanamerican hispanic conditt likely recorded video 9 pm 11 pm tuesday according manley conditt said believed police getting close right authorities filed criminal complaint issued arrest warrant around time wednesday morning police tracked conditt hotel waiting arrival tactical units equipment planned make arrest manley said conditt drove away police followed decided stop got highway officers approached vehicle explosion went manley said also police shooting texas blast suspect mark anthony conditt seen undated handout photo released austin community college austin texas us march 21 2018 austin community collegehandout via reuters never called happy ending damn good one people community people state texas travis county district attorney margaret moore told reporters residents austin city 1 million people liberal enclave university students tech companies voiced relief hunt serial bomber going leery extra careful tomorrow work feel relieved said jesus borjon 44 employee parcel delivery firm ups lives pflugerville austin hosting thousands outoftown visitors annual south southwest festival music film technology first bombings occurred slideshow 24 images trail clues trail clues leading hundreds investigators serial bomber ranged store receipts fragments boobytrapped packages surveillance video suspect hat wig experts scoured suspects home evidence wednesday removing explosive materials bomb components wouldnt call bombmaking factory theres definitely components consistent weve seen devices fred milanowski special agent charge houston office bureau alcohol tobacco firearms explosives told reporters investigators evacuated fourblock radius around conditts house searched home conditt shared two roommates detained questioning conditt moved year ago leaving parents home mile 16 km away public records showed related coverage fbi reminds couriers suspicious package protocols texas bombings one law enforcement official involved investigation speaking condition anonymity told reuters materials found remnants bombs traced back sold source also said investigators identified conditt potential suspect obtained warrant monitor google search history surveillance video showed suspect hat blond wig prepared ship one two boobytrapped packages known sent fedex corps delivery service according source used alias kelly killmore ship packages abc news reported citing unnamed law enforcement sources conditt homeschooled described conservative said politically inclined according blog posts wrote part us politics class austin community college attended 2010 2012 record disciplinary actions school said reporting jon herskovitz additional reporting jim forsyth san antonio brendan obrien milwaukee mark hosenball washington jonathan allen gina cherelus new york steve gorman los angeles writing daniel trotta editing rosalba obrien peter cooney amp simon cameronmoore standards thomson reuters trust principles tokyo reuters us dollar slipped thursday federal reserve signal faster pace rate hikes year worries coming announcement tariffs us president donald trump dented asian shares us dollar banknotes seen photo illustration taken february 12 2018 reutersjose luis gonzalezillustration mscis broadest index asiapacific shares outside japan miapj0000pus fell 01 percent erasing earlier gains 07 pct led south korea ks11 taiwan twii hitting sixweek highs japans nikkei n225 gained 04 percent wall street stock indexes ended day lower sampp 500 spx losing 018 percent nasdaq composite ixic 026 percent us federal reserve raised interest rates wednesday forecast two hikes 2018 first policy meeting chairman jerome powell given investors expected project three rate hikes guidance perceived less hawkish anticipated positive factor risk assets general though analysts noted fed upbeat economy overall fed policymakers notched rate projections 2019 2020 also raised estimated longerterm neutral interest rate touch suggesting current tightening cycle could go longer previously thought also forecast three hikes next year two 2020 clearly revised growth forecast well said norihiro fujito senior investment strategist mitsubishi ufj morgan stanley securities picture looks different look longerterm projections explains complicated reaction markets prospects continued rate hikes may cap shares added yield twoyear us notes yield slipped back 2299 percent us2ytrr 9 12year high 2366 percent hit wednesday 10year yield dipped 2872 percent us10ytrr initial spike 2936 percent pushed us dollar lower currency market dollar index dxy usd testing months low suffering biggest fall two months wednesday euro eur gained 02 percent 12363 extending recovery near threeweek low 12240 touched earlier week dollar shed 04 percent 10566 yen jpy turning week edge closer 16month low 10524 march 2 british pound hit 1 12month high 14171 building wednesdays onepercent gains man walks past electronic stock quotation board outside brokerage tokyo japan february 9 2018 reuterstoru hanai strong uk wage data published wednesday cemented expectations bank england likely signal may rate hike later day monetary policy meeting bucking trend hong kong dollar hkdd4 hit 33year low 78469 per us dollar inching closer lower end hong kong monetary authoritys targeted trading band 775785 market participants see bout weakness threat attack hong kongs dollar peg unlike instances past fed meeting investors watching trump due sign memo imposing tariffs chinese imports 1630 gmt thursday korea exchange 250557 ks11 korea stock exchange 2060 083 ks11 twii n225 spx ixic concerns trade war worlds two largest economies kept many investors guard us trade representative robert lighthizer said wednesday tariffs would target chinas hightechnology sector could also include restrictions chinese investments united states investors worry move could trigger countermeasures china possibly causing vicious cycle escalating retaliation shares chinas exchanges lower shanghai composite index ssec slipping 08 percent twoweek lows chinas equity market relatively domestic estimate average 80 percent revenues generated china marginal share comes us still would firstorder casualties trade tensions escalated front line would firms significant exposure us mostly tech consumer sectors wrote analysts societe generale energy market oil prices stood near sixweek highs closed 3year peak set late january helped surprise decline us inventories strong compliance opec production cuts persistent concerns nuclear pact iran us west texas intermediate wti crude futures clc1 rose high 6574 per barrel clc1 far january peak 6666 gained almost five percent far week contrast copper fell threemonth low 6702 per tonne cmcu3 previous day bouncing back 6817 reporting hideyuki sano editing eric meijer richard borsuk standards thomson reuters trust principles
| 2,005 |
<p>SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — The two Koreas' rare high-profile talks Tuesday took place at the jointly controlled area inside the world's most heavily fortified border — the same place where North Korean soldiers recently sprayed bullets at a colleague who was making a daring dash for freedom.</p>
<p>The defecting soldier was hit five times, but he survived and is now recovering in South Korea. The dramatic video of his defection, released by the American-led U.N. command, showed again why the area, called Panmunjom, is known as one of the scariest places on Earth.</p>
<p>On Tuesday, Panmunjom captured international headlines again when a group of high-level North Korean officials walked across concrete slabs that make up a military demarcation line for their first formal talks with South Korea in more than two years.</p>
<p>A look at Panmunjom, whose mystique makes the place not only a potential flash point, but also a venue for talks and a tourist site:</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>NO-MAN'S LAND</p>
<p>Panmunjom sits inside the 4-kilometer (2.5-mile) -wide Demilitarized Zone, a buffer created at the end of the 1950-53 Korean War. Once an obscure farming village, it was where the armistice that ended the Korean War was signed.</p>
<p>No civilians live there, and a cluster of blue huts form a Joint Security Area overseen by North Korea and the U.N. Command.</p>
<p>The 248-kilometer (154-mile) -long DMZ is guarded on both sides by mines, razor-wire fences, tank traps and combat-ready troops. But Panmunjom is the only DMZ location where North and South Korean troops stand only several meters (feet) away from each other. North Korean soldiers wearing lapel pins with the portraits of late North Korean leaders use binoculars to monitor the South, while tall South Korean troops wearing aviator sunglasses stand motionless like statues.</p>
<p>This unique scene makes it a popular tourist spot, drawing curious visitors to both sides of the village.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>PAST BLOODSHED</p>
<p>The most notorious incident at Panmunjom happened in the summer of 1976, when two American army officers were killed by ax-wielding North Korean soldiers.</p>
<p>The U.S. officers had been sent out to trim a 12-meter (40-foot) tree that obstructed the view from a checkpoint. The attack prompted Washington to fly nuclear-capable B-52 bombers toward the DMZ to intimidate North Korea. Then-North Korean leader Kim Il Sung, the late grandfather of current ruler Kim Jong Un, expressed regret over the incident before animosities eased.</p>
<p>In 1984, North Korean and U.N. Command soldiers traded gunfire after a Soviet citizen defected by sprinting to the South Korean sector of the truce village. The incident left three North Korean soldiers and one South Korean soldier dead.</p>
<p>The rival Koreas have had similar violent confrontations along other parts of the DMZ in the past. No deadly clashes have occurred in recent years, but a 2015 land mine blast that maimed two South Korean soldiers pushed the Koreas to the brink of an armed conflict. South Korea blames North Korea for the explosion.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>VENUE FOR TALKS</p>
<p>Military officials from North Korea and the U.N. Command used to meet at Panmunjom to oversee the armistice. In recent years, it has been used for occasional talks between the two Koreas.</p>
<p>Tuesday's talks were held at Peace House, a Seoul-run conference hall in the southern half of the village. The facility has equipment that can feed real-time closed-circuit TV footage of the talks to South Korean leaders in Seoul. It also allows North Korean leaders in Pyongyang to listen to the talks, according to South Korean officials.</p>
<p>North Korea operates another conference room, called "Panmungak," on the northern side of Panmunjom.</p>
<p>Before Tuesday's meeting, the most recent high-profile gathering in Panmunjom was in August 2015, when negotiators for the rivals met for nearly 40 hours and reached a deal that allowed them to pull back from a military standoff triggered by the land mine explosion.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>U.S. PRESIDENTIAL VISITS</p>
<p>U.S. presidents and other top officials have often traveled to Panmunjom and other areas of the DMZ at times of heightened tensions on the Korean Peninsula. They have peered through binoculars across the border and vowed to boost the U.S. military alliance with South Korea.</p>
<p>In 1993, then-President Bill Clinton visited Panmunjom when the North Korean nuclear crisis first flared. In 2002, President George W. Bush visited the DMZ a few weeks after he labeled North Korea part of an "axis of evil."</p>
<p>In 2012, ahead of a planned North Korean long-range rocket launch, President Barack Obama visited a front-line U.S. military camp just south of the DMZ and told American troops they are protectors of "freedom's frontier." Obama's trip came days after North Korean leader Kim Jong Un visited Panmunjom.</p>
<p>In November 2017, President Donald Trump planned to visit the DMZ to underscore his stance against North Korea's nuclear program when he came to South Korea as part of an Asian tour, but his plans were thwarted by heavy fog that prevented his helicopter from landing at the border area.</p>
<p>SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — The two Koreas' rare high-profile talks Tuesday took place at the jointly controlled area inside the world's most heavily fortified border — the same place where North Korean soldiers recently sprayed bullets at a colleague who was making a daring dash for freedom.</p>
<p>The defecting soldier was hit five times, but he survived and is now recovering in South Korea. The dramatic video of his defection, released by the American-led U.N. command, showed again why the area, called Panmunjom, is known as one of the scariest places on Earth.</p>
<p>On Tuesday, Panmunjom captured international headlines again when a group of high-level North Korean officials walked across concrete slabs that make up a military demarcation line for their first formal talks with South Korea in more than two years.</p>
<p>A look at Panmunjom, whose mystique makes the place not only a potential flash point, but also a venue for talks and a tourist site:</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>NO-MAN'S LAND</p>
<p>Panmunjom sits inside the 4-kilometer (2.5-mile) -wide Demilitarized Zone, a buffer created at the end of the 1950-53 Korean War. Once an obscure farming village, it was where the armistice that ended the Korean War was signed.</p>
<p>No civilians live there, and a cluster of blue huts form a Joint Security Area overseen by North Korea and the U.N. Command.</p>
<p>The 248-kilometer (154-mile) -long DMZ is guarded on both sides by mines, razor-wire fences, tank traps and combat-ready troops. But Panmunjom is the only DMZ location where North and South Korean troops stand only several meters (feet) away from each other. North Korean soldiers wearing lapel pins with the portraits of late North Korean leaders use binoculars to monitor the South, while tall South Korean troops wearing aviator sunglasses stand motionless like statues.</p>
<p>This unique scene makes it a popular tourist spot, drawing curious visitors to both sides of the village.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>PAST BLOODSHED</p>
<p>The most notorious incident at Panmunjom happened in the summer of 1976, when two American army officers were killed by ax-wielding North Korean soldiers.</p>
<p>The U.S. officers had been sent out to trim a 12-meter (40-foot) tree that obstructed the view from a checkpoint. The attack prompted Washington to fly nuclear-capable B-52 bombers toward the DMZ to intimidate North Korea. Then-North Korean leader Kim Il Sung, the late grandfather of current ruler Kim Jong Un, expressed regret over the incident before animosities eased.</p>
<p>In 1984, North Korean and U.N. Command soldiers traded gunfire after a Soviet citizen defected by sprinting to the South Korean sector of the truce village. The incident left three North Korean soldiers and one South Korean soldier dead.</p>
<p>The rival Koreas have had similar violent confrontations along other parts of the DMZ in the past. No deadly clashes have occurred in recent years, but a 2015 land mine blast that maimed two South Korean soldiers pushed the Koreas to the brink of an armed conflict. South Korea blames North Korea for the explosion.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>VENUE FOR TALKS</p>
<p>Military officials from North Korea and the U.N. Command used to meet at Panmunjom to oversee the armistice. In recent years, it has been used for occasional talks between the two Koreas.</p>
<p>Tuesday's talks were held at Peace House, a Seoul-run conference hall in the southern half of the village. The facility has equipment that can feed real-time closed-circuit TV footage of the talks to South Korean leaders in Seoul. It also allows North Korean leaders in Pyongyang to listen to the talks, according to South Korean officials.</p>
<p>North Korea operates another conference room, called "Panmungak," on the northern side of Panmunjom.</p>
<p>Before Tuesday's meeting, the most recent high-profile gathering in Panmunjom was in August 2015, when negotiators for the rivals met for nearly 40 hours and reached a deal that allowed them to pull back from a military standoff triggered by the land mine explosion.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>U.S. PRESIDENTIAL VISITS</p>
<p>U.S. presidents and other top officials have often traveled to Panmunjom and other areas of the DMZ at times of heightened tensions on the Korean Peninsula. They have peered through binoculars across the border and vowed to boost the U.S. military alliance with South Korea.</p>
<p>In 1993, then-President Bill Clinton visited Panmunjom when the North Korean nuclear crisis first flared. In 2002, President George W. Bush visited the DMZ a few weeks after he labeled North Korea part of an "axis of evil."</p>
<p>In 2012, ahead of a planned North Korean long-range rocket launch, President Barack Obama visited a front-line U.S. military camp just south of the DMZ and told American troops they are protectors of "freedom's frontier." Obama's trip came days after North Korean leader Kim Jong Un visited Panmunjom.</p>
<p>In November 2017, President Donald Trump planned to visit the DMZ to underscore his stance against North Korea's nuclear program when he came to South Korea as part of an Asian tour, but his plans were thwarted by heavy fog that prevented his helicopter from landing at the border area.</p>
| false | 2 |
seoul south korea ap two koreas rare highprofile talks tuesday took place jointly controlled area inside worlds heavily fortified border place north korean soldiers recently sprayed bullets colleague making daring dash freedom defecting soldier hit five times survived recovering south korea dramatic video defection released americanled un command showed area called panmunjom known one scariest places earth tuesday panmunjom captured international headlines group highlevel north korean officials walked across concrete slabs make military demarcation line first formal talks south korea two years look panmunjom whose mystique makes place potential flash point also venue talks tourist site ___ nomans land panmunjom sits inside 4kilometer 25mile wide demilitarized zone buffer created end 195053 korean war obscure farming village armistice ended korean war signed civilians live cluster blue huts form joint security area overseen north korea un command 248kilometer 154mile long dmz guarded sides mines razorwire fences tank traps combatready troops panmunjom dmz location north south korean troops stand several meters feet away north korean soldiers wearing lapel pins portraits late north korean leaders use binoculars monitor south tall south korean troops wearing aviator sunglasses stand motionless like statues unique scene makes popular tourist spot drawing curious visitors sides village ___ past bloodshed notorious incident panmunjom happened summer 1976 two american army officers killed axwielding north korean soldiers us officers sent trim 12meter 40foot tree obstructed view checkpoint attack prompted washington fly nuclearcapable b52 bombers toward dmz intimidate north korea thennorth korean leader kim il sung late grandfather current ruler kim jong un expressed regret incident animosities eased 1984 north korean un command soldiers traded gunfire soviet citizen defected sprinting south korean sector truce village incident left three north korean soldiers one south korean soldier dead rival koreas similar violent confrontations along parts dmz past deadly clashes occurred recent years 2015 land mine blast maimed two south korean soldiers pushed koreas brink armed conflict south korea blames north korea explosion ___ venue talks military officials north korea un command used meet panmunjom oversee armistice recent years used occasional talks two koreas tuesdays talks held peace house seoulrun conference hall southern half village facility equipment feed realtime closedcircuit tv footage talks south korean leaders seoul also allows north korean leaders pyongyang listen talks according south korean officials north korea operates another conference room called panmungak northern side panmunjom tuesdays meeting recent highprofile gathering panmunjom august 2015 negotiators rivals met nearly 40 hours reached deal allowed pull back military standoff triggered land mine explosion ___ us presidential visits us presidents top officials often traveled panmunjom areas dmz times heightened tensions korean peninsula peered binoculars across border vowed boost us military alliance south korea 1993 thenpresident bill clinton visited panmunjom north korean nuclear crisis first flared 2002 president george w bush visited dmz weeks labeled north korea part axis evil 2012 ahead planned north korean longrange rocket launch president barack obama visited frontline us military camp south dmz told american troops protectors freedoms frontier obamas trip came days north korean leader kim jong un visited panmunjom november 2017 president donald trump planned visit dmz underscore stance north koreas nuclear program came south korea part asian tour plans thwarted heavy fog prevented helicopter landing border area seoul south korea ap two koreas rare highprofile talks tuesday took place jointly controlled area inside worlds heavily fortified border place north korean soldiers recently sprayed bullets colleague making daring dash freedom defecting soldier hit five times survived recovering south korea dramatic video defection released americanled un command showed area called panmunjom known one scariest places earth tuesday panmunjom captured international headlines group highlevel north korean officials walked across concrete slabs make military demarcation line first formal talks south korea two years look panmunjom whose mystique makes place potential flash point also venue talks tourist site ___ nomans land panmunjom sits inside 4kilometer 25mile wide demilitarized zone buffer created end 195053 korean war obscure farming village armistice ended korean war signed civilians live cluster blue huts form joint security area overseen north korea un command 248kilometer 154mile long dmz guarded sides mines razorwire fences tank traps combatready troops panmunjom dmz location north south korean troops stand several meters feet away north korean soldiers wearing lapel pins portraits late north korean leaders use binoculars monitor south tall south korean troops wearing aviator sunglasses stand motionless like statues unique scene makes popular tourist spot drawing curious visitors sides village ___ past bloodshed notorious incident panmunjom happened summer 1976 two american army officers killed axwielding north korean soldiers us officers sent trim 12meter 40foot tree obstructed view checkpoint attack prompted washington fly nuclearcapable b52 bombers toward dmz intimidate north korea thennorth korean leader kim il sung late grandfather current ruler kim jong un expressed regret incident animosities eased 1984 north korean un command soldiers traded gunfire soviet citizen defected sprinting south korean sector truce village incident left three north korean soldiers one south korean soldier dead rival koreas similar violent confrontations along parts dmz past deadly clashes occurred recent years 2015 land mine blast maimed two south korean soldiers pushed koreas brink armed conflict south korea blames north korea explosion ___ venue talks military officials north korea un command used meet panmunjom oversee armistice recent years used occasional talks two koreas tuesdays talks held peace house seoulrun conference hall southern half village facility equipment feed realtime closedcircuit tv footage talks south korean leaders seoul also allows north korean leaders pyongyang listen talks according south korean officials north korea operates another conference room called panmungak northern side panmunjom tuesdays meeting recent highprofile gathering panmunjom august 2015 negotiators rivals met nearly 40 hours reached deal allowed pull back military standoff triggered land mine explosion ___ us presidential visits us presidents top officials often traveled panmunjom areas dmz times heightened tensions korean peninsula peered binoculars across border vowed boost us military alliance south korea 1993 thenpresident bill clinton visited panmunjom north korean nuclear crisis first flared 2002 president george w bush visited dmz weeks labeled north korea part axis evil 2012 ahead planned north korean longrange rocket launch president barack obama visited frontline us military camp south dmz told american troops protectors freedoms frontier obamas trip came days north korean leader kim jong un visited panmunjom november 2017 president donald trump planned visit dmz underscore stance north koreas nuclear program came south korea part asian tour plans thwarted heavy fog prevented helicopter landing border area
| 1,058 |
<p>MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — Without defending champion Serena Williams in the draw at the Australian Open, there’s certainly an opportunity for another player to go on a surprising run and emerge as a first-time Grand Slam champion.</p>
<p>Sloane Stephens and Jelena Ostapenko did it last year.</p>
<p>Just don’t describe the first Grand Slam of the year as “more open” than usual.</p>
<p>“Whenever I get asked that question, it always comes across in really kind of an almost negative way instead of acknowledging how many great players we have,” Johanna Konta, who reached the semifinals of Wimbledon last year, said in her pre-tournament news conference Saturday.</p>
<p>“The depth in women’s tennis, I really do believe in the last few years, has gotten so strong,” she added. “There’s no straight sailing to the quarters or semis. It doesn’t exist.”</p>
<p>Stephens agrees the Australian Open field is still extremely tough, even without Williams, the 23-time major winner. Williams withdrew from the tournament to recover from health issues after a complicated childbirth in September.</p>
<p>“There’s a lot of great players,” Stephens said. “It’s up for grabs.”</p>
<p>A new face will be holding the trophy at Melbourne Park in two weeks. The No. 1-ranking changed seven times in 2017, with five different women assuming top spot — three for the first time.</p>
<p>Top-ranked Simona Halep is looking to finally break through and win her first major after twice finishing runner-up. She won the season-opening Shenzhen Open in China, but has mixed results at Melbourne Park, losing in the first round the last two years.</p>
<p>“I don’t feel pressure. I feel OK. I feel fit. I feel ready to start,” Halep said. “I have one more goal: to win a Grand Slam.”</p>
<p>Stephens made a stellar run to the U.S. Open title after missing several months with an injured left foot. She’s struggled to adjust to the sudden stardom that’s come with being a Grand Slam champion — losing seven straight matches since September — but believes she can find her game again in Melbourne.</p>
<p>“I think it’s always a tough transition when you go from not playing tennis for 11 months to winning a Grand Slam,” she said. “I like to just stay in my own little bubble and do my own thing. ... It’s kind of been what I’m trying to do.”</p>
<p>There are plenty of other contenders. Ostapenko, now 20, rocketed up the rankings after her stunning win at the French Open. Venus Williams is a threat at 37 years old after finishing runner-up to her sister last year. Angelique Kerber, the 2016 Australian Open winner, won the Sydney International title on Saturday.</p>
<p>Garbine Muguruza is the reigning Wimbledon champion, though her health has been in question at the start of the new year. Caroline Wozniacki had a career-reviving 2017 season and could return to the No. 1 ranking for the first time in six years with a strong showing in Melbourne.</p>
<p>Maria Sharpova, the 2008 winner, returns after missing last year’s Australian Open because of a drug suspension.</p>
<p>And then there’s Elina Svitolina, who earned her 10th tour title last week at the Brisbane International. She has a shot at No. 1 during the Australian Open.</p>
<p>“I had a great week in Brisbane. Of course, I’m confident,” she said.</p>
<p>But she added that isn’t enough in the constantly shifting, ultra-competitive women’s game.</p>
<p>“Everyone wants to win a Grand Slam,” Svitolina said. “So, I try to find my way, what can help me to be there, to be ready for the fight.”</p>
<p>MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — Without defending champion Serena Williams in the draw at the Australian Open, there’s certainly an opportunity for another player to go on a surprising run and emerge as a first-time Grand Slam champion.</p>
<p>Sloane Stephens and Jelena Ostapenko did it last year.</p>
<p>Just don’t describe the first Grand Slam of the year as “more open” than usual.</p>
<p>“Whenever I get asked that question, it always comes across in really kind of an almost negative way instead of acknowledging how many great players we have,” Johanna Konta, who reached the semifinals of Wimbledon last year, said in her pre-tournament news conference Saturday.</p>
<p>“The depth in women’s tennis, I really do believe in the last few years, has gotten so strong,” she added. “There’s no straight sailing to the quarters or semis. It doesn’t exist.”</p>
<p>Stephens agrees the Australian Open field is still extremely tough, even without Williams, the 23-time major winner. Williams withdrew from the tournament to recover from health issues after a complicated childbirth in September.</p>
<p>“There’s a lot of great players,” Stephens said. “It’s up for grabs.”</p>
<p>A new face will be holding the trophy at Melbourne Park in two weeks. The No. 1-ranking changed seven times in 2017, with five different women assuming top spot — three for the first time.</p>
<p>Top-ranked Simona Halep is looking to finally break through and win her first major after twice finishing runner-up. She won the season-opening Shenzhen Open in China, but has mixed results at Melbourne Park, losing in the first round the last two years.</p>
<p>“I don’t feel pressure. I feel OK. I feel fit. I feel ready to start,” Halep said. “I have one more goal: to win a Grand Slam.”</p>
<p>Stephens made a stellar run to the U.S. Open title after missing several months with an injured left foot. She’s struggled to adjust to the sudden stardom that’s come with being a Grand Slam champion — losing seven straight matches since September — but believes she can find her game again in Melbourne.</p>
<p>“I think it’s always a tough transition when you go from not playing tennis for 11 months to winning a Grand Slam,” she said. “I like to just stay in my own little bubble and do my own thing. ... It’s kind of been what I’m trying to do.”</p>
<p>There are plenty of other contenders. Ostapenko, now 20, rocketed up the rankings after her stunning win at the French Open. Venus Williams is a threat at 37 years old after finishing runner-up to her sister last year. Angelique Kerber, the 2016 Australian Open winner, won the Sydney International title on Saturday.</p>
<p>Garbine Muguruza is the reigning Wimbledon champion, though her health has been in question at the start of the new year. Caroline Wozniacki had a career-reviving 2017 season and could return to the No. 1 ranking for the first time in six years with a strong showing in Melbourne.</p>
<p>Maria Sharpova, the 2008 winner, returns after missing last year’s Australian Open because of a drug suspension.</p>
<p>And then there’s Elina Svitolina, who earned her 10th tour title last week at the Brisbane International. She has a shot at No. 1 during the Australian Open.</p>
<p>“I had a great week in Brisbane. Of course, I’m confident,” she said.</p>
<p>But she added that isn’t enough in the constantly shifting, ultra-competitive women’s game.</p>
<p>“Everyone wants to win a Grand Slam,” Svitolina said. “So, I try to find my way, what can help me to be there, to be ready for the fight.”</p>
| false | 2 |
melbourne australia ap without defending champion serena williams draw australian open theres certainly opportunity another player go surprising run emerge firsttime grand slam champion sloane stephens jelena ostapenko last year dont describe first grand slam year open usual whenever get asked question always comes across really kind almost negative way instead acknowledging many great players johanna konta reached semifinals wimbledon last year said pretournament news conference saturday depth womens tennis really believe last years gotten strong added theres straight sailing quarters semis doesnt exist stephens agrees australian open field still extremely tough even without williams 23time major winner williams withdrew tournament recover health issues complicated childbirth september theres lot great players stephens said grabs new face holding trophy melbourne park two weeks 1ranking changed seven times 2017 five different women assuming top spot three first time topranked simona halep looking finally break win first major twice finishing runnerup seasonopening shenzhen open china mixed results melbourne park losing first round last two years dont feel pressure feel ok feel fit feel ready start halep said one goal win grand slam stephens made stellar run us open title missing several months injured left foot shes struggled adjust sudden stardom thats come grand slam champion losing seven straight matches since september believes find game melbourne think always tough transition go playing tennis 11 months winning grand slam said like stay little bubble thing kind im trying plenty contenders ostapenko 20 rocketed rankings stunning win french open venus williams threat 37 years old finishing runnerup sister last year angelique kerber 2016 australian open winner sydney international title saturday garbine muguruza reigning wimbledon champion though health question start new year caroline wozniacki careerreviving 2017 season could return 1 ranking first time six years strong showing melbourne maria sharpova 2008 winner returns missing last years australian open drug suspension theres elina svitolina earned 10th tour title last week brisbane international shot 1 australian open great week brisbane course im confident said added isnt enough constantly shifting ultracompetitive womens game everyone wants win grand slam svitolina said try find way help ready fight melbourne australia ap without defending champion serena williams draw australian open theres certainly opportunity another player go surprising run emerge firsttime grand slam champion sloane stephens jelena ostapenko last year dont describe first grand slam year open usual whenever get asked question always comes across really kind almost negative way instead acknowledging many great players johanna konta reached semifinals wimbledon last year said pretournament news conference saturday depth womens tennis really believe last years gotten strong added theres straight sailing quarters semis doesnt exist stephens agrees australian open field still extremely tough even without williams 23time major winner williams withdrew tournament recover health issues complicated childbirth september theres lot great players stephens said grabs new face holding trophy melbourne park two weeks 1ranking changed seven times 2017 five different women assuming top spot three first time topranked simona halep looking finally break win first major twice finishing runnerup seasonopening shenzhen open china mixed results melbourne park losing first round last two years dont feel pressure feel ok feel fit feel ready start halep said one goal win grand slam stephens made stellar run us open title missing several months injured left foot shes struggled adjust sudden stardom thats come grand slam champion losing seven straight matches since september believes find game melbourne think always tough transition go playing tennis 11 months winning grand slam said like stay little bubble thing kind im trying plenty contenders ostapenko 20 rocketed rankings stunning win french open venus williams threat 37 years old finishing runnerup sister last year angelique kerber 2016 australian open winner sydney international title saturday garbine muguruza reigning wimbledon champion though health question start new year caroline wozniacki careerreviving 2017 season could return 1 ranking first time six years strong showing melbourne maria sharpova 2008 winner returns missing last years australian open drug suspension theres elina svitolina earned 10th tour title last week brisbane international shot 1 australian open great week brisbane course im confident said added isnt enough constantly shifting ultracompetitive womens game everyone wants win grand slam svitolina said try find way help ready fight
| 692 |
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<p>WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama announced Thursday he is ending a longstanding immigration policy that allows any Cuban who makes it to U.S. soil to stay and become a legal resident.</p>
<p>The repeal of the “wet foot, dry foot” policy is effective immediately. The decision follows months of negotiations focused in part on getting Cuba to agree to take back people who had arrived in the U.S.</p>
<p>“Effective immediately, Cuban nationals who attempt to enter the United States illegally and do not qualify for humanitarian relief will be subject to removal, consistent with U.S. law and enforcement priorities,” Obama said in a statement. “By taking this step, we are treating Cuban migrants the same way we treat migrants from other countries. The Cuban government has agreed to accept the return of Cuban nationals who have been ordered removed, just as it has been accepting the return of migrants interdicted at sea.”</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p>
<p>The Cuban government praised the move. In a statement read on state television, it called the signing of the agreement “an important step in advancing relations” between the U.S. and Cuba that “aims to guarantee normal, safe and ordered migration.”</p>
<p>Obama is using an administrative rule change to end the policy. Donald Trump could undo that rule after becoming president next week. He has criticized Obama’s moves to improve relations with Cuba. But ending a policy that has allowed hundreds of thousands of people to come to the United States without a visa also aligns with Trump’s commitment to tough immigration policies.</p>
<p>President Bill Clinton created “wet foot, dry foot” policy in 1995 as a revision of a more liberal immigration policy that allowed Cubans caught at sea to come to the United States become legal residents in a year.</p>
<p>The two governments have been negotiating an end to “wet foot, dry foot” for months and finalized an agreement Thursday. A decades-old U.S. economic embargo, though, remains in place, as does the Cuban Adjustment Act, which lets Cubans become permanent residents a year after legally arriving in the U.S.</p>
<p>Under the terms of the agreement, Cuba has agreed to take back those turned away from the U.S., if the time between their departure from Cuba and the start of deportation hearings in the U.S. is four years or less. Officials said the timeframe is required under a Cuban law enacted after Congress passed the Cuban Adjustment Act.</p>
<p>“For this to work, the Cubans had to agree to take people back,” said Ben Rhodes, Obama’s deputy national security adviser.</p>
<p>Administration officials called on Congress to repeal the Cuban Adjustment Act.</p>
<p>Officials said the changes would not affect a lottery that allows 20,000 Cubans to come to the U.S. legally each year. But Rhodes cast the shift as a necessary step toward Cuba’s economic and political development.</p>
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<p>“It’s important that Cuba continue to have a young, dynamic population that are clearly serving as agents of change,” he said.</p>
<p>Rhodes also cited an uptick in Cuban migration, particularly across the U.S.-Mexico border — an increase many have attributed to an expectation among Cubans that the Obama administration would soon move to end their special immigration status.</p>
<p>Since October 2012, more than 118,000 Cubans have presented themselves at ports of entry along the border, according to statistics published by the Homeland Security Department, including more than 48,000 people who arrived between October 2015 and November 2016.</p>
<p>Relations between the United States and Cuba were stuck in a Cold War freeze for decades, but Obama and Cuban President Raul Castro established full diplomatic ties and opened embassies in their capitals in 2015. Obama visited Havana last March. Officials from both nations met Thursday in Washington to coordinate efforts to fight human trafficking.</p>
<p>Obama said the Cuban Medical Professional Parole Program, which was started by President George W. Bush in 2006, is also being rescinded. The measure allowed Cuban doctors, nurses and other medical professionals to seek parole in the U.S. while on assignments abroad. The president said those doctors can still apply for asylum at U.S. embassies around the world.</p>
<p>“By providing preferential treatment to Cuban medical personnel, the medical parole program … risks harming the Cuban people,” Obama said.</p>
<p>People already in the United States and in the pipeline under both “wet foot, dry foot” and the medical parole program will be able to continue the process toward getting legal status.</p>
<p>Reaction to the announcement in Havana was muted Thursday afternoon.</p>
<p>“This was bound to happen at some point,” said taxi driver Guillermo Britos, 35. “It could impose a more normal dynamic on emigration, so that not so many people die at sea, but it could also take an escape valve away from the government, which was getting hard currency from the emigrants.”</p>
<p>Anti-Castro Cubans in Miami were mixed in their responses, with some expressing anger at Obama for what they called another betrayal of ordinary Cubans. Others said they thought the measure would increase pressure for change in Cuba.</p>
<p>“People who can’t leave, they could create internal problems for the regime,” said Jorge Gutierrez, an 80-year-old veteran of the Bay of Pigs invasion. But he added, “From the humanitarian point of view, it’s taking away the possibility of a better future from the people who are struggling in Cuba.”</p>
<p>Rep. Illeana Ros-Lehtinen, a Florida Republican who emigrated from Cuba as a child, decried the elimination of the medical parole programs, calling it a “foolhardy concession to a regime that sends its doctors to foreign nations in a modern-day indentured servitude.”</p>
<p>__</p>
<p>Associated Press writers Matthew Lee and Kevin Freking in Washington, Gisela Salomon and Michael Weissenstein in Miami, Bill Barrow in Atlanta and correspondent Andrea Rodriguez in Havana contributed to this report.</p>
<p>__</p>
<p>Follow Alicia A. Caldwell on Twitter at <a href="http://www.twitter.com/acaldwellap" type="external">www.twitter.com/acaldwellap</a> and Julie Pace at <a href="http://www.twitter.com/jpaceDC" type="external">www.twitter.com/jpaceDC</a></p>
| false | 2 |
washington president barack obama announced thursday ending longstanding immigration policy allows cuban makes us soil stay become legal resident repeal wet foot dry foot policy effective immediately decision follows months negotiations focused part getting cuba agree take back people arrived us effective immediately cuban nationals attempt enter united states illegally qualify humanitarian relief subject removal consistent us law enforcement priorities obama said statement taking step treating cuban migrants way treat migrants countries cuban government agreed accept return cuban nationals ordered removed accepting return migrants interdicted sea advertisement cuban government praised move statement read state television called signing agreement important step advancing relations us cuba aims guarantee normal safe ordered migration obama using administrative rule change end policy donald trump could undo rule becoming president next week criticized obamas moves improve relations cuba ending policy allowed hundreds thousands people come united states without visa also aligns trumps commitment tough immigration policies president bill clinton created wet foot dry foot policy 1995 revision liberal immigration policy allowed cubans caught sea come united states become legal residents year two governments negotiating end wet foot dry foot months finalized agreement thursday decadesold us economic embargo though remains place cuban adjustment act lets cubans become permanent residents year legally arriving us terms agreement cuba agreed take back turned away us time departure cuba start deportation hearings us four years less officials said timeframe required cuban law enacted congress passed cuban adjustment act work cubans agree take people back said ben rhodes obamas deputy national security adviser administration officials called congress repeal cuban adjustment act officials said changes would affect lottery allows 20000 cubans come us legally year rhodes cast shift necessary step toward cubas economic political development advertisement important cuba continue young dynamic population clearly serving agents change said rhodes also cited uptick cuban migration particularly across usmexico border increase many attributed expectation among cubans obama administration would soon move end special immigration status since october 2012 118000 cubans presented ports entry along border according statistics published homeland security department including 48000 people arrived october 2015 november 2016 relations united states cuba stuck cold war freeze decades obama cuban president raul castro established full diplomatic ties opened embassies capitals 2015 obama visited havana last march officials nations met thursday washington coordinate efforts fight human trafficking obama said cuban medical professional parole program started president george w bush 2006 also rescinded measure allowed cuban doctors nurses medical professionals seek parole us assignments abroad president said doctors still apply asylum us embassies around world providing preferential treatment cuban medical personnel medical parole program risks harming cuban people obama said people already united states pipeline wet foot dry foot medical parole program able continue process toward getting legal status reaction announcement havana muted thursday afternoon bound happen point said taxi driver guillermo britos 35 could impose normal dynamic emigration many people die sea could also take escape valve away government getting hard currency emigrants anticastro cubans miami mixed responses expressing anger obama called another betrayal ordinary cubans others said thought measure would increase pressure change cuba people cant leave could create internal problems regime said jorge gutierrez 80yearold veteran bay pigs invasion added humanitarian point view taking away possibility better future people struggling cuba rep illeana roslehtinen florida republican emigrated cuba child decried elimination medical parole programs calling foolhardy concession regime sends doctors foreign nations modernday indentured servitude __ associated press writers matthew lee kevin freking washington gisela salomon michael weissenstein miami bill barrow atlanta correspondent andrea rodriguez havana contributed report __ follow alicia caldwell twitter wwwtwittercomacaldwellap julie pace wwwtwittercomjpacedc
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<p>Big Ten Commissioner Jim Delany says making freshmen ineligible in college football and basketball could help correct the imbalance between athletics and academics.</p>
<p>In a 12-page letter titled "Education First, Athletics Second: The Time for a National Discussion is Upon Us" and sent to media members Friday, Delany reiterated why he believes a so-called year of readiness would be beneficial at this "critical moment in the evolution of intercollegiate athletics."</p>
<p>The letter is not a proposal, he wrote. He did, however, lay out a plan to raise scholarship limits in FBS football and Division I men's basketball and add scholarships in women's sports to stay compliant with Title IX.</p>
<p>The increased costs would be covered with money from TV and media rights deals for the College Football Playoff and NCAA men's basketball tournament.</p>
<p>"If we cannot defend — through an examination of actions and results as opposed to words — that education is the paramount factor in our decision-making process (rivaled only by the health and safety of our student-athletes), then the enterprise stands as a house of cards," Delany wrote.</p>
<p>Since February, Delany has been pushing the idea of again making freshmen ineligible to compete in football and basketball. NCAA rules prohibited freshmen from competing in all sports until the early 1970s.</p>
<p>Delany points out that by NCAA graduation rates and Academic Progress Rates, football and men's basketball were the weakest performing sports from 2009-13. He said there is some evidence showing athletes generally do better academically out of season. Sitting out would especially benefit those who come to college underprepared for the course work, he writes. But it goes beyond academics.</p>
<p>"First and foremost, requiring a year of readiness would make clear to prospects that they have a choice. On one hand, they would be free to pursue their sport as a vocation, where development in the sport is their primary — if not sole — objective. To the extent such avenues are limited in the sports of football and men's basketball, it is the responsibility of the professional leagues in those sports to provide such opportunities. It is not the responsibility of intercollegiate athletics to serve as professional minor leagues in any sport," he wrote.</p>
<p>Under Delany's plan, athletes would still be eligible to play for four seasons. Freshmen would be able to practice with their teams, though participation and travel would be limited.</p>
<p>To make up for the roster limitations that would come with freshmen not being allowed to play, FBS football programs would be allowed about seven additional scholarship players. The current limit is 85. Men's basketball teams in Division I would be allowed about three extra scholarship players; the current maximum is 13. Using those "ball park estimates," 5.4 women's scholarships per Division I school would need to be added to equal the $47.25 million spent on new men's scholarships.</p>
<p>Delany also reiterated the Big Ten has no plans to go it alone when it comes to implementing a year of readiness. It is not an idea that many college leaders are embracing.</p>
<p>Big 12 Commissioner Bob Bowlsby and Pac-12 Commissioner Larry Scott have at least expressed interest in exploring the possibility. Southeastern Conference Commissioner Mike Slive has come out strongly against it. Even within the Big Ten, athletic directors such as Michigan State's Mark Hollis have referred to Delany's idea as a starting point for a broader discussion.</p>
<p>Delany said that more than pushing a particular proposal, he is trying to start a dialogue about ways to make college sports more about college and less about sports.</p>
<p>He concluded: "Let the national discussion begin."</p>
<p>Big Ten Commissioner Jim Delany says making freshmen ineligible in college football and basketball could help correct the imbalance between athletics and academics.</p>
<p>In a 12-page letter titled "Education First, Athletics Second: The Time for a National Discussion is Upon Us" and sent to media members Friday, Delany reiterated why he believes a so-called year of readiness would be beneficial at this "critical moment in the evolution of intercollegiate athletics."</p>
<p>The letter is not a proposal, he wrote. He did, however, lay out a plan to raise scholarship limits in FBS football and Division I men's basketball and add scholarships in women's sports to stay compliant with Title IX.</p>
<p>The increased costs would be covered with money from TV and media rights deals for the College Football Playoff and NCAA men's basketball tournament.</p>
<p>"If we cannot defend — through an examination of actions and results as opposed to words — that education is the paramount factor in our decision-making process (rivaled only by the health and safety of our student-athletes), then the enterprise stands as a house of cards," Delany wrote.</p>
<p>Since February, Delany has been pushing the idea of again making freshmen ineligible to compete in football and basketball. NCAA rules prohibited freshmen from competing in all sports until the early 1970s.</p>
<p>Delany points out that by NCAA graduation rates and Academic Progress Rates, football and men's basketball were the weakest performing sports from 2009-13. He said there is some evidence showing athletes generally do better academically out of season. Sitting out would especially benefit those who come to college underprepared for the course work, he writes. But it goes beyond academics.</p>
<p>"First and foremost, requiring a year of readiness would make clear to prospects that they have a choice. On one hand, they would be free to pursue their sport as a vocation, where development in the sport is their primary — if not sole — objective. To the extent such avenues are limited in the sports of football and men's basketball, it is the responsibility of the professional leagues in those sports to provide such opportunities. It is not the responsibility of intercollegiate athletics to serve as professional minor leagues in any sport," he wrote.</p>
<p>Under Delany's plan, athletes would still be eligible to play for four seasons. Freshmen would be able to practice with their teams, though participation and travel would be limited.</p>
<p>To make up for the roster limitations that would come with freshmen not being allowed to play, FBS football programs would be allowed about seven additional scholarship players. The current limit is 85. Men's basketball teams in Division I would be allowed about three extra scholarship players; the current maximum is 13. Using those "ball park estimates," 5.4 women's scholarships per Division I school would need to be added to equal the $47.25 million spent on new men's scholarships.</p>
<p>Delany also reiterated the Big Ten has no plans to go it alone when it comes to implementing a year of readiness. It is not an idea that many college leaders are embracing.</p>
<p>Big 12 Commissioner Bob Bowlsby and Pac-12 Commissioner Larry Scott have at least expressed interest in exploring the possibility. Southeastern Conference Commissioner Mike Slive has come out strongly against it. Even within the Big Ten, athletic directors such as Michigan State's Mark Hollis have referred to Delany's idea as a starting point for a broader discussion.</p>
<p>Delany said that more than pushing a particular proposal, he is trying to start a dialogue about ways to make college sports more about college and less about sports.</p>
<p>He concluded: "Let the national discussion begin."</p>
| false | 2 |
big ten commissioner jim delany says making freshmen ineligible college football basketball could help correct imbalance athletics academics 12page letter titled education first athletics second time national discussion upon us sent media members friday delany reiterated believes socalled year readiness would beneficial critical moment evolution intercollegiate athletics letter proposal wrote however lay plan raise scholarship limits fbs football division mens basketball add scholarships womens sports stay compliant title ix increased costs would covered money tv media rights deals college football playoff ncaa mens basketball tournament defend examination actions results opposed words education paramount factor decisionmaking process rivaled health safety studentathletes enterprise stands house cards delany wrote since february delany pushing idea making freshmen ineligible compete football basketball ncaa rules prohibited freshmen competing sports early 1970s delany points ncaa graduation rates academic progress rates football mens basketball weakest performing sports 200913 said evidence showing athletes generally better academically season sitting would especially benefit come college underprepared course work writes goes beyond academics first foremost requiring year readiness would make clear prospects choice one hand would free pursue sport vocation development sport primary sole objective extent avenues limited sports football mens basketball responsibility professional leagues sports provide opportunities responsibility intercollegiate athletics serve professional minor leagues sport wrote delanys plan athletes would still eligible play four seasons freshmen would able practice teams though participation travel would limited make roster limitations would come freshmen allowed play fbs football programs would allowed seven additional scholarship players current limit 85 mens basketball teams division would allowed three extra scholarship players current maximum 13 using ball park estimates 54 womens scholarships per division school would need added equal 4725 million spent new mens scholarships delany also reiterated big ten plans go alone comes implementing year readiness idea many college leaders embracing big 12 commissioner bob bowlsby pac12 commissioner larry scott least expressed interest exploring possibility southeastern conference commissioner mike slive come strongly even within big ten athletic directors michigan states mark hollis referred delanys idea starting point broader discussion delany said pushing particular proposal trying start dialogue ways make college sports college less sports concluded let national discussion begin big ten commissioner jim delany says making freshmen ineligible college football basketball could help correct imbalance athletics academics 12page letter titled education first athletics second time national discussion upon us sent media members friday delany reiterated believes socalled year readiness would beneficial critical moment evolution intercollegiate athletics letter proposal wrote however lay plan raise scholarship limits fbs football division mens basketball add scholarships womens sports stay compliant title ix increased costs would covered money tv media rights deals college football playoff ncaa mens basketball tournament defend examination actions results opposed words education paramount factor decisionmaking process rivaled health safety studentathletes enterprise stands house cards delany wrote since february delany pushing idea making freshmen ineligible compete football basketball ncaa rules prohibited freshmen competing sports early 1970s delany points ncaa graduation rates academic progress rates football mens basketball weakest performing sports 200913 said evidence showing athletes generally better academically season sitting would especially benefit come college underprepared course work writes goes beyond academics first foremost requiring year readiness would make clear prospects choice one hand would free pursue sport vocation development sport primary sole objective extent avenues limited sports football mens basketball responsibility professional leagues sports provide opportunities responsibility intercollegiate athletics serve professional minor leagues sport wrote delanys plan athletes would still eligible play four seasons freshmen would able practice teams though participation travel would limited make roster limitations would come freshmen allowed play fbs football programs would allowed seven additional scholarship players current limit 85 mens basketball teams division would allowed three extra scholarship players current maximum 13 using ball park estimates 54 womens scholarships per division school would need added equal 4725 million spent new mens scholarships delany also reiterated big ten plans go alone comes implementing year readiness idea many college leaders embracing big 12 commissioner bob bowlsby pac12 commissioner larry scott least expressed interest exploring possibility southeastern conference commissioner mike slive come strongly even within big ten athletic directors michigan states mark hollis referred delanys idea starting point broader discussion delany said pushing particular proposal trying start dialogue ways make college sports college less sports concluded let national discussion begin
| 704 |
<p>CLEMSON, S.C. (AP) — Jaron Blossomgame scored all 14 of his points in the second half and blocked a potential tying basket in the final minute of Clemson’s 62-59 victory over High Point on Friday night.</p>
<p>The Tigers (4-2) led by 12 points in the first half and were still ahead 51-42 on Damarcus Harrison’s basket with 9:04 left. But the Panthers (4-2) outscored Clemson 17-9 down the stretch to draw within 60-59 on Devante Wallace’s 3-pointer with 11.6 seconds left.</p>
<p>Harrison, though, followed with two free throws and Clemson held on to win its third straight game.</p>
<p>Wallace let a 3-pointer fly at the buzzer that was off the mark.</p>
<p>John Brown led all scorers with 26 points for High Point.</p>
<p>Blossomgame also added 13 rebounds for his first double-double since Clemson beat Duke last January. Landry Nnoko gave the Tigers two players with double-doubles, finishing with 10 points and 13 rebounds.</p>
<p>Blossomgame was 0-for-5 in the opening half, but rebounded by going 4-of-6 from the field and making six of seven foul shots to tie his career high. He also blocked Brian Richardson’s layup with 38 seconds to go and High Point down 58-56.</p>
<p>Clemson was back at home after an eventful trip to the Paradise Jam in the Virgin Islands. The Tigers were beaten by Gardner-Webb 72-70 in part when freshman Donte Grantham called a time out the team did not have in the final seconds, leading to the Bulldogs making two foul shots that put them up for good.</p>
<p>Clemson bounced back in its two other tournament games, topping Nevada 59-51 before rallying past LSU in the final four minutes for a 64-61 victory.</p>
<p>The Tigers two losses this season have come to Winthrop and Gardner-Webb, both Big South Conference members. So they made sure to turn up their defense — they were second in the Atlantic Coast Conference in that category last season — when facing High Point, also of the Big South.</p>
<p>The Panthers missed their first nine shots and fell behind 19-7 after Patrick Rooks’ second 3-pointer of the half.</p>
<p>Brown’s two straight backs drew High Point within 21-13. But Damarcus Harrison hit a 3-pointer and Sidy Djitte finished a layup off a sharp bullet pass from Jordan Roper to send Clemson to the locker room up 26-16.</p>
<p>The Tigers played all but two minutes without senior point guard Rod Hall, who appeared to twist an ankle early and came off the floor.</p>
<p>TIP INS</p>
<p>High Point: The Panthers started 4-1 for the first time since their inaugural Division I season of 1999-00. They won their next game, then went 6-16 the rest of the way.</p>
<p>Clemson: The 16 first-half points given up by the Tigers were their fewest since holding Stetson to 15 in the opening game of the 2013-14 season.</p>
<p>UP NEXT</p>
<p>High Point plays at UNC Greensboro on Monday night.</p>
<p>Clemson plays host to Rutgers on Monday night in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge.</p>
<p>CLEMSON, S.C. (AP) — Jaron Blossomgame scored all 14 of his points in the second half and blocked a potential tying basket in the final minute of Clemson’s 62-59 victory over High Point on Friday night.</p>
<p>The Tigers (4-2) led by 12 points in the first half and were still ahead 51-42 on Damarcus Harrison’s basket with 9:04 left. But the Panthers (4-2) outscored Clemson 17-9 down the stretch to draw within 60-59 on Devante Wallace’s 3-pointer with 11.6 seconds left.</p>
<p>Harrison, though, followed with two free throws and Clemson held on to win its third straight game.</p>
<p>Wallace let a 3-pointer fly at the buzzer that was off the mark.</p>
<p>John Brown led all scorers with 26 points for High Point.</p>
<p>Blossomgame also added 13 rebounds for his first double-double since Clemson beat Duke last January. Landry Nnoko gave the Tigers two players with double-doubles, finishing with 10 points and 13 rebounds.</p>
<p>Blossomgame was 0-for-5 in the opening half, but rebounded by going 4-of-6 from the field and making six of seven foul shots to tie his career high. He also blocked Brian Richardson’s layup with 38 seconds to go and High Point down 58-56.</p>
<p>Clemson was back at home after an eventful trip to the Paradise Jam in the Virgin Islands. The Tigers were beaten by Gardner-Webb 72-70 in part when freshman Donte Grantham called a time out the team did not have in the final seconds, leading to the Bulldogs making two foul shots that put them up for good.</p>
<p>Clemson bounced back in its two other tournament games, topping Nevada 59-51 before rallying past LSU in the final four minutes for a 64-61 victory.</p>
<p>The Tigers two losses this season have come to Winthrop and Gardner-Webb, both Big South Conference members. So they made sure to turn up their defense — they were second in the Atlantic Coast Conference in that category last season — when facing High Point, also of the Big South.</p>
<p>The Panthers missed their first nine shots and fell behind 19-7 after Patrick Rooks’ second 3-pointer of the half.</p>
<p>Brown’s two straight backs drew High Point within 21-13. But Damarcus Harrison hit a 3-pointer and Sidy Djitte finished a layup off a sharp bullet pass from Jordan Roper to send Clemson to the locker room up 26-16.</p>
<p>The Tigers played all but two minutes without senior point guard Rod Hall, who appeared to twist an ankle early and came off the floor.</p>
<p>TIP INS</p>
<p>High Point: The Panthers started 4-1 for the first time since their inaugural Division I season of 1999-00. They won their next game, then went 6-16 the rest of the way.</p>
<p>Clemson: The 16 first-half points given up by the Tigers were their fewest since holding Stetson to 15 in the opening game of the 2013-14 season.</p>
<p>UP NEXT</p>
<p>High Point plays at UNC Greensboro on Monday night.</p>
<p>Clemson plays host to Rutgers on Monday night in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge.</p>
| false | 2 |
clemson sc ap jaron blossomgame scored 14 points second half blocked potential tying basket final minute clemsons 6259 victory high point friday night tigers 42 led 12 points first half still ahead 5142 damarcus harrisons basket 904 left panthers 42 outscored clemson 179 stretch draw within 6059 devante wallaces 3pointer 116 seconds left harrison though followed two free throws clemson held win third straight game wallace let 3pointer fly buzzer mark john brown led scorers 26 points high point blossomgame also added 13 rebounds first doubledouble since clemson beat duke last january landry nnoko gave tigers two players doubledoubles finishing 10 points 13 rebounds blossomgame 0for5 opening half rebounded going 4of6 field making six seven foul shots tie career high also blocked brian richardsons layup 38 seconds go high point 5856 clemson back home eventful trip paradise jam virgin islands tigers beaten gardnerwebb 7270 part freshman donte grantham called time team final seconds leading bulldogs making two foul shots put good clemson bounced back two tournament games topping nevada 5951 rallying past lsu final four minutes 6461 victory tigers two losses season come winthrop gardnerwebb big south conference members made sure turn defense second atlantic coast conference category last season facing high point also big south panthers missed first nine shots fell behind 197 patrick rooks second 3pointer half browns two straight backs drew high point within 2113 damarcus harrison hit 3pointer sidy djitte finished layup sharp bullet pass jordan roper send clemson locker room 2616 tigers played two minutes without senior point guard rod hall appeared twist ankle early came floor tip ins high point panthers started 41 first time since inaugural division season 199900 next game went 616 rest way clemson 16 firsthalf points given tigers fewest since holding stetson 15 opening game 201314 season next high point plays unc greensboro monday night clemson plays host rutgers monday night accbig ten challenge clemson sc ap jaron blossomgame scored 14 points second half blocked potential tying basket final minute clemsons 6259 victory high point friday night tigers 42 led 12 points first half still ahead 5142 damarcus harrisons basket 904 left panthers 42 outscored clemson 179 stretch draw within 6059 devante wallaces 3pointer 116 seconds left harrison though followed two free throws clemson held win third straight game wallace let 3pointer fly buzzer mark john brown led scorers 26 points high point blossomgame also added 13 rebounds first doubledouble since clemson beat duke last january landry nnoko gave tigers two players doubledoubles finishing 10 points 13 rebounds blossomgame 0for5 opening half rebounded going 4of6 field making six seven foul shots tie career high also blocked brian richardsons layup 38 seconds go high point 5856 clemson back home eventful trip paradise jam virgin islands tigers beaten gardnerwebb 7270 part freshman donte grantham called time team final seconds leading bulldogs making two foul shots put good clemson bounced back two tournament games topping nevada 5951 rallying past lsu final four minutes 6461 victory tigers two losses season come winthrop gardnerwebb big south conference members made sure turn defense second atlantic coast conference category last season facing high point also big south panthers missed first nine shots fell behind 197 patrick rooks second 3pointer half browns two straight backs drew high point within 2113 damarcus harrison hit 3pointer sidy djitte finished layup sharp bullet pass jordan roper send clemson locker room 2616 tigers played two minutes without senior point guard rod hall appeared twist ankle early came floor tip ins high point panthers started 41 first time since inaugural division season 199900 next game went 616 rest way clemson 16 firsthalf points given tigers fewest since holding stetson 15 opening game 201314 season next high point plays unc greensboro monday night clemson plays host rutgers monday night accbig ten challenge
| 628 |
<p>___</p>
<p>Tax law brings big paper losses, long-term gains to US banks</p>
<p>NEW YORK (AP) — Big U.S. banks have been reporting billions of dollars in paper losses this month as they are forced to come into compliance with the new tax law. The losses were widely expected, and bank executives say the new tax law will be good not only for banks but also the broader economy in the long run.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>Concept cars from Japan automakers offer glimpse into future</p>
<p>DETROIT (AP) — Japanese vehicle brands are exploring new design ideas — and figuring out what sets them apart from their U.S. and European rivals — with new prototype vehicles. Nissan, Infiniti and Lexus are all unveiling new concept cars at the Detroit auto show, which opens to the public Saturday.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>New small cars unveiled at auto show but will anyone buy?</p>
<p>DETROIT (AP) — Among the many shiny models vying for attention at Detroit’s North American International Auto Show are the revamped Volkswagen Jetta, Hyundai Veloster and Kia Forte. But cars — particularly small ones — are having a tough time getting buyers to look their way as SUVs grow in popularity. Car sales are expected to hit a record low this year after steadily declining for several years. SUVs first surpassed cars in 2016, and the gap only widens.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>Wave of lawsuits filed to block net-neutrality repeal</p>
<p>NEW YORK (AP) — The expected wave of litigation against the Federal Communications Commission’s repeal of net-neutrality rules has begun. A group of 22 attorneys general, a tech company and a public-interest group has sued to block the Federal Communications Commission’s repeal of the rules. These rules barred companies like AT&amp;T, Comcast and Verizon from interfering with internet traffic and favoring their own sites and apps. FCC Chairman Ajit Pai’s push to undo them inspired both street and online protests.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>Consumer watchdog considering repeal of payday lending rule</p>
<p>NEW YORK (AP) — The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is reconsidering a key set of rules enacted last year that would have protected consumers against harmful payday lenders. The bureau, now under Trump administration control, says it plans to take a second look at rules put in place last year under an Obama appointee.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>With a $6B charge comes new thoughts about GE’s future</p>
<p>BOSTON (AP) — General Electric Co. is signaling it may undergo a more comprehensive transformation, a decade after breaking off substantial pieces of the multinational conglomerate in bid to a return it to its industrial roots. CEO John Flannery, who was put in charge of reviving the company last summer, on Tuesday revealed significant issues at GE Capital that will lead to a $6.2 billion after-tax charge in the fourth quarter. That has led to more discussions about what GE should be.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>Watchdog: Foreign groups among spenders at Trump properties</p>
<p>WASHINGTON (AP) — An ethics watchdog group says foreign interests, political campaigns, business entities and other groups spent more than $600,000 over the past year at Trump properties in the U.S. The watchdog group Public Citizen says the frequent use of Trump Organization properties poses potential conflicts despite President Donald Trump’s insistence that he no longer controls his company. Trump gave up direct management of his company, but a trust allows him to continue withdrawing funds.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>Dow industrials recede from 26,000 as early gains fade</p>
<p>Losses by industrial and technology companies helped drag U.S. stocks lower Tuesday, pulling the market back from its latest record highs. The slide erased some of the gains from a broad rally earlier in the day that had sent the Dow Jones industrial average past the 26,000-point threshold for the first time. Energy stocks also fell as crude oil prices declined. Health care stocks were among the gainers as investors sized up the latest company earnings and deal news.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>Nestle selling US candy business for $2.8 billion</p>
<p>NEW YORK (AP) — Swiss food and drink giant Nestle is selling its U.S. candy business to Italy’s Ferrero for about $2.8 billion in cash. Ferrero will take over iconic chocolate brands Butterfinger and Crunch bars, as well as the sugary Nerds, SweeTarts and FunDip.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>The Standard &amp; Poor’s 500 index fell 9.82 points, or 0.4 percent, to 2,776.42. The Dow lost 10.33 points, or 0.04 percent, to 25,792.86. The Nasdaq shed 37.38 points, or 0.5 percent, to 7,223.69.</p>
<p>Benchmark U.S. crude fell 57 cents to $63.73 per barrel. Brent crude, used to price international oils, shed 99 cents, or 1.4 percent, to $69.27. In other energy trading, wholesale gasoline slipped 2 cents to $2.06 a gallon. Heating oil lost a penny to $1.84 a gallon. Natural gas fell 7 cents, or 2.2 percent, to $3.13 per 1,000 cubic feet.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>Tax law brings big paper losses, long-term gains to US banks</p>
<p>NEW YORK (AP) — Big U.S. banks have been reporting billions of dollars in paper losses this month as they are forced to come into compliance with the new tax law. The losses were widely expected, and bank executives say the new tax law will be good not only for banks but also the broader economy in the long run.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>Concept cars from Japan automakers offer glimpse into future</p>
<p>DETROIT (AP) — Japanese vehicle brands are exploring new design ideas — and figuring out what sets them apart from their U.S. and European rivals — with new prototype vehicles. Nissan, Infiniti and Lexus are all unveiling new concept cars at the Detroit auto show, which opens to the public Saturday.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>New small cars unveiled at auto show but will anyone buy?</p>
<p>DETROIT (AP) — Among the many shiny models vying for attention at Detroit’s North American International Auto Show are the revamped Volkswagen Jetta, Hyundai Veloster and Kia Forte. But cars — particularly small ones — are having a tough time getting buyers to look their way as SUVs grow in popularity. Car sales are expected to hit a record low this year after steadily declining for several years. SUVs first surpassed cars in 2016, and the gap only widens.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>Wave of lawsuits filed to block net-neutrality repeal</p>
<p>NEW YORK (AP) — The expected wave of litigation against the Federal Communications Commission’s repeal of net-neutrality rules has begun. A group of 22 attorneys general, a tech company and a public-interest group has sued to block the Federal Communications Commission’s repeal of the rules. These rules barred companies like AT&amp;T, Comcast and Verizon from interfering with internet traffic and favoring their own sites and apps. FCC Chairman Ajit Pai’s push to undo them inspired both street and online protests.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>Consumer watchdog considering repeal of payday lending rule</p>
<p>NEW YORK (AP) — The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is reconsidering a key set of rules enacted last year that would have protected consumers against harmful payday lenders. The bureau, now under Trump administration control, says it plans to take a second look at rules put in place last year under an Obama appointee.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>With a $6B charge comes new thoughts about GE’s future</p>
<p>BOSTON (AP) — General Electric Co. is signaling it may undergo a more comprehensive transformation, a decade after breaking off substantial pieces of the multinational conglomerate in bid to a return it to its industrial roots. CEO John Flannery, who was put in charge of reviving the company last summer, on Tuesday revealed significant issues at GE Capital that will lead to a $6.2 billion after-tax charge in the fourth quarter. That has led to more discussions about what GE should be.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>Watchdog: Foreign groups among spenders at Trump properties</p>
<p>WASHINGTON (AP) — An ethics watchdog group says foreign interests, political campaigns, business entities and other groups spent more than $600,000 over the past year at Trump properties in the U.S. The watchdog group Public Citizen says the frequent use of Trump Organization properties poses potential conflicts despite President Donald Trump’s insistence that he no longer controls his company. Trump gave up direct management of his company, but a trust allows him to continue withdrawing funds.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>Dow industrials recede from 26,000 as early gains fade</p>
<p>Losses by industrial and technology companies helped drag U.S. stocks lower Tuesday, pulling the market back from its latest record highs. The slide erased some of the gains from a broad rally earlier in the day that had sent the Dow Jones industrial average past the 26,000-point threshold for the first time. Energy stocks also fell as crude oil prices declined. Health care stocks were among the gainers as investors sized up the latest company earnings and deal news.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>Nestle selling US candy business for $2.8 billion</p>
<p>NEW YORK (AP) — Swiss food and drink giant Nestle is selling its U.S. candy business to Italy’s Ferrero for about $2.8 billion in cash. Ferrero will take over iconic chocolate brands Butterfinger and Crunch bars, as well as the sugary Nerds, SweeTarts and FunDip.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>The Standard &amp; Poor’s 500 index fell 9.82 points, or 0.4 percent, to 2,776.42. The Dow lost 10.33 points, or 0.04 percent, to 25,792.86. The Nasdaq shed 37.38 points, or 0.5 percent, to 7,223.69.</p>
<p>Benchmark U.S. crude fell 57 cents to $63.73 per barrel. Brent crude, used to price international oils, shed 99 cents, or 1.4 percent, to $69.27. In other energy trading, wholesale gasoline slipped 2 cents to $2.06 a gallon. Heating oil lost a penny to $1.84 a gallon. Natural gas fell 7 cents, or 2.2 percent, to $3.13 per 1,000 cubic feet.</p>
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___ tax law brings big paper losses longterm gains us banks new york ap big us banks reporting billions dollars paper losses month forced come compliance new tax law losses widely expected bank executives say new tax law good banks also broader economy long run ___ concept cars japan automakers offer glimpse future detroit ap japanese vehicle brands exploring new design ideas figuring sets apart us european rivals new prototype vehicles nissan infiniti lexus unveiling new concept cars detroit auto show opens public saturday ___ new small cars unveiled auto show anyone buy detroit ap among many shiny models vying attention detroits north american international auto show revamped volkswagen jetta hyundai veloster kia forte cars particularly small ones tough time getting buyers look way suvs grow popularity car sales expected hit record low year steadily declining several years suvs first surpassed cars 2016 gap widens ___ wave lawsuits filed block netneutrality repeal new york ap expected wave litigation federal communications commissions repeal netneutrality rules begun group 22 attorneys general tech company publicinterest group sued block federal communications commissions repeal rules rules barred companies like atampt comcast verizon interfering internet traffic favoring sites apps fcc chairman ajit pais push undo inspired street online protests ___ consumer watchdog considering repeal payday lending rule new york ap consumer financial protection bureau reconsidering key set rules enacted last year would protected consumers harmful payday lenders bureau trump administration control says plans take second look rules put place last year obama appointee ___ 6b charge comes new thoughts ges future boston ap general electric co signaling may undergo comprehensive transformation decade breaking substantial pieces multinational conglomerate bid return industrial roots ceo john flannery put charge reviving company last summer tuesday revealed significant issues ge capital lead 62 billion aftertax charge fourth quarter led discussions ge ___ watchdog foreign groups among spenders trump properties washington ap ethics watchdog group says foreign interests political campaigns business entities groups spent 600000 past year trump properties us watchdog group public citizen says frequent use trump organization properties poses potential conflicts despite president donald trumps insistence longer controls company trump gave direct management company trust allows continue withdrawing funds ___ dow industrials recede 26000 early gains fade losses industrial technology companies helped drag us stocks lower tuesday pulling market back latest record highs slide erased gains broad rally earlier day sent dow jones industrial average past 26000point threshold first time energy stocks also fell crude oil prices declined health care stocks among gainers investors sized latest company earnings deal news ___ nestle selling us candy business 28 billion new york ap swiss food drink giant nestle selling us candy business italys ferrero 28 billion cash ferrero take iconic chocolate brands butterfinger crunch bars well sugary nerds sweetarts fundip ___ standard amp poors 500 index fell 982 points 04 percent 277642 dow lost 1033 points 004 percent 2579286 nasdaq shed 3738 points 05 percent 722369 benchmark us crude fell 57 cents 6373 per barrel brent crude used price international oils shed 99 cents 14 percent 6927 energy trading wholesale gasoline slipped 2 cents 206 gallon heating oil lost penny 184 gallon natural gas fell 7 cents 22 percent 313 per 1000 cubic feet ___ tax law brings big paper losses longterm gains us banks new york ap big us banks reporting billions dollars paper losses month forced come compliance new tax law losses widely expected bank executives say new tax law good banks also broader economy long run ___ concept cars japan automakers offer glimpse future detroit ap japanese vehicle brands exploring new design ideas figuring sets apart us european rivals new prototype vehicles nissan infiniti lexus unveiling new concept cars detroit auto show opens public saturday ___ new small cars unveiled auto show anyone buy detroit ap among many shiny models vying attention detroits north american international auto show revamped volkswagen jetta hyundai veloster kia forte cars particularly small ones tough time getting buyers look way suvs grow popularity car sales expected hit record low year steadily declining several years suvs first surpassed cars 2016 gap widens ___ wave lawsuits filed block netneutrality repeal new york ap expected wave litigation federal communications commissions repeal netneutrality rules begun group 22 attorneys general tech company publicinterest group sued block federal communications commissions repeal rules rules barred companies like atampt comcast verizon interfering internet traffic favoring sites apps fcc chairman ajit pais push undo inspired street online protests ___ consumer watchdog considering repeal payday lending rule new york ap consumer financial protection bureau reconsidering key set rules enacted last year would protected consumers harmful payday lenders bureau trump administration control says plans take second look rules put place last year obama appointee ___ 6b charge comes new thoughts ges future boston ap general electric co signaling may undergo comprehensive transformation decade breaking substantial pieces multinational conglomerate bid return industrial roots ceo john flannery put charge reviving company last summer tuesday revealed significant issues ge capital lead 62 billion aftertax charge fourth quarter led discussions ge ___ watchdog foreign groups among spenders trump properties washington ap ethics watchdog group says foreign interests political campaigns business entities groups spent 600000 past year trump properties us watchdog group public citizen says frequent use trump organization properties poses potential conflicts despite president donald trumps insistence longer controls company trump gave direct management company trust allows continue withdrawing funds ___ dow industrials recede 26000 early gains fade losses industrial technology companies helped drag us stocks lower tuesday pulling market back latest record highs slide erased gains broad rally earlier day sent dow jones industrial average past 26000point threshold first time energy stocks also fell crude oil prices declined health care stocks among gainers investors sized latest company earnings deal news ___ nestle selling us candy business 28 billion new york ap swiss food drink giant nestle selling us candy business italys ferrero 28 billion cash ferrero take iconic chocolate brands butterfinger crunch bars well sugary nerds sweetarts fundip ___ standard amp poors 500 index fell 982 points 04 percent 277642 dow lost 1033 points 004 percent 2579286 nasdaq shed 3738 points 05 percent 722369 benchmark us crude fell 57 cents 6373 per barrel brent crude used price international oils shed 99 cents 14 percent 6927 energy trading wholesale gasoline slipped 2 cents 206 gallon heating oil lost penny 184 gallon natural gas fell 7 cents 22 percent 313 per 1000 cubic feet
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<p />
<p>Just last week, Gov. Susana Martinez, also a Republican, announced that New Mexico will accept federal funding to expand Medicaid coverage.</p>
<p>The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act provides that the federal government will cover 100 percent of the states’ costs of the expansion for the first three years, gradually decreasing to 90 percent in 2020 and thereafter.</p>
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<p>Brewer has opposed the federal health care law, citing worries over a potential overreliance on federal funding.</p>
<p>A provision in the 2010 law allows for states to increase Medicaid coverage, and Brewer told lawmakers in her annual State of the State address on Monday that virtually all of the expansion would be funded by the federal government. Not taking the money wouldn’t contribute to the lowering of federal deficits, she said.</p>
<p>Any increase would also “include a circuit-breaker that automatically” would roll back enrollment if federal reimbursement rates decrease, Brewer said.</p>
<p>“I won’t allow Obamacare to become a bait-and-switch,” she said.</p>
<p>Brewer’s decision was being closely watched across the country, particularly since Arizona was among the states that sued to overturn Obama’s law. After the last summer’s Supreme Court ruling upholding the law, Brewer considered a partial expansion, but the administration rejected that approach.</p>
<p>Brewer on Monday cited President Barack Obama’s re-election and the Supreme Court ruling as evidence of the law’s permanence.</p>
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<p>She also referenced a brief and unpleasant encounter between her and the president that was captured by photographers. The argument on a Mesa airport tarmac was a highly visible demonstration of the verbal and legal skirmishing that has regularly occurred between Brewer and Obama’s administration over illegal immigration and other issues.</p>
<p>A smiling Brewer told lawmakers that Arizona can’t simply wag its finger at the federal government.</p>
<p>“Trust me: I tried that once,” she said.</p>
<p>The Supreme Court ruling said states were free to accept or reject the expansion, and several GOP governors have said they will not go forward, including Rick Perry in Texas, Bobby Jindal in Louisiana and Nikki Haley in South Carolina.</p>
<p>Another Republican governor considering Medicaid expansion is Florida Gov. Rick Scott, who faces pressure from hospitals and other state constituencies but has said he’s concerned about the potential costs of the expansion.</p>
<p>“I think this speaks to how this is a very good offer on the table,” said Joan Alker, co-director of the Georgetown University Center for Children and Families. “This puts pressure on other governors, like Gov. Scott in Florida, where there is a lot of debate right now.”</p>
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<p>Republicans have a majority in Arizona’s House and Senate, which must approve the expansion. Brewer’s announcement took even her own party’s Legislative leaders by surprise.</p>
<p>“That was a bit of a shocker,” Senate President Andy Biggs told reporters after the speech.</p>
<p>The announcement was a surprise even to journalists who were provided an advance copy of Brewer’s speech — minus the section on the Medicaid expansion. Brewer said as recently as last week she would make a decision soon, but didn’t hint it would come in the State of the State address.</p>
<p>Seventeen states and Washington D.C. have now signed onto the expansion, and nine have opted out. The rest are weighing the decision.</p>
<p>Overall, the Medicaid expansion accounts for about half the 30 million uninsured people expected to eventually gain coverage under President Barack Obama’s health care overhaul.</p>
<p>The law expanded Medicaid to cover low-income people making up to 138 percent of the federal poverty level, or about $15,400 a year for a single person. That provision will mainly benefit low-income childless adults, who currently can’t get Medicaid in most states. Separately, the overhaul provides subsidized private insurance for middle-class households.</p>
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<p>Under the legislation, Washington would pay the entire cost of the Medicaid expansion for the first three years, gradually phasing down to 90 percent of the cost after that. It’s a far more generous matching rate than the federal government provides for other parts of the Medicaid program.</p>
<p>Brewer told lawmakers that expanding Medicaid would help poor Arizonans and help hospitals and caregivers who now must give care without pay. An estimated 300,000 more Arizonans would be eligible for the state’s version of Medicaid under the full expansion.</p>
<p>Biggs said it was premature to say whether lawmakers would support the expansion.</p>
<p>“We don’t even know what the plan is,” he said.</p>
<p>Republican state Rep. John Kavanagh, an opponent of expanding Medicaid, said he doubted the governor’s plan will clear the Legislature.</p>
<p>“The Legislature doesn’t like Obamacare, and this is a critical part of it,” he said.</p>
<p>Senate Minority Leader Leah Landrum Taylor said not expanding Medicaid would continue to leave the poor without care and hospitals stuck with costs.</p>
<p>“The number of jobs that it’s going to create, the number of lives it’s going to save, it’s people that need the health care,” she said. “And the writing is on the wall. We can’t continue this way.”</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>Associated Press writers Jacques Billeaud in Phoenix and Ricardo Alonso-Zaldivar in Washington contributed to this report.</p>
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last week gov susana martinez also republican announced new mexico accept federal funding expand medicaid coverage patient protection affordable care act provides federal government cover 100 percent states costs expansion first three years gradually decreasing 90 percent 2020 thereafter advertisement brewer opposed federal health care law citing worries potential overreliance federal funding provision 2010 law allows states increase medicaid coverage brewer told lawmakers annual state state address monday virtually expansion would funded federal government taking money wouldnt contribute lowering federal deficits said increase would also include circuitbreaker automatically would roll back enrollment federal reimbursement rates decrease brewer said wont allow obamacare become baitandswitch said brewers decision closely watched across country particularly since arizona among states sued overturn obamas law last summers supreme court ruling upholding law brewer considered partial expansion administration rejected approach brewer monday cited president barack obamas reelection supreme court ruling evidence laws permanence advertisement also referenced brief unpleasant encounter president captured photographers argument mesa airport tarmac highly visible demonstration verbal legal skirmishing regularly occurred brewer obamas administration illegal immigration issues smiling brewer told lawmakers arizona cant simply wag finger federal government trust tried said supreme court ruling said states free accept reject expansion several gop governors said go forward including rick perry texas bobby jindal louisiana nikki haley south carolina another republican governor considering medicaid expansion florida gov rick scott faces pressure hospitals state constituencies said hes concerned potential costs expansion think speaks good offer table said joan alker codirector georgetown university center children families puts pressure governors like gov scott florida lot debate right advertisement republicans majority arizonas house senate must approve expansion brewers announcement took even partys legislative leaders surprise bit shocker senate president andy biggs told reporters speech announcement surprise even journalists provided advance copy brewers speech minus section medicaid expansion brewer said recently last week would make decision soon didnt hint would come state state address seventeen states washington dc signed onto expansion nine opted rest weighing decision overall medicaid expansion accounts half 30 million uninsured people expected eventually gain coverage president barack obamas health care overhaul law expanded medicaid cover lowincome people making 138 percent federal poverty level 15400 year single person provision mainly benefit lowincome childless adults currently cant get medicaid states separately overhaul provides subsidized private insurance middleclass households advertisement legislation washington would pay entire cost medicaid expansion first three years gradually phasing 90 percent cost far generous matching rate federal government provides parts medicaid program brewer told lawmakers expanding medicaid would help poor arizonans help hospitals caregivers must give care without pay estimated 300000 arizonans would eligible states version medicaid full expansion biggs said premature say whether lawmakers would support expansion dont even know plan said republican state rep john kavanagh opponent expanding medicaid said doubted governors plan clear legislature legislature doesnt like obamacare critical part said senate minority leader leah landrum taylor said expanding medicaid would continue leave poor without care hospitals stuck costs number jobs going create number lives going save people need health care said writing wall cant continue way ___ associated press writers jacques billeaud phoenix ricardo alonsozaldivar washington contributed report
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<p>BLOOMINGTON, Ind. (AP) — Juwan Morgan spent most of the weekend getting treatment on his injured right ankle and hoping he could play Monday night.</p>
<p>He did more than the Indiana Hoosiers could have expected.</p>
<p>Morgan was back to being his old self. After missing the final 22 minutes Friday, he scored 25 points, grabbed five rebounds, dished out four assists, blocked two shots and accounted for all but four points in the decisive run to lead Indiana past Maryland 71-68.</p>
<p>"It was the least I could do for my team," Morgan said. "The way they were just going at it in practice and just giving it their all, it was the least I could do. And I just went out there and showed what I could do."</p>
<p>Regardless of the circumstances.</p>
<p>He played 36 minutes, was 10 of 18 from the field and was the only Indiana player to shoot better than 50 percent from the free-throw line (5 of 7). And he almost single-handedly rallied the Hoosiers with a closing 14-6 run that erased the Terrapins' five-point lead.</p>
<p>The result: Indiana (12-8, 5-3) won for the fourth time in five games overall and earned its fifth straight win at Assembly Hall.</p>
<p>"We were just sort of waiting for him (Morgan) in the first half to see if he could find his way through the game," coach Archie Miller said. "You turn your ankle and a lot of guys handle it different ways. I think Juwan kind of played through the adrenaline tonight."</p>
<p>But Morgan got plenty of help, too.</p>
<p>Robert Johnson finished with 12 points and eight rebounds, Justin Smith added 12 points and Indiana's stingy defense allowed only three baskets in the final 6:02.</p>
<p>It was barely enough.</p>
<p>Anthony Cowan Jr. scored 18 points and Kevin Huerter had 16 points and 11 rebounds to lead Maryland (15-7, 4-5), which hasn't won a conference road game since Dec. 3 at Illinois. Cowan had a chance to tie the score with six seconds left but it bounced off the rim.</p>
<p>Huerter could have tied with a half-court heave but the refs waved it off, ruling the shot came after the buzzer. It was an air ball anyway.</p>
<p>"We competed our tails off there in a tough environment," coach Mark Turgeon said. "We had a stretch there where we couldn't score but we never stopped trying. Just got play a little bit better. They were great defensively."</p>
<p>They also had a 62-57 lead with 4:53 to play.</p>
<p>But they couldn't close it out.</p>
<p>Morgan's layup and three-point play tied the score, Johnson's layup made it 64-62 with 3:15 left and Morgan made sure the Terrapins never led again.</p>
<p>BIG PICTURE</p>
<p>Maryland: The Terrapins are going down a tough road. After losing in the final second last Monday at Michigan and now blowing a five-point lead in the final five minutes at Indiana, Maryland has lost four straight conference road games. To make a late-season push, Turgeon's team needs to find a knockout punch.</p>
<p>Indiana: The Hoosiers continue to steadily improve this season, and this one typified just how much progress they've made. At times, the Hoosiers' defense confounded Maryland. And when the Terrapins started making shots, the Hoosiers had an answer each time. It kept the game close enough that a strong finish put them over the top.</p>
<p>KEY STATS</p>
<p>Maryland: Freshman Bruno Fernando did not the play the final 15 minutes after spraining his right ankle. Turgeon did not have an immediate update after the game.... The Terrapins were 4 of 13 on 3-pointers in the second half after starting 5 of 10. ... Maryland outscored Indiana 16-2 on second-chance points, 26-10 off the bench. It also had a 39-28 rebounding edge.</p>
<p>Indiana: Zach McRoberts had seven points, four rebounds, three steals and three assists. ... The Hoosiers shot 56.3 percent in the first half but only led 42-39 at halftime. ... Indiana wound up with 10 steals and went 9 of 16 from the free-throw line. ...The Hoosiers forced 18 turnovers and a 40-22 scoring advantage in the paint and a 20-14 edge in points off turnovers.</p>
<p>THE LAST WORD</p>
<p>"It's a tough year for us. We just have to keep battling," Turgeon said. "We're getting better. We just weren't good enough tonight offensively on our execution to win this game."</p>
<p>UP NEXT</p>
<p>Maryland: Hosts No. 6 Michigan State on Sunday.</p>
<p>Indiana: Travels to Illinois on Wednesday.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>More AP college basketball: <a href="http://collegebasketball.ap.org" type="external">http://collegebasketball.ap.org</a> and <a href="http://www.twitter.com/AP_Top25" type="external">http://www.twitter.com/AP_Top25</a></p>
<p>BLOOMINGTON, Ind. (AP) — Juwan Morgan spent most of the weekend getting treatment on his injured right ankle and hoping he could play Monday night.</p>
<p>He did more than the Indiana Hoosiers could have expected.</p>
<p>Morgan was back to being his old self. After missing the final 22 minutes Friday, he scored 25 points, grabbed five rebounds, dished out four assists, blocked two shots and accounted for all but four points in the decisive run to lead Indiana past Maryland 71-68.</p>
<p>"It was the least I could do for my team," Morgan said. "The way they were just going at it in practice and just giving it their all, it was the least I could do. And I just went out there and showed what I could do."</p>
<p>Regardless of the circumstances.</p>
<p>He played 36 minutes, was 10 of 18 from the field and was the only Indiana player to shoot better than 50 percent from the free-throw line (5 of 7). And he almost single-handedly rallied the Hoosiers with a closing 14-6 run that erased the Terrapins' five-point lead.</p>
<p>The result: Indiana (12-8, 5-3) won for the fourth time in five games overall and earned its fifth straight win at Assembly Hall.</p>
<p>"We were just sort of waiting for him (Morgan) in the first half to see if he could find his way through the game," coach Archie Miller said. "You turn your ankle and a lot of guys handle it different ways. I think Juwan kind of played through the adrenaline tonight."</p>
<p>But Morgan got plenty of help, too.</p>
<p>Robert Johnson finished with 12 points and eight rebounds, Justin Smith added 12 points and Indiana's stingy defense allowed only three baskets in the final 6:02.</p>
<p>It was barely enough.</p>
<p>Anthony Cowan Jr. scored 18 points and Kevin Huerter had 16 points and 11 rebounds to lead Maryland (15-7, 4-5), which hasn't won a conference road game since Dec. 3 at Illinois. Cowan had a chance to tie the score with six seconds left but it bounced off the rim.</p>
<p>Huerter could have tied with a half-court heave but the refs waved it off, ruling the shot came after the buzzer. It was an air ball anyway.</p>
<p>"We competed our tails off there in a tough environment," coach Mark Turgeon said. "We had a stretch there where we couldn't score but we never stopped trying. Just got play a little bit better. They were great defensively."</p>
<p>They also had a 62-57 lead with 4:53 to play.</p>
<p>But they couldn't close it out.</p>
<p>Morgan's layup and three-point play tied the score, Johnson's layup made it 64-62 with 3:15 left and Morgan made sure the Terrapins never led again.</p>
<p>BIG PICTURE</p>
<p>Maryland: The Terrapins are going down a tough road. After losing in the final second last Monday at Michigan and now blowing a five-point lead in the final five minutes at Indiana, Maryland has lost four straight conference road games. To make a late-season push, Turgeon's team needs to find a knockout punch.</p>
<p>Indiana: The Hoosiers continue to steadily improve this season, and this one typified just how much progress they've made. At times, the Hoosiers' defense confounded Maryland. And when the Terrapins started making shots, the Hoosiers had an answer each time. It kept the game close enough that a strong finish put them over the top.</p>
<p>KEY STATS</p>
<p>Maryland: Freshman Bruno Fernando did not the play the final 15 minutes after spraining his right ankle. Turgeon did not have an immediate update after the game.... The Terrapins were 4 of 13 on 3-pointers in the second half after starting 5 of 10. ... Maryland outscored Indiana 16-2 on second-chance points, 26-10 off the bench. It also had a 39-28 rebounding edge.</p>
<p>Indiana: Zach McRoberts had seven points, four rebounds, three steals and three assists. ... The Hoosiers shot 56.3 percent in the first half but only led 42-39 at halftime. ... Indiana wound up with 10 steals and went 9 of 16 from the free-throw line. ...The Hoosiers forced 18 turnovers and a 40-22 scoring advantage in the paint and a 20-14 edge in points off turnovers.</p>
<p>THE LAST WORD</p>
<p>"It's a tough year for us. We just have to keep battling," Turgeon said. "We're getting better. We just weren't good enough tonight offensively on our execution to win this game."</p>
<p>UP NEXT</p>
<p>Maryland: Hosts No. 6 Michigan State on Sunday.</p>
<p>Indiana: Travels to Illinois on Wednesday.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>More AP college basketball: <a href="http://collegebasketball.ap.org" type="external">http://collegebasketball.ap.org</a> and <a href="http://www.twitter.com/AP_Top25" type="external">http://www.twitter.com/AP_Top25</a></p>
| false | 2 |
bloomington ind ap juwan morgan spent weekend getting treatment injured right ankle hoping could play monday night indiana hoosiers could expected morgan back old self missing final 22 minutes friday scored 25 points grabbed five rebounds dished four assists blocked two shots accounted four points decisive run lead indiana past maryland 7168 least could team morgan said way going practice giving least could went showed could regardless circumstances played 36 minutes 10 18 field indiana player shoot better 50 percent freethrow line 5 7 almost singlehandedly rallied hoosiers closing 146 run erased terrapins fivepoint lead result indiana 128 53 fourth time five games overall earned fifth straight win assembly hall sort waiting morgan first half see could find way game coach archie miller said turn ankle lot guys handle different ways think juwan kind played adrenaline tonight morgan got plenty help robert johnson finished 12 points eight rebounds justin smith added 12 points indianas stingy defense allowed three baskets final 602 barely enough anthony cowan jr scored 18 points kevin huerter 16 points 11 rebounds lead maryland 157 45 hasnt conference road game since dec 3 illinois cowan chance tie score six seconds left bounced rim huerter could tied halfcourt heave refs waved ruling shot came buzzer air ball anyway competed tails tough environment coach mark turgeon said stretch couldnt score never stopped trying got play little bit better great defensively also 6257 lead 453 play couldnt close morgans layup threepoint play tied score johnsons layup made 6462 315 left morgan made sure terrapins never led big picture maryland terrapins going tough road losing final second last monday michigan blowing fivepoint lead final five minutes indiana maryland lost four straight conference road games make lateseason push turgeons team needs find knockout punch indiana hoosiers continue steadily improve season one typified much progress theyve made times hoosiers defense confounded maryland terrapins started making shots hoosiers answer time kept game close enough strong finish put top key stats maryland freshman bruno fernando play final 15 minutes spraining right ankle turgeon immediate update game terrapins 4 13 3pointers second half starting 5 10 maryland outscored indiana 162 secondchance points 2610 bench also 3928 rebounding edge indiana zach mcroberts seven points four rebounds three steals three assists hoosiers shot 563 percent first half led 4239 halftime indiana wound 10 steals went 9 16 freethrow line hoosiers forced 18 turnovers 4022 scoring advantage paint 2014 edge points turnovers last word tough year us keep battling turgeon said getting better werent good enough tonight offensively execution win game next maryland hosts 6 michigan state sunday indiana travels illinois wednesday ___ ap college basketball httpcollegebasketballaporg httpwwwtwittercomap_top25 bloomington ind ap juwan morgan spent weekend getting treatment injured right ankle hoping could play monday night indiana hoosiers could expected morgan back old self missing final 22 minutes friday scored 25 points grabbed five rebounds dished four assists blocked two shots accounted four points decisive run lead indiana past maryland 7168 least could team morgan said way going practice giving least could went showed could regardless circumstances played 36 minutes 10 18 field indiana player shoot better 50 percent freethrow line 5 7 almost singlehandedly rallied hoosiers closing 146 run erased terrapins fivepoint lead result indiana 128 53 fourth time five games overall earned fifth straight win assembly hall sort waiting morgan first half see could find way game coach archie miller said turn ankle lot guys handle different ways think juwan kind played adrenaline tonight morgan got plenty help robert johnson finished 12 points eight rebounds justin smith added 12 points indianas stingy defense allowed three baskets final 602 barely enough anthony cowan jr scored 18 points kevin huerter 16 points 11 rebounds lead maryland 157 45 hasnt conference road game since dec 3 illinois cowan chance tie score six seconds left bounced rim huerter could tied halfcourt heave refs waved ruling shot came buzzer air ball anyway competed tails tough environment coach mark turgeon said stretch couldnt score never stopped trying got play little bit better great defensively also 6257 lead 453 play couldnt close morgans layup threepoint play tied score johnsons layup made 6462 315 left morgan made sure terrapins never led big picture maryland terrapins going tough road losing final second last monday michigan blowing fivepoint lead final five minutes indiana maryland lost four straight conference road games make lateseason push turgeons team needs find knockout punch indiana hoosiers continue steadily improve season one typified much progress theyve made times hoosiers defense confounded maryland terrapins started making shots hoosiers answer time kept game close enough strong finish put top key stats maryland freshman bruno fernando play final 15 minutes spraining right ankle turgeon immediate update game terrapins 4 13 3pointers second half starting 5 10 maryland outscored indiana 162 secondchance points 2610 bench also 3928 rebounding edge indiana zach mcroberts seven points four rebounds three steals three assists hoosiers shot 563 percent first half led 4239 halftime indiana wound 10 steals went 9 16 freethrow line hoosiers forced 18 turnovers 4022 scoring advantage paint 2014 edge points turnovers last word tough year us keep battling turgeon said getting better werent good enough tonight offensively execution win game next maryland hosts 6 michigan state sunday indiana travels illinois wednesday ___ ap college basketball httpcollegebasketballaporg httpwwwtwittercomap_top25
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<p>SANTA FE, N.M. — Santa Fe Public Schools’ new superintendent is sure to encounter criticism when he begins his new job next month. There will be those who say he’s too young, too inexperienced and that he’s not from around here and won’t understand the dynamics in this city — one truly different from where he was born and bred and spent the first 10 years of his career in education.</p>
<p>But Joel Boyd — a 33-year-old, Harvard-educated former wrestling coach — seems eager to take on all challenges — from improving graduation rates, to closing the educational gap between ethnic groups, to proving the naysayers wrong.</p>
<p>“Yes, it’s true that I’m not from Santa Fe,” he said during a recent phone interview from Philadelphia, where’s he’s assistant superintendent in a school district with an enrollment of 150,000 students and a $2.7 billion budget. “I do appreciate that there are others who understand the history and culture, and that will be a part of what I’ll call the entry phase.”</p>
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<p>Boyd expects that initial phase of his tenure to last 100 days. “The first order of business will be about listening and learning — understanding the history and the desires of the community, determining the wants and needs from people who are there and have been there.”</p>
<p>Boyd said he’ll also spend part of that time analyzing construction and budget plans and the district’s strategic plan and aligning these in a way that makes sense.</p>
<p>“What I look at is the first 100 days will be going through the process of understanding the context of Santa Fe, going over the plan of action with the board, implementing the needs and implementing the strategic plan the district has already laid out,” he said.</p>
<p>Boyd is aware that some will perceive him as some hotshot kid from the East Coast who thinks he’ll be able to come in and solve all of Santa Fe’s problems.</p>
<p>His response?</p>
<p>“I’d say I bring a clear understanding of the national education landscape,” he said, adding that he has experience working in urban schools as diverse as those in Santa Fe. “While there are aspects of Santa Fe that are unique, there are many others that are not.”</p>
<p>Boyd would also argue there are advantages to bringing in an outsider with a different perspective. And, he’d argue, it’s not all about him.</p>
<p>“I’ve always said that I’m one part of an overall team,” he said. “There needs to be a diverse team, so there’s a balance of inside and outside perspectives to develop strategies that will give our children the best opportunities.”</p>
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<p>Boyd talks about developing a global vision for the schools to stay in step with a changing world.</p>
<p>“We have to start looking beyond the confines of Santa Fe’s boundaries and look around globally, so we can provide our children with a competitive edge,” he said, “and we’ll do that with an appreciation for the work people have already done.”</p>
<p>Young and energetic</p>
<p>When Boyd was hired last month, School Board President Frank Montaño and other members of the board cited his youth and enthusiasm as qualities that could help transform Santa Fe schools.</p>
<p>Detractors might think differently — that his youth doesn’t give him the experience and qualifications required to take on the job of schools chief. After all, he spent only four years in the classroom, as a middle school science teacher in his native Delaware, and less time than that as a vice principal and principal before becoming an administrator at the district level.</p>
<p>“The question is what is enough time?” Boyd countered. “My own personal research looks at factors that lead to success, and what that research reveals is, it’s not about quantity, but quality.”</p>
<p>Boyd evokes another former Harvard man to argue his point.</p>
<p>“While I may be younger than some, I’m only a few years older than Mark Zuckerberg, and he’s done pretty well in his industry,” he said.</p>
<p>And again, Boyd emphasized that he’ll be a part — albeit the leader — of a team.</p>
<p>“Everywhere I’ve been, I’ve been part of a team that has improved learning in students and improved the quality of teaching. No experience I’ve had has been mine alone. Everything has been a result of a team effort, and that’s what I’m looking for in Santa Fe,” he said.</p>
<p>That team concept is something Boyd partially attributes to his experience in athletics. He was captain of his wrestling team in high school and coached the sport when he was a teacher.</p>
<p>“I think there are two ways that has helped me,” he said. “One, my wrestling coach in high school played a pivotal role in establishing a connection for me in school. I had some trouble in middle school, I wasn’t that good a student, and he played an important role in giving me much-needed guidance at a time I needed it. A lot of my success in life can be attributed to him specifically.</p>
<p>“The other thing is the notion of hard work paying off, whether it’s athletics or in school. There’s a quote that applies to that: ‘The harder you work, the harder it is to lose,’ and another is that ‘Smart is something you get, not what you are.’ In creating a school experience, I think you need to have that connection that you get from the arts and athletics to provide a well-rounded educational experience.”</p>
<p>Troubles back home</p>
<p>Boyd is coming from a school district that is in crisis.</p>
<p>The Philadelphia Inquirer won a Pulitzer Prize this year for a series of articles it did on violence in the public schools. The newspaper has also recently reported that the state’s top education officials are investigating a standardized test cheating scandal involving 56 schools.</p>
<p>This week, the Inquirer is reporting that 2,700 unionized blue-collar employees have already received pink slips and as many as 500 of them could be laid off next week, as the district is on the brink of insolvency while trying to overcome a $282 million deficit.</p>
<p>Boyd didn’t address the matter directly but described himself as “pro union.”</p>
<p>“I was a member of unions as a teacher and as a principal,” he said. “Unions should have a place at the table when discussing education reform, but it must be a partnership. From my understanding, it’s a real positive relationship in Santa Fe, and I hope to continue that.”</p>
<p>Boyd said it was also his understanding that teachers in the Santa Fe district hadn’t received raises or cost of living increases in five years, a situation he called “unacceptable.”</p>
<p>“There’s a real opportunity to partner and work toward providing teachers and the workforce with a competitive wage, and doing it in a way where everybody is motivated,” he said.</p>
<p>As for the financial turmoil the Philadelphia school district finds itself in, Boyd characterized it as “a perfect storm.”</p>
<p>“We’re existing in an economic context that’s not favorable for public schools,” he said, adding that costs have increased while revenue has declined. “Salaries are largely controlled by contracts, so you’re going to have increased costs. I would hesitate to place the blame on people working in the district. You have hard-working people who have been a part of an effort to rethink how we educate students in Philadelphia, and there are uncontrollable factors that created a perfect storm.”</p>
<p>Some of those uncontrollable factors, Boyd said, have to do with funding and who gets elected and controls the money.</p>
<p>“Perhaps you could have projected things a little differently at the front end to make sure costs were met. But when long-term planning, it’s difficult to predict,” he said.</p>
<p>Commenting on the cheating scandal, Boyd said the district was in the process of assessing and determining who is culpable.</p>
<p>Boyd said cheating on the part of an adult when the data is used to procure public money was “despicable,” and that those who engaged in that type of practice needed to be held accountable to the fullest extent.</p>
<p>Looking ahead</p>
<p>Boyd said he was told about the results of the recently announced New Mexico’s Standards-Based Assessments and statewide school grades.</p>
<p>“The data is very early and preliminary, and we’re waiting on a full analysis from our district team before we make specific conclusions,” he said. “The reduction in F schools is positive news, and any time we can bring up achievement in our lowest-performing schools is something we have to acknowledge and take pride in.”</p>
<p>Boyd said he plans to travel cross country later this month and expects to be in town and ready to report to work by Aug. 1.</p>
<p>Asked where he sees himself five years from now, Boyd said, “I want to be superintendent of the highest-performing school district in New Mexico, which will be Santa Fe Public Schools.”</p>
<p>What about in 10 years?</p>
<p>“In 10 years, I want to be a part of the best school district in the country, which will also be Santa Fe Public Schools,” he said. “My wife and I are looking for a place to settle long term, and we believe we’ve found that place in Santa Fe.”</p>
<p>Boyd and his wife, Keza, have been married nine years. They have no children, but Boyd said they have plans to expand their family in Santa Fe.</p>
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santa fe nm santa fe public schools new superintendent sure encounter criticism begins new job next month say hes young inexperienced hes around wont understand dynamics city one truly different born bred spent first 10 years career education joel boyd 33yearold harvardeducated former wrestling coach seems eager take challenges improving graduation rates closing educational gap ethnic groups proving naysayers wrong yes true im santa fe said recent phone interview philadelphia wheres hes assistant superintendent school district enrollment 150000 students 27 billion budget appreciate others understand history culture part ill call entry phase advertisement boyd expects initial phase tenure last 100 days first order business listening learning understanding history desires community determining wants needs people boyd said hell also spend part time analyzing construction budget plans districts strategic plan aligning way makes sense look first 100 days going process understanding context santa fe going plan action board implementing needs implementing strategic plan district already laid said boyd aware perceive hotshot kid east coast thinks hell able come solve santa fes problems response id say bring clear understanding national education landscape said adding experience working urban schools diverse santa fe aspects santa fe unique many others boyd would also argue advantages bringing outsider different perspective hed argue ive always said im one part overall team said needs diverse team theres balance inside outside perspectives develop strategies give children best opportunities advertisement boyd talks developing global vision schools stay step changing world start looking beyond confines santa fes boundaries look around globally provide children competitive edge said well appreciation work people already done young energetic boyd hired last month school board president frank montaño members board cited youth enthusiasm qualities could help transform santa fe schools detractors might think differently youth doesnt give experience qualifications required take job schools chief spent four years classroom middle school science teacher native delaware less time vice principal principal becoming administrator district level question enough time boyd countered personal research looks factors lead success research reveals quantity quality boyd evokes another former harvard man argue point may younger im years older mark zuckerberg hes done pretty well industry said boyd emphasized hell part albeit leader team everywhere ive ive part team improved learning students improved quality teaching experience ive mine alone everything result team effort thats im looking santa fe said team concept something boyd partially attributes experience athletics captain wrestling team high school coached sport teacher think two ways helped said one wrestling coach high school played pivotal role establishing connection school trouble middle school wasnt good student played important role giving muchneeded guidance time needed lot success life attributed specifically thing notion hard work paying whether athletics school theres quote applies harder work harder lose another smart something get creating school experience think need connection get arts athletics provide wellrounded educational experience troubles back home boyd coming school district crisis philadelphia inquirer pulitzer prize year series articles violence public schools newspaper also recently reported states top education officials investigating standardized test cheating scandal involving 56 schools week inquirer reporting 2700 unionized bluecollar employees already received pink slips many 500 could laid next week district brink insolvency trying overcome 282 million deficit boyd didnt address matter directly described pro union member unions teacher principal said unions place table discussing education reform must partnership understanding real positive relationship santa fe hope continue boyd said also understanding teachers santa fe district hadnt received raises cost living increases five years situation called unacceptable theres real opportunity partner work toward providing teachers workforce competitive wage way everybody motivated said financial turmoil philadelphia school district finds boyd characterized perfect storm existing economic context thats favorable public schools said adding costs increased revenue declined salaries largely controlled contracts youre going increased costs would hesitate place blame people working district hardworking people part effort rethink educate students philadelphia uncontrollable factors created perfect storm uncontrollable factors boyd said funding gets elected controls money perhaps could projected things little differently front end make sure costs met longterm planning difficult predict said commenting cheating scandal boyd said district process assessing determining culpable boyd said cheating part adult data used procure public money despicable engaged type practice needed held accountable fullest extent looking ahead boyd said told results recently announced new mexicos standardsbased assessments statewide school grades data early preliminary waiting full analysis district team make specific conclusions said reduction f schools positive news time bring achievement lowestperforming schools something acknowledge take pride boyd said plans travel cross country later month expects town ready report work aug 1 asked sees five years boyd said want superintendent highestperforming school district new mexico santa fe public schools 10 years 10 years want part best school district country also santa fe public schools said wife looking place settle long term believe weve found place santa fe boyd wife keza married nine years children boyd said plans expand family santa fe
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<p>Tainara Lourenco stands in the entrance of her stilt home with her hand on her baby bump, at a slum in Recife, Brazil, on Jan. 29. Unemployed and five months pregnant, 21-year-old Lourenco lives in a slum at the epicenter of Brazil's tandem Zika and microcephaly outbreaks, in the state of Pernambuco. (Felipe Dana/The Associated Press)</p>
<p>RIO DE JANEIRO - Two Brazilian women, two pregnancies, one nightmare. But two very different stories.</p>
<p>Regina de Lima and Tainara Lourenco became pregnant at a scary moment - the dawn of an extraordinary Zika outbreak, as authorities came to suspect that the virus was causing an alarming spike in a rare birth defect called microcephaly. Both have reason to fear for the health of their unborn offspring.</p>
<p>But that is where the similarities end.</p>
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<p>Lima is well-off, and took advantage of the options of affluence.</p>
<p>Lourenco lives in a slum. She has no options, except to hope for the best.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>A city worker fumigates a classroom in a mosquito eradication effort to battle the insect blamed for spreading a virus suspected of causing birth defects, in Santa Tecla, El Salvador. While anyone can be bitten by the Aedes aegypti mosquito that transmits Zika, dengue, chikungunya and yellow fever, public health experts agree that the poor are more vulnerable because they often lack amenities that help diminish the risk, such as air conditioning and window screens. (Salvador Melendez/The Associated Press)</p>
<p>When Lima learned she was pregnant, her initial, vertiginous rush of happiness was almost immediately smothered by dread.</p>
<p>Lima and her husband had been trying to start a family but decided to put the project on hold in late November, after the Brazilian government announced a possible link between mosquito-borne Zika and microcephaly, in which infants are born with unusually small heads and can sometimes suffer mental retardation or a host of serious health and developmental problems.</p>
<p>The connection between Zika and microcephaly is not yet understood, but the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says there is strong evidence of a link. And with more than 3,700 confirmed or suspected cases of microcephaly registered here since October - compared with fewer than 150 cases in all of 2014 - the Brazilian government took the drastic step of urging would-be parents to put off pregnancies.</p>
<p>But for Lima, an audiovisual producer from Rio de Janeiro, it was too late. She was already pregnant, and her first trimester - thought to be when the fetus is most susceptible to Zika - would coincide with Rio's summer mosquito season.</p>
<p>"The first weeks were terrifying," said Lima. "I cried and cried."</p>
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<p>She was haunted by fears she may have already had Zika without knowing it - the illness can cause a fever and red splotches on the skin, but is asymptomatic in most cases - and that her baby would develop microcephaly, which ultrasounds only pick up starting in the seventh month.</p>
<p>So Lima did what growing numbers of wealthy Brazilian women are doing: She requested an extended vacation from work, packed her bags and left for Europe. She plans to stay at least through the end of the dicey first trimester.</p>
<p>"I am in a sort of exile - I could be at home with my husband, seeing my own doctors, but instead I'm here in Europe with a suitcase," Lima said in a telephone interview from London, quickly adding that she wasn't complaining. "I am lucky to have options, to be able to make decisions. Most women in my situation don't have that luxury. They're completely at the mercy of fate."</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>Women wait their turn for their pre-natal exams at the National Hospital for Women in San Salvador, El Salvador. (Salvador Melendez/The Associated Press)</p>
<p>Indeed, although she's living on a shoestring - crashing with friends and moving weekly so as not to overstay her welcome - Lima's peace of mind comes with a price tag that would be unthinkable for the vast majority of women in this most socially stratified of countries.</p>
<p>Her airline ticket alone cost several times the monthly minimum wage of just over $200, and with Brazil's currency at historic lows amid an economic recession, even everyday expenses in Europe have become exorbitant by Brazilian standards.</p>
<p>Unemployed and five months pregnant, 21-year-old Lourenco lives in a slum at the epicenter of Brazil's tandem Zika and microcephaly outbreaks, the state of Pernambuco in Brazil's impoverished and underdeveloped northeast.</p>
<p>Her shack is cobbled together from bits of wood and perches on stilts over a giant puddle of fetid water below. To eke out a living for herself and her 2-year-old daughter, Lourenco ventures into a nearby swamp to hunt for crustaceans she hawks for $2.50 a kilogram.</p>
<p>"I think I got Zika or some other disease not long ago," she said. "What can we do? Just hope that it doesn't affect the baby."</p>
<p>Zika is spread by the Aedes aegypti mosquito, which is well-adapted to humans, thrives in people's homes and can breed in even a bottle cap's-worth of stagnant water - not to mention the pools of rain water that lurk in just about every nook and cranny during the muggy summer rain season. While anyone can be bitten by Aedes, public health experts agree that the poor are more vulnerable because they often lack amenities that help diminish the risk, such as air conditioning and window screens.</p>
<p>The only precautionary measure Lourenco could possibly take, long-sleeve clothing, is unworkable in the unrelenting equatorial heat.</p>
<p>Like many of the estimated 400,000 women currently pregnant in Brazil, she can't afford mosquito repellent. Microcephaly fears have sparked a run on repellents, emptying out the stock in many pharmacies in hard-hit areas; where it's still available - often fishing supply stores - it now often costs several times the normal price.</p>
<p>The government has pledged to start providing repellent to low-income women and promises to deploy some 220,000 members of the Armed Forces to help eliminate Aedes' breeding places as part of President Dilma Rousseff's declared war against the insect. But the measures are too little, too late for women whose worries about microcephaly have transformed their pregnancies into a period of unending anguish.</p>
<p>Guadalupe Urquilla, who is pregnant, gives her daughter Alejandra, 2, a mosquito zapper in their home in San Salvador, El Salvador, on Jan. 29. As the Zika virus spreads through the hemisphere, authorities in El Salvador have urged women to put off pregnancy for two years. (Salvador Melendez/The Associated Press)</p>
<p>In the Central American nation of El Salvador, where authorities have urged women to put off pregnancy for two years, Guadalupe Urquilla is struggling to take fate into her own hands.</p>
<p>She's traded her dresses for long pants and closed shoes, scrubs out the family's concrete water tank every three days, and writes San Salvador city officials, demanding that they fumigate the debris-strewn public housing complex where she lives with her husband and 2-year-old daughter.</p>
<p>Urquilla said her husband is believed to have had Zika last fall and her daughter had dengue.</p>
<p>"We're really scared," said Urquilla, who's in her 13th week of pregnancy. "Imagine my baby does not get Zika, but imagine how stressed out it will be when it comes out. The whole pregnancy we're stressed out about mosquitoes. - It's a huge paranoia."</p>
<p>Lourenco, though, is more fatalistic.</p>
<p>"If you have to get sick you will get sick," she said. "It's everywhere."</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>Associated Press writer Christopher Sherman in San Salvador, El Salvador, contributed to this report.</p>
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tainara lourenco stands entrance stilt home hand baby bump slum recife brazil jan 29 unemployed five months pregnant 21yearold lourenco lives slum epicenter brazils tandem zika microcephaly outbreaks state pernambuco felipe danathe associated press rio de janeiro two brazilian women two pregnancies one nightmare two different stories regina de lima tainara lourenco became pregnant scary moment dawn extraordinary zika outbreak authorities came suspect virus causing alarming spike rare birth defect called microcephaly reason fear health unborn offspring similarities end advertisement lima welloff took advantage options affluence lourenco lives slum options except hope best ___ city worker fumigates classroom mosquito eradication effort battle insect blamed spreading virus suspected causing birth defects santa tecla el salvador anyone bitten aedes aegypti mosquito transmits zika dengue chikungunya yellow fever public health experts agree poor vulnerable often lack amenities help diminish risk air conditioning window screens salvador melendezthe associated press lima learned pregnant initial vertiginous rush happiness almost immediately smothered dread lima husband trying start family decided put project hold late november brazilian government announced possible link mosquitoborne zika microcephaly infants born unusually small heads sometimes suffer mental retardation host serious health developmental problems connection zika microcephaly yet understood us centers disease control prevention says strong evidence link 3700 confirmed suspected cases microcephaly registered since october compared fewer 150 cases 2014 brazilian government took drastic step urging wouldbe parents put pregnancies lima audiovisual producer rio de janeiro late already pregnant first trimester thought fetus susceptible zika would coincide rios summer mosquito season first weeks terrifying said lima cried cried advertisement haunted fears may already zika without knowing illness cause fever red splotches skin asymptomatic cases baby would develop microcephaly ultrasounds pick starting seventh month lima growing numbers wealthy brazilian women requested extended vacation work packed bags left europe plans stay least end dicey first trimester sort exile could home husband seeing doctors instead im europe suitcase lima said telephone interview london quickly adding wasnt complaining lucky options able make decisions women situation dont luxury theyre completely mercy fate ___ women wait turn prenatal exams national hospital women san salvador el salvador salvador melendezthe associated press indeed although shes living shoestring crashing friends moving weekly overstay welcome limas peace mind comes price tag would unthinkable vast majority women socially stratified countries airline ticket alone cost several times monthly minimum wage 200 brazils currency historic lows amid economic recession even everyday expenses europe become exorbitant brazilian standards unemployed five months pregnant 21yearold lourenco lives slum epicenter brazils tandem zika microcephaly outbreaks state pernambuco brazils impoverished underdeveloped northeast shack cobbled together bits wood perches stilts giant puddle fetid water eke living 2yearold daughter lourenco ventures nearby swamp hunt crustaceans hawks 250 kilogram think got zika disease long ago said hope doesnt affect baby zika spread aedes aegypti mosquito welladapted humans thrives peoples homes breed even bottle capsworth stagnant water mention pools rain water lurk every nook cranny muggy summer rain season anyone bitten aedes public health experts agree poor vulnerable often lack amenities help diminish risk air conditioning window screens precautionary measure lourenco could possibly take longsleeve clothing unworkable unrelenting equatorial heat like many estimated 400000 women currently pregnant brazil cant afford mosquito repellent microcephaly fears sparked run repellents emptying stock many pharmacies hardhit areas still available often fishing supply stores often costs several times normal price government pledged start providing repellent lowincome women promises deploy 220000 members armed forces help eliminate aedes breeding places part president dilma rousseffs declared war insect measures little late women whose worries microcephaly transformed pregnancies period unending anguish guadalupe urquilla pregnant gives daughter alejandra 2 mosquito zapper home san salvador el salvador jan 29 zika virus spreads hemisphere authorities el salvador urged women put pregnancy two years salvador melendezthe associated press central american nation el salvador authorities urged women put pregnancy two years guadalupe urquilla struggling take fate hands shes traded dresses long pants closed shoes scrubs familys concrete water tank every three days writes san salvador city officials demanding fumigate debrisstrewn public housing complex lives husband 2yearold daughter urquilla said husband believed zika last fall daughter dengue really scared said urquilla whos 13th week pregnancy imagine baby get zika imagine stressed comes whole pregnancy stressed mosquitoes huge paranoia lourenco though fatalistic get sick get sick said everywhere ___ associated press writer christopher sherman san salvador el salvador contributed report
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<p>Bordentown 66, Delran 37</p>
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<p>Burlington Township 52, Northern Burlington 49</p>
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<p>Calvary Christian 48, Foundation Collegiate 41</p>
<p>Camden 54, Camden Catholic 41</p>
<p>Cherokee 51, Washington Township 39</p>
<p>Clayton 102, Pennsville Memorial 66</p>
<p>Clifton 56, Fort Lee 48</p>
<p>Cresskill 67, Hawthorne Christian 48</p>
<p>Cumberland Regional 63, Woodstown 58</p>
<p>Delsea 66, Kingsway 53</p>
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<p>Doane Academy 54, Pemberton 46</p>
<p>Don Bosco Prep 72, St. Joseph-Montvale 50</p>
<p>Dumont 58, Pascack Hills 55</p>
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<p>Eastern 64, Lenape 60</p>
<p>Ewing 68, West Windsor-Plainsboro North 45</p>
<p>Garfield 69, Pompton Lakes 56</p>
<p>Germantown Friends, Pa. 57, Moorestown Friends 55</p>
<p>Gill St. Bernard's 84, Bridgewater-Raritan 60</p>
<p>Golda Och 42, Science Park 39</p>
<p>Hackettstown 47, Vernon 29</p>
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<p>Haddonfield 72, West Deptford 41</p>
<p>Hamilton West 50, Allentown 43</p>
<p>Hawthorne 55, Eastern Christian 40</p>
<p>Hopewell Valley Central 59, Hightstown 54</p>
<p>Howell 78, Freehold Township 61</p>
<p>J.P. Stevens 47, Edison 33</p>
<p>Koinonia Academy 53, Cranford 47</p>
<p>Lincoln 86, Kearny 46</p>
<p>Livingston 66, North 13th Street Tech 50</p>
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<p>Marlboro 54, Freehold 38</p>
<p>Matawan 55, St. John Vianney 54</p>
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<p>Moorestown 61, Rancocas Valley 50</p>
<p>New Providence 56, Oratory Catholic 53</p>
<p>Newark East Side 74, West Side 62</p>
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<p>Passaic Tech 70, Bergen Tech 58</p>
<p>Peddie 68, Pennington 63</p>
<p>People's Prep 64, Marion P. Thomas Charter 61</p>
<p>Perth Amboy 63, South Brunswick 50</p>
<p>Pingry 45, Belvidere 44</p>
<p>Ramapo 51, Indian Hills 28</p>
<p>Ranney School 100, Keyport 34</p>
<p>Ridge 43, Franklin 28</p>
<p>Riverside 58, Maple Shade 38</p>
<p>Roselle Park 46, Brearley 34</p>
<p>Rumson-Fair Haven 55, Holmdel 47</p>
<p>Rutgers Prep 65, Hillsborough 52</p>
<p>Schalick 51, Gloucester Tech 46</p>
<p>Scotch Plains-Fanwood 59, Governor Livingston 42</p>
<p>Seton Hall Prep 63, Montclair 56</p>
<p>Shawnee 75, Winslow 64</p>
<p>Shore Regional 52, Red Bank Regional 46</p>
<p>Southern 64, Toms River East 54</p>
<p>St. Augustine 68, Holy Spirit 42</p>
<p>Teaneck 78, Tenafly 52</p>
<p>Timber Creek 72, Seneca 53</p>
<p>Union Catholic 64, Elizabeth 52</p>
<p>Union City 57, Hoboken 47</p>
<p>University 59, Orange 56</p>
<p>Voorhees 63, Delaware Valley Regional 42</p>
<p>Wallkill Valley 65, Hopatcong 25</p>
<p>Watchung Hills 48, Immaculata 44</p>
<p>West Caldwell Tech 75, Somerset Tech 54</p>
<p>West Milford 85, Passaic Valley 69</p>
<p>Westampton Tech 56, Medford Tech 46</p>
<p>Willingboro 67, Cinnaminson 61</p>
<p>Woodbridge 70, North Brunswick 65</p>
<p>Academy Charter 55, Passaic Charter 45</p>
<p>Bergen Catholic 81, Wayne Valley 65</p>
<p>Bordentown 66, Delran 37</p>
<p>Bound Brook 66, Warren Hills 48</p>
<p>Burlington City 63, Palmyra 32</p>
<p>Burlington Township 52, Northern Burlington 49</p>
<p>Caldwell 42, Newark Academy 40</p>
<p>Calvary Christian 48, Foundation Collegiate 41</p>
<p>Camden 54, Camden Catholic 41</p>
<p>Cherokee 51, Washington Township 39</p>
<p>Clayton 102, Pennsville Memorial 66</p>
<p>Clifton 56, Fort Lee 48</p>
<p>Cresskill 67, Hawthorne Christian 48</p>
<p>Cumberland Regional 63, Woodstown 58</p>
<p>Delsea 66, Kingsway 53</p>
<p>Demarest 45, Old Tappan 29</p>
<p>Doane Academy 54, Pemberton 46</p>
<p>Don Bosco Prep 72, St. Joseph-Montvale 50</p>
<p>Dumont 58, Pascack Hills 55</p>
<p>East Brunswick Tech 62, Wardlaw-Hartridge 42</p>
<p>Eastern 64, Lenape 60</p>
<p>Ewing 68, West Windsor-Plainsboro North 45</p>
<p>Garfield 69, Pompton Lakes 56</p>
<p>Germantown Friends, Pa. 57, Moorestown Friends 55</p>
<p>Gill St. Bernard's 84, Bridgewater-Raritan 60</p>
<p>Golda Och 42, Science Park 39</p>
<p>Hackettstown 47, Vernon 29</p>
<p>Haddon Township 53, Gateway 52</p>
<p>Haddonfield 72, West Deptford 41</p>
<p>Hamilton West 50, Allentown 43</p>
<p>Hawthorne 55, Eastern Christian 40</p>
<p>Hopewell Valley Central 59, Hightstown 54</p>
<p>Howell 78, Freehold Township 61</p>
<p>J.P. Stevens 47, Edison 33</p>
<p>Koinonia Academy 53, Cranford 47</p>
<p>Lincoln 86, Kearny 46</p>
<p>Livingston 66, North 13th Street Tech 50</p>
<p>Lodi 65, Rutherford 64</p>
<p>Long Branch 70, Monmouth 48</p>
<p>Mahwah 49, Cliffside Park 38</p>
<p>Manasquan 80, Wall 58</p>
<p>Marlboro 54, Freehold 38</p>
<p>Matawan 55, St. John Vianney 54</p>
<p>Middlesex 75, South Amboy 29</p>
<p>Middletown South 60, Middletown North 50</p>
<p>Millburn 53, West Essex 29</p>
<p>Millville 66, Cape May Tech 60</p>
<p>Montclair Kimberley 56, Cedar Grove 41</p>
<p>Moorestown 61, Rancocas Valley 50</p>
<p>New Providence 56, Oratory Catholic 53</p>
<p>Newark East Side 74, West Side 62</p>
<p>North Hunterdon 63, Montgomery 39</p>
<p>Nottingham 95, Steinert 37</p>
<p>Ocean Township 52, Red Bank Catholic 45</p>
<p>Old Bridge 68, Iselin Kennedy 31</p>
<p>Paramus Catholic 61, Lakeland 46</p>
<p>Parsippany Christian 42, Veritas Christian Academy 30</p>
<p>Passaic Tech 70, Bergen Tech 58</p>
<p>Peddie 68, Pennington 63</p>
<p>People's Prep 64, Marion P. Thomas Charter 61</p>
<p>Perth Amboy 63, South Brunswick 50</p>
<p>Pingry 45, Belvidere 44</p>
<p>Ramapo 51, Indian Hills 28</p>
<p>Ranney School 100, Keyport 34</p>
<p>Ridge 43, Franklin 28</p>
<p>Riverside 58, Maple Shade 38</p>
<p>Roselle Park 46, Brearley 34</p>
<p>Rumson-Fair Haven 55, Holmdel 47</p>
<p>Rutgers Prep 65, Hillsborough 52</p>
<p>Schalick 51, Gloucester Tech 46</p>
<p>Scotch Plains-Fanwood 59, Governor Livingston 42</p>
<p>Seton Hall Prep 63, Montclair 56</p>
<p>Shawnee 75, Winslow 64</p>
<p>Shore Regional 52, Red Bank Regional 46</p>
<p>Southern 64, Toms River East 54</p>
<p>St. Augustine 68, Holy Spirit 42</p>
<p>Teaneck 78, Tenafly 52</p>
<p>Timber Creek 72, Seneca 53</p>
<p>Union Catholic 64, Elizabeth 52</p>
<p>Union City 57, Hoboken 47</p>
<p>University 59, Orange 56</p>
<p>Voorhees 63, Delaware Valley Regional 42</p>
<p>Wallkill Valley 65, Hopatcong 25</p>
<p>Watchung Hills 48, Immaculata 44</p>
<p>West Caldwell Tech 75, Somerset Tech 54</p>
<p>West Milford 85, Passaic Valley 69</p>
<p>Westampton Tech 56, Medford Tech 46</p>
<p>Willingboro 67, Cinnaminson 61</p>
<p>Woodbridge 70, North Brunswick 65</p>
| false | 2 |
academy charter 55 passaic charter 45 bergen catholic 81 wayne valley 65 bordentown 66 delran 37 bound brook 66 warren hills 48 burlington city 63 palmyra 32 burlington township 52 northern burlington 49 caldwell 42 newark academy 40 calvary christian 48 foundation collegiate 41 camden 54 camden catholic 41 cherokee 51 washington township 39 clayton 102 pennsville memorial 66 clifton 56 fort lee 48 cresskill 67 hawthorne christian 48 cumberland regional 63 woodstown 58 delsea 66 kingsway 53 demarest 45 old tappan 29 doane academy 54 pemberton 46 bosco prep 72 st josephmontvale 50 dumont 58 pascack hills 55 east brunswick tech 62 wardlawhartridge 42 eastern 64 lenape 60 ewing 68 west windsorplainsboro north 45 garfield 69 pompton lakes 56 germantown friends pa 57 moorestown friends 55 gill st bernards 84 bridgewaterraritan 60 golda och 42 science park 39 hackettstown 47 vernon 29 haddon township 53 gateway 52 haddonfield 72 west deptford 41 hamilton west 50 allentown 43 hawthorne 55 eastern christian 40 hopewell valley central 59 hightstown 54 howell 78 freehold township 61 jp stevens 47 edison 33 koinonia academy 53 cranford 47 lincoln 86 kearny 46 livingston 66 north 13th street tech 50 lodi 65 rutherford 64 long branch 70 monmouth 48 mahwah 49 cliffside park 38 manasquan 80 wall 58 marlboro 54 freehold 38 matawan 55 st john vianney 54 middlesex 75 south amboy 29 middletown south 60 middletown north 50 millburn 53 west essex 29 millville 66 cape may tech 60 montclair kimberley 56 cedar grove 41 moorestown 61 rancocas valley 50 new providence 56 oratory catholic 53 newark east side 74 west side 62 north hunterdon 63 montgomery 39 nottingham 95 steinert 37 ocean township 52 red bank catholic 45 old bridge 68 iselin kennedy 31 paramus catholic 61 lakeland 46 parsippany christian 42 veritas christian academy 30 passaic tech 70 bergen tech 58 peddie 68 pennington 63 peoples prep 64 marion p thomas charter 61 perth amboy 63 south brunswick 50 pingry 45 belvidere 44 ramapo 51 indian hills 28 ranney school 100 keyport 34 ridge 43 franklin 28 riverside 58 maple shade 38 roselle park 46 brearley 34 rumsonfair 55 holmdel 47 rutgers prep 65 hillsborough 52 schalick 51 gloucester tech 46 scotch plainsfanwood 59 governor livingston 42 seton hall prep 63 montclair 56 shawnee 75 winslow 64 shore regional 52 red bank regional 46 southern 64 toms river east 54 st augustine 68 holy spirit 42 teaneck 78 tenafly 52 timber creek 72 seneca 53 union catholic 64 elizabeth 52 union city 57 hoboken 47 university 59 orange 56 voorhees 63 delaware valley regional 42 wallkill valley 65 hopatcong 25 watchung hills 48 immaculata 44 west caldwell tech 75 somerset tech 54 west milford 85 passaic valley 69 westampton tech 56 medford tech 46 willingboro 67 cinnaminson 61 woodbridge 70 north brunswick 65 academy charter 55 passaic charter 45 bergen catholic 81 wayne valley 65 bordentown 66 delran 37 bound brook 66 warren hills 48 burlington city 63 palmyra 32 burlington township 52 northern burlington 49 caldwell 42 newark academy 40 calvary christian 48 foundation collegiate 41 camden 54 camden catholic 41 cherokee 51 washington township 39 clayton 102 pennsville memorial 66 clifton 56 fort lee 48 cresskill 67 hawthorne christian 48 cumberland regional 63 woodstown 58 delsea 66 kingsway 53 demarest 45 old tappan 29 doane academy 54 pemberton 46 bosco prep 72 st josephmontvale 50 dumont 58 pascack hills 55 east brunswick tech 62 wardlawhartridge 42 eastern 64 lenape 60 ewing 68 west windsorplainsboro north 45 garfield 69 pompton lakes 56 germantown friends pa 57 moorestown friends 55 gill st bernards 84 bridgewaterraritan 60 golda och 42 science park 39 hackettstown 47 vernon 29 haddon township 53 gateway 52 haddonfield 72 west deptford 41 hamilton west 50 allentown 43 hawthorne 55 eastern christian 40 hopewell valley central 59 hightstown 54 howell 78 freehold township 61 jp stevens 47 edison 33 koinonia academy 53 cranford 47 lincoln 86 kearny 46 livingston 66 north 13th street tech 50 lodi 65 rutherford 64 long branch 70 monmouth 48 mahwah 49 cliffside park 38 manasquan 80 wall 58 marlboro 54 freehold 38 matawan 55 st john vianney 54 middlesex 75 south amboy 29 middletown south 60 middletown north 50 millburn 53 west essex 29 millville 66 cape may tech 60 montclair kimberley 56 cedar grove 41 moorestown 61 rancocas valley 50 new providence 56 oratory catholic 53 newark east side 74 west side 62 north hunterdon 63 montgomery 39 nottingham 95 steinert 37 ocean township 52 red bank catholic 45 old bridge 68 iselin kennedy 31 paramus catholic 61 lakeland 46 parsippany christian 42 veritas christian academy 30 passaic tech 70 bergen tech 58 peddie 68 pennington 63 peoples prep 64 marion p thomas charter 61 perth amboy 63 south brunswick 50 pingry 45 belvidere 44 ramapo 51 indian hills 28 ranney school 100 keyport 34 ridge 43 franklin 28 riverside 58 maple shade 38 roselle park 46 brearley 34 rumsonfair 55 holmdel 47 rutgers prep 65 hillsborough 52 schalick 51 gloucester tech 46 scotch plainsfanwood 59 governor livingston 42 seton hall prep 63 montclair 56 shawnee 75 winslow 64 shore regional 52 red bank regional 46 southern 64 toms river east 54 st augustine 68 holy spirit 42 teaneck 78 tenafly 52 timber creek 72 seneca 53 union catholic 64 elizabeth 52 union city 57 hoboken 47 university 59 orange 56 voorhees 63 delaware valley regional 42 wallkill valley 65 hopatcong 25 watchung hills 48 immaculata 44 west caldwell tech 75 somerset tech 54 west milford 85 passaic valley 69 westampton tech 56 medford tech 46 willingboro 67 cinnaminson 61 woodbridge 70 north brunswick 65
| 942 |
<p>LAMPE, Mo. (AP) - A lawsuit filed on behalf of three former residents of a southwest Missouri ranch for troubled boys accuses the Christian residential facility of covering up allegations of rapes and sexual assaults.</p>
<p>The lawsuit, filed in October and detailed Thursday in <a href="http://www.news-leader.com/story/news/crime/2018/01/03/boys-ranch-had-history-runaways-sexual-assaults-before-teens-killed-cou-2013-murders-committed-nearb/758751001/" type="external">the Springfield News-Leader</a> , alleges that in 2009 and 2010, some older boys sexually assaulted younger boys at the Lives Under Construction rehabilitation camp in Lampe, near the Arkansas border. The lawsuit says the ranch ignored the abuse, delayed contacting authorities and even punished some boys for reporting it.</p>
<p>The ranch's founder, 69-year-old Ken Ortman, denies the allegations and says state investigators have never found a substantiated claim of neglect or abuse.</p>
<p>"It's trying, because you work to do the best you can and develop a good reputation," Ortman said.</p>
<p>It's not the first time the ranch has faced scrutiny. Two teens who ran away from the ranch in 2013 pleaded guilty to killing an elderly couple at a home nearby. Lawsuits filed over the deaths of Paul and Margaret Brooks said ranch staff members were unqualified and advice from state officials was ignored. The two teens are serving life prison sentences in the deaths of the Baldwin, Michigan, couple.</p>
<p>Ortman was a dairy farmer in South Dakota three decades ago when he said he felt called by God to open the ranch. Today, it has barns, livestock, machine shops and a small schoolhouse. Some boys are sent there by their parents, others by courts. Tax records show that most of the annual $1 million in ranch revenue comes from donations and grants.</p>
<p>As of October, 18 boys lived there, attending Bible study and learning trades. If they break rules, they shovel manure. Psychiatric medications are not allowed. Ortman said hundreds of troubled boys have benefited from their time at the ranch.</p>
<p>Records of sexual abuse, if they exist, are sealed in Missouri's juvenile court. The News-Leader has asked a judge to unseal records related to the ranch. The lawsuit filed in October cites a "culture of pervasive sexual assault."</p>
<p>The newspaper did obtain internal ranch documents that include investigative reports after a 9-year-old boy was raped by his 19-year-old roommate in 2009. The Missouri Department of Social Services said ranch staff members were aware of the allegations but did not immediately contact authorities, according to those records.</p>
<p>The lawsuit said that when an employee eventually made a hotline call, the staffer was fired in retaliation. The ranch denies that allegation.</p>
<p>The newspaper cited an email in which Ortman wrote that he believed juvenile officers had a "vendetta" against the ranch.</p>
<p>Ranch board meeting minutes after the 2009 investigation showed that David Sater, a Republican who at the time was chairman of the state House Appropriations Committee, met with four officials at the Department of Social Services. Sater determined the agency overstepped its boundaries.</p>
<p>"At the end of the conversation all four became very cooperative and decided to stop the investigation. This was an answer to our prayer," the board secretary wrote in the meeting minutes.</p>
<p>Sater, now a state senator, confirmed that he met with agency officials after being told the ranch was being "harassed," but he did not recall encouraging anyone to stop an investigation.</p>
<p>A state investigator who worked on the case declined comment.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>Information from: Springfield News-Leader, <a href="http://www.news-leader.com" type="external">http://www.news-leader.com</a></p>
<p>LAMPE, Mo. (AP) - A lawsuit filed on behalf of three former residents of a southwest Missouri ranch for troubled boys accuses the Christian residential facility of covering up allegations of rapes and sexual assaults.</p>
<p>The lawsuit, filed in October and detailed Thursday in <a href="http://www.news-leader.com/story/news/crime/2018/01/03/boys-ranch-had-history-runaways-sexual-assaults-before-teens-killed-cou-2013-murders-committed-nearb/758751001/" type="external">the Springfield News-Leader</a> , alleges that in 2009 and 2010, some older boys sexually assaulted younger boys at the Lives Under Construction rehabilitation camp in Lampe, near the Arkansas border. The lawsuit says the ranch ignored the abuse, delayed contacting authorities and even punished some boys for reporting it.</p>
<p>The ranch's founder, 69-year-old Ken Ortman, denies the allegations and says state investigators have never found a substantiated claim of neglect or abuse.</p>
<p>"It's trying, because you work to do the best you can and develop a good reputation," Ortman said.</p>
<p>It's not the first time the ranch has faced scrutiny. Two teens who ran away from the ranch in 2013 pleaded guilty to killing an elderly couple at a home nearby. Lawsuits filed over the deaths of Paul and Margaret Brooks said ranch staff members were unqualified and advice from state officials was ignored. The two teens are serving life prison sentences in the deaths of the Baldwin, Michigan, couple.</p>
<p>Ortman was a dairy farmer in South Dakota three decades ago when he said he felt called by God to open the ranch. Today, it has barns, livestock, machine shops and a small schoolhouse. Some boys are sent there by their parents, others by courts. Tax records show that most of the annual $1 million in ranch revenue comes from donations and grants.</p>
<p>As of October, 18 boys lived there, attending Bible study and learning trades. If they break rules, they shovel manure. Psychiatric medications are not allowed. Ortman said hundreds of troubled boys have benefited from their time at the ranch.</p>
<p>Records of sexual abuse, if they exist, are sealed in Missouri's juvenile court. The News-Leader has asked a judge to unseal records related to the ranch. The lawsuit filed in October cites a "culture of pervasive sexual assault."</p>
<p>The newspaper did obtain internal ranch documents that include investigative reports after a 9-year-old boy was raped by his 19-year-old roommate in 2009. The Missouri Department of Social Services said ranch staff members were aware of the allegations but did not immediately contact authorities, according to those records.</p>
<p>The lawsuit said that when an employee eventually made a hotline call, the staffer was fired in retaliation. The ranch denies that allegation.</p>
<p>The newspaper cited an email in which Ortman wrote that he believed juvenile officers had a "vendetta" against the ranch.</p>
<p>Ranch board meeting minutes after the 2009 investigation showed that David Sater, a Republican who at the time was chairman of the state House Appropriations Committee, met with four officials at the Department of Social Services. Sater determined the agency overstepped its boundaries.</p>
<p>"At the end of the conversation all four became very cooperative and decided to stop the investigation. This was an answer to our prayer," the board secretary wrote in the meeting minutes.</p>
<p>Sater, now a state senator, confirmed that he met with agency officials after being told the ranch was being "harassed," but he did not recall encouraging anyone to stop an investigation.</p>
<p>A state investigator who worked on the case declined comment.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>Information from: Springfield News-Leader, <a href="http://www.news-leader.com" type="external">http://www.news-leader.com</a></p>
| false | 2 |
lampe mo ap lawsuit filed behalf three former residents southwest missouri ranch troubled boys accuses christian residential facility covering allegations rapes sexual assaults lawsuit filed october detailed thursday springfield newsleader alleges 2009 2010 older boys sexually assaulted younger boys lives construction rehabilitation camp lampe near arkansas border lawsuit says ranch ignored abuse delayed contacting authorities even punished boys reporting ranchs founder 69yearold ken ortman denies allegations says state investigators never found substantiated claim neglect abuse trying work best develop good reputation ortman said first time ranch faced scrutiny two teens ran away ranch 2013 pleaded guilty killing elderly couple home nearby lawsuits filed deaths paul margaret brooks said ranch staff members unqualified advice state officials ignored two teens serving life prison sentences deaths baldwin michigan couple ortman dairy farmer south dakota three decades ago said felt called god open ranch today barns livestock machine shops small schoolhouse boys sent parents others courts tax records show annual 1 million ranch revenue comes donations grants october 18 boys lived attending bible study learning trades break rules shovel manure psychiatric medications allowed ortman said hundreds troubled boys benefited time ranch records sexual abuse exist sealed missouris juvenile court newsleader asked judge unseal records related ranch lawsuit filed october cites culture pervasive sexual assault newspaper obtain internal ranch documents include investigative reports 9yearold boy raped 19yearold roommate 2009 missouri department social services said ranch staff members aware allegations immediately contact authorities according records lawsuit said employee eventually made hotline call staffer fired retaliation ranch denies allegation newspaper cited email ortman wrote believed juvenile officers vendetta ranch ranch board meeting minutes 2009 investigation showed david sater republican time chairman state house appropriations committee met four officials department social services sater determined agency overstepped boundaries end conversation four became cooperative decided stop investigation answer prayer board secretary wrote meeting minutes sater state senator confirmed met agency officials told ranch harassed recall encouraging anyone stop investigation state investigator worked case declined comment ___ information springfield newsleader httpwwwnewsleadercom lampe mo ap lawsuit filed behalf three former residents southwest missouri ranch troubled boys accuses christian residential facility covering allegations rapes sexual assaults lawsuit filed october detailed thursday springfield newsleader alleges 2009 2010 older boys sexually assaulted younger boys lives construction rehabilitation camp lampe near arkansas border lawsuit says ranch ignored abuse delayed contacting authorities even punished boys reporting ranchs founder 69yearold ken ortman denies allegations says state investigators never found substantiated claim neglect abuse trying work best develop good reputation ortman said first time ranch faced scrutiny two teens ran away ranch 2013 pleaded guilty killing elderly couple home nearby lawsuits filed deaths paul margaret brooks said ranch staff members unqualified advice state officials ignored two teens serving life prison sentences deaths baldwin michigan couple ortman dairy farmer south dakota three decades ago said felt called god open ranch today barns livestock machine shops small schoolhouse boys sent parents others courts tax records show annual 1 million ranch revenue comes donations grants october 18 boys lived attending bible study learning trades break rules shovel manure psychiatric medications allowed ortman said hundreds troubled boys benefited time ranch records sexual abuse exist sealed missouris juvenile court newsleader asked judge unseal records related ranch lawsuit filed october cites culture pervasive sexual assault newspaper obtain internal ranch documents include investigative reports 9yearold boy raped 19yearold roommate 2009 missouri department social services said ranch staff members aware allegations immediately contact authorities according records lawsuit said employee eventually made hotline call staffer fired retaliation ranch denies allegation newspaper cited email ortman wrote believed juvenile officers vendetta ranch ranch board meeting minutes 2009 investigation showed david sater republican time chairman state house appropriations committee met four officials department social services sater determined agency overstepped boundaries end conversation four became cooperative decided stop investigation answer prayer board secretary wrote meeting minutes sater state senator confirmed met agency officials told ranch harassed recall encouraging anyone stop investigation state investigator worked case declined comment ___ information springfield newsleader httpwwwnewsleadercom
| 660 |
<p>LONDON (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - Support for victims of modern slavery should be enshrined in law to bolster piecemeal care that leaves survivors open to abuse and repeat trafficking, British charities said on Wednesday.</p>
<p>People who say they have been enslaved can enter the National Referral Mechanism (NRM) and access counseling, housing and legal aid while the government decides whether to recognize them as victims.</p>
<p>Yet those who are identified as victims then have no guarantee of further help, and campaigners say this leaves charities scrambling to ward off the knock-on risk of homelessness, destitution or fresh exploitation.</p>
<p>A proposed law - put forward by parliament’s unelected upper chamber - would allow such survivors to remain in Britain for a year and receive a support package while deciding whether to apply to remain indefinitely, or accept help to return home.</p>
<p>“People need a meaningful recovery period to give them the chance to rebuild their lives and decide what to do next,” Kate Roberts of the Human Trafficking Foundation said at the launch of a campaign at parliament backing the private members’ bill.</p>
<p>The 2015 Modern Slavery Act has been lauded as a milestone in the global anti-slavery fight for introducing life sentences for traffickers, forcing firms to check their supply chains for forced labor, and protecting people at risk of being enslaved.</p>
<p>Yet it does not specify a period or standard of care for people who claim to be slavery victims, critics say.</p>
<p>Victims risk getting mediocre aid because the Home Office (interior ministry) does not monitor the support provided to people in safe houses while they await a decision on their future, a government watchdog said last month.</p>
<p>The government in October announced an overhaul of the way it handles potential victims, with a raft of changes including extra shelter and support, and drop-in services.</p>
<p>Yet these reforms do not go far enough, highlighting the need for care to be backed by a law, anti-slavery groups say.</p>
<p>“We see so many cases where survivors’ lives fall apart as the quality of care they get is so sub-standard,” Jakub Sobik of Anti-Slavery International told the Thomson Reuters Foundation.</p>
<p>At least 13,000 people are estimated by the government to be victims of forced labor, sexual exploitation and domestic servitude - but police say the figure is the tip of the iceberg.</p>
<p>Reporting By Kieran Guilbert, Editing by Lyndsay Griffiths.; Please credit the Thomson Reuters Foundation, the charitable arm of Thomson Reuters, that covers humanitarian news, women's rights, trafficking, property rights, climate change and resilience. Visit <a href="http://news.trust.org" type="external">news.trust.org</a></p> Our Standards:
<a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a>
<p>BEIJING (Reuters) - China will continue to adopt a proactive fiscal policy and prudent and neutral monetary policy, the country’s former central bank governor said during the meeting of the Group of 20 finance ministers and central banks.</p> Zhou Xiaochuan attends a news conference on the sidelines of China's National People's Congress (NPC) in Beijing, China March 9, 2018. REUTERS/Aly Song
<p>The People’s Bank of China (PBOC) published a statement on Wednesday carrying the remarks by Zhou Xiaochuan, who attended the G20 meetings in Argentina. China’s parliament on Monday appointed Yi Gang, who had been serving as a PBOC vice governor, to replace Zhou.</p>
<p>The PBOC’s statement on Wednesday still referred to Zhou as the central bank’s governor.</p>
<p>Reporting by Beijing Monitoring Desk; Editing by Sam Holmes</p> Our Standards:
<a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a>
<p>AUSTIN/SCHERTZ, Texas (Reuters) - The series of parcel bombs in Texas that have killed two people and put residents on edge escalated on Tuesday with two more incidents, a bomb that exploded at a FedEx distribution center near San Antonio and one that was discovered before it detonated.</p>
<p>A third explosion Tuesday evening in Austin was not a package bomb and officials said it did not appear to be related to the other incidents.</p>
<p>The latest cluster of booby-trapped packages brought to six the number of explosive devices - five that detonated - that have come under investigation in Texas this month as the work of a possible serial bomber.</p>
<p>Baffled investigators have taken the extraordinary step of making public appeals asking that whoever is responsible to at least come forward with a demand or an explanation.</p>
<p>Early on Tuesday, a package filled with nails and metal shrapnel exploded at about 12:30 a.m. on a conveyer belt at FedEx sorting center in Schertz, near San Antonio, knocking a female employee off her feet, officials said. The package was being sent from Austin to another address in Austin and passed through a sorting center in Schertz, about 65 miles (105 km) away.</p>
<p>Authorities said the worker was treated for her injuries at the scene.</p> Law enforcement personnel are seen gathering evidence outside a FedEx Store which was closed for investigation, in Austin, Texas, U.S., March 20, 2018. REUTERS/Sergio Flores
<p>Later in the morning, authorities were alerted to a suspicious package at a FedEx facility in Austin. Police and federal agents called to the scene found the package contained a bomb and it “was disrupted by law enforcement,” according to a joint statement from Austin police, the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF).</p>
<p>No injuries were reported, the statement said.</p> Slideshow (18 Images)
<p>The three agencies said investigators had determined that the two FedEx bombs “are connected” to the four package explosions that occurred between March 2 and March 18 in Austin, killing two people and injuring four others.</p>
<p>But officials with the ATF said the incident Tuesday evening in south Austin, which seriously injured a man in his 20s, “does not appear to be related” to the previous incidents. Local emergency services officials said the victim is expected to survive.</p> Related Coverage
<a href="/article/us-texas-blast-fedex/fedex-to-scan-every-parcel-at-two-texas-facilities-after-blast-idUSKBN1GX03B" type="external">FedEx to scan every parcel at two Texas facilities after blast</a>
<a href="/article/us-texas-blast-changes/serial-bombings-put-texas-capital-on-edge-idUSKBN1GW35O" type="external">Serial bombings put Texas capital on edge</a>
<a href="/article/us-texas-blast-whitehouse/no-known-link-to-terrorism-in-texas-bombings-white-house-idUSKBN1GW293" type="external">No known link to terrorism in Texas bombings: White House</a>
<p>Speaking through the media, officials have appealed to the bomber to reveal the motives for the attacks. They have also asked the public for any tips, offering a $115,000 reward.</p>
<p>“Somebody has to know something,” FBI spokeswoman Christina Garza said. “The person behind these explosives, please, we want to know why.”</p>
<p>“This is obviously a very, very sick individual, or maybe individuals,” President Donald Trump told reporters. “These are sick people, and we will get to the bottom of it.”</p>
<p>Additional reporting by Brendan O'Brien in Milwaukee, Mark Hosenball and Lisa Lambert in Washington, Andrew Hay and Eric Johnson; Writing by Daniel Trotta and Rosalba O'Brien; Editing by Tom Brown and Leslie Adler</p> Our Standards:
<a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a>
<p>(Reuters) - Hunkered down in an “active shooter” lockdown at her Maryland high school, Mollie Davis exchanged tweets with Parkland, Florida, students on Tuesday, less than a week after all of them led walkouts to demand Congress enact gun safety laws.</p> Law enforcement vehicles are seen outside the Great Mills High School following a shooting on Tuesday morning in St. Mary's County, Maryland, U.S., March 20, 2018. REUTERS/Sait Serkan Gurbuz
<p>Two students were wounded, and the student shooter died after exchanging gunfire with a campus security officer at Great Mills High School in Maryland, the county sheriff said.</p>
<p>Davis’ first tweet about the shooting quickly prompted tweets of encouragement from Florida students who survived a Feb. 14 massacre at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, where 17 students and staff were shot dead.</p>
<p>“Hi Twitter. I am in Great Mills HS. My school is on a very real lockdown threat and there’s already someone possibly dead. Please pray for us,” she posted on Twitter around 8 a.m.</p>
<p>Almost immediately, Davis was embraced by Florida shooting survivor Delaney Tarr, a student who has since told lawmakers they will be voted out of office if they fail to pass gun safety measures.</p>
<p>“I am so, so, sorry. Be safe. Be strong. We love you,” @delaneytarr tweeted.</p>
<p>Moments later, Davis re-tweeted a video of Great Mills students joining last week’s national school walkout to urge stronger gun control laws following the Parkland killings, saying the Florida students’ activism inspired her to spearhead the action.</p>
<p>“Made this video 5 days ago. Now my school is the target. WHY DO WE LET THIS KEEP HAPPENING??? I’m so tired I’m so tired,” she tweeted.</p>
<p>Her original tweet on the day of the walkout last week said, “It crushes me that this hasn’t ended yet, but today left me feeling more empowered than anything.”</p>
<p>On Tuesday, as Great Mills remained in lockdown, Davis received more heartening tweets from other Florida high school leaders, including student survivor Emma Gonzalez. Gonzalez’s essays and speeches denouncing what she has characterized as congressional lack of action in the face of the politically powerful gun lobby have made her an internet sensation.</p>
<p>Gonzalez tweeted before 9 a.m., “We are Here for you, students of Great Mills (heart symbol) together we can stop this from ever happening again.”</p>
<p>As authorities secured the scene in Maryland, Davis tweeted back: “@Emma4Change I absolutely adore you Emma and seeing you like my tweet made me smile. Thank you for everything you do.”</p>
<p>Reporting by Barbara Goldberg in New York; Editing by Frank McGurty and Jonathan Oatis</p> Our Standards:
<a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a>
<p>GREAT MILLS, Md. (Reuters) - A 17-year-old boy opened fire at a Maryland high school on Tuesday in an attack that left two fellow students wounded, then died after a gunfight with a police officer posted there, amid a renewed national debate over gun violence in schools.</p>
<p>The shooting in St. Mary’s County, about 70 miles (113 km)south of Washington, came five weeks after a high school massacre in Florida and just days before a planned student-led march in the U.S. capital for tougher gun laws.</p>
<p>The latest bloodshed erupted shortly before 8 a.m. at Great Mills High School and lasted less than a minute, county Sheriff Timothy Cameron said, but the precise sequence of events was still being sorted out hours later.</p>
<p>A 16-year-old girl was in intensive care with life-threatening wounds, Cameron told a news conference. A 14-year-old boy also struck by gunfire was listed in good condition at a hospital.</p>
<p>The gunman was identified as Austin Wyatt Rollins, and Cameron said there was “an indication” the teenager had a prior relationship with the female student, although that was still under investigation.</p>
<p>The sheriff initially told reporters Rollins shot both victims with a handgun, but then said in response to questions that investigators were still uncertain who fired the shot that hit the 14-year-old.</p>
<p>Cameron also said it was not clear whether Rollins died after being shot by sheriff’s Deputy 1st Class Blaine Gaskill, who was assigned as the Great Mills school resource officer, or from self-inflicted gunfire.</p>
<p>The latest in a long string of deadly shootings at U.S. schools and colleges occurred little more than a month after 14 students and three faculty members were fatally shot on Feb. 14 at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida. The accused gunman, a 19-year-old former student expelled from the school for disciplinary reasons last year, was arrested and charged with 17 counts of murder.</p>
<p>That massacre sparked a student movement against gun violence, including a national school walkout last week that included some Great Mills students. A march in Washington by gun control activists is set for Saturday.</p>
<p>“We recently had a protest about school violence last week, and now this has happened,” said Kameron Norwood, 16, as he and other students waited for relatives to pick them up from a nearby high school.</p>
<p>Cameron said Rollins pulled out a Glock semiautomatic pistol in a hallway of the school and opened fire.</p> Frank Lanham (2nd R), a teacher at Great Mills High School leaves Leonardtown High School in Leonardtown, Maryland, U.S., March 20, 2018. Great Mills students and parents reunited at Lenoardtown after the shooting at their school. REUTERS/Sait Serkan Gurbuz
<p>The attack ended after Gaskill ran inside and confronted Rollins, with each firing a single shot almost simultaneously.</p>
<p>The officer was not harmed, Cameron said. Rollins was confirmed dead nearly three hours later at a hospital.</p>
<p>Rollins’ Facebook page showed he was a fan of the Dallas Cowboys football team and NASCAR auto racing, and he appeared several times on the school’s honor and merit rolls for good grades that were published in a local newspaper.</p> Slideshow (12 Images) ‘WE NEED MORE THAN PRAYERS’
<p>If authorities confirm Gaskill fired the fatal shot, it may be the only known instance in which a school resource officer, or SRO, typically a law enforcement member assigned to a school, killed a student gunman during a shooting.</p>
<p>In 2001, an officer shot and wounded an 18-year-old student who wounded two teachers and three other students with a shotgun at Granite Hills High School in El Cajon, California, according to the National Association of School Resource Officers.</p>
<p>An armed school resource officer had been on the Stoneman Douglas campus, and was criticized for failing to stop that gunman, who had an AR-15 assault-style rifle. The officer, who later resigned, said he had not been sure whether the gunfire was coming from inside or outside the school.</p> Related Coverage
<a href="/article/us-maryland-shooting-students/maryland-lockdown-pulls-florida-students-into-twitter-storm-be-strong-idUSKBN1GW2OY" type="external">Maryland lockdown pulls Florida students into Twitter storm: 'Be strong'</a>
<p>President Donald Trump and the National Rifle Association have proposed arming some teachers, while gun safety advocates have demanded a ban on semiautomatic rifles, among other restrictions.</p>
<p>Maryland’s two Democratic U.S. senators, Chris Van Hollen and Ben Cardin, called on Congress on Tuesday to pass gun safety legislation, where such measures have stalled for years.</p>
<p>The state’s Republican governor, Larry Hogan, said his thoughts and prayers were with the victims, but added: “We need more than prayers.”</p>
<p>After the Parkland shooting, Hogan proposed spending $125 million to enhance school security, including panic buttons and metal detectors, and vowed to provide an additional $50 million to hire school resource officers and counselors.</p>
<p>Additional reporting by Jonathan Allen, Gina Cherelus, Elizabeth Dilts and Sheila Dang in New York; Writing by Joseph Ax; Editing by Jonathan Oatis and Peter Cooney</p> Our Standards:
<a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a>
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london thomson reuters foundation support victims modern slavery enshrined law bolster piecemeal care leaves survivors open abuse repeat trafficking british charities said wednesday people say enslaved enter national referral mechanism nrm access counseling housing legal aid government decides whether recognize victims yet identified victims guarantee help campaigners say leaves charities scrambling ward knockon risk homelessness destitution fresh exploitation proposed law put forward parliaments unelected upper chamber would allow survivors remain britain year receive support package deciding whether apply remain indefinitely accept help return home people need meaningful recovery period give chance rebuild lives decide next kate roberts human trafficking foundation said launch campaign parliament backing private members bill 2015 modern slavery act lauded milestone global antislavery fight introducing life sentences traffickers forcing firms check supply chains forced labor protecting people risk enslaved yet specify period standard care people claim slavery victims critics say victims risk getting mediocre aid home office interior ministry monitor support provided people safe houses await decision future government watchdog said last month government october announced overhaul way handles potential victims raft changes including extra shelter support dropin services yet reforms go far enough highlighting need care backed law antislavery groups say see many cases survivors lives fall apart quality care get substandard jakub sobik antislavery international told thomson reuters foundation least 13000 people estimated government victims forced labor sexual exploitation domestic servitude police say figure tip iceberg reporting kieran guilbert editing lyndsay griffiths please credit thomson reuters foundation charitable arm thomson reuters covers humanitarian news womens rights trafficking property rights climate change resilience visit newstrustorg standards thomson reuters trust principles beijing reuters china continue adopt proactive fiscal policy prudent neutral monetary policy countrys former central bank governor said meeting group 20 finance ministers central banks zhou xiaochuan attends news conference sidelines chinas national peoples congress npc beijing china march 9 2018 reutersaly song peoples bank china pboc published statement wednesday carrying remarks zhou xiaochuan attended g20 meetings argentina chinas parliament monday appointed yi gang serving pboc vice governor replace zhou pbocs statement wednesday still referred zhou central banks governor reporting beijing monitoring desk editing sam holmes standards thomson reuters trust principles austinschertz texas reuters series parcel bombs texas killed two people put residents edge escalated tuesday two incidents bomb exploded fedex distribution center near san antonio one discovered detonated third explosion tuesday evening austin package bomb officials said appear related incidents latest cluster boobytrapped packages brought six number explosive devices five detonated come investigation texas month work possible serial bomber baffled investigators taken extraordinary step making public appeals asking whoever responsible least come forward demand explanation early tuesday package filled nails metal shrapnel exploded 1230 conveyer belt fedex sorting center schertz near san antonio knocking female employee feet officials said package sent austin another address austin passed sorting center schertz 65 miles 105 km away authorities said worker treated injuries scene law enforcement personnel seen gathering evidence outside fedex store closed investigation austin texas us march 20 2018 reuterssergio flores later morning authorities alerted suspicious package fedex facility austin police federal agents called scene found package contained bomb disrupted law enforcement according joint statement austin police federal bureau investigation us bureau alcohol tobacco firearms explosives atf injuries reported statement said slideshow 18 images three agencies said investigators determined two fedex bombs connected four package explosions occurred march 2 march 18 austin killing two people injuring four others officials atf said incident tuesday evening south austin seriously injured man 20s appear related previous incidents local emergency services officials said victim expected survive related coverage fedex scan every parcel two texas facilities blast serial bombings put texas capital edge known link terrorism texas bombings white house speaking media officials appealed bomber reveal motives attacks also asked public tips offering 115000 reward somebody know something fbi spokeswoman christina garza said person behind explosives please want know obviously sick individual maybe individuals president donald trump told reporters sick people get bottom additional reporting brendan obrien milwaukee mark hosenball lisa lambert washington andrew hay eric johnson writing daniel trotta rosalba obrien editing tom brown leslie adler standards thomson reuters trust principles reuters hunkered active shooter lockdown maryland high school mollie davis exchanged tweets parkland florida students tuesday less week led walkouts demand congress enact gun safety laws law enforcement vehicles seen outside great mills high school following shooting tuesday morning st marys county maryland us march 20 2018 reuterssait serkan gurbuz two students wounded student shooter died exchanging gunfire campus security officer great mills high school maryland county sheriff said davis first tweet shooting quickly prompted tweets encouragement florida students survived feb 14 massacre marjory stoneman douglas high school 17 students staff shot dead hi twitter great mills hs school real lockdown threat theres already someone possibly dead please pray us posted twitter around 8 almost immediately davis embraced florida shooting survivor delaney tarr student since told lawmakers voted office fail pass gun safety measures sorry safe strong love delaneytarr tweeted moments later davis retweeted video great mills students joining last weeks national school walkout urge stronger gun control laws following parkland killings saying florida students activism inspired spearhead action made video 5 days ago school target let keep happening im tired im tired tweeted original tweet day walkout last week said crushes hasnt ended yet today left feeling empowered anything tuesday great mills remained lockdown davis received heartening tweets florida high school leaders including student survivor emma gonzalez gonzalezs essays speeches denouncing characterized congressional lack action face politically powerful gun lobby made internet sensation gonzalez tweeted 9 students great mills heart symbol together stop ever happening authorities secured scene maryland davis tweeted back emma4change absolutely adore emma seeing like tweet made smile thank everything reporting barbara goldberg new york editing frank mcgurty jonathan oatis standards thomson reuters trust principles great mills md reuters 17yearold boy opened fire maryland high school tuesday attack left two fellow students wounded died gunfight police officer posted amid renewed national debate gun violence schools shooting st marys county 70 miles 113 kmsouth washington came five weeks high school massacre florida days planned studentled march us capital tougher gun laws latest bloodshed erupted shortly 8 great mills high school lasted less minute county sheriff timothy cameron said precise sequence events still sorted hours later 16yearold girl intensive care lifethreatening wounds cameron told news conference 14yearold boy also struck gunfire listed good condition hospital gunman identified austin wyatt rollins cameron said indication teenager prior relationship female student although still investigation sheriff initially told reporters rollins shot victims handgun said response questions investigators still uncertain fired shot hit 14yearold cameron also said clear whether rollins died shot sheriffs deputy 1st class blaine gaskill assigned great mills school resource officer selfinflicted gunfire latest long string deadly shootings us schools colleges occurred little month 14 students three faculty members fatally shot feb 14 marjory stoneman douglas high school parkland florida accused gunman 19yearold former student expelled school disciplinary reasons last year arrested charged 17 counts murder massacre sparked student movement gun violence including national school walkout last week included great mills students march washington gun control activists set saturday recently protest school violence last week happened said kameron norwood 16 students waited relatives pick nearby high school cameron said rollins pulled glock semiautomatic pistol hallway school opened fire frank lanham 2nd r teacher great mills high school leaves leonardtown high school leonardtown maryland us march 20 2018 great mills students parents reunited lenoardtown shooting school reuterssait serkan gurbuz attack ended gaskill ran inside confronted rollins firing single shot almost simultaneously officer harmed cameron said rollins confirmed dead nearly three hours later hospital rollins facebook page showed fan dallas cowboys football team nascar auto racing appeared several times schools honor merit rolls good grades published local newspaper slideshow 12 images need prayers authorities confirm gaskill fired fatal shot may known instance school resource officer sro typically law enforcement member assigned school killed student gunman shooting 2001 officer shot wounded 18yearold student wounded two teachers three students shotgun granite hills high school el cajon california according national association school resource officers armed school resource officer stoneman douglas campus criticized failing stop gunman ar15 assaultstyle rifle officer later resigned said sure whether gunfire coming inside outside school related coverage maryland lockdown pulls florida students twitter storm strong president donald trump national rifle association proposed arming teachers gun safety advocates demanded ban semiautomatic rifles among restrictions marylands two democratic us senators chris van hollen ben cardin called congress tuesday pass gun safety legislation measures stalled years states republican governor larry hogan said thoughts prayers victims added need prayers parkland shooting hogan proposed spending 125 million enhance school security including panic buttons metal detectors vowed provide additional 50 million hire school resource officers counselors additional reporting jonathan allen gina cherelus elizabeth dilts sheila dang new york writing joseph ax editing jonathan oatis peter cooney standards thomson reuters trust principles
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<p>Nowadays, these encounters are more awkward than ominous. But there used to be a time when these types of questions were a kind of national obsession – when magazines as big as Life published guides to help readers distinguish between the “parchment yellow” Chinese with their “finely-bridged” noses, and the “earthy yellow” Japanese, with their “massively boned faces.”</p>
<p>Recently, computer scientists at the University of Rochester tried to teach an algorithm to tell the difference between Chinese, Japanese, and Korean faces. They wanted to explore how advancements in artificial intelligence have made it easier for computers to interpret pictures in sophisticated ways. But, intentionally or not, their research taps into the uncomfortable history of how Asians have struggled to fit into American life.</p>
<p>The scientists were inspired by a quiz created by Japanese-American web designer Dyske Suematsu. Fifteen years ago, Suematsu decided, half-jokingly, to investigate the stereotype that Asians all look alike. He threw a party in New York City and invited Asian friends. He put their portraits on the Internet and asked strangers to guess their ethnicity.</p>
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<p>The website was a huge hit, quickly becoming one of the web’s first viral sensations. Suematsu says that millions have registered and taken the test. On average, people identify 7 out of 18 photos correctly – an accuracy rate of about 39 percent. That’s barely better than pure guessing, which would yield an accuracy rate of 33 percent, on average.</p>
<p>“This is a challenging task even for humans,” said Jiebo Lu, a professor of computer science at the University of Rochester. “I asked some of my students to take the test and they all failed horribly – even though all of them were Asian.”</p>
<p>Lu and his students suspected that a trained artificial intelligence might be able to perform as well, or even better. Recently, they collected hundreds of thousands of pictures of East Asian faces and fed them through an algorithm to figure out just what made Chinese, Japanese, and Korean people look different. In a draft report detailing their results, they provide samples of the pictures fed to the computer.</p>
<p>But despite what they expected to be a difficult task, the scientists were surprised to discover that the computer could achieve accuracy rates of over 75 percent. This is far better than humans performed on Suematsu’s quiz. The computer’s advantage is that it could draw on a vast library of faces, Lu explained. “Our machine has seen far more examples than any living person,” he said.</p>
<p>Lack of experience is a major reason why humans sometimes struggle to tell foreigners apart. Psychologists call it the “cross-race” effect: We are much better at distinguishing members of our own race or ethnicity than members of other races or ethnicities.</p>
<p>Studies suggest that with training, people can improve at recognizing the faces of people from different ethnic backgrounds. As Lu and his colleagues have demonstrated, computers might even be better than we are at noticing some of these subtle distinctions.</p>
<p>It’s not all about physical proportions. When the scientists went to investigate how the computer was making its decisions, they discovered an interesting pattern. Many of the cues that stood out to the algorithm were cultural features, like hairstyles or glasses or facial expressions. This makes sense, since the people of China, Japan, and Korea have somewhat shared ancestries, but distinct senses of fashion.</p>
<p>Without being told, the computer seemed to realize that our concepts of race and national identity transcend genetics – they are cultural ideas.</p>
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<p>Lu imagines that this kind of research might one day be used in targeted ads or counterterrorism. Being able to discern a person’s nationality from their profile photo would help marketers better tailor online messages. Or, in a more Orwellian context, airports could set up cameras to racially profile people in the name of homeland security.</p>
<p>It may be more interesting though, to view the project almost as a work of conceptual art. Lu and his co-authors are all scientists of Chinese heritage working in the United States, a nation that has not always welcomed Asians, or treated them with respect.</p>
<p>Just a few weeks ago, “The O’Reilly Factor,” the Fox News show, sent reporter Jesse Watters to Manhattan’s Chinatown, where he proceeded to mock the residents with a mash-up of stereotypes. “In a stunning thirty-second clip, Watters asks a man if he knows karate (a Japanese style of martial arts) and then, confusingly enough, proceeds to attempt Tae Kwon Do (a Korean style of martial arts) with nunchucks (which originated in Japan),” writes The New Yorker’s Jiayang Fan. “The point is clear: no one can tell these Orientals apart anyway!”</p>
<p>The work of Lu’s lab rebukes the lazy notion that Asians all look the same. If a software routine can be trained to easily recognize the differences between a Chinese person, a Japanese person, and a Korean person, then that challenges Americans to pay close attention, to work harder to understand the diverse mix of people living in our nation today.</p>
<p>At the same time, it’s unclear how well the program would fare if it were presented only with pictures of Asian people who grew up in the United States. If the computer is mainly making judgements based on cultural attributes, it might completely fail at distinguishing between Korean-Americans, Japanese-Americans, and Chinese-Americans.</p>
<p>That, too, would be remarkable – it would illustrate how identity is not something we are born with, but something that we build piece by piece.</p>
<p>Ask any Asian-American. Every single one has a well-worn reply to the question: So where are you really from? When someone demands your ancestry at the beginning of a conversation – as often happens if you’re Asian – it implies that your genetic history is the most interesting thing about you. This gets tiresome no matter how proud you are of your heritage.</p>
<p>If smartphones could operate some version of the software from Lu’s lab, trained on the different nationalities of the world, we could all avoid a lot of awkwardness. With our new mental prosthetics, we might learn to look at each other in new ways. But we might not master a lesson that truly matters: Sometimes, respecting another person means learning about their differences. And sometimes, it means recognizing how they’re really just the same.</p>
<p>computer-faces</p>
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nowadays encounters awkward ominous used time types questions kind national obsession magazines big life published guides help readers distinguish parchment yellow chinese finelybridged noses earthy yellow japanese massively boned faces recently computer scientists university rochester tried teach algorithm tell difference chinese japanese korean faces wanted explore advancements artificial intelligence made easier computers interpret pictures sophisticated ways intentionally research taps uncomfortable history asians struggled fit american life scientists inspired quiz created japaneseamerican web designer dyske suematsu fifteen years ago suematsu decided halfjokingly investigate stereotype asians look alike threw party new york city invited asian friends put portraits internet asked strangers guess ethnicity advertisement website huge hit quickly becoming one webs first viral sensations suematsu says millions registered taken test average people identify 7 18 photos correctly accuracy rate 39 percent thats barely better pure guessing would yield accuracy rate 33 percent average challenging task even humans said jiebo lu professor computer science university rochester asked students take test failed horribly even though asian lu students suspected trained artificial intelligence might able perform well even better recently collected hundreds thousands pictures east asian faces fed algorithm figure made chinese japanese korean people look different draft report detailing results provide samples pictures fed computer despite expected difficult task scientists surprised discover computer could achieve accuracy rates 75 percent far better humans performed suematsus quiz computers advantage could draw vast library faces lu explained machine seen far examples living person said lack experience major reason humans sometimes struggle tell foreigners apart psychologists call crossrace effect much better distinguishing members race ethnicity members races ethnicities studies suggest training people improve recognizing faces people different ethnic backgrounds lu colleagues demonstrated computers might even better noticing subtle distinctions physical proportions scientists went investigate computer making decisions discovered interesting pattern many cues stood algorithm cultural features like hairstyles glasses facial expressions makes sense since people china japan korea somewhat shared ancestries distinct senses fashion without told computer seemed realize concepts race national identity transcend genetics cultural ideas advertisement lu imagines kind research might one day used targeted ads counterterrorism able discern persons nationality profile photo would help marketers better tailor online messages orwellian context airports could set cameras racially profile people name homeland security may interesting though view project almost work conceptual art lu coauthors scientists chinese heritage working united states nation always welcomed asians treated respect weeks ago oreilly factor fox news show sent reporter jesse watters manhattans chinatown proceeded mock residents mashup stereotypes stunning thirtysecond clip watters asks man knows karate japanese style martial arts confusingly enough proceeds attempt tae kwon korean style martial arts nunchucks originated japan writes new yorkers jiayang fan point clear one tell orientals apart anyway work lus lab rebukes lazy notion asians look software routine trained easily recognize differences chinese person japanese person korean person challenges americans pay close attention work harder understand diverse mix people living nation today time unclear well program would fare presented pictures asian people grew united states computer mainly making judgements based cultural attributes might completely fail distinguishing koreanamericans japaneseamericans chineseamericans would remarkable would illustrate identity something born something build piece piece ask asianamerican every single one wellworn reply question really someone demands ancestry beginning conversation often happens youre asian implies genetic history interesting thing gets tiresome matter proud heritage smartphones could operate version software lus lab trained different nationalities world could avoid lot awkwardness new mental prosthetics might learn look new ways might master lesson truly matters sometimes respecting another person means learning differences sometimes means recognizing theyre really computerfaces
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<p>Jan 23 (Reuters) - Great Southern Bancorp Inc:</p>
<p>* GREAT SOUTHERN BANCORP, INC. REPORTS PRELIMINARY FOURTH QUARTER AND ANNUAL EARNINGS OF $0.86 AND $3.65 PER DILUTED COMMON SHARE</p> * Q4 PRELIMINARY EARNINGS PER SHARE $0.86
<p>* Q4 EARNINGS PER SHARE VIEW $0.83 — THOMSON REUTERS I/B/E/S</p>
<p>* SAYS NET INTEREST INCOME FOR Q4 OF 2017 DECREASED $975,000 TO $39.3 MILLION COMPARED TO $40.2 MILLION FOR Q4 OF 2016 Source text for Eikon: Further company coverage:</p> Our Standards:
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<p>BEIJING/SHANGHAI (Reuters) - China urged the United States on Friday to “pull back from the brink” as President Donald Trump’s plans for tariffs on up to $60 billion in Chinese goods brought the world’s two largest economies closer to a trade war.</p>
<p>The escalating tensions between Beijing and Washington sent shivers through financial markets, as investors foresaw dire consequences for the global economy if trade barriers start going up.</p>
<p>Trump is planning to impose the tariffs over what his administration says is misappropriation of U.S. intellectual property. A probe was launched last year under Section 301 of the 1974 U.S. Trade Act.</p>
<p>Responding the U.S. import tariffs on steel and aluminum that went into effect on Friday, though announced by Trump earlier this month, China unveiled plans to levy additional duties on up to $3 billion of U.S. imports including fresh fruit, wine and nuts.</p>
<p>“China doesn’t hope to be in a trade war, but is not afraid of engaging in one,” the Chinese commerce ministry said in a statement on Friday.</p>
<p>“China hopes the United States will pull back from the brink, make prudent decisions, and avoid dragging bilateral trade relations to a dangerous place.”</p>
<p>In a presidential memorandum signed by Trump on Thursday, there will be a 30-day consultation period that only starts once a list of Chinese goods is published.</p>
<p>That effectively creates room for potential talks to address Trump’s allegations on intellectual property theft and forced technology transfers.</p>
<p>Trump said he views the Chinese as “a friend”, and both sides are in the midst of negotiations.</p>
<p>The inevitable fall in demand from a full-blown trade war would spell trouble for all the economies supplying the United States and China.</p>
<p>Feeling the chill, MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan dropped 2.4 percent, tracking a large overnight fall in Wall Street shares, but perceived safe havens such as government bonds gained.</p>
<p>“The upshot is that today’s (U.S.) tariffs amount to no more than a slap on the wrist for China,” Mark Williams, Chief Asia Economist at Capital Economics, wrote in a note. “China won’t change its ways. Worries about escalation therefore won’t go away.”</p>
<p>Williams estimated that the $506 billion that China exported to the United States drove around 2.5 percent of its total gross domestic product, and the $50-60 billion targeted by the U.S. tariffs contributed just around 0.25 percent.</p> FILE PHOTO - A worker checks steel wires at a warehouse in Dalian, Liaoning province, China May 15, 2017. REUTERS/Stringer
<p>Trump, however, appears intent on fulfilling election campaign promises to reduce China’s huge trade surplus with the United States.</p>
<p>“The American and Chinese governments should resolve existing trade frictions in a way that averts a trade war and promotes open markets and fair economic exchange,” said AmCham Shanghai President Kenneth Jarrett.”</p>
<p>“As our members increasingly tell us, however, the current trading relationship is neither open nor fair. It is time for China to take remedial action and show that it is a true partner in global trade.”</p> ‘DRAWING ITS BOW’
<p>Alarm over Trump’s protectionist leanings mounted earlier this month after he imposed hefty import tariffs on steel and aluminum under Section 232 of the 1962 U.S. Trade Expansion Act, which allows safeguards based on “national security”.</p>
<p>That measure had not targeted Chinese imports alone.</p>
<p>On Friday, the Chinese commerce ministry said China will levy duties on up to $3 billion of U.S. imports in response to the steel and aluminum tariffs, which appeared modest by comparison to the U.S. penalties.</p>
<p>“With the restrained response, China hopes Trump can realize his errors and mend his ways,” said Xu Hongcai, deputy chief economist at the China Centre for International Economic Exchanges, a Beijing think tank.</p>
<p>“If we really want to counter, the strongest response would be to target soybean and automobiles. This would hurt the U.S.,” said Xu. “China is ‘drawing its bow but not firing. We still have some cards to play.”</p> Related Coverage
<a href="/article/us-usa-trade-china-relations/china-urges-u-s-against-taking-trade-relations-to-dangerous-place-idUSKBN1GZ05X" type="external">China urges U.S. against taking trade relations to 'dangerous place'</a>
<a href="/article/us-usa-trade-japan/japans-aso-says-closely-watching-u-s-tariff-moves-against-china-idUSKBN1GZ004" type="external">Japan's Aso says closely watching U.S. tariff moves against China</a>
<a href="/article/us-usa-trade-eu/eu-leaders-receive-positive-news-on-trump-tariffs-idUSKBN1GY02V" type="external">EU leaders receive positive news on Trump tariffs</a>
<p>In retaliation for the U.S. tariffs in steel and aluminum, China is considering levying an additional 15 percent tariff on U.S. products including dried fruit, wine and steel pipes and an extra 25 percent duty on pork products and recycled aluminum.</p>
<p>China has assembled a list of 128 U.S. products in total that could be targeted if the two countries are unable to reach an agreement on trade issues, the ministry said.</p>
<p>The commerce ministry said China would implement the measures in two stages: first the 15 percent tariff on 120 products including steel pipes and wine worth $977 million, and later, the higher 25 percent tariff on $1.99 billion of pork and aluminum.</p>
<p>U.S. wine exports to China last year were $79 million, according to data from the U.S. Wine Institute, which represents Californian wine makers.</p>
<p>The Chinese list also included close to 80 fruit and nut products. U.S. exports of fruits, frozen juices and nuts to China amounted to $669 million last year, and it was the top supplier of apples, cherries, walnuts and almonds.</p>
<p>Reporting by Ryan Woo and Adam Jourdan; Additional reporting by Wang Jing, Lusha Zhang, John Ruwitch, Elias Glenn and Dominique Patton; Editing By Simon Cameron-Moore</p> Our Standards:
<a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a>
<p>(Reuters) - The Kentucky Senate overwhelmingly approved legislation on Thursday to ban a common abortion procedure once the patient reaches her 11th week of pregnancy, in what would amount to one of the strictest abortion limits yet in the United States.</p>
<p>The Senate voted 31-5 in favor of the measure, which now goes back to the state’s House of Representatives for final approval of changes to a version of the bill it passed 71-11 vote on March 12. Both bodies are controlled by Republicans.</p>
<p>The procedure in question, called dilation and evacuation, accounts for 16 percent of all abortions performed in Kentucky. It is primarily for pregnancies in the second trimester.</p>
<p>The House and Senate are in recess until March 27.</p>
<p>On Monday, Mississippi’s governor signed into law the most restrictive abortion measure enacted in the United States, which bans any type of procedure once pregnancies reach 15 weeks.</p>
<p>But on Tuesday, a U.S. federal judge blocked the law from taking effect for 10 days, pending legal arguments over whether the injunction should remain in effect while the overall case remains under judicial review.</p>
<p>The Kentucky and Mississippi measures both allow medical emergency procedures that otherwise would be prohibited.</p>
<p>Representatives for Kentucky Governor Matt Bevin, a Republican who has described himself as “100 percent pro-life,” could not be reached immediately for comment.</p>
<p>Since last year, when Republicans won control of the Kentucky House for the first time since 1921, the state’s legislature has passed several measures to restrict access to abortion, including banning any type of abortion after the 20th week of pregnancy.</p>
<p>Representative Addia Wuchner, a Republican, tweeted after a state Senate Judiciary Committee hearing, that her bill protects “unborn children in Kentucky from intentional bodily dismemberment”.</p>
<p>But critics say that the bill will almost certainly face a legal challenge. Last year, a similar measure passed by Texas lawmakers was struck down by a federal judge.</p>
<p>Similar bans in other states including Alabama, Arkansas, Kansas and Oklahoma have also been struck down by courts.</p>
<p>“Kentucky can’t afford doomed legislation created out of willful ignorance,” Marcie Crim, executive director of the Kentucky Health Justice Network, said on Twitter. “We need every dime of our money to go towards real improvements, not grandstanding.”</p>
<p>While dilation and evacuation is used in most second-trimester abortions, nearly 90 percent of all abortions are performed in the first trimester, according to the Guttmacher Institute, a research group that supports abortion rights.</p>
<p>Reporting by Steve Bittenbender in Louisville, Kentucky; Editing by Bernie Woodall and Richard Borsuk</p> Our Standards:
<a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a>
<p>TOKYO (Reuters) - Japanese Finance Minister Taro Aso said on Friday that he would closely watch the United States’ move to impose tariffs on up to $60 billion of Chinese goods.</p> FILE PHOTO - Japan's Finance Minister Taro Aso answers a question during an upper house parliamentary session in Tokyo, Japan March 19, 2018. REUTERS/Issei Kato
<p>Aso made the comment just hours after U.S. President Donald Trump signed a presidential memorandum that will target Chinese imports, though only after a 30-day consultation period that gives China space to respond.</p>
<p>The threatened tariffs and possible investment restrictions on China stem from a U.S. investigation of alleged theft of U.S. intellectual property by Chinese companies.</p>
<p>“Japan, as well as the United States, understands the importance of strengthening and effectively enforcing protection of intellectual property,” Aso told reporters after a cabinet meeting.</p>
<p>Aso added that he needed to examine the U.S. memorandum in detail.</p>
<p>The yen hit a 16-month high against the dollar on Friday as traders sought safety in the Japanese currency after the U.S. announcement caused worry over global trade tensions, triggering a selloff on Wall Street and stock markets in Asia.</p>
<p>The dollar fell to as low as 104.635 yen, its lowest since November 2016, in early Asian trade as the safe haven Japanese currency pushed higher.</p>
<p>Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga warned against yen’s gains on Friday, saying that he would closely monitor market movements “with a sense of urgency”.</p>
<p>The top government spokesman also said it would be extremely regrettable if U.S. tariffs on steel and aluminum apply to Japan, and that he would continue to urge the United States to exempt his country.</p> Related Video
<p>Trump’s steel and aluminum tariffs, which are tied to Section 232 of the 1962 Trade Expansion Act, go into effect on Friday. Canada and Mexico have been given initial exemptions from the 25 percent steel and 10 percent aluminum tariffs.</p>
<p>U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer told U.S. lawmakers on Thursday that the European Union, Argentina, Australia, Brazil and South Korea, would also be exempted.</p>
<p>Reporting by Tetsushi Kajimoto; Additional reporting by Kaori Kaneko; Editing by Chang-Ran Kim and Eric Meijer</p> Our Standards:
<a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a>
<p>(Reuters) - Steve Wynn, the former chief executive of Wynn Resorts Ltd, is selling all his remaining 8 million shares in the firm in a dramatic exit of the casino and hotel enterprise he founded over 16 years ago.</p> Steve Wynn, Chairman and CEO of Wynn Resorts, speaks during the Milken Institute Global Conference in Beverly Hills, California, U.S., May 3, 2017. REUTERS/Mike Blake
<p>In a surprise move, Macau casino operator Galaxy Entertainment said it has agreed to buy 5.3 million shares of Wynn Resorts at $175 per share, giving them around a 5 percent stake in the operator which has resorts in Las Vegas and Macau.</p>
<p>Galaxy is one of six licensed operators in the world’s largest gambling hub of Macau and competes with Wynn along with Sands China, MGM China and Melco Resorts.</p>
<p>The casino mogul’s share sale comes a week after Wynn Resorts said Steve and Elaine Wynn, who has a 9.26 percent stake, had scrapped a shareholder agreement that prevented them from selling their stakes.</p>
<p>Steve Wynn resigned as CEO of the Las Vegas-based company last month, following claims he subjected women who worked for him to unwanted advances. He has denied the accusations.</p>
<p>In a joint statement by Galaxy and Wynn on Wednesday, Galaxy Vice Chairman Francis Lui said it was a unique opportunity to “acquire an investment in a globally recognized entertainment corporation with exceptionally high quality assets and a significant development pipeline.”</p>
<p>A Galaxy spokeswoman could not comment further on whether Galaxy would look to increase its holding in the future.</p>
<p>Wynn Resorts CEO Matt Maddox said Galaxy shared many of the same core “operating philosophies and values.”</p>
<p>The announcement also follows the settlement two weeks ago of long standing litigation between Wynn Resorts and Universal Entertainment Corporation.</p> An exterior view Wynn hotel-casino in Las Vegas, Nevada, U.S., February 7, 2018. REUTERS/Steve Marcus WYNN IMPACT
<p>Wynn, who started in Las Vegas casinos in the 1960s, created some of Las Vegas’ most iconic landmarks – the Mirage, Bellagio and Treasure Island.</p>
<p>He was forced to sell his multi-billion dollar operation Mirage Resorts to tycoon Kirk Kerkorian in a hostile takeover in 2000. Kerkorian then created MGM Mirage and Wynn went on to create Wynn Resorts with his ex-wife in 2002.</p>
<p>The 76 year old businessman, whose signature denotes the company’s logo, had built two lavish resorts in the former Portuguese colony of Macau where only six firms have licenses to operate casinos.</p>
<p>Vitaly Umansky, analyst at Sanford C. Bernstein in Hong Kong, said the implications of the Galaxy’s investment goes beyond what looks like a passive move at this stage.</p>
<p>“Wynn and Galaxy may be looking at collaborating on future development opportunities in Asia, with Japan being the critical development initiative.”</p>
<p>Galaxy’s octogenarian founder Lui Che Woo, one of Asia’s wealthiest billionaires, has a net wealth of $22 billion according to Forbes. Lui who started his career in construction has grown his casino company into one of Macau’s biggest operators over the past decade.</p>
<p>“There are other large gaming companies who do not have a presence in Macau, but who desperately want to be in Macau, and we would not be surprised to see them angling for a seat at the acquisition table too,” said Grant Govertsen, analyst at Union Gaming in Macau.</p>
<p>While Galaxy has been primarily focused on Macau with its three casinos, it this week received a license to operate a roughly $500 million resort in Boracay, the Philippines most famous holiday island.</p>
<p>Wynn, which operates a resort on Cotai and Macau’s main peninsula, focuses on premium and VIP customers, while Galaxy targets both the high end segment and the broader mass. Both companies have reported strong earnings growth in the fourth quarter with Galaxy posting a 67 percent surge in 2017 profit.</p>
<p>Shares in Wynn Macau and Galaxy dropped 3.9 percent and 2.9 percent respectively on Friday against the benchmark Hang Seng Index which was down 3.1 percent.</p>
<p>Reporting by Farah Master in Hong Kong and Philip George in Bengaluru; Editing by Shri Navaratnam</p> Our Standards:
<a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a>
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jan 23 reuters great southern bancorp inc great southern bancorp inc reports preliminary fourth quarter annual earnings 086 365 per diluted common share q4 preliminary earnings per share 086 q4 earnings per share view 083 thomson reuters ibes says net interest income q4 2017 decreased 975000 393 million compared 402 million q4 2016 source text eikon company coverage standards thomson reuters trust principles beijingshanghai reuters china urged united states friday pull back brink president donald trumps plans tariffs 60 billion chinese goods brought worlds two largest economies closer trade war escalating tensions beijing washington sent shivers financial markets investors foresaw dire consequences global economy trade barriers start going trump planning impose tariffs administration says misappropriation us intellectual property probe launched last year section 301 1974 us trade act responding us import tariffs steel aluminum went effect friday though announced trump earlier month china unveiled plans levy additional duties 3 billion us imports including fresh fruit wine nuts china doesnt hope trade war afraid engaging one chinese commerce ministry said statement friday china hopes united states pull back brink make prudent decisions avoid dragging bilateral trade relations dangerous place presidential memorandum signed trump thursday 30day consultation period starts list chinese goods published effectively creates room potential talks address trumps allegations intellectual property theft forced technology transfers trump said views chinese friend sides midst negotiations inevitable fall demand fullblown trade war would spell trouble economies supplying united states china feeling chill mscis broadest index asiapacific shares outside japan dropped 24 percent tracking large overnight fall wall street shares perceived safe havens government bonds gained upshot todays us tariffs amount slap wrist china mark williams chief asia economist capital economics wrote note china wont change ways worries escalation therefore wont go away williams estimated 506 billion china exported united states drove around 25 percent total gross domestic product 5060 billion targeted us tariffs contributed around 025 percent file photo worker checks steel wires warehouse dalian liaoning province china may 15 2017 reutersstringer trump however appears intent fulfilling election campaign promises reduce chinas huge trade surplus united states american chinese governments resolve existing trade frictions way averts trade war promotes open markets fair economic exchange said amcham shanghai president kenneth jarrett members increasingly tell us however current trading relationship neither open fair time china take remedial action show true partner global trade drawing bow alarm trumps protectionist leanings mounted earlier month imposed hefty import tariffs steel aluminum section 232 1962 us trade expansion act allows safeguards based national security measure targeted chinese imports alone friday chinese commerce ministry said china levy duties 3 billion us imports response steel aluminum tariffs appeared modest comparison us penalties restrained response china hopes trump realize errors mend ways said xu hongcai deputy chief economist china centre international economic exchanges beijing think tank really want counter strongest response would target soybean automobiles would hurt us said xu china drawing bow firing still cards play related coverage china urges us taking trade relations dangerous place japans aso says closely watching us tariff moves china eu leaders receive positive news trump tariffs retaliation us tariffs steel aluminum china considering levying additional 15 percent tariff us products including dried fruit wine steel pipes extra 25 percent duty pork products recycled aluminum china assembled list 128 us products total could targeted two countries unable reach agreement trade issues ministry said commerce ministry said china would implement measures two stages first 15 percent tariff 120 products including steel pipes wine worth 977 million later higher 25 percent tariff 199 billion pork aluminum us wine exports china last year 79 million according data us wine institute represents californian wine makers chinese list also included close 80 fruit nut products us exports fruits frozen juices nuts china amounted 669 million last year top supplier apples cherries walnuts almonds reporting ryan woo adam jourdan additional reporting wang jing lusha zhang john ruwitch elias glenn dominique patton editing simon cameronmoore standards thomson reuters trust principles reuters kentucky senate overwhelmingly approved legislation thursday ban common abortion procedure patient reaches 11th week pregnancy would amount one strictest abortion limits yet united states senate voted 315 favor measure goes back states house representatives final approval changes version bill passed 7111 vote march 12 bodies controlled republicans procedure question called dilation evacuation accounts 16 percent abortions performed kentucky primarily pregnancies second trimester house senate recess march 27 monday mississippis governor signed law restrictive abortion measure enacted united states bans type procedure pregnancies reach 15 weeks tuesday us federal judge blocked law taking effect 10 days pending legal arguments whether injunction remain effect overall case remains judicial review kentucky mississippi measures allow medical emergency procedures otherwise would prohibited representatives kentucky governor matt bevin republican described 100 percent prolife could reached immediately comment since last year republicans control kentucky house first time since 1921 states legislature passed several measures restrict access abortion including banning type abortion 20th week pregnancy representative addia wuchner republican tweeted state senate judiciary committee hearing bill protects unborn children kentucky intentional bodily dismemberment critics say bill almost certainly face legal challenge last year similar measure passed texas lawmakers struck federal judge similar bans states including alabama arkansas kansas oklahoma also struck courts kentucky cant afford doomed legislation created willful ignorance marcie crim executive director kentucky health justice network said twitter need every dime money go towards real improvements grandstanding dilation evacuation used secondtrimester abortions nearly 90 percent abortions performed first trimester according guttmacher institute research group supports abortion rights reporting steve bittenbender louisville kentucky editing bernie woodall richard borsuk standards thomson reuters trust principles tokyo reuters japanese finance minister taro aso said friday would closely watch united states move impose tariffs 60 billion chinese goods file photo japans finance minister taro aso answers question upper house parliamentary session tokyo japan march 19 2018 reutersissei kato aso made comment hours us president donald trump signed presidential memorandum target chinese imports though 30day consultation period gives china space respond threatened tariffs possible investment restrictions china stem us investigation alleged theft us intellectual property chinese companies japan well united states understands importance strengthening effectively enforcing protection intellectual property aso told reporters cabinet meeting aso added needed examine us memorandum detail yen hit 16month high dollar friday traders sought safety japanese currency us announcement caused worry global trade tensions triggering selloff wall street stock markets asia dollar fell low 104635 yen lowest since november 2016 early asian trade safe japanese currency pushed higher chief cabinet secretary yoshihide suga warned yens gains friday saying would closely monitor market movements sense urgency top government spokesman also said would extremely regrettable us tariffs steel aluminum apply japan would continue urge united states exempt country related video trumps steel aluminum tariffs tied section 232 1962 trade expansion act go effect friday canada mexico given initial exemptions 25 percent steel 10 percent aluminum tariffs us trade representative robert lighthizer told us lawmakers thursday european union argentina australia brazil south korea would also exempted reporting tetsushi kajimoto additional reporting kaori kaneko editing changran kim eric meijer standards thomson reuters trust principles reuters steve wynn former chief executive wynn resorts ltd selling remaining 8 million shares firm dramatic exit casino hotel enterprise founded 16 years ago steve wynn chairman ceo wynn resorts speaks milken institute global conference beverly hills california us may 3 2017 reutersmike blake surprise move macau casino operator galaxy entertainment said agreed buy 53 million shares wynn resorts 175 per share giving around 5 percent stake operator resorts las vegas macau galaxy one six licensed operators worlds largest gambling hub macau competes wynn along sands china mgm china melco resorts casino moguls share sale comes week wynn resorts said steve elaine wynn 926 percent stake scrapped shareholder agreement prevented selling stakes steve wynn resigned ceo las vegasbased company last month following claims subjected women worked unwanted advances denied accusations joint statement galaxy wynn wednesday galaxy vice chairman francis lui said unique opportunity acquire investment globally recognized entertainment corporation exceptionally high quality assets significant development pipeline galaxy spokeswoman could comment whether galaxy would look increase holding future wynn resorts ceo matt maddox said galaxy shared many core operating philosophies values announcement also follows settlement two weeks ago long standing litigation wynn resorts universal entertainment corporation exterior view wynn hotelcasino las vegas nevada us february 7 2018 reuterssteve marcus wynn impact wynn started las vegas casinos 1960s created las vegas iconic landmarks mirage bellagio treasure island forced sell multibillion dollar operation mirage resorts tycoon kirk kerkorian hostile takeover 2000 kerkorian created mgm mirage wynn went create wynn resorts exwife 2002 76 year old businessman whose signature denotes companys logo built two lavish resorts former portuguese colony macau six firms licenses operate casinos vitaly umansky analyst sanford c bernstein hong kong said implications galaxys investment goes beyond looks like passive move stage wynn galaxy may looking collaborating future development opportunities asia japan critical development initiative galaxys octogenarian founder lui che woo one asias wealthiest billionaires net wealth 22 billion according forbes lui started career construction grown casino company one macaus biggest operators past decade large gaming companies presence macau desperately want macau would surprised see angling seat acquisition table said grant govertsen analyst union gaming macau galaxy primarily focused macau three casinos week received license operate roughly 500 million resort boracay philippines famous holiday island wynn operates resort cotai macaus main peninsula focuses premium vip customers galaxy targets high end segment broader mass companies reported strong earnings growth fourth quarter galaxy posting 67 percent surge 2017 profit shares wynn macau galaxy dropped 39 percent 29 percent respectively friday benchmark hang seng index 31 percent reporting farah master hong kong philip george bengaluru editing shri navaratnam standards thomson reuters trust principles
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<p>Yet, here she was Thursday afternoon, in a hot kitchen, amid the clatter of metal bowls and trays, the whir of electric mixers and the clamor of fellow cooks – all competing for a top prize by whipping together a four-course meal in just a couple of hours from a box of surprise ingredients.</p>
<p>“It was really nerve-wracking,” Snyder said afterward. “I would have liked to have had 20 minutes more.”</p>
<p>It was the Sixth Annual International Cuisine Student Competition presented by Santa Fe Community College’s Culinary Arts Program.</p>
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<p>Teacher Michelle Roetzer said she wanted to do something special to mark the end of the 10-week course, which students have attended for six hours a week, most of them on their way to a degree in culinary arts. Four of them will graduate at the end of the semester, she added.</p>
<p>“This is their send-off,” Roetzer said.</p>
<p>Students were divided into four teams of four members – with a fifth person on a team or two – with each team expected to put together a meal that reflected a particular international cuisine: the Middle East, Southeast Asia, Spain and Africa.</p>
<p>And that list reflects the order in which the teams finished once their scores were added up from the judges, a roster that included three professional chefs in town: Matt Yohalem of Il Piatto, Tom Kerpon on Tanti Lucci 221, and Juan Bochenski from the Anasazi Restaurant.</p>
<p>The students didn’t know what international cuisine they would be assigned until 1:30 p.m., when the doors were opened to the culinary arts lab and black-jacketed cooks streamed inside to open their shrouded boxes of ingredients – similar to the baskets of mystery goods presented to competitors on the Food Network’s “Chopped” program.</p>
<p>Burcu Tuzen added a little fashion flair with red flames dancing over her black cap, showing “how intense the kitchen is.”</p>
<p>“None of us wanted Spain. Of course, that’s what we got,” mused Rane Townsend of his culinary team. “We wanted Africa. With the flavors and colors, it’s fun.”</p>
<p>The students had to use at least some of every ingredient in their box, but could add other items stocked in the lab’s pantry and cooler. The boxes had barely been opened and ingredients noted when students were streaming for more, occasionally pausing by Roetzer to ask what was available.</p>
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<p>Tahini? Spice grinders? Peanut butter? No, but peanuts. Okay, that’ll work.</p>
<p>Kerpon was there when the students were allowed to start using heat at 2 p.m., with firm instructions to have everything laid out by 4 p.m.</p>
<p>Part of the challenge, he noted, is timing. “You have to get everything at its peak at the same time,” he said.</p>
<p>In this competition that was quite a task, as all four courses had to be laid before judges at the same time, instead of presented one course after another over time as a restaurant guest would receive them.</p>
<p>As students bustled around, leafing through a binder of recipes, Kerpon noted, “The important thing is to take a breath, step back and make sure you don’t forget anything.”</p>
<p>And if you do, a good cook knows what can work as a last-minute substitute, he added.</p>
<p>Varied dishes</p>
<p>After two hours of active cooking, the final products included spanakopita, tabouli and a gyro with made-from-scratch pita for the Middle East; banana fritters, lamb tagine and sweet potato and peanut soup for Africa; spring rolls, pork and shrimp skewers and Korean-style ribs for Southeast Asia; and garlic soup, braised pork and baked pear for Spain.</p>
<p>“They seem to have a very good understanding of what they’re doing,” Bochenski observed. “They have to practice, to develop a tough mind.”</p>
<p>Yohalem, judging the event for the first time, said, “I saw a lot of hard-working, eager students in a wonderful facility… I’m totally impressed with the facility.”</p>
<p>The mistakes, he said, came from inexperience. The pork loin wasn’t braised or roasted properly. The meat was dry in the African stew. And some of the soups that were meant to be hot were cold by the time the judges got to them.</p>
<p>But if everyone had to be hands-off by 4 p.m., and the judges didn’t get to the last table until 20 to 30 minutes later, what could the cooks do? Bend the rules and scoop the soup into the bowls just as the judges approached, Yohalem said. “The little rules you change – that’s what makes people superstars,” he said. “Would you rather have a full restaurant or a perfect score?”</p>
<p>But it’s practice and tasting, over and over, that makes a chef, and it takes time, Yohalem said.</p>
<p>“If I turn out three students who are restaurant-ready by the end of class,” Roetzer said, “I consider that a success.”</p>
<p>But not all are aiming in that direction.</p>
<p>Tuzen said she had played basketball for six years professionally in her native Turkey before looking for a new field. She completed the courses in pastry at the community college, but wasn’t satisfied, she said.</p>
<p>Now, she has a couple of offers for cooking jobs locally, but is considering whether or not to return to Turkey. “We’ll see,” she said.</p>
<p>Townsend, a business consultant, said he’s taking the courses partly to understand the restaurant industry better. “It just adds to my repertoire of skills,” he said.</p>
<p>Sean Billingsley, on the Africa team, said he was a chef for 10 years before burning out. For the next seven years, he said, he worked in retail and customer service. Now he’s come back to get a degree in culinary arts, perhaps to work for a caterer or start his own business.</p>
<p>“I realized this is where my passion was,” he said.</p>
<p>And Snyder, who left project management and sales in the construction industry, said she heard how good the culinary program is at SFCC and decided to try it out. “I love it,” she said, adding that she’s done some catering and work as a private chef, a path she might continue.</p>
<p>Besides, she added, “There’s nothing like a school where you can cook and eat every day.”</p>
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yet thursday afternoon hot kitchen amid clatter metal bowls trays whir electric mixers clamor fellow cooks competing top prize whipping together fourcourse meal couple hours box surprise ingredients really nervewracking snyder said afterward would liked 20 minutes sixth annual international cuisine student competition presented santa fe community colleges culinary arts program advertisement teacher michelle roetzer said wanted something special mark end 10week course students attended six hours week way degree culinary arts four graduate end semester added sendoff roetzer said students divided four teams four members fifth person team two team expected put together meal reflected particular international cuisine middle east southeast asia spain africa list reflects order teams finished scores added judges roster included three professional chefs town matt yohalem il piatto tom kerpon tanti lucci 221 juan bochenski anasazi restaurant students didnt know international cuisine would assigned 130 pm doors opened culinary arts lab blackjacketed cooks streamed inside open shrouded boxes ingredients similar baskets mystery goods presented competitors food networks chopped program burcu tuzen added little fashion flair red flames dancing black cap showing intense kitchen none us wanted spain course thats got mused rane townsend culinary team wanted africa flavors colors fun students use least every ingredient box could add items stocked labs pantry cooler boxes barely opened ingredients noted students streaming occasionally pausing roetzer ask available advertisement tahini spice grinders peanut butter peanuts okay thatll work kerpon students allowed start using heat 2 pm firm instructions everything laid 4 pm part challenge noted timing get everything peak time said competition quite task four courses laid judges time instead presented one course another time restaurant guest would receive students bustled around leafing binder recipes kerpon noted important thing take breath step back make sure dont forget anything good cook knows work lastminute substitute added varied dishes two hours active cooking final products included spanakopita tabouli gyro madefromscratch pita middle east banana fritters lamb tagine sweet potato peanut soup africa spring rolls pork shrimp skewers koreanstyle ribs southeast asia garlic soup braised pork baked pear spain seem good understanding theyre bochenski observed practice develop tough mind yohalem judging event first time said saw lot hardworking eager students wonderful facility im totally impressed facility mistakes said came inexperience pork loin wasnt braised roasted properly meat dry african stew soups meant hot cold time judges got everyone handsoff 4 pm judges didnt get last table 20 30 minutes later could cooks bend rules scoop soup bowls judges approached yohalem said little rules change thats makes people superstars said would rather full restaurant perfect score practice tasting makes chef takes time yohalem said turn three students restaurantready end class roetzer said consider success aiming direction tuzen said played basketball six years professionally native turkey looking new field completed courses pastry community college wasnt satisfied said couple offers cooking jobs locally considering whether return turkey well see said townsend business consultant said hes taking courses partly understand restaurant industry better adds repertoire skills said sean billingsley africa team said chef 10 years burning next seven years said worked retail customer service hes come back get degree culinary arts perhaps work caterer start business realized passion said snyder left project management sales construction industry said heard good culinary program sfcc decided try love said adding shes done catering work private chef path might continue besides added theres nothing like school cook eat every day
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<p />
<p>We often hear people associated with the criminal justice system complain about how it works – or fails to work. Prosecutors, defense attorneys, police and social workers all cite specifics that they believe tip the scales of fairness.</p>
<p>Very rarely – if ever – do we hear from a judge.</p>
<p>The ethics of their profession mandate they remain mum about public policy issues while on the bench. Even after they retire the public rarely gets the benefit of their insight. I think that is a shame. Who better to help teach the public about how politician’s laws – sometimes crafted and passed with headlines in mind – actually affect citizens?</p>
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<p>This is a story about not one – but two – judges from different states that came together to pro-actively help a woman they believed had been given a raw deal at sentencing. Their actions speak volumes about our justice system and prove there really is no such thing as one-size-fits all sentencing.</p>
<p>In 2003, Denise Dallaire, a college graduate, was convicted for possessing and selling a relatively small amount of crack cocaine in Rhode Island. Seven years earlier she had been arrested on a similar charge. She explained she really wasn’t into drugs herself but enjoyed the money she could make selling them. When Dallaire attended college in Connecticut she had once thrown a glass and injured someone in a bar fight and had been arrested.</p>
<p>By the time Dallaire, at age 26, came before Senior U.S. District Judge Robert Lagueux to face the last charge she had three strikes against her. Under mandatory sentencing laws she was automatically considered a “career criminal.” Lagueux made it clear at sentencing that his hands were tied – he was forced by law to pass a stiff sentence.</p>
<p>“This is one case where the guidelines work an injustice,” he said that day in 2003, “And I’d like to do something about it but I can’t.”</p>
<p>Lagueux sentenced Dallaire to 15 years in prison. That moment bothered the judge for all the years Denise served her time at the federal prison for women in Danbury, Conn.</p>
<p>Over the last decade Dallaire has been an exemplary inmate. She has made thousands of blankets, hats and pillows to donate to children suffering from cancer, she organized fellow inmates to decorate and sell Christmas trees on behalf of cancer charities.</p>
<p>Dallaire admitted she deserved prison and that she had made, “a lot of stupid and ridiculous decisions,” in her early life. She seemed resigned to her fate and looked forward to her release in 2018. She had no possibility of early release.</p>
<p>At Danbury Prison, Denise Dallaire met another judge – U.S. District Court Judge John Gleeson from Brooklyn. Every year Gleeson makes a pilgrimage to the prison so as to remind himself where he sends defendants. The judge takes his New York University Law School students and clerks with him.</p>
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<p>Gleeson got to know Denise and told the New York Times he came to realize her case was a textbook example of how mandated sentences do more to ruin lives than protect society.</p>
<p>“There are a lot of people like Denise doing bone-crushing time under the old sentencing regime,” Gleeson said. “We need to try to find ways to help them.”</p>
<p>It is important to note that just two years after Denise was sentenced the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that mandatory sentencing guidelines, originally designed to target drug kingpins, were unconstitutional. Congress agreed and has twice passed laws to reduce sentences for crack cocaine convictions like Denise’s.</p>
<p>Gleeson wants to start what he calls, the Mercy Project wherein pro bono lawyers would help the hundreds of prisoners (thousands, by some estimates) languishing under antiquated sentences. With that in mind, Gleeson convinced a friend, a top New York lawyer named Jonathan Polkes, to seek a presidential pardon for Dallaire. Part of the process required them to go back to Lagueux to sign on to the idea.</p>
<p>Lagueux earnestly wanted to help Denise but didn’t think the pardon idea would work. Instead, he pointed out a procedural flaw that he, himself, had made at sentencing that could be exploited. Lagueux suggested bringing the case back to Rhode Island on the basis of his self-reported mistake.</p>
<p>Last month, Dallaire was brought before the now 81-year-old judge who had sentenced her so many years earlier.</p>
<p>“I felt bound by those mandatory guidelines and I hated them,” Lagueux explained to the sobbing prisoner before him. “I’m sorry I sent you away for 15 years.”</p>
<p>The judge then instructed that Dallaire be released on time served. He told her to hurry home to her sick mother in Groton, Conn. She was able to be with her mother for her final 11 days.</p>
<p>As for her future, Denise says she wants to dedicate her life to helping others who are serving long sentences win commutation like she did.</p>
<p>Certainly, mandatory sentencing has helped lock up many real career criminals for a long time. But over-sentencing the undeserving doesn’t keep us safer. Keeping them in prison long after the law that put them there has been struck down only adds to our mammoth prison costs. And, with every year that ticks by it eats away at the prisoner’s chance for re-claiming a productive life on the outside.</p>
<p>I like Gleeson’s idea of a selective Mercy Project to review the sentences of prisoners caught in the cracks like Denise.</p>
<p>Any other justice-seeking judges out there interested?</p>
<p>www.DianeDimond.net – e-mail to <a href="" type="external">[email protected]. &gt;</a></p>
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often hear people associated criminal justice system complain works fails work prosecutors defense attorneys police social workers cite specifics believe tip scales fairness rarely ever hear judge ethics profession mandate remain mum public policy issues bench even retire public rarely gets benefit insight think shame better help teach public politicians laws sometimes crafted passed headlines mind actually affect citizens advertisement story one two judges different states came together proactively help woman believed given raw deal sentencing actions speak volumes justice system prove really thing onesizefits sentencing 2003 denise dallaire college graduate convicted possessing selling relatively small amount crack cocaine rhode island seven years earlier arrested similar charge explained really wasnt drugs enjoyed money could make selling dallaire attended college connecticut thrown glass injured someone bar fight arrested time dallaire age 26 came senior us district judge robert lagueux face last charge three strikes mandatory sentencing laws automatically considered career criminal lagueux made clear sentencing hands tied forced law pass stiff sentence one case guidelines work injustice said day 2003 id like something cant lagueux sentenced dallaire 15 years prison moment bothered judge years denise served time federal prison women danbury conn last decade dallaire exemplary inmate made thousands blankets hats pillows donate children suffering cancer organized fellow inmates decorate sell christmas trees behalf cancer charities dallaire admitted deserved prison made lot stupid ridiculous decisions early life seemed resigned fate looked forward release 2018 possibility early release danbury prison denise dallaire met another judge us district court judge john gleeson brooklyn every year gleeson makes pilgrimage prison remind sends defendants judge takes new york university law school students clerks advertisement gleeson got know denise told new york times came realize case textbook example mandated sentences ruin lives protect society lot people like denise bonecrushing time old sentencing regime gleeson said need try find ways help important note two years denise sentenced us supreme court ruled mandatory sentencing guidelines originally designed target drug kingpins unconstitutional congress agreed twice passed laws reduce sentences crack cocaine convictions like denises gleeson wants start calls mercy project wherein pro bono lawyers would help hundreds prisoners thousands estimates languishing antiquated sentences mind gleeson convinced friend top new york lawyer named jonathan polkes seek presidential pardon dallaire part process required go back lagueux sign idea lagueux earnestly wanted help denise didnt think pardon idea would work instead pointed procedural flaw made sentencing could exploited lagueux suggested bringing case back rhode island basis selfreported mistake last month dallaire brought 81yearold judge sentenced many years earlier felt bound mandatory guidelines hated lagueux explained sobbing prisoner im sorry sent away 15 years judge instructed dallaire released time served told hurry home sick mother groton conn able mother final 11 days future denise says wants dedicate life helping others serving long sentences win commutation like certainly mandatory sentencing helped lock many real career criminals long time oversentencing undeserving doesnt keep us safer keeping prison long law put struck adds mammoth prison costs every year ticks eats away prisoners chance reclaiming productive life outside like gleesons idea selective mercy project review sentences prisoners caught cracks like denise justiceseeking judges interested wwwdianedimondnet email dianedianedimondnet gt
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<p><a href="" type="internal" /> ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — Unraveling the mysteries of your family’s origins has become wildly popular in recent years as the Internet has made hitherto painstaking research into an online pastime. TV shows like Public Broadcasting Co.’s “Genealogy Roadshow” and “Finding Your Roots” with Harvard University professor Henry Louis Gates Jr. have also spurred popularity among a wider demographic, according to Paul Rhetts, a local genealogy aficionado and book publisher. “More people are interested in where they came from and who they’re connected to than a generation ago,” Rhetts said. Rhetts is co-author with Henrietta M. Christmas of “The Basic Genealogy Checklist: 101 Tips &amp; Tactics to Find Your Family History” published by his company, Rio Grande Books. They gave a presentation recently for the Hispanic Genealogical Research Center of New Mexico at the National Hispanic Cultural Center. Big business Rhetts, who grew up in Virginia, said he has always been fascinated by history and genealogy research gave him a way of finding out more about the history of his own family. When he started about 20 years ago there was little information online. Genealogy research involved legwork, he said, poring over census information, delving into records of births, marriages and deaths kept by local churches, or offices of vital records. County offices were good sources for land records such as property deeds, taxes and maps. It often involved travel to distant towns or even overseas, and maybe a trudge around a local cemetery. More and more of that data is now available online and it has become big business. The best known website, Ancestry.com, which started offering material online in 1996, had sales of $850 million in 2016, according to Forbes magazine. A basic subscription for access to U.S. records costs about $20 a month plus tax. Rates that include international records or access to military and newspaper archives are higher. There are free websites such as FamilySearch.org, which is organized by the Mormon Church, and Chronicling America (chroniclingamerica.loc.gov), which has historic archives from newspapers around the country. Rhetts advises beginning researchers to start by creating a list of what they know about the present generation and work backward. Sometimes research uncovers forebears with checkered histories. Rhetts found an ancestor who was convicted of larceny and sentenced to a public whipping. Another ancestor, Mary Barrett, an advocate of religious tolerance for Quakers, was hanged on Boston Common.</p>
<p>Paul Rhetts, co-author of \”The Basic Genealogy Checklist\” shows the family tree chart he has developed through his research. ROSALIE RAYBURN/JOURNAL</p>
<p>Search help Despite technological advances, Rhetts said, all genealogical researchers inevitably hit what they call a “brick wall” from time to time. For example, records in some European countries were destroyed during past wars. That’s where genealogy clubs like the Albuquerque Genealogical Society or the Hispanic Genealogical Research Center of New Mexico can help. Albuquerque Genealogical Society holds regular “Genealogy Research Days” in the Genealogy Center on the second floor of the Albuquerque Main Library at 501 Copper Ave. NW. “Our volunteers work one-on-one helping individuals find census records documenting their ancestors, cemetery records, military records, land records and so on,” said Genealogy Society member Lynda Katonak. The workshops are from 10:30 to 3:30 p.m. on the last Tuesday of each month. Beginning this month, the society has added a second monthly workshop from 10:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. on the third Saturday. Katonak has been doing family history research for more than 20 years. She and other volunteers enjoy sharing their expertise with beginners who are eager to discover more about their forebears. “I get tickled to death when they find a picture of their great-great-grandfather that they didn’t even know who it was,” said Genealogy Society member Robert Harper. “I mean it just makes people light up.” He took up genealogy as a winter pastime 15 years ago. “And it became an absolute obsession,” Harper said. The society’s president-elect, John Farris, is available to give advice on DNA tests. Farris has done extensive research into the types of tests and the information they offer. “There’s five good companies out there and they all do what they claim to do, but it depends on what your goal is,” Farris said. “One company’s test will give health-related information, another will show what percentage of Neanderthal you have. All can give what percentage of different ethnicities are in your makeup.” He cautioned that each company has different experts and the ethnicity percentage results may differ because they need a comparative population. “In some European countries like Germany, there were numerous border changes throughout history so it’s hard to have a standardized definition of what constitutes ‘German,’” said Farris. The club also has a sub-group that specializes in military research. Local resources Katonak and the other club members said beginner and experienced genealogy researchers have a wealth of resources at their fingertips in the Main Library. There are extensive collections of books, periodicals, newspaper archives, church and other records from New Mexico and many other states. Another Genealogy Society member, Lark Robart, said she was able to find records pertaining to Montana that she couldn’t find when she visited the state. “The resources here on the second floor are phenomenal. We are blessed with a very complete genealogical library,” Farris said. Researchers who have an Albuquerque Bernalillo County Library System card can also access Ancestry.com and other subscription websites for free on one of the computers in the library’s genealogy center. A scanner is available that enables researchers to store documents and images on their own flash drives. It is also possible to have information emailed to you, Farris said. Much of the material in the center was collected by individuals who then donated it to the center. AGS also held fundraising events to purchase more materials. The library has a budget for books and other resources. The center was originally housed in what is now the Special Collections Library at Central and Edith. It moved to the Main Library building about five years ago.</p>
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albuquerque nm unraveling mysteries familys origins become wildly popular recent years internet made hitherto painstaking research online pastime tv shows like public broadcasting cos genealogy roadshow finding roots harvard university professor henry louis gates jr also spurred popularity among wider demographic according paul rhetts local genealogy aficionado book publisher people interested came theyre connected generation ago rhetts said rhetts coauthor henrietta christmas basic genealogy checklist 101 tips amp tactics find family history published company rio grande books gave presentation recently hispanic genealogical research center new mexico national hispanic cultural center big business rhetts grew virginia said always fascinated history genealogy research gave way finding history family started 20 years ago little information online genealogy research involved legwork said poring census information delving records births marriages deaths kept local churches offices vital records county offices good sources land records property deeds taxes maps often involved travel distant towns even overseas maybe trudge around local cemetery data available online become big business best known website ancestrycom started offering material online 1996 sales 850 million 2016 according forbes magazine basic subscription access us records costs 20 month plus tax rates include international records access military newspaper archives higher free websites familysearchorg organized mormon church chronicling america chroniclingamericalocgov historic archives newspapers around country rhetts advises beginning researchers start creating list know present generation work backward sometimes research uncovers forebears checkered histories rhetts found ancestor convicted larceny sentenced public whipping another ancestor mary barrett advocate religious tolerance quakers hanged boston common paul rhetts coauthor basic genealogy checklist shows family tree chart developed research rosalie rayburnjournal search help despite technological advances rhetts said genealogical researchers inevitably hit call brick wall time time example records european countries destroyed past wars thats genealogy clubs like albuquerque genealogical society hispanic genealogical research center new mexico help albuquerque genealogical society holds regular genealogy research days genealogy center second floor albuquerque main library 501 copper ave nw volunteers work oneonone helping individuals find census records documenting ancestors cemetery records military records land records said genealogy society member lynda katonak workshops 1030 330 pm last tuesday month beginning month society added second monthly workshop 1030 130 pm third saturday katonak family history research 20 years volunteers enjoy sharing expertise beginners eager discover forebears get tickled death find picture greatgreatgrandfather didnt even know said genealogy society member robert harper mean makes people light took genealogy winter pastime 15 years ago became absolute obsession harper said societys presidentelect john farris available give advice dna tests farris done extensive research types tests information offer theres five good companies claim depends goal farris said one companys test give healthrelated information another show percentage neanderthal give percentage different ethnicities makeup cautioned company different experts ethnicity percentage results may differ need comparative population european countries like germany numerous border changes throughout history hard standardized definition constitutes german said farris club also subgroup specializes military research local resources katonak club members said beginner experienced genealogy researchers wealth resources fingertips main library extensive collections books periodicals newspaper archives church records new mexico many states another genealogy society member lark robart said able find records pertaining montana couldnt find visited state resources second floor phenomenal blessed complete genealogical library farris said researchers albuquerque bernalillo county library system card also access ancestrycom subscription websites free one computers librarys genealogy center scanner available enables researchers store documents images flash drives also possible information emailed farris said much material center collected individuals donated center ags also held fundraising events purchase materials library budget books resources center originally housed special collections library central edith moved main library building five years ago advertisement
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<p>Democratic front-runner Hillary Clinton said, “I don’t know where [Bernie Sanders] was&#160;when I was trying to get health care in ’93 and ’94.” Actually, Sanders cosponsored a single-payer health insurance bill in 1993, and Clinton thanked him for his work on the issue that year.</p>
<p>Clinton made the comment at a <a href="http://www.msnbc.com/live-online/watch/live-clinton-event-in-mo-642941507504" type="external">campaign rally</a>&#160;in St. Louis, starting at the 18:23 mark, after she talked about standing up against “powerful forces.”</p>
<p>Clinton, March 12: And I always get a little chuckle when I hear my opponent talking about doing it. Well, I don’t know where he was when I was trying to get health care in ’93 and ’94, standing up against the insurance companies, standing up against the drug companies.</p>
<p>To be sure, Sanders, who was a member of the House in those days, didn’t work with Clinton to pass the administration’s overhaul of the health care system. Instead, he worked, as he does now, for a single-payer, universal system in which everyone is insured by the government. Clinton’s plan relied on expanding the country’s largely employer-based system.</p>
<p>The Clinton campaign says that’s her point — that Sanders didn’t join her fight “against the insurance companies.” But her comment leaves the impression that Sanders wasn’t doing anything to change the health care system back then, and that’s not the case. He was “standing up against the insurance companies” in a different way, by pushing a plan that would largely eliminate them.</p>
<p>After Clinton’s remark, the Sanders campaign <a href="https://twitter.com/cascamike/status/708714719675199488" type="external">took to Twitter</a> to highlight <a href="http://www.c-span.org/video/?c4536221/hillary-clinton-bernie-sanders-1993" type="external">a video</a> in which Sanders stands behind Clinton, who is speaking at a December 1993 rally for the health care overhaul legislation. She says, “I’m grateful that Congressman Sanders would&#160;join us today from Vermont,” before&#160;thanking another congressman,&#160;Rep. Dick Swett of New Hampshire, for “announc[ing] his endorsement” of the Health Security Act.</p>
<p>According to a Boston Globe story on the event held at Dartmouth College,&#160;“Vermont’s independent US Rep. Bernard Sanders, who supports a single-payer health care system, appeared with Clinton but did not speak.” The paper quoted Swett talking about his support for the legislation.</p>
<p>The Clinton administration-backed bill, the Health Security Act, was introduced in the House on&#160;Nov. 20, 1993, with <a href="http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/bdquery/z?d103:HR03600:@@@P" type="external">103 cosponsors</a>. Sanders was not among them.</p>
<p>The Clinton campaign told us the Dartmouth video supports Clinton’s comment. “The video shows that while Hillary Clinton was out front leading the fight for universal health care and taking the slings and arrows from the health care industry, Bernie Sanders was standing quietly in the back,” campaign spokesman Josh Schwerin told us.</p>
<p>But, again, Sanders was working on health care in 1993, in the same way he is now — by pushing a single-payer plan.</p>
<p>Sanders was an original cosponsor of the <a href="https://www.congress.gov/bill/103rd-congress/house-bill/1200/cosponsors?resultIndex=1200" type="external">American Health Security Act of 1993</a>,&#160;along with 52 other representatives, legislation that sought to institute a state-based universal program. The bill ultimately had 90 cosponsors.</p>
<p>In <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XWh-wjXz33U" type="external">remarks on the House floor</a> on March 4, 1993, a day after the bill was introduced, Sanders sounded very much as he does today in talking&#160;about&#160;the issue:&#160;“Despite that the fact that we are the only major industrialized country&#160;on earth without universal, comprehensive&#160;health care, we spend far, far more per capita than any other nation,” he said, calling health care “a right” for all.</p>
<p>In a <a href="http://www.vox.com/2015/5/20/8630071/Bernie-Sanders-debates-John-Boehner" type="external">Nov. 3, 1993, debate</a> on the House floor, the same month the Clinton-backed bill later would be introduced, Sanders squared off against Reps. John Boehner and Dennis Hastert over single-payer. Sanders argued in favor of a “Canadian-style” system and said he was “fighting hard for that system in Vermont and for our nation.”</p>
<p>A <a href="http://www.politico.com/story/2015/06/bernie-sanders-hillary-clinton-119082" type="external">June 17, 2015, Politico story</a> chronicled Sanders’ efforts in 1993 to encourage Clinton to move to single-payer. A month after President Bill Clinton took office, and appointed the first lady to head a task force on health care, Sanders asked for (and received) a meeting with Hillary Clinton to introduce her to two advocates on single-payer from the Harvard Medical School, Politico reported. Clinton said&#160;such a plan wouldn’t be viable politically, according to one of the advocates.</p>
<p>Later that year, Hillary Clinton visited Vermont, and the administration’s background briefing indicated it didn’t see Sanders as an ally in the health care fight.</p>
<p>Politico, June 17, 2015: In June, Clinton did go up to Vermont – to address a Democratic Governors Association meeting hosted by the state’s then-Gov. Howard Dean in the quaint village of Woodstock – and she brought Sanders and Sen. Pat Leahy with her.</p>
<p>The administration’s background briefing on Sanders, tucked in with its plans for the trip, notes, “As a relatively junior member without the support of major party backing, Sanders is not much of a factor legislatively. He is a cosponsor of Congressman McDermott’s single-payer bill and given his reputation for independence and his somewhat combative style may be one of the more difficult Members to get on board the Administration’s proposal.”</p>
<p>When the administration-backed bill was introduced in the House in November 1993, it, too, called for “universal” health care but through an employer and individual mandate, not a government-provided program that Sanders backed then and now.</p>
<p>Clinton wrote a thank-you to Sanders in 1993 <a href="https://twitter.com/BernieSanders/status/687317650658189312/photo/1?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw" type="external">on a photo of the two of them</a> sitting together, talking. It said: “To Bernie Sanders with thanks for your commitment to real health care access for all Americans and best wishes.” The Sanders campaign tweeted that image in January.</p>
<p>Just as they do now, Clinton and Sanders then both supported universal health coverage but advocated different paths to achieving it. In May 1994, Sanders <a href="http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/F?r103:1:./temp/~r103dMCXZE:e251:" type="external">again spoke on the House floor</a> about the need to push for a single-payer system: “We could have national health care in this country which guarantees health care to every man, woman and child without out-of-pocket expenses,” he said, calling on the American people “to tell the candidates that if they are not prepared to stand up and fight for a&#160;single-payer&#160;national health care system which takes on finally the insurance companies and the drug companies, and the AMA, they are not going to get voted in here.”</p>
<p>In August 1994, near the end of the Clinton administration’s fight for a health care overhaul, Sanders joined a group of liberal Democrats — four others in the House and six in the Senate — in opposing a Senate compromise bill backed by President Clinton that was expected to extend health coverage to 95 percent of Americans. A United Press International story from Aug. 4, 1994, says Sanders attended a rally on the east lawn of the Capitol in which&#160;Rep. McDermott urged the president to push for legislation with 100 percent universal coverage. Also attending: Reps. Nancy Pelosi and Xavier Becerra of California, and Rep.&#160;Jerrold Nadler of New York.</p>
<p>Neither the House nor <a href="https://www.congress.gov/bill/103rd-congress/senate-bill/1757" type="external">Senate versions</a> of the administration plan came to a floor vote.</p>
<p>A year later, in <a href="https://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/CREC-1995-11-13/pdf/CREC-1995-11-13-pt1-PgH12184.pdf#page=3" type="external">a Nov. 13,&#160;1995, House floor speech</a>, Sanders again pushed for a single-payer plan, saying he had disagreed with the president’s plan: “I disagreed with Clinton’s plan, it was too complicated, too cumbersome, but at least he had a vision that said that every man, woman, and child in America should have health insurance,” Sanders said.</p>
<p>Sanders didn’t support the White House’s health care plan, but to say&#160;he was missing in&#160;1993 from efforts to overhaul health care ignores his push for a single-payer plan at the time.</p>
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democratic frontrunner hillary clinton said dont know bernie sanders was160when trying get health care 93 94 actually sanders cosponsored singlepayer health insurance bill 1993 clinton thanked work issue year clinton made comment campaign rally160in st louis starting 1823 mark talked standing powerful forces clinton march 12 always get little chuckle hear opponent talking well dont know trying get health care 93 94 standing insurance companies standing drug companies sure sanders member house days didnt work clinton pass administrations overhaul health care system instead worked singlepayer universal system everyone insured government clintons plan relied expanding countrys largely employerbased system clinton campaign says thats point sanders didnt join fight insurance companies comment leaves impression sanders wasnt anything change health care system back thats case standing insurance companies different way pushing plan would largely eliminate clintons remark sanders campaign took twitter highlight video sanders stands behind clinton speaking december 1993 rally health care overhaul legislation says im grateful congressman sanders would160join us today vermont before160thanking another congressman160rep dick swett new hampshire announcing endorsement health security act according boston globe story event held dartmouth college160vermonts independent us rep bernard sanders supports singlepayer health care system appeared clinton speak paper quoted swett talking support legislation clinton administrationbacked bill health security act introduced house on160nov 20 1993 103 cosponsors sanders among clinton campaign told us dartmouth video supports clintons comment video shows hillary clinton front leading fight universal health care taking slings arrows health care industry bernie sanders standing quietly back campaign spokesman josh schwerin told us sanders working health care 1993 way pushing singlepayer plan sanders original cosponsor american health security act 1993160along 52 representatives legislation sought institute statebased universal program bill ultimately 90 cosponsors remarks house floor march 4 1993 day bill introduced sanders sounded much today talking160about160the issue160despite fact major industrialized country160on earth without universal comprehensive160health care spend far far per capita nation said calling health care right nov 3 1993 debate house floor month clintonbacked bill later would introduced sanders squared reps john boehner dennis hastert singlepayer sanders argued favor canadianstyle system said fighting hard system vermont nation june 17 2015 politico story chronicled sanders efforts 1993 encourage clinton move singlepayer month president bill clinton took office appointed first lady head task force health care sanders asked received meeting hillary clinton introduce two advocates singlepayer harvard medical school politico reported clinton said160such plan wouldnt viable politically according one advocates later year hillary clinton visited vermont administrations background briefing indicated didnt see sanders ally health care fight politico june 17 2015 june clinton go vermont address democratic governors association meeting hosted states thengov howard dean quaint village woodstock brought sanders sen pat leahy administrations background briefing sanders tucked plans trip notes relatively junior member without support major party backing sanders much factor legislatively cosponsor congressman mcdermotts singlepayer bill given reputation independence somewhat combative style may one difficult members get board administrations proposal administrationbacked bill introduced house november 1993 called universal health care employer individual mandate governmentprovided program sanders backed clinton wrote thankyou sanders 1993 photo two sitting together talking said bernie sanders thanks commitment real health care access americans best wishes sanders campaign tweeted image january clinton sanders supported universal health coverage advocated different paths achieving may 1994 sanders spoke house floor need push singlepayer system could national health care country guarantees health care every man woman child without outofpocket expenses said calling american people tell candidates prepared stand fight a160singlepayer160national health care system takes finally insurance companies drug companies ama going get voted august 1994 near end clinton administrations fight health care overhaul sanders joined group liberal democrats four others house six senate opposing senate compromise bill backed president clinton expected extend health coverage 95 percent americans united press international story aug 4 1994 says sanders attended rally east lawn capitol which160rep mcdermott urged president push legislation 100 percent universal coverage also attending reps nancy pelosi xavier becerra california rep160jerrold nadler new york neither house senate versions administration plan came floor vote year later nov 131601995 house floor speech sanders pushed singlepayer plan saying disagreed presidents plan disagreed clintons plan complicated cumbersome least vision said every man woman child america health insurance sanders said sanders didnt support white houses health care plan say160he missing in1601993 efforts overhaul health care ignores push singlepayer plan time
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<p>Jan 18 (Reuters) - GKN called Melrose’s unsolicited offer statement “misleading”, a day after it swiftly rejected the turnaround specialist’s 7.4 billion pound ($10.2 billion) hostile offer for the British engineering company. “GKN’s Board considers 32 percent to be a fake premium. Melrose’s market capitalisation on 5 January was significantly smaller than GKN’s on the same day ... and Melrose brings no industrial synergies,” it said on Thursday.</p>
<p>$1 = 0.7238 pounds Reporting by Noor Zainab Hussain in Bengaluru, Editing by Paul Sandle</p> Our Standards:
<a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a>
<p>NEW YORK (Reuters) - Goldman Sachs Group Inc bought Clarity Money, a personal finance startup, to bolster its Marcus online lending business, it said Sunday.</p> A Goldman Sachs sign is displayed inside the company's post on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York, U.S., April 18, 2017. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid
<p>Buying Clarity Money, a free app that helps consumers manage their personal finances, is expected to add over 1 million customers to the financial service firm’s Marcus business. Marcus offers tools to help customers save and borrow. Clarity Money will be re-branded as Marcus by Goldman Sachs over time, the company said.</p>
<p>Terms were not disclosed.</p>
<p>Goldman launched Marcus in October 2016 as a way to court Main Street borrowers saddled with credit card debt. It offers loans from $3,500 to $40,000 and targets credit card borrowers who can benefit from consolidating debt into a single loan with a lower interest rate.</p>
<p>GS Bank, a subsidiary of Goldman Sachs, is making the acquisition. Clarity Money CEO Adam Dell will join Goldman Sachs as a partner.</p>
<p>(This version of the story corrects in paragraph 4 to say that Marcus offers loans up to $40,000, not $30,000)</p>
<p>Reporting By Jessica Resnick-Ault; Editing by Nick Zieminski</p> Our Standards:
<a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a>
<p>FRANKFURT (Reuters) - Deutsche Bank ( <a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=DBKGn.DE" type="external">DBKGn.DE</a>) has been asked by European Central Bank supervisors to calculate the potential costs of winding down its investment banking operations, a source told Reuters on Sunday.</p> FILE PHOTO: A statue is pictured next to the logo of Germany's Deutsche Bank in Frankfurt, Germany September 30, 2016. REUTERS/Kai Pfaffenbach/File Photo
<p>Germany’s biggest lender has been calculating the financial effects of a potential move to quit investment banking for some time, and the move is not related to the switch in Deutsche Bank’s top management position last Sunday when retail banking expert Christian Sewing was appointed to replace chief executive John Cryan.</p>
<a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=DBKGn.DE" type="external">Deutsche Bank AG</a> 11.7 DBKGn.DE Xetra +0.03 (+0.27%) DBKGn.DE
<p>The point of the exercise is to estimate how the value of Deutsche Bank’s capital market and derivatives business would develop if the bank was to exit abruptly from new business, the source said on condition he not be named because the matter is confidential.</p>
<p>Deutsche Bank said it “routinely” calculates the consequences of an orderly winding-down of positions in trading books for regulators. The ECB declined comment.</p>
<p>Germany’s daily newspaper Sueddeutsche Zeitung was first to report on Deutsche Bank’s explorations induced by the ECB, saying other lenders are to face similar requests at a later stage.</p>
<p>Deutsche Bank is already in the middle of a global review of the investment bank, known internally as Project Colombo, to determine the way forward as revenues shrink and clients and staff leave.</p>
<p>Reporting by Hans Seidenstuecker, additional reporting by Frank Siebelt. Writing by Andreas Cremer, editing by Kathrin Jones and David Evans</p> Our Standards:
<a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a>
<p>NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. equity index futures rose on Sunday as financial market trading resumed for the first time since the United States, Britain and France hit Syria with missile strikes in retaliation for a suspected poison gas attack.</p> FILE PHOTO - A specialist trader works at his post on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange, (NYSE) in New York, U.S., March 22, 2018. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid
<p>The move suggested Wall Street was set to shrug off the attack and Russian President Vladimir Putin’s warning on Sunday that further Western attacks on Syria would bring chaos to world affairs.</p>
<p>In the first few minutes of trading on Sunday evening, S&amp;P 500 e-mini futures ESv1 were up by about 0.6 percent. Futures tracking the Nasdaq Composite Index and Dow Jones Industrial Average were up by comparable amounts.</p>
<p>Futures tracking safe-haven U.S. Treasury securities were slightly lower.</p>
<p>U.S. stocks fell on Friday as results from big banks failed to enthuse and worries over the Syria situation, but major market benchmarks gained ground on the week.</p>
<p>Reporting by Dan Burns; Editing by Peter Cooney</p> Our Standards:
<a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a>
<p>LONDON/NEW YORK (Reuters) - Gold and oil traded slightly lower as markets opened for the first time since Western powers launched a missile attack on Syria, but equities are unlikely to experience big losses unless the West strikes again or Russia retaliates.</p> FILE PHOTO: A Syrian firefighter is seen inside the destroyed Scientific Research Centre in Damascus, Syria April 14, 2018. REUTERS/Omar Sanadiki
<p>“The news flow is actually better than what it looked like at one point during last week, as the strike was surgical, followed by a pullback. Reports show a lot of care was taken not to hit Russian targets, which is a good sign and the market should take heart from that,” said Salman Ahmed, chief investment strategist at Lombard Odier investment managers in London, speaking before trading resumed.</p>
<p>Spot gold and major crude benchmarks eased slightly, as the market reacted to the military actions over the weekend. Treasuries also weakened, while equities rose.</p>
<p>Gold has benefited in recent days as a safe-haven asset amid a U.S.-China trade dispute and the escalating conflict in Syria, which also pushed oil above $70 a barrel because of concerns about a spike in Middle Eastern tensions.</p>
<p>“It ended up being a very measured attack,” said John Kilduff, a partner at Again Capital Management in New York. “The greater fears of the oil market of this spilling into a greater conflict that could involve Iran and Saudi Arabia has not and will not come to pass.”</p>
<p>World stocks wobbled last week but still ended with the best weekly gain in over a month, as investors await potentially healthy U.S. company earnings.</p>
<p>Despite heightened geopolitical risks, the impact on so-called safe-haven assets has been short-lived and modest. While the yen rose initially on fears of a Syrian strike, it ended near seven-week lows to the dollar last week.</p>
<p>On Saturday, U.S., French and British missile attacks struck at the heart of Syria’s chemical weapons program in retaliation for a suspected poison gas attack a week ago, although the assault appeared unlikely to halt Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s progress in the seven-year-old civil war.</p>
<p>(For map of Syrian strikes, see <a href="https://tmsnrt.rs/2EKgAMN" type="external">tmsnrt.rs/2EKgAMN</a>)</p>
<p>The bombing, denounced by Damascus and its allies as an illegal act of aggression, was the biggest intervention by Western countries against Assad and his powerful ally Russia.</p>
<p>But the three countries said the strikes were limited to Syria’s chemical weapons capabilities and not aimed at toppling Assad or intervening in the civil war.</p>
<p>Naeem Aslam, chief market analyst at Think Markets, said gold was poised to gain on Monday but the rally would not be very steep: “The focus will be on the counter-reaction from Russia.”</p>
<p>Gold, often used as a store of value in times of political and economic uncertainty, could rally toward $1,400 per ounce after two consecutive weeks of gains.</p> FILE PHOTO: Syrians wave Iranian, Russian and Syrian flags during a protest against U.S.-led air strikes in Damascus, Syria April 14, 2018. REUTERS/Omar Sanadiki
<p>“If we do break above $1,365, that next week we would be very bullish,” said Aslam.</p>
<p>Tokyo will be the first major market to open on Monday and the yen will likely strengthen to the dollar, but not beyond 106.50, said Itsuo Toshima, market analyst at Toshima &amp; Associates, adding that he did not expect stocks traders to make sharp moves.</p>
<p>“The first attack was within expectations and was already priced in the market. ... However, if there is a second round of strikes, that is not in line with expectations. So that should prompt a sharp risk-off move in markets,” he added.</p>
<p>Frank Benzimra, head of global markets for Asia Pacific at Societe Generale Corporate and Investment Banking, said stocks would plunge only in case of new strikes by Western powers.</p>
<p>In case of such an escalation, oil would rally further, the yen would spike and Japan’s domestic defensive stocks would outperform international stocks.</p>
<p>“For the stress on Asia equity markets to be sustainable, we would need to have oil prices spiking to such a level that fundamental concerns, i.e. higher inflation and risks on growth, return to the market,” he said.</p>
<p>Amrita Sen from Energy Aspects said that despite Middle Eastern tensions and looming new U.S. sanctions on Iran, oil had outperformed most expectations this year and may have rallied too far too fast.</p>
<p>“We are likely to get a sell-off this week as the extent of the Syrian strikes have been muted and, in general, calmer nerves prevail in Washington,” she said.</p>
<p>Oil traders had locked in long positions ahead of the weekend, in anticipation of potential strikes, sending both West Texas Intermediate CLc1 and global benchmark Brent LCOc1 crude futures to their highest since 2014.</p>
<p>Reporting by Jan Harvey in London and Jessica Resnick-Ault in New York; Additional reporting by Vidya Ranganathan, Sujata Rao and Dmitry Zhdannikov; Editing by David Evans and Peter Cooney</p> Our Standards:
<a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a>
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jan 18 reuters gkn called melroses unsolicited offer statement misleading day swiftly rejected turnaround specialists 74 billion pound 102 billion hostile offer british engineering company gkns board considers 32 percent fake premium melroses market capitalisation 5 january significantly smaller gkns day melrose brings industrial synergies said thursday 1 07238 pounds reporting noor zainab hussain bengaluru editing paul sandle standards thomson reuters trust principles new york reuters goldman sachs group inc bought clarity money personal finance startup bolster marcus online lending business said sunday goldman sachs sign displayed inside companys post floor new york stock exchange nyse new york us april 18 2017 reutersbrendan mcdermid buying clarity money free app helps consumers manage personal finances expected add 1 million customers financial service firms marcus business marcus offers tools help customers save borrow clarity money rebranded marcus goldman sachs time company said terms disclosed goldman launched marcus october 2016 way court main street borrowers saddled credit card debt offers loans 3500 40000 targets credit card borrowers benefit consolidating debt single loan lower interest rate gs bank subsidiary goldman sachs making acquisition clarity money ceo adam dell join goldman sachs partner version story corrects paragraph 4 say marcus offers loans 40000 30000 reporting jessica resnickault editing nick zieminski standards thomson reuters trust principles frankfurt reuters deutsche bank dbkgnde asked european central bank supervisors calculate potential costs winding investment banking operations source told reuters sunday file photo statue pictured next logo germanys deutsche bank frankfurt germany september 30 2016 reuterskai pfaffenbachfile photo germanys biggest lender calculating financial effects potential move quit investment banking time move related switch deutsche banks top management position last sunday retail banking expert christian sewing appointed replace chief executive john cryan deutsche bank ag 117 dbkgnde xetra 003 027 dbkgnde point exercise estimate value deutsche banks capital market derivatives business would develop bank exit abruptly new business source said condition named matter confidential deutsche bank said routinely calculates consequences orderly windingdown positions trading books regulators ecb declined comment germanys daily newspaper sueddeutsche zeitung first report deutsche banks explorations induced ecb saying lenders face similar requests later stage deutsche bank already middle global review investment bank known internally project colombo determine way forward revenues shrink clients staff leave reporting hans seidenstuecker additional reporting frank siebelt writing andreas cremer editing kathrin jones david evans standards thomson reuters trust principles new york reuters us equity index futures rose sunday financial market trading resumed first time since united states britain france hit syria missile strikes retaliation suspected poison gas attack file photo specialist trader works post floor new york stock exchange nyse new york us march 22 2018 reutersbrendan mcdermid move suggested wall street set shrug attack russian president vladimir putins warning sunday western attacks syria would bring chaos world affairs first minutes trading sunday evening sampp 500 emini futures esv1 06 percent futures tracking nasdaq composite index dow jones industrial average comparable amounts futures tracking safehaven us treasury securities slightly lower us stocks fell friday results big banks failed enthuse worries syria situation major market benchmarks gained ground week reporting dan burns editing peter cooney standards thomson reuters trust principles londonnew york reuters gold oil traded slightly lower markets opened first time since western powers launched missile attack syria equities unlikely experience big losses unless west strikes russia retaliates file photo syrian firefighter seen inside destroyed scientific research centre damascus syria april 14 2018 reutersomar sanadiki news flow actually better looked like one point last week strike surgical followed pullback reports show lot care taken hit russian targets good sign market take heart said salman ahmed chief investment strategist lombard odier investment managers london speaking trading resumed spot gold major crude benchmarks eased slightly market reacted military actions weekend treasuries also weakened equities rose gold benefited recent days safehaven asset amid uschina trade dispute escalating conflict syria also pushed oil 70 barrel concerns spike middle eastern tensions ended measured attack said john kilduff partner capital management new york greater fears oil market spilling greater conflict could involve iran saudi arabia come pass world stocks wobbled last week still ended best weekly gain month investors await potentially healthy us company earnings despite heightened geopolitical risks impact socalled safehaven assets shortlived modest yen rose initially fears syrian strike ended near sevenweek lows dollar last week saturday us french british missile attacks struck heart syrias chemical weapons program retaliation suspected poison gas attack week ago although assault appeared unlikely halt syrian president bashar alassads progress sevenyearold civil war map syrian strikes see tmsnrtrs2ekgamn bombing denounced damascus allies illegal act aggression biggest intervention western countries assad powerful ally russia three countries said strikes limited syrias chemical weapons capabilities aimed toppling assad intervening civil war naeem aslam chief market analyst think markets said gold poised gain monday rally would steep focus counterreaction russia gold often used store value times political economic uncertainty could rally toward 1400 per ounce two consecutive weeks gains file photo syrians wave iranian russian syrian flags protest usled air strikes damascus syria april 14 2018 reutersomar sanadiki break 1365 next week would bullish said aslam tokyo first major market open monday yen likely strengthen dollar beyond 10650 said itsuo toshima market analyst toshima amp associates adding expect stocks traders make sharp moves first attack within expectations already priced market however second round strikes line expectations prompt sharp riskoff move markets added frank benzimra head global markets asia pacific societe generale corporate investment banking said stocks would plunge case new strikes western powers case escalation oil would rally yen would spike japans domestic defensive stocks would outperform international stocks stress asia equity markets sustainable would need oil prices spiking level fundamental concerns ie higher inflation risks growth return market said amrita sen energy aspects said despite middle eastern tensions looming new us sanctions iran oil outperformed expectations year may rallied far fast likely get selloff week extent syrian strikes muted general calmer nerves prevail washington said oil traders locked long positions ahead weekend anticipation potential strikes sending west texas intermediate clc1 global benchmark brent lcoc1 crude futures highest since 2014 reporting jan harvey london jessica resnickault new york additional reporting vidya ranganathan sujata rao dmitry zhdannikov editing david evans peter cooney standards thomson reuters trust principles
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<p>New Mexico men’s basketball coach Craig Neal has reached out to coaches across the country in an attempt to get better at his profession. Some of those he called included Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski and famous golf instructor Butch Harmon. (Roberto E. Rosales/Albuquerque Journal)</p>
<p>Mike Krzyzewski was once scheming up defenses to stop Georgia Tech point guard Craig Neal, who gave the Duke Blue Devils headaches back in many an ACC battle in the mid-1980s.</p>
<p>On Monday, defense was the topic again. But this time Coach K was offering up advice to the former Yellow Jacket guard, whose team went 5-5 against Duke in the four seasons Neal played.</p>
<p>In his second season as head coach of the University of New Mexico men’s basketball team, Neal has made it a habit to routinely reach out to coaches across the country – no matter their stature or even their sport – in an effort to improve his craft.</p>
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<p>“I talked to Coach K this week and I was really impressed with how they went up to Wisconsin (then-No. 4 Duke beat No. 2 Wisconsin in Madison on Dec. 3) and switched everything and it kind of took Wisconsin out of their offense – took them out of the swing offense,” said Neal, whose Lobos (5-3) host the University of Louisiana at Monroe (4-3) tonight in the Pit.</p>
<p>“To me, that’s part of learning, part of evolving as a coach. So I reached out to him wanting to learn what his thinking was on that. That’s part of getting better as coaches.”</p>
<p>Neal said after leaving Krzyzewski a message, the all-time winningest coach in Division I history called him back later in the day and talked at length about the defensive scheme the Blue Devils employed in the 80-70 win over the Badgers. It was a learning opportunity not exactly available to just anyone.</p>
<p>Where some head coaches may be too proud to seek the advice of other coaches, Neal has never shied away from seeking it out from coaches around the NBA and college game.</p>
<p>During the 2013-14 season, in fact, Neal said he was even trying to think outside the box with how to approach coaching great players, leading to multiple conversations with high-profile, well-respected golf instructor Butch Harmon.</p>
<p>Neal said his desire to seek out opinions and advice from all over the sports landscape was a promise he made to himself years before he landed his first head coaching job in April 2013.</p>
<p>“I told myself a long time ago, if I ever got a chance (to be a head coach), I’ve got to continue to get better,” Neal said.</p>
<p>Neal’s two Lobo squads certainly have shown an ability to adjust on the fly. While he wanted to get the team to run and gun last season, he quickly adjusted that philosophy to a slower tempo in order to maximize the team’s advantage in the post with Alex Kirk and Cameron Bairstow.</p>
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<p>While the Lobos remained predominantly, though not exclusively, a man-to-man, no switching defense in his first season, Neal and associate head coach Lamont Smith have already successfully implemented more pressing defenses, used a 2-3 zone to shut down the favored New Mexico State Aggies in a Dec. 3 win in the Pit. Three days later, they utilized for the first time a liberally switching man-to-man defense (even before the Coach K talk) to stymie the heavily favored Valparaiso Crusaders in a 63-46 win in Indiana.</p>
<p>The willingness to change, Neal says, is a necessary part of his job.</p>
<p>“I just think I have to do that to evolve,” Neal said.</p>
<p>HAIRY SITUATION: ESPN’s Myron Medcalf on Thursday released his <a href="http://espn.go.com/blog/collegebasketballnation/post/_/id/101358/top10thursday-best-hair-in-college-hoops" type="external">list of the best hair in college basketball</a>. UNM’s dreadlock-topped Jordan Goodman in the No. 1 spot followed by two Utah State players, giving the Mountain West the top three spots on the top 10 list.</p>
<p>“I would rather have the top three spots of players, not hair-dos,” Craig Neal quipped, later adding, “I don’t recruit hair.”</p>
<p>Asked via an exchange on Twitter why Hugh Greenwood was left off the list, Medcalf told the Journal, “Hugh Greenwood was No. 11. Almost made the cut. For real.”</p>
<p>FAMILIAR FEELING: There are several sets of father/son coach/player pairings in Division I basketball, including ULM and UNM. The list, according to ULM, includes Craig and Cullen Neal, UNM; Keith and Lance Richard, ULM; Billy and Billy Donovan, Florida; Ron &amp; R.J. Hunter, Georgia State; Bill and Tyler Self, Kansas; and Todd and Blake Bozeman, Morgan State.</p>
<p>WHAT’S IN A NAME? Today’s visitors to the Pit … err, University Arena … err, WisePise Arena AKA the Pit, have a bit of an identity crisis of their own.</p>
<p>Known as Northeast Louisiana University until 1999, the school then changed from Indians to Warhawks in 2006. Despite the bird mascot and image in its logo, Warhawks was actually chosen to honor area war hero Maj. Gen. Claire Lee Chennault, who commanded a group in World War II that flew Curtiss P-40 Warhawks in battle.</p>
<p>As for the school name, there is a highlighted box printed right on the front page of the team’s pre-game media note package: “We are ULM. Please note that there are only two correct versions of our institution’s name, the preferred acronym ULM and the full name, the University of Louisiana at Monroe. Any other reference, including Louisiana-Monroe, UL-Monroe, La.-Monroe, LAM, or simply Monroe, are incorrect.”</p>
<p>A glance at several national sports websites would suggest not many are getting the message.</p>
<p>LOBO LINKS: <a href="" type="internal">Geoff Grammer’s blog</a> | <a href="" type="internal">Schedule/Results</a> | <a href="" type="internal">Roster</a></p>
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new mexico mens basketball coach craig neal reached coaches across country attempt get better profession called included duke coach mike krzyzewski famous golf instructor butch harmon roberto e rosalesalbuquerque journal mike krzyzewski scheming defenses stop georgia tech point guard craig neal gave duke blue devils headaches back many acc battle mid1980s monday defense topic time coach k offering advice former yellow jacket guard whose team went 55 duke four seasons neal played second season head coach university new mexico mens basketball team neal made habit routinely reach coaches across country matter stature even sport effort improve craft advertisement talked coach k week really impressed went wisconsin thenno 4 duke beat 2 wisconsin madison dec 3 switched everything kind took wisconsin offense took swing offense said neal whose lobos 53 host university louisiana monroe 43 tonight pit thats part learning part evolving coach reached wanting learn thinking thats part getting better coaches neal said leaving krzyzewski message alltime winningest coach division history called back later day talked length defensive scheme blue devils employed 8070 win badgers learning opportunity exactly available anyone head coaches may proud seek advice coaches neal never shied away seeking coaches around nba college game 201314 season fact neal said even trying think outside box approach coaching great players leading multiple conversations highprofile wellrespected golf instructor butch harmon neal said desire seek opinions advice sports landscape promise made years landed first head coaching job april 2013 told long time ago ever got chance head coach ive got continue get better neal said neals two lobo squads certainly shown ability adjust fly wanted get team run gun last season quickly adjusted philosophy slower tempo order maximize teams advantage post alex kirk cameron bairstow advertisement lobos remained predominantly though exclusively mantoman switching defense first season neal associate head coach lamont smith already successfully implemented pressing defenses used 23 zone shut favored new mexico state aggies dec 3 win pit three days later utilized first time liberally switching mantoman defense even coach k talk stymie heavily favored valparaiso crusaders 6346 win indiana willingness change neal says necessary part job think evolve neal said hairy situation espns myron medcalf thursday released list best hair college basketball unms dreadlocktopped jordan goodman 1 spot followed two utah state players giving mountain west top three spots top 10 list would rather top three spots players hairdos craig neal quipped later adding dont recruit hair asked via exchange twitter hugh greenwood left list medcalf told journal hugh greenwood 11 almost made cut real familiar feeling several sets fatherson coachplayer pairings division basketball including ulm unm list according ulm includes craig cullen neal unm keith lance richard ulm billy billy donovan florida ron amp rj hunter georgia state bill tyler self kansas todd blake bozeman morgan state whats name todays visitors pit err university arena err wisepise arena aka pit bit identity crisis known northeast louisiana university 1999 school changed indians warhawks 2006 despite bird mascot image logo warhawks actually chosen honor area war hero maj gen claire lee chennault commanded group world war ii flew curtiss p40 warhawks battle school name highlighted box printed right front page teams pregame media note package ulm please note two correct versions institutions name preferred acronym ulm full name university louisiana monroe reference including louisianamonroe ulmonroe lamonroe lam simply monroe incorrect glance several national sports websites would suggest many getting message lobo links geoff grammers blog scheduleresults roster
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<p>In a TV ad attacking GOP Sen. Ron Johnson of Wisconsin, the League of Conservation Voters claims the average Wisconsin family pays $7,500 a year in federal income tax. Not so. For the family pictured in the ad with the income specified by the league, the tax would be $724.</p>
<p>&lt;iframe class="VideoEmbedFrame" width="100%" height="100%" style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen" src="https://video.factcheck.org/play/0eef556f576"&gt;&lt;/iframe&gt;</p>
<p>We offer this as an example of how political groups sometimes lose their anchor in reality as they strain for partisan effect. The league could have made a respectable argument by citing accurate information. But instead, the very first words in this ad are wildly inaccurate and based on a gross misunderstanding of tax law.</p>
<p>The ad was <a href="http://www.lcv.org/media/press-releases/New-Major-Ad-Campaign-Holds-Ron-Johnson-Accountable-for-Putting-Polluters-Profits-Ahead-of-Wisconsin-s-Health.html" type="external">announced July 27</a>.&#160; It is one of the earliest to appear in the 2016 Wisconsin Senate race, which is shaping up as <a href="http://www.cnn.com/2015/05/14/politics/russ-feingold-ron-johnson-wisconsin-senate-race/" type="external">a rematch between Johnson and former Sen. Russ Feingold</a>, the Democrat whom Johnson defeated in 2010. The league is spending $98,000 and running the ads only on satellite television, league spokesman Seth Stein told us.</p>
<p>The ad begins with an attention-grabbing claim that the “average Wisconsin family” pays as much each year in taxes as oil companies get “per minute” in so-called tax subsidies, which are special provisions that allow oil companies to reduce their federal corporate tax payments.</p>
<p>But the ad errs by starting with a dramatic claim that is far off the mark.</p>
<p>The narrator says, “This is the average Wisconsin family. They pay over $7,000 in federal taxes every year.” Pictured on screen is a couple with two young children, along with the words “$7,500 in federal income tax.” Actually, such a family would pay far less than the league claims.</p>
<p>The league says in its <a href="http://www.lcv.org/assets/docs/wi-7000-ad-backup.pdf" type="external">backup for the ad</a> that median household income in Wisconsin was $52,413, citing <a href="http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/55000.html" type="external">Census Bureau figures</a> for 2013. So far, so good. But the backup document goes on to claim that IRS tax tables “indicate” such a family would pay $7,519 in federal income tax. Actually, the tax tables indicate no such thing.</p>
<p>The $7,519 figure would be the total owed by a single person with taxable income in 2014 of between $52,400 and $52,450, if this person filed as “head of household.” The league’s fundamental error is to mistake total income for taxable income — after all exemptions and deductions. The league also failed to allow for tax credits. These mistakes have a huge effect on the resulting tax bill.</p>
<p>Another, lesser error was to assume that a married couple would file as “head of household.” That filing status is available only to <a href="http://www.irs.gov/publications/p501/ar02.html#en_US_2014_publink1000220775" type="external">unmarried persons</a> supporting one or more children or other relatives. A family such as that shown in the ad typically would file as <a href="http://www.irs.gov/publications/p501/ar02.html#en_US_2014_publink1000220742" type="external">married filing jointly</a>. This doesn’t make a big difference in the outcome, but we note it as further evidence of careless research by the league.</p>
<p>Our own calculations assume — we think quite reasonably — that the family shown in the ad would benefit from the <a href="http://www.irs.gov/uac/Ten-Facts-about-the-Child-Tax-Credit" type="external">per-child tax credit</a>, since both of the children shown appear to be under age 17. We also assume the family simply claims the standard exemptions and deductions available to all taxpayers who choose not to itemize deductions.</p>
<p>Under those assumptions, <a href="" type="internal">their tax bill for 2014 would be $734</a>, not the 10-times-larger figure featured in the ad. (We used the Bankrate.com tax calculator, but other <a href="https://www.1040.com/tax-tools/tax-estimator/" type="external">tax calculators</a> give <a href="https://turbotax.intuit.com/tax-tools/calculators/taxcaster/" type="external">similar results</a>.)</p>
<p>That bill could of course be even less if the family pictured had a very large mortgage or other big deductions that could make it advantageous for them to itemize.</p>
<p>To be sure, the league’s assumption of the “average” Wisconsin family’s income might be too low. “Household” income includes both families and single individuals, such as widows and widowers living alone. “Family” income tends to be higher than “household” income, especially when both husband and wife are employed.</p>
<p>For 2013, the <a href="http://www.census.gov/hhes/www/income/data/ACS_13_1YR_B19121_States.xls" type="external">Census Bureau puts the median family income</a> in Wisconsin at $65,618, and when the family includes two earners, the median income rises to $82,272.</p>
<p>But even if the “average” Wisconsin family pictured in the ad is assumed to be a two-earner couple with&#160;$82,272 in total income, their tax bill in 2014 would have been <a href="" type="internal">$5,203</a> — still short of what the league claims the “average” family would pay.</p>
<p>There’s a valid argument to be made here.&#160;The <a href="https://www.jct.gov/publications.html?func=startdown&amp;id=3787" type="external">tax breaks enjoyed by oil companies</a> are substantial. And <a href="http://www.senate.gov/legislative/LIS/roll_call_lists/roll_call_vote_cfm.cfm?congress=112&amp;session=2&amp;vote=00063" type="external">Johnson voted against</a> consideration of a Democratic measure to repeal breaks for large oil companies, a bill that the nonpartisan Joint Committee on Taxation estimated would produce <a href="https://www.jct.gov/publications.html?func=startdown&amp;id=4415" type="external">nearly $24 billion in additional revenue</a> for the government over 10 years.</p>
<p>The ad claims that oil-company tax subsidies cost $7,610 a minute, which is based on a <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/blog/2012/02/25/numbers-4-billion" type="external">White House estimate</a> that eliminating all oil and gas subsidies would raise more than $4 billion per year. That’s for all companies, not just the big ones featured in the ad and covered by the bill the JCT analyzed.</p>
<p>But even here the ad strains the facts. The announcer states that subsides to “big oil” are “tax dollars coming from us, going to them.” That’s not strictly accurate. The tax breaks reduce the income taxes paid by oil companies, allowing them to keep more of their own profits. They are not dollars paid by the government to the companies.</p>
<p>In fact, <a href="https://www.congress.gov/bill/112th-congress/senate-bill/2204" type="external">the 2012 bill that Johnson (and most other Republicans) opposed</a> would have had little if any effect on the “average” family’s personal income taxes. More than half the $24 billion would have been devoted simply to reducing the federal deficit. The rest would have gone mainly to pay for extending a variety of expiring green-energy tax credits, including those for producing electricity from renewable fuels, building wind power projects, producing biodiesel fuel, building new energy-efficient homes, and buying plug-in electric vehicles.</p>
<p>Our advice: Before taking on anyone’s stance on federal taxes, the league would do well to get its own tax facts straight.</p>
<p>— Brooks Jackson</p>
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tv ad attacking gop sen ron johnson wisconsin league conservation voters claims average wisconsin family pays 7500 year federal income tax family pictured ad income specified league tax would 724 ltiframe classvideoembedframe width100 height100 styledisplay block marginleft auto marginright auto frameborder0 allowfullscreenallowfullscreen srchttpsvideofactcheckorgplay0eef556f576gtltiframegt offer example political groups sometimes lose anchor reality strain partisan effect league could made respectable argument citing accurate information instead first words ad wildly inaccurate based gross misunderstanding tax law ad announced july 27160 one earliest appear 2016 wisconsin senate race shaping rematch johnson former sen russ feingold democrat johnson defeated 2010 league spending 98000 running ads satellite television league spokesman seth stein told us ad begins attentiongrabbing claim average wisconsin family pays much year taxes oil companies get per minute socalled tax subsidies special provisions allow oil companies reduce federal corporate tax payments ad errs starting dramatic claim far mark narrator says average wisconsin family pay 7000 federal taxes every year pictured screen couple two young children along words 7500 federal income tax actually family would pay far less league claims league says backup ad median household income wisconsin 52413 citing census bureau figures 2013 far good backup document goes claim irs tax tables indicate family would pay 7519 federal income tax actually tax tables indicate thing 7519 figure would total owed single person taxable income 2014 52400 52450 person filed head household leagues fundamental error mistake total income taxable income exemptions deductions league also failed allow tax credits mistakes huge effect resulting tax bill another lesser error assume married couple would file head household filing status available unmarried persons supporting one children relatives family shown ad typically would file married filing jointly doesnt make big difference outcome note evidence careless research league calculations assume think quite reasonably family shown ad would benefit perchild tax credit since children shown appear age 17 also assume family simply claims standard exemptions deductions available taxpayers choose itemize deductions assumptions tax bill 2014 would 734 10timeslarger figure featured ad used bankratecom tax calculator tax calculators give similar results bill could course even less family pictured large mortgage big deductions could make advantageous itemize sure leagues assumption average wisconsin familys income might low household income includes families single individuals widows widowers living alone family income tends higher household income especially husband wife employed 2013 census bureau puts median family income wisconsin 65618 family includes two earners median income rises 82272 even average wisconsin family pictured ad assumed twoearner couple with16082272 total income tax bill 2014 would 5203 still short league claims average family would pay theres valid argument made here160the tax breaks enjoyed oil companies substantial johnson voted consideration democratic measure repeal breaks large oil companies bill nonpartisan joint committee taxation estimated would produce nearly 24 billion additional revenue government 10 years ad claims oilcompany tax subsidies cost 7610 minute based white house estimate eliminating oil gas subsidies would raise 4 billion per year thats companies big ones featured ad covered bill jct analyzed even ad strains facts announcer states subsides big oil tax dollars coming us going thats strictly accurate tax breaks reduce income taxes paid oil companies allowing keep profits dollars paid government companies fact 2012 bill johnson republicans opposed would little effect average familys personal income taxes half 24 billion would devoted simply reducing federal deficit rest would gone mainly pay extending variety expiring greenenergy tax credits including producing electricity renewable fuels building wind power projects producing biodiesel fuel building new energyefficient homes buying plugin electric vehicles advice taking anyones stance federal taxes league would well get tax facts straight brooks jackson
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<p>WASHINGTON — Vice President Joe Biden said Thursday that top intelligence leaders told him and President Barack Obama they felt obligated to inform them about uncorroborated allegations about President-elect Donald Trump out of concern the information would become public and catch them off-guard.</p>
<p>In an interview, Biden said neither he nor Obama asked U.S. intelligence agencies to try to corroborate the unverified claims that Russia had obtained compromising sexual and financial allegations about Trump.</p>
<p>“I think it’s something that obviously the agency thinks they have to track down,” Biden said. He added later, “It surprised me in that it made it to the point where the agency, the FBI thought they had to pursue it.”</p>
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<p>In the hourlong session with The Associated Press and other news outlets, the vice president was sharply critical of Trump for publicly disparaging intelligence officials, saying Trump was damaging U.S. standing and playing into Russia’s hands. He also took umbrage at Trump’s comments accusing intelligence agencies of allowing the information to leak publicly and drawing a comparison to “living in Nazi Germany.”</p>
<p>“The one thing you never want to invoke is Nazi Germany, no matter what the circumstances,” Biden said. “It’s an overwhelming diversion from the point you’re trying to make.”</p>
<p>Biden said that in the briefing he and Obama received from Director of National Intelligence James Clapper and others, there were “no conclusions drawn” from the uncorroborated dossier, which was produced in August and then released publicly this week by the media. Biden said it was “totally ancillary” to the purpose of the meeting, which was to brief Obama on a report he ordered documenting Russian interference in the U.S. campaign.</p>
<p>“As a matter of fact, the president was like, ‘What does this have anything to do with anything?'” Biden said. He said intelligence leaders responded by saying “Well, we feel obliged to tell you, Mr. President, because you may hear about it. We’re going to tell him,” referring to Trump.</p>
<p>Biden said intelligence leaders told him and Obama that they couldn’t say whether or not the allegations were true or untrue. He said there was “hardly any discussion” about the allegations in the briefing.</p>
<p>“Neither the president nor I asked for any detail,” Biden said. But he added of the dossier: “I’ve read everything.”</p>
<p>Trump has vehemently denied the allegations included in a dossier about close coordination between Trump’s inner circle and Russians. The dossier also included unsubstantiated claims about unusual sexual activities by Trump, attributed to anonymous sources. The Associated Press has not authenticated the claims. Trump has denied them.</p>
<p>The FBI has been working to corroborate the details in the dossier, although it’s unclear how long that investigation has been running or how many resources are assigned. FBI Director James Comey has declined even to acknowledge the investigation publicly in line with FBI protocol.</p>
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<p>The dossier was compiled by a former Western intelligence operative and had been circulating among news organizations and intelligence agencies in Washington for months. Its existence became known publicly following reports the intelligence community had briefed Trump on the dossier.</p>
<p>In the interview, Biden criticized Trump’s rocky relationship with intelligence officials. The president-elect has publicly challenged their assessment about Russia’s role in the election and suggested they have skewed evidence. Trump has received the President’s Daily Brief, the highest-level intelligence document produced in the United States, a few times but has insisted he doesn’t need it daily and suggested he knows more than intelligence leaders.</p>
<p>Biden said it would be a “genuine tragedy” if Trump refused the daily intelligence briefing presidents traditionally receive.</p>
<p>To illustrate his point, Biden took out the black tablet computer he uses to read his daily briefing and showed it to reporters as he sat next to a crackling fireplace in his office, just steps from the Oval Office. He said it is password-protected and includes a feature he uses to ask questions about the intelligence that are responded to the same day.</p>
<p>Biden said at least five foreign leaders have already contacted him expressing concern over Trump’s second-guessing of U.S. intelligence agencies.</p>
<p>“It is really very damaging in my view to our standing in the world for a president to take one of the crown jewels of our national defense and denigrate it,” Biden said. “It plays into, particularly now, the Russian narrative that America doesn’t know what it’s doing.”</p>
<p>After nearly half a century in public office, Biden will exit the national stage next Friday, although he plans to stay active in Democratic politics and work on policy issues at a pair of institutes he’s developing at the University of Delaware and the University of Pennsylvania. He also plans to continue with the cancer “moonshot” effort he launched after his son died.</p>
<p>Biden was full of praise for his successor, Vice President-elect Mike Pence. He said he’s been sending Pence memos with his advice on how to handle certain relationships, such as with Iraqi and Ukrainian leaders, and on “the things that could explode most easily.”</p>
<p>He said Pence had been receptive to his advice but had less time these days to speak to Biden due to the heavy role he’s playing in setting up Trump’s administration. Biden said he’s made his national security adviser, Colin Kahl, available to Pence but hoped Pence would quickly name a national security adviser of his own.</p>
<p>“It would be better if they had been in a better position where he actually had somebody that Colin could sit down with every morning,” Biden said.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>Reach Josh Lederman on Twitter at <a href="http://twitter.com/joshledermanAP" type="external">http://twitter.com/joshledermanAP</a></p>
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washington vice president joe biden said thursday top intelligence leaders told president barack obama felt obligated inform uncorroborated allegations presidentelect donald trump concern information would become public catch offguard interview biden said neither obama asked us intelligence agencies try corroborate unverified claims russia obtained compromising sexual financial allegations trump think something obviously agency thinks track biden said added later surprised made point agency fbi thought pursue advertisement hourlong session associated press news outlets vice president sharply critical trump publicly disparaging intelligence officials saying trump damaging us standing playing russias hands also took umbrage trumps comments accusing intelligence agencies allowing information leak publicly drawing comparison living nazi germany one thing never want invoke nazi germany matter circumstances biden said overwhelming diversion point youre trying make biden said briefing obama received director national intelligence james clapper others conclusions drawn uncorroborated dossier produced august released publicly week media biden said totally ancillary purpose meeting brief obama report ordered documenting russian interference us campaign matter fact president like anything anything biden said said intelligence leaders responded saying well feel obliged tell mr president may hear going tell referring trump biden said intelligence leaders told obama couldnt say whether allegations true untrue said hardly discussion allegations briefing neither president asked detail biden said added dossier ive read everything trump vehemently denied allegations included dossier close coordination trumps inner circle russians dossier also included unsubstantiated claims unusual sexual activities trump attributed anonymous sources associated press authenticated claims trump denied fbi working corroborate details dossier although unclear long investigation running many resources assigned fbi director james comey declined even acknowledge investigation publicly line fbi protocol advertisement dossier compiled former western intelligence operative circulating among news organizations intelligence agencies washington months existence became known publicly following reports intelligence community briefed trump dossier interview biden criticized trumps rocky relationship intelligence officials presidentelect publicly challenged assessment russias role election suggested skewed evidence trump received presidents daily brief highestlevel intelligence document produced united states times insisted doesnt need daily suggested knows intelligence leaders biden said would genuine tragedy trump refused daily intelligence briefing presidents traditionally receive illustrate point biden took black tablet computer uses read daily briefing showed reporters sat next crackling fireplace office steps oval office said passwordprotected includes feature uses ask questions intelligence responded day biden said least five foreign leaders already contacted expressing concern trumps secondguessing us intelligence agencies really damaging view standing world president take one crown jewels national defense denigrate biden said plays particularly russian narrative america doesnt know nearly half century public office biden exit national stage next friday although plans stay active democratic politics work policy issues pair institutes hes developing university delaware university pennsylvania also plans continue cancer moonshot effort launched son died biden full praise successor vice presidentelect mike pence said hes sending pence memos advice handle certain relationships iraqi ukrainian leaders things could explode easily said pence receptive advice less time days speak biden due heavy role hes playing setting trumps administration biden said hes made national security adviser colin kahl available pence hoped pence would quickly name national security adviser would better better position actually somebody colin could sit every morning biden said ___ reach josh lederman twitter httptwittercomjoshledermanap
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<p />
<p>The Democratic president had 49 percent support in the statewide survey of likely voters, and some who had already voted, compared with 39 percent of voters who said they preferred Romney.</p>
<p>Former New Mexico Gov. Gary Johnson, the Libertarian Party nominee for president, had 6 percent support in the survey. Five percent of New Mexico voters were undecided.</p>
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<p>The Journal Poll was conducted Oct. 9-11. The margin of sampling error for the statewide sample of voters is plus or minus 3.8 percentage points. Early voting for the Nov. 6 general election started Oct. 9.</p>
<p>Barack Obama has solidified his lead in New Mexico,” said Brian Sanderoff, president of Albuquerque-based Research &amp; Polling Inc., which conducted the poll. “He’s broadened his lead in the Albuquerque metro area and among independents, and that has led to an increased lead statewide.”</p>
<p>An earlier Journal Poll, conducted Sept. 3-6, found Obama with a 5-point lead over Romney. That survey was conducted after the Republican National Convention and before the Democratic National Convention had concluded.</p>
<p><a href="" type="internal" />“A poll is a snapshot in time,” Sanderoff said. “The timing of the last (Journal) poll may have been more beneficial to Mitt Romney.”</p>
<p>The latest Journal Poll was conducted after a video surfaced in which Romney told supporters at a Florida fundraiser that 47 percent of Americans rely on government support, view themselves as “victims” and will support Obama in the election “no matter what.” Romney has since said his remarks were “completely wrong” and he aims to represent 100 percent of Americans.</p>
<p>The Journal Poll also followed what was widely seen as a solid Romney win in the first presidential debate on Oct. 3, spurring a Romney surge in national polls. That trend, however, was not reflected in the just-completed Journal Poll in New Mexico.</p>
<p>Obama’s strong showing in the Albuquerque area, where about 45 percent of New Mexico voters live, was a key factor in Obama’s overall lead in the latest Journal Poll, Sanderoff said.</p>
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<p>Fifty-three percent of Albuquerque-area voters said they would vote for Obama, and 34 percent supported Romney.</p>
<p>“Obama’s breaking out in the big city of Albuquerque, the largest urban area of the state,” Sanderoff said.</p>
<p>Over time, as Albuquerque becomes more urban, it’s leaning more Democratic,” Sanderoff said.</p>
<p>The Journal Poll also found that independent voters were more likely to support Obama than Romney.</p>
<p>Forty-six percent of poll respondents who identified themselves as independent – actually those who “decline to state” a party affiliation when they register to vote – said they preferred Obama, while 30 percent said they favored Romney.</p>
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<p>Fourteen percent of the independents said they supported Johnson, and 9 percent were undecided.</p>
<p>Seventy-nine percent of Democrats surveyed said they would vote for Obama, and 11 percent said they would, or already had, cast their ballots for Romney. Romney needs stronger support among independents and Democrats to beat Obama on Election Day, Sanderoff said.</p>
<p>“For Republicans to win in New Mexico, they need to pick up a significant amount of crossover Democratic voters and at least half of the independents,” Sanderoff said.</p>
<p>Romney did have solid support from Republican voters in the Journal Poll, with 86 percent saying they supported him, compared with just 7 percent of Democrats.</p>
<p>“Romney has Republicans locked,” Sanderoff said.</p>
<p>Obama had strong support among Hispanics. Sixty-five percent of voters identifying themselves as Hispanics in the Journal Poll said they would vote for the president, compared with 24 percent who would vote for Romney.</p>
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<p>Sanderoff said Romney must boost his support among Hispanics to win the election in New Mexico. New Mexico’s adult population is about 45 percent Hispanic, and one-third of its likely voters are Hispanic.</p>
<p>“Former President George W. Bush got nearly 40 percent among New Mexico Hispanics, and that’s why he could win,” Sanderoff said. “Romney is behind because he’s not picking up a sufficient number of Democrats, independents and Hispanics.”</p>
<p>Obama led Romney among both male and female voters, but each candidate had about equal support from each gender.</p>
<p>Romney led Obama on the conservative east side of New Mexico, where 64 percent of voters polled preferred him to just 25 percent who favored Obama. But in Democratic-heavy north-central New Mexico, Obama had a commanding lead. Two-thirds of the poll respondents from north-central New Mexico, which includes Santa Fe and Española, said they preferred Obama. Twenty-one percent said they would cast their ballots for Romney. Undecided voters represented 7 percent or less in each region.</p>
<p>Johnson’s greatest support came from independents, men and younger voters. The former New Mexico governor, who served from 1995 until 2003, had 14 percent support among independent voters, 9 percent support among men and 7 percent support among poll respondents who were 18 to 34 years old. Just 4 percent of female voters preferred Johnson, according the Journal Poll.</p>
<p>Obama carried New Mexico with 57 percent of the vote over Republican John McCain in 2008.</p>
<p>With the state never considered a battleground in 2012, presidential campaign advertising has been largely absent in New Mexico.</p>
<p>Obama and Romney each have visited the state once since the start of the year.</p>
<p>The Journal Poll was conducted by Research and Polling Inc. of Albuquerque and is based on cellphone and land-line telephone interviews of 658 likely voters statewide from Oct. 9 to Oct. 11. The margin of error for the full, statewide sample in the Journal Poll is plus or minus 3.8 percentage points. The margin of error grows for subsamples. Sums may not equal 100 percent because of rounding error. — This article appeared on page A1 of the Albuquerque Journal</p>
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democratic president 49 percent support statewide survey likely voters already voted compared 39 percent voters said preferred romney former new mexico gov gary johnson libertarian party nominee president 6 percent support survey five percent new mexico voters undecided advertisement journal poll conducted oct 911 margin sampling error statewide sample voters plus minus 38 percentage points early voting nov 6 general election started oct 9 barack obama solidified lead new mexico said brian sanderoff president albuquerquebased research amp polling inc conducted poll hes broadened lead albuquerque metro area among independents led increased lead statewide earlier journal poll conducted sept 36 found obama 5point lead romney survey conducted republican national convention democratic national convention concluded poll snapshot time sanderoff said timing last journal poll may beneficial mitt romney latest journal poll conducted video surfaced romney told supporters florida fundraiser 47 percent americans rely government support view victims support obama election matter romney since said remarks completely wrong aims represent 100 percent americans journal poll also followed widely seen solid romney win first presidential debate oct 3 spurring romney surge national polls trend however reflected justcompleted journal poll new mexico obamas strong showing albuquerque area 45 percent new mexico voters live key factor obamas overall lead latest journal poll sanderoff said advertisement fiftythree percent albuquerquearea voters said would vote obama 34 percent supported romney obamas breaking big city albuquerque largest urban area state sanderoff said time albuquerque becomes urban leaning democratic sanderoff said journal poll also found independent voters likely support obama romney fortysix percent poll respondents identified independent actually decline state party affiliation register vote said preferred obama 30 percent said favored romney advertisement fourteen percent independents said supported johnson 9 percent undecided seventynine percent democrats surveyed said would vote obama 11 percent said would already cast ballots romney romney needs stronger support among independents democrats beat obama election day sanderoff said republicans win new mexico need pick significant amount crossover democratic voters least half independents sanderoff said romney solid support republican voters journal poll 86 percent saying supported compared 7 percent democrats romney republicans locked sanderoff said obama strong support among hispanics sixtyfive percent voters identifying hispanics journal poll said would vote president compared 24 percent would vote romney advertisement sanderoff said romney must boost support among hispanics win election new mexico new mexicos adult population 45 percent hispanic onethird likely voters hispanic former president george w bush got nearly 40 percent among new mexico hispanics thats could win sanderoff said romney behind hes picking sufficient number democrats independents hispanics obama led romney among male female voters candidate equal support gender romney led obama conservative east side new mexico 64 percent voters polled preferred 25 percent favored obama democraticheavy northcentral new mexico obama commanding lead twothirds poll respondents northcentral new mexico includes santa fe española said preferred obama twentyone percent said would cast ballots romney undecided voters represented 7 percent less region johnsons greatest support came independents men younger voters former new mexico governor served 1995 2003 14 percent support among independent voters 9 percent support among men 7 percent support among poll respondents 18 34 years old 4 percent female voters preferred johnson according journal poll obama carried new mexico 57 percent vote republican john mccain 2008 state never considered battleground 2012 presidential campaign advertising largely absent new mexico obama romney visited state since start year journal poll conducted research polling inc albuquerque based cellphone landline telephone interviews 658 likely voters statewide oct 9 oct 11 margin error full statewide sample journal poll plus minus 38 percentage points margin error grows subsamples sums may equal 100 percent rounding error article appeared page a1 albuquerque journal
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<p />
<p>President Donald Trump is going to have to decide how he wants to coexist with his premier spy service. Resentful of its conclusion that the Russian government backed his bid for the White House, Trump is already talking about restructuring it. Like it or not, he’ll have to take its views into account.</p>
<p>History has demonstrated that it’s dangerous when the CIA gets it wrong. And that it’s even more dangerous when a president disbelieves the agency when it’s right.</p>
<p>President Harry Truman started up the CIA in 1947, at the dawn of the Cold War, in the hope that it could inform him better than the front page of the daily newspapers. But his own secretary of state warned him that the CIA could go out of his control. The neophyte intelligence service soon turned to covert operations against communism, and many were disastrous. They were coordinated with British intelligence, and the senior British intelligence officer assigned to Washington in 1949 turned out to be a Soviet mole.</p>
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<p>President Dwight D. Eisenhower – who had run the biggest secret operation of World War II, the D-Day landing in France – knew the value of good intelligence and wanted to depend on the CIA. He was enthused early in his first term by successful CIA coups against the elected leaders of Iran and Guatemala. But in his second term, his director of central intelligence, Allen Dulles, failed to keep the White House and the Pentagon informed of precisely what the CIA was doing overseas. This led to spectacularly unsuccessful attempts to overthrow governments from Indonesia to Syria.</p>
<p>Ike concluded in 1960, at the end of his presidency, that American intelligence was in shambles. He said he was leaving, in his words, “a legacy of ashes” to his successor, President John F. Kennedy. Three months later came the Bay of Pigs invasion of Cuba. Kennedy vowed to break the CIA into pieces and scatter it to the winds. The agency redeemed itself by providing forewarning of Soviet shipments of nuclear weapons to Cuba; that intelligence helped JFK avert a global war in 1962. At the same time, the CIA was plotting the assassination of Cuba’s leader, Fidel Castro. Castro would outlast 11 U.S. presidents.</p>
<p>President Lyndon B. Johnson wanted one thing above all from the CIA – a strategy to win the war in Vietnam. He was enraged when the agency advised that a cease-fire and a negotiated peace was the only way out. Director of Central Intelligence Richard Helms told LBJ bluntly in 1967 that the U.S. was “ill-suited to cope with guerilla warfare waged by a determined, resourceful, and politically astute opponent.” The president did not want to hear that. No president did – especially not Richard Nixon.</p>
<p>“What the hell do those clowns do out there in Langley?” Nixon railed, referring to the CIA’s Virginia headquarters, in a 1970 tirade. One thing that Helms would not do was to obey Nixon’s command to cover up the 1972 break-in at Democratic Party headquarters in the Watergate Hotel. The Watergate operation was conducted by former agents of the CIA and Federal Bureau of Investigation – and Nixon’s orders, caught on his secret White House tapes, were for the CIA to tell the FBI to stop its investigation of the case on spurious grounds of national security. That was an obstruction of justice, and it led directly to Nixon’s resignation two years later.</p>
<p>His successor, President Gerald Ford, suffered through a long Senate investigation of the history of the CIA, which revealed assassination plots and coup attempts but did not disclose that presidents had, in many cases, personally authorized them. Ford appointed a new director of central intelligence, George H.W. Bush, who loved the agency during the year he was in charge. Bush wanted to stay on at the CIA after Jimmy Carter was elected in 1976. “If I had agreed to that,” Carter said years later, “he never would have become president.”</p>
<p>Carter had called the CIA “a national disgrace” during the Senate investigation. But he wound up signing almost as many covert-action orders as Nixon and Ford. Most were aimed at undermining communism. Bob Gates – who served as CIA director under Bush and secretary of defense under his son, President George W. Bush, and then under President Barack Obama – wrote that Carter was “the first president since Truman to challenge directly the legitimacy of the Soviet government.” The credit for the Soviet collapse would go to President Ronald Reagan, but some should go to Carter – and the CIA.</p>
<p>Reagan’s CIA chief was the wily William Casey, and Casey was, in the words of his own deputy, “a freelance buccaneer.” He ran the CIA aground. Casey dreamed up a plot to generate millions of dollars to support anticommunist guerrillas in Central America by selling weapons to Iran’s Revolutionary Guards and skimming the profits. When this scheme was exposed in 1986, the Reagan administration nearly ground to a halt as senior officials were investigated and indicted.</p>
<p>George H.W. Bush was the first president who had run the CIA, and he got along famously with the agency, especially after Gates took the helm in 1991. But the CIA missed the signs that the Soviet state was about to collapse. It had “no idea,” Gates wrote, “that a tidal wave of history was about to break upon us.” Nonetheless, the Cold War ended without shots being fired, much less nuclear missiles, and the CIA helped the White House keep its powder dry.</p>
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<p>President Bill Clinton had thought little about U.S. strategic interests after the Cold War. His CIA went adrift in the 1990’s, after the fall of the Berlin Wall and before the fall of the Twin Towers. He met with his first CIA director, Jim Woolsey, twice in two years. “I didn’t have a bad relationship with the president,” Woolsey said. “I just didn’t have one at all.”</p>
<p>But by 2000 Clinton was deeply concerned by the rise of al-Qaida and its terrorist mastermind, Osama bin Laden. He recalled telling his successor, “Your biggest threat is bin Laden.” George W. Bush swore he never heard those words. Perhaps he was not listening. Nor did he take seriously a CIA report in August 2001 with the headline: “Bin Laden Determined to Strike in US.”</p>
<p>The most serious intelligence failure since Pearl Harbor was compounded when CIA Director George Tenet told Bush that the CIA had “slam dunk” evidence that Saddam Hussein was building nuclear, biological and chemical weapons. It didn’t. As a direct consequence, Americans are still fighting in Iraq. Bush himself said in 2004 that the CIA was “just guessing” about the course of that war. By 2008, the agency was in effect a second-echelon branch of the Pentagon. Generals took charge of American intelligence.</p>
<p>The CIA that Obama inherited was in large part devoted to paramilitary operations and drone strikes against suspected terrorists. The analytical powers of the CIA he will pass on have been revitalized in part by a huge infusion of funds from the Republican-led Congress. Those same Republicans now have to hold hearings on its conclusion that a Russian intelligence operation supported the election of Trump.</p>
<p>Intelligence is a human endeavor, and prone to error. Presidents are free to pick and choose from the CIA’s reports. But if Trump seeks revenge for its findings on Russia’s plot, or if he simply tunes it out entirely, it’s more than a bad sign — it’s a danger to the national security of the United States.</p>
<p>—</p>
<p>Weiner has reported on national security for the New York Times and won the National Book Award for “Legacy of Ashes: The History of the CIA.” For more columns from Bloomberg View, visit <a href="http://www.bloomberg.com/view." type="external">http://www.bloomberg.com/view.</a></p>
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president donald trump going decide wants coexist premier spy service resentful conclusion russian government backed bid white house trump already talking restructuring like hell take views account history demonstrated dangerous cia gets wrong even dangerous president disbelieves agency right president harry truman started cia 1947 dawn cold war hope could inform better front page daily newspapers secretary state warned cia could go control neophyte intelligence service soon turned covert operations communism many disastrous coordinated british intelligence senior british intelligence officer assigned washington 1949 turned soviet mole advertisement president dwight eisenhower run biggest secret operation world war ii dday landing france knew value good intelligence wanted depend cia enthused early first term successful cia coups elected leaders iran guatemala second term director central intelligence allen dulles failed keep white house pentagon informed precisely cia overseas led spectacularly unsuccessful attempts overthrow governments indonesia syria ike concluded 1960 end presidency american intelligence shambles said leaving words legacy ashes successor president john f kennedy three months later came bay pigs invasion cuba kennedy vowed break cia pieces scatter winds agency redeemed providing forewarning soviet shipments nuclear weapons cuba intelligence helped jfk avert global war 1962 time cia plotting assassination cubas leader fidel castro castro would outlast 11 us presidents president lyndon b johnson wanted one thing cia strategy win war vietnam enraged agency advised ceasefire negotiated peace way director central intelligence richard helms told lbj bluntly 1967 us illsuited cope guerilla warfare waged determined resourceful politically astute opponent president want hear president especially richard nixon hell clowns langley nixon railed referring cias virginia headquarters 1970 tirade one thing helms would obey nixons command cover 1972 breakin democratic party headquarters watergate hotel watergate operation conducted former agents cia federal bureau investigation nixons orders caught secret white house tapes cia tell fbi stop investigation case spurious grounds national security obstruction justice led directly nixons resignation two years later successor president gerald ford suffered long senate investigation history cia revealed assassination plots coup attempts disclose presidents many cases personally authorized ford appointed new director central intelligence george hw bush loved agency year charge bush wanted stay cia jimmy carter elected 1976 agreed carter said years later never would become president carter called cia national disgrace senate investigation wound signing almost many covertaction orders nixon ford aimed undermining communism bob gates served cia director bush secretary defense son president george w bush president barack obama wrote carter first president since truman challenge directly legitimacy soviet government credit soviet collapse would go president ronald reagan go carter cia reagans cia chief wily william casey casey words deputy freelance buccaneer ran cia aground casey dreamed plot generate millions dollars support anticommunist guerrillas central america selling weapons irans revolutionary guards skimming profits scheme exposed 1986 reagan administration nearly ground halt senior officials investigated indicted george hw bush first president run cia got along famously agency especially gates took helm 1991 cia missed signs soviet state collapse idea gates wrote tidal wave history break upon us nonetheless cold war ended without shots fired much less nuclear missiles cia helped white house keep powder dry advertisement president bill clinton thought little us strategic interests cold war cia went adrift 1990s fall berlin wall fall twin towers met first cia director jim woolsey twice two years didnt bad relationship president woolsey said didnt one 2000 clinton deeply concerned rise alqaida terrorist mastermind osama bin laden recalled telling successor biggest threat bin laden george w bush swore never heard words perhaps listening take seriously cia report august 2001 headline bin laden determined strike us serious intelligence failure since pearl harbor compounded cia director george tenet told bush cia slam dunk evidence saddam hussein building nuclear biological chemical weapons didnt direct consequence americans still fighting iraq bush said 2004 cia guessing course war 2008 agency effect secondechelon branch pentagon generals took charge american intelligence cia obama inherited large part devoted paramilitary operations drone strikes suspected terrorists analytical powers cia pass revitalized part huge infusion funds republicanled congress republicans hold hearings conclusion russian intelligence operation supported election trump intelligence human endeavor prone error presidents free pick choose cias reports trump seeks revenge findings russias plot simply tunes entirely bad sign danger national security united states weiner reported national security new york times national book award legacy ashes history cia columns bloomberg view visit httpwwwbloombergcomview
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<p>RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — Dead men tell no tales, but there’s new evidence that somebody aboard the pirate Blackbeard’s flagship harbored books among the booty.</p>
<p>In an unusual find, researchers have discovered shreds of paper bearing legible printing that somehow survived three centuries underwater on the sunken vessel. And after more than a year of research that ranged as far as Scotland, they managed to identify them as fragments of a book about nautical voyages published in the early 1700s.</p>
<p>Conservators for Blackbeard’s ship the Queen Anne’s Revenge found the 16 fragments of paper wedged inside the chamber for a breech-loading cannon, with the largest piece being the size of a quarter.</p>
<p>The Queen Anne’s Revenge had been a French slave ship when Blackbeard captured it in 1717 and renamed it. The vessel ran aground in Beaufort, in what was then the colony of North Carolina, in June 1718. Volunteers with the Royal Navy killed Blackbeard in Ocracoke Inlet that same year.</p>
<p>Tens of thousands of artifacts have been recovered since Florida-based research firm Intersal Inc. located the shipwreck off the North Carolina coast in 1996 but few, if any, are as surprising as pieces of paper. To find paper in a 300-year-old shipwreck in warm waters is “almost unheard of,” said Erik Farrell, a conservator at the QAR Conservation Lab in Greenville.</p>
<p>Eventually, the conservators determined that the words “south” and “fathom” were in the text, suggesting a maritime or navigational book. But one word, Hilo, stood out because it was both capitalized and in italics, said Kimberly Kenyon, also a conservator at the lab.</p>
<p>They turned to Johanna Green, a specialist in the history of printed text at the University of Glasgow, who pointed them to the Spanish settlement of Ilo — or Hilo — on the coast of Peru. The fragments eventually were determined to be from a 1712 first edition of a book by Capt. Edward Cooke titled “A Voyage to the South Seas, and Round the World, Peform’d in the years 1708, 1709, 1710 and 1711.”</p>
<p>It’s impossible to say who aboard Blackbeard’s ship would have been reading the voyage narrative — a form popular in England in the 17th and 18th century — or whether it belonged to a pirate or some terrified captive. But some pirates were known to be literate, Kenyon said.</p>
<p>For example, Stede Bonnett, the “gentleman pirate” who joined Blackbeard in 1717, had his own library. It’s not known if he brought his books on the Queen Anne’s Revenge.</p>
<p>A history of pirates written in 1724 mentions a journal belonging to Blackbeard that was taken when he was killed. And when Blackbeard captured a ship called the Margaret in December 1717, the list of items taken from the ship included books, Farrell said.</p>
<p>“They were literate men,” Kenyon said. “People always assume pirates are ruffians from bad backgrounds, and that wasn’t always the case.”</p>
<p>The survival of the paper fragments is perhaps even more unusual than their existence aboard the pirate vessel.</p>
<p>The chamber in which they were found was a separate piece of a breech-loading swivel gun that was likely kept on the top deck because it was used as an anti-personnel weapon, Farrell said. Conservators don’t have the cannon itself, which likely was salvaged or stolen when the Queen Anne’s Revenge ran aground. In cannons of that period, “wadding” material such as cloth or paper would usually be stuffed behind a cannonball. So it’s also possible someone just tore up the book without reading it to use it for firepower.</p>
<p>Conservators had removed a wooden plug from the chamber so they could clean it when they discovered the paper fragments stuffed in there, along with pieces of fabric in May 2016, Farrell said. That mass was removed easily enough, but prying the fragments from the fabric was more tedious and time-consuming, he said.</p>
<p>The combination of fabric and the plug likely protected the paper, which normally would have disintegrated in water, Farrell said.</p>
<p>But the ability to read doesn’t change the evil character of pirates, who ransacked, raped and killed.</p>
<p>“The fact that they’re literate doesn’t mean they’re not terrible, marauding people,” Farrell said. “It just adds some nuance.”</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>Follow Martha Waggoner at <a href="http://twitter.com/mjwaggonernc" type="external">http://twitter.com/mjwaggonernc</a></p>
<p>RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — Dead men tell no tales, but there’s new evidence that somebody aboard the pirate Blackbeard’s flagship harbored books among the booty.</p>
<p>In an unusual find, researchers have discovered shreds of paper bearing legible printing that somehow survived three centuries underwater on the sunken vessel. And after more than a year of research that ranged as far as Scotland, they managed to identify them as fragments of a book about nautical voyages published in the early 1700s.</p>
<p>Conservators for Blackbeard’s ship the Queen Anne’s Revenge found the 16 fragments of paper wedged inside the chamber for a breech-loading cannon, with the largest piece being the size of a quarter.</p>
<p>The Queen Anne’s Revenge had been a French slave ship when Blackbeard captured it in 1717 and renamed it. The vessel ran aground in Beaufort, in what was then the colony of North Carolina, in June 1718. Volunteers with the Royal Navy killed Blackbeard in Ocracoke Inlet that same year.</p>
<p>Tens of thousands of artifacts have been recovered since Florida-based research firm Intersal Inc. located the shipwreck off the North Carolina coast in 1996 but few, if any, are as surprising as pieces of paper. To find paper in a 300-year-old shipwreck in warm waters is “almost unheard of,” said Erik Farrell, a conservator at the QAR Conservation Lab in Greenville.</p>
<p>Eventually, the conservators determined that the words “south” and “fathom” were in the text, suggesting a maritime or navigational book. But one word, Hilo, stood out because it was both capitalized and in italics, said Kimberly Kenyon, also a conservator at the lab.</p>
<p>They turned to Johanna Green, a specialist in the history of printed text at the University of Glasgow, who pointed them to the Spanish settlement of Ilo — or Hilo — on the coast of Peru. The fragments eventually were determined to be from a 1712 first edition of a book by Capt. Edward Cooke titled “A Voyage to the South Seas, and Round the World, Peform’d in the years 1708, 1709, 1710 and 1711.”</p>
<p>It’s impossible to say who aboard Blackbeard’s ship would have been reading the voyage narrative — a form popular in England in the 17th and 18th century — or whether it belonged to a pirate or some terrified captive. But some pirates were known to be literate, Kenyon said.</p>
<p>For example, Stede Bonnett, the “gentleman pirate” who joined Blackbeard in 1717, had his own library. It’s not known if he brought his books on the Queen Anne’s Revenge.</p>
<p>A history of pirates written in 1724 mentions a journal belonging to Blackbeard that was taken when he was killed. And when Blackbeard captured a ship called the Margaret in December 1717, the list of items taken from the ship included books, Farrell said.</p>
<p>“They were literate men,” Kenyon said. “People always assume pirates are ruffians from bad backgrounds, and that wasn’t always the case.”</p>
<p>The survival of the paper fragments is perhaps even more unusual than their existence aboard the pirate vessel.</p>
<p>The chamber in which they were found was a separate piece of a breech-loading swivel gun that was likely kept on the top deck because it was used as an anti-personnel weapon, Farrell said. Conservators don’t have the cannon itself, which likely was salvaged or stolen when the Queen Anne’s Revenge ran aground. In cannons of that period, “wadding” material such as cloth or paper would usually be stuffed behind a cannonball. So it’s also possible someone just tore up the book without reading it to use it for firepower.</p>
<p>Conservators had removed a wooden plug from the chamber so they could clean it when they discovered the paper fragments stuffed in there, along with pieces of fabric in May 2016, Farrell said. That mass was removed easily enough, but prying the fragments from the fabric was more tedious and time-consuming, he said.</p>
<p>The combination of fabric and the plug likely protected the paper, which normally would have disintegrated in water, Farrell said.</p>
<p>But the ability to read doesn’t change the evil character of pirates, who ransacked, raped and killed.</p>
<p>“The fact that they’re literate doesn’t mean they’re not terrible, marauding people,” Farrell said. “It just adds some nuance.”</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>Follow Martha Waggoner at <a href="http://twitter.com/mjwaggonernc" type="external">http://twitter.com/mjwaggonernc</a></p>
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raleigh nc ap dead men tell tales theres new evidence somebody aboard pirate blackbeards flagship harbored books among booty unusual find researchers discovered shreds paper bearing legible printing somehow survived three centuries underwater sunken vessel year research ranged far scotland managed identify fragments book nautical voyages published early 1700s conservators blackbeards ship queen annes revenge found 16 fragments paper wedged inside chamber breechloading cannon largest piece size quarter queen annes revenge french slave ship blackbeard captured 1717 renamed vessel ran aground beaufort colony north carolina june 1718 volunteers royal navy killed blackbeard ocracoke inlet year tens thousands artifacts recovered since floridabased research firm intersal inc located shipwreck north carolina coast 1996 surprising pieces paper find paper 300yearold shipwreck warm waters almost unheard said erik farrell conservator qar conservation lab greenville eventually conservators determined words south fathom text suggesting maritime navigational book one word hilo stood capitalized italics said kimberly kenyon also conservator lab turned johanna green specialist history printed text university glasgow pointed spanish settlement ilo hilo coast peru fragments eventually determined 1712 first edition book capt edward cooke titled voyage south seas round world peformd years 1708 1709 1710 1711 impossible say aboard blackbeards ship would reading voyage narrative form popular england 17th 18th century whether belonged pirate terrified captive pirates known literate kenyon said example stede bonnett gentleman pirate joined blackbeard 1717 library known brought books queen annes revenge history pirates written 1724 mentions journal belonging blackbeard taken killed blackbeard captured ship called margaret december 1717 list items taken ship included books farrell said literate men kenyon said people always assume pirates ruffians bad backgrounds wasnt always case survival paper fragments perhaps even unusual existence aboard pirate vessel chamber found separate piece breechloading swivel gun likely kept top deck used antipersonnel weapon farrell said conservators dont cannon likely salvaged stolen queen annes revenge ran aground cannons period wadding material cloth paper would usually stuffed behind cannonball also possible someone tore book without reading use firepower conservators removed wooden plug chamber could clean discovered paper fragments stuffed along pieces fabric may 2016 farrell said mass removed easily enough prying fragments fabric tedious timeconsuming said combination fabric plug likely protected paper normally would disintegrated water farrell said ability read doesnt change evil character pirates ransacked raped killed fact theyre literate doesnt mean theyre terrible marauding people farrell said adds nuance ___ follow martha waggoner httptwittercommjwaggonernc raleigh nc ap dead men tell tales theres new evidence somebody aboard pirate blackbeards flagship harbored books among booty unusual find researchers discovered shreds paper bearing legible printing somehow survived three centuries underwater sunken vessel year research ranged far scotland managed identify fragments book nautical voyages published early 1700s conservators blackbeards ship queen annes revenge found 16 fragments paper wedged inside chamber breechloading cannon largest piece size quarter queen annes revenge french slave ship blackbeard captured 1717 renamed vessel ran aground beaufort colony north carolina june 1718 volunteers royal navy killed blackbeard ocracoke inlet year tens thousands artifacts recovered since floridabased research firm intersal inc located shipwreck north carolina coast 1996 surprising pieces paper find paper 300yearold shipwreck warm waters almost unheard said erik farrell conservator qar conservation lab greenville eventually conservators determined words south fathom text suggesting maritime navigational book one word hilo stood capitalized italics said kimberly kenyon also conservator lab turned johanna green specialist history printed text university glasgow pointed spanish settlement ilo hilo coast peru fragments eventually determined 1712 first edition book capt edward cooke titled voyage south seas round world peformd years 1708 1709 1710 1711 impossible say aboard blackbeards ship would reading voyage narrative form popular england 17th 18th century whether belonged pirate terrified captive pirates known literate kenyon said example stede bonnett gentleman pirate joined blackbeard 1717 library known brought books queen annes revenge history pirates written 1724 mentions journal belonging blackbeard taken killed blackbeard captured ship called margaret december 1717 list items taken ship included books farrell said literate men kenyon said people always assume pirates ruffians bad backgrounds wasnt always case survival paper fragments perhaps even unusual existence aboard pirate vessel chamber found separate piece breechloading swivel gun likely kept top deck used antipersonnel weapon farrell said conservators dont cannon likely salvaged stolen queen annes revenge ran aground cannons period wadding material cloth paper would usually stuffed behind cannonball also possible someone tore book without reading use firepower conservators removed wooden plug chamber could clean discovered paper fragments stuffed along pieces fabric may 2016 farrell said mass removed easily enough prying fragments fabric tedious timeconsuming said combination fabric plug likely protected paper normally would disintegrated water farrell said ability read doesnt change evil character pirates ransacked raped killed fact theyre literate doesnt mean theyre terrible marauding people farrell said adds nuance ___ follow martha waggoner httptwittercommjwaggonernc
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<p>Afghan Parliamentarian Fawzia Koofi is grateful that she no longer must wear a burqa, that women sit in Afghanistan's Parliament and that 9 million girls are in school. (Massoud Hossaini/The Associated Press)</p>
<p>KABUL, Afghanistan - In 2009, the United States gave Wazhma Frogh the International Woman of Courage award for her women's rights activism in Afghanistan. Prominently displayed in Frogh's office is a picture of then-Secretary of State Hillary Clinton granting her the award as First Lady Michelle Obama smiles, clapping by her side.</p>
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<p>Four years later, the United States denied her a visa when she was trying to get away from an Afghan militia commander who she says was persecuting her.</p>
<p>For Frogh, the experience underlined the state of the women's rights movement in her country. Thirteen years after the fall of the Taliban, billions of dollars have been spent, the West, and the Afghan government has offered countless words of support, yet the successes that have been achieved remain vulnerable. Ultimately, women still have nowhere to turn when their battle for equal rights puts them on the firing line, she said.</p>
<p>"They give you an award but they don't support you when you need them," she said. "I always thought that if my government didn't help me, I would always be able to turn to the United States. I never thought that they would turn their back on me."</p>
<p>Gains have been made. Gone are the rules imposed by the Taliban forcing women to wear the all-encompassing burqa and barring girls from school. Now, as many as 4 million girls are in school, and women sit in Afghanistan's parliament.</p>
<p>But Frogh and other women's rights activists said those changes, while important, are superficial. Women's equality was a priority when the memory of the Taliban was fresh, but, over the years, the commitment has waned. It became a mantra recited by the Afghan government and non-government organizations to get international funding, and a flag for Western governments to wave as a symbol of success over the Taliban, said Frogh and Afghan parliamentarian, Fawzia Koofi.</p>
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<p>"Women's rights is the most politicized issue in Afghanistan, before even talks with the Taliban, and I am not happy with it," said Koofi, referring to the Afghan government's attempts to negotiate with Taliban insurgents, raising women activists' fears that authorities will compromise on their rights if necessary to reach a deal.</p>
<p>Koofi said she is proud and grateful for the successes, but "after 13 years I am still being forced to ask for my basic rights."</p>
<p>Many of the victories have major caveats. Girls are back in school, but most are pulled out by their families as they near puberty to ready them for marriage, she said.</p>
<p>A hard-fought Law on the Elimination of Violence against Women was passed. More women are reporting cases of abuse and are aware of their right to speak out, said Georgette Gagnon, director of Human Rights with the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan.</p>
<p>But, she said, few cases make it to court and prosecution is rare. Instead most end up in mediation, often through jirgas - a traditional council of elders - or other community councils, which rarely work in favor of the woman.</p>
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<p>"Often this mediation doesn't fully protect woman's rights and often leads to more violence against the woman," said Gagnon.</p>
<p>The few Afghan businesswomen are paraded as success stories, while women are still having their lips cut off for perceived offenses, as happened recently in northern Afghanistan, said Frogh.</p>
<p>More than 80 percent of the women in prisons are jailed for so-called "moral crimes," like leaving an abusive husband. Shelters for abused women have been set up, but most men in conservative Afghanistan, even those in the Ministry of Interior, see shelters as "immoral," and women who seek sanctuary there are often banished from their communities, Frogh said.</p>
<p>Afghan President Hamid Karzai's first Cabinet featured five female members, the next only two. The quota for women in district councils was 25 percent, but has been reduced to 20 percent. The government set up a Women's Affairs Ministry but doesn't give it the money to hire the staff it needs.</p>
<p>Frogh's Women Peace and Security Research Institute works with the Interior Ministry to get more women in ministry jobs and holds training sessions with policewomen, many of whom face sexual harassment. Frogh counsels women on their rights, and her institute compiles statistics and researches abuses against women.</p>
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<p>Last year, she tried to go temporarily to the U.S. to gain some distance from a militia commander who she says was terrorizing her after she identified him in a report to NATO as a repetitive rights violator.</p>
<p>The commander had her followed. He drowned her in text messages, warning that he knew her every move. Frogh said she would be at the airport and a text message would arrive from the commander: "Welcome home."</p>
<p>He threatened her sisters and paid her neighbors to complain to the police, alleging that the many women who visited her office were immoral, Frogh says. She had to relocate her office.</p>
<p>Aware of the harassment, the U.S-based Institute of Inclusive Security invited Frogh to spend six to 12 months as a visiting fellow. Frogh said she was told the visa was denied because of fears she would overstay. But she said she neither wanted asylum nor to overstay her visa, only a respite from the harassment.</p>
<p>The U.S. Embassy spokesman in Kabul, Robert B. Hilton, refused to comment, saying the embassy does not discuss visa matters.</p>
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<p>"Certainly, we were disappointed when her visa was denied," Evelyn Thornton, chief executive officer of the institute said. "We have enormous respect for Ms. Frogh's activism for human rights, peace, and security in Afghanistan. She's a courageous leader who has made a significant difference in the lives of many."</p>
<p>Finally, Frogh's family turned to a traditional Jirga to mediate with the commander, offering a number of goats and cows in exchange for his forgiveness, the activist says.?I was forced to apologize to someone who was ruining my life and, on a daily basis, the lives of other people, including women,? Frogh said. "If I had to apologize to someone who abuses our rights, and I met the wife of the president of the United States, what hope does an Afghan woman in a village have?"</p>
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afghan parliamentarian fawzia koofi grateful longer must wear burqa women sit afghanistans parliament 9 million girls school massoud hossainithe associated press kabul afghanistan 2009 united states gave wazhma frogh international woman courage award womens rights activism afghanistan prominently displayed froghs office picture thensecretary state hillary clinton granting award first lady michelle obama smiles clapping side advertisement four years later united states denied visa trying get away afghan militia commander says persecuting frogh experience underlined state womens rights movement country thirteen years fall taliban billions dollars spent west afghan government offered countless words support yet successes achieved remain vulnerable ultimately women still nowhere turn battle equal rights puts firing line said give award dont support need said always thought government didnt help would always able turn united states never thought would turn back gains made gone rules imposed taliban forcing women wear allencompassing burqa barring girls school many 4 million girls school women sit afghanistans parliament frogh womens rights activists said changes important superficial womens equality priority memory taliban fresh years commitment waned became mantra recited afghan government nongovernment organizations get international funding flag western governments wave symbol success taliban said frogh afghan parliamentarian fawzia koofi advertisement womens rights politicized issue afghanistan even talks taliban happy said koofi referring afghan governments attempts negotiate taliban insurgents raising women activists fears authorities compromise rights necessary reach deal koofi said proud grateful successes 13 years still forced ask basic rights many victories major caveats girls back school pulled families near puberty ready marriage said hardfought law elimination violence women passed women reporting cases abuse aware right speak said georgette gagnon director human rights united nations assistance mission afghanistan said cases make court prosecution rare instead end mediation often jirgas traditional council elders community councils rarely work favor woman advertisement often mediation doesnt fully protect womans rights often leads violence woman said gagnon afghan businesswomen paraded success stories women still lips cut perceived offenses happened recently northern afghanistan said frogh 80 percent women prisons jailed socalled moral crimes like leaving abusive husband shelters abused women set men conservative afghanistan even ministry interior see shelters immoral women seek sanctuary often banished communities frogh said afghan president hamid karzais first cabinet featured five female members next two quota women district councils 25 percent reduced 20 percent government set womens affairs ministry doesnt give money hire staff needs froghs women peace security research institute works interior ministry get women ministry jobs holds training sessions policewomen many face sexual harassment frogh counsels women rights institute compiles statistics researches abuses women advertisement last year tried go temporarily us gain distance militia commander says terrorizing identified report nato repetitive rights violator commander followed drowned text messages warning knew every move frogh said would airport text message would arrive commander welcome home threatened sisters paid neighbors complain police alleging many women visited office immoral frogh says relocate office aware harassment usbased institute inclusive security invited frogh spend six 12 months visiting fellow frogh said told visa denied fears would overstay said neither wanted asylum overstay visa respite harassment us embassy spokesman kabul robert b hilton refused comment saying embassy discuss visa matters advertisement certainly disappointed visa denied evelyn thornton chief executive officer institute said enormous respect ms froghs activism human rights peace security afghanistan shes courageous leader made significant difference lives many finally froghs family turned traditional jirga mediate commander offering number goats cows exchange forgiveness activist saysi forced apologize someone ruining life daily basis lives people including women frogh said apologize someone abuses rights met wife president united states hope afghan woman village
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<p>SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) - Patrick Marleau, Barclay Goodrow and James Sheppard each had a goal and an assist, and the San Jose Sharks used a five-goal second period to beat the Anaheim Ducks 6-3 on Thursday night.</p>
<p>Joe Pavelski scored in the first as the Sharks improved to 4-0-1 against the division-leading Ducks this season. Antti Niemi made 25 stops in his third consecutive win, helping San Jose extend its home winning streak against Anaheim to seven.</p>
<p>Andrew Cogliano, Matt Beleskey and Patrick Maroon scored for the Ducks, who allowed six goals in their previous five games. Anaheim had won six in a row.</p>
<p>Ducks goaltender Ilya Bryzgalov made 19 saves before being replaced by Frederik Andersen late in the second period.</p>
<p>BLUES 5, PREDATORS 4, SO</p>
<p>ST. LOUIS (AP) - Kevin Shattenkirk scored in the shootout, lifting St. Louis to the win.</p>
<p>Jaden Schwartz, T.J. Oshie, Steve Ott and Ryan Reaves scored in regulation for the Blues (30-13-4), who improved to 8-0-1 over their last nine games. Brian Elliott made 33 saves.</p>
<p>Mike Fisher had two goals and an assist for Nashville (31-10-6), which fell to 12-8-5 on the road. Carter Hutton made 31 saves.</p>
<p>The Predators, who also got goals from Filip Forsberg and James Neal, finished 3-1-1 against the Blues this season.</p>
<p>LIGHTNING 5, RED WINGS 1</p>
<p>TAMPA, Fla. (AP) - Cedric Paquette had three goals, sending Tampa Bay to a franchise-record ninth consecutive home win.</p>
<p>Steven Stamkos and Mark Barberio also scored for the Lightning, who leapfrogged the Red Wings into first place in the Atlantic Division by a point. Jonathan Drouin and Alex Killorn had two assists apiece.</p>
<p>Tampa Bay took a 4-1 lead at 11:03 of the second when Paquette completed his first hat trick from the right circle during a short-handed 2-on-1. The center has four goals in the past two games after going 29 straight without one.</p>
<p>Darren Helm scored for Detroit, which had won six in a row.</p>
<p>Paquette opened the scoring 2:03 into the game when he used his backhand to beat Petr Mrazek on a rebound. His right-circle goal gave Tampa Bay a 2-1 lead with 36.2 seconds left in the first.</p>
<p>STARS 6, SENATORS 3</p>
<p>OTTAWA, Ontario (AP) - Jamie Benn scored two goals, and the Stars beat the Senators in Jason Spezza's first game in Ottawa since he was traded to Dallas in the offseason.</p>
<p>John Klingberg, Colton Sceviour, Ales Hemsky and Trevor Daley also scored for Dallas, and Kari Lehtonen made 25 saves.</p>
<p>Mika Zibanejad, Bobby Ryan and Alex Chiasson scored for Ottawa. Robin Lehner, making his first start since January 13th, stopped 35 shots.</p>
<p>Spezza made his NHL debut with Ottawa in 2002 and had spent his entire career with the Senators before the trade. The former Senators captain got a standing ovation from the crowd of 18,752 following a video tribute early in the first period.</p>
<p>The Stars grabbed a 4-3 lead midway through the third period when Klingberg took advantage of an Ottawa turnover to break in alone and beat Lehner with a wrist shot.</p>
<p>BRUINS 5, ISLANDERS 2</p>
<p>UNIONDALE, N.Y. (AP) - Boston's Kevan Miller scored the go-ahead goal late in the second period, and Tuukka Rask stopped 43 shots.</p>
<p>Reilly Smith, Patrice Bergeron, Torey Krug and Zdeno Chara also scored for Boston, which won for the seventh time in 10 games. Smith and Milan Lucic also had two assists apiece.</p>
<p>John Tavares and Michael Grabner scored for New York, and Jaroslav Halak stopped 28 shots. The Metropolitan Division-leading Islanders dropped to 17-5 at home this season.</p>
<p>Miller put the Bruins ahead for good with 3.4 seconds left in the second. He intercepted Halak's clearing attempt at the right-wing boards just inside the blue line, and fired a quick shot that lifted Boston to a 3-2 lead.</p>
<p>COYOTES 3, MAPLE LEAFS 1</p>
<p>TORONTO (AP) - Oliver Ekman-Larsson scored off the opening faceoff of the third period, and Arizona rallied for the road win.</p>
<p>Ekman-Larsson's 13th goal was a harmless flip from almost his own blue line and seemed to stun the already-subdued crowd. At five seconds, the short-handed goal tied the fastest of any kind to start a period in Coyotes franchise history, matching Doug Smail of the first Winnipeg Jets in 1981.</p>
<p>Martin Hanzal had a tiebreaking goal at 3:47 of the third, and Sam Gagner added a power-play goal with 3 1/2 minutes left.</p>
<p>Mike Smith had 24 saves for Arizona.</p>
<p>Jonathan Bernier finished with 42 stops for Toronto.</p>
<p>CANADIENS 1, RANGERS 0</p>
<p>NEW YORK (AP) - Max Pacioretty scored with 4:17 left, sending Montreal to the road win.</p>
<p>Pacioretty converted a wrist shot from above the right circle that appeared to surprise Rangers goalie Henrik Lundqvist. It squeezed inside the right post for Pacioretty's 22nd goal.</p>
<p>That was enough to give Carey Price his 26th win and third shutout of the season in a stellar 24-save effort for Montreal, which has won four in a row - three with Price in net.</p>
<p>Lundqvist made 25 saves for the Rangers, who have lost two straight following the All-Star break and managed only one goal. They were beaten 4-1 by the Islanders on Tuesday.</p>
<p>WILD 1, FLAMES 0</p>
<p>CALGARY, Alberta (AP) - Zach Parise scored in the first period for Minnesota, and Devan Dubnyk stopped 30 shots.</p>
<p>It was Parise's sixth goal in his last six games and No. 20 on the season. Thomas Vanek assisted on the only score 8:59 into the game.</p>
<p>Minnesota (22-20-6) moved within five points of the Flames and the second wild-card spot in the Western Conference. The Wild have picked up five of six possible points so far on a four-game trip that wraps up Sunday in Vancouver.</p>
<p>Calgary (26-20-3) dropped to 1-1 on a six-game homestand, which continues Saturday against Edmonton. Jonas Hiller had 31 saves.</p>
<p>FLYERS 5, JETS 2</p>
<p>PHILADELPHIA (AP) - Wayne Simmonds, Chris VandeVelde, Nick Schultz and Brayden Schenn scored, leading Philadelphia to its fourth win in five games.</p>
<p>Sean Couturier added an empty-netter, and Steve Mason made 36 saves.</p>
<p>Mathieu Perreault scored twice for the Jets. Michael Hutchinson had 27 stops.</p>
<p>Schultz snapped a tie game in the second period with his first goal of the season, ending a 125-game drought. Petra Straka got his first NHL point on the assist, and Ryan White also had his first assist of the season on the goal.</p>
<p>PANTHERS 3, BLUE JACKETS 2</p>
<p>SUNRISE, Fla. (AP) - Sean Bergenheim scored late in the third period, and Florida snapped a five-game losing streak.</p>
<p>Aaron Ekblad and Jonathan Huberdeau also scored for the Panthers, and Roberto Luongo made 30 saves.</p>
<p>It was Florida's first win over Columbus since a 5-2 victory on Nov. 21, 2007 - a span of 11 games.</p>
<p>Alexander Wennberg and Jack Johnson scored for the Blue Jackets, and Curtis McElhinney stopped 29 shots.</p>
<p>OILERS 3, SABRES 2</p>
<p>EDMONTON, Alberta (AP) - Anton Lander scored his first goal of the season for Edmonton, and also had two assists.</p>
<p>Matt Fraser and Oscar Klefbom also scored for Edmonton (13-27-9), which has won three of four.</p>
<p>Defensemen Tyler Myers and Rasmus Ristolainen scored for the Sabres (14-31-3), who have lost a franchise-worst 13 games in a row and only have one win in their last 18.</p>
<p>SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) - Patrick Marleau, Barclay Goodrow and James Sheppard each had a goal and an assist, and the San Jose Sharks used a five-goal second period to beat the Anaheim Ducks 6-3 on Thursday night.</p>
<p>Joe Pavelski scored in the first as the Sharks improved to 4-0-1 against the division-leading Ducks this season. Antti Niemi made 25 stops in his third consecutive win, helping San Jose extend its home winning streak against Anaheim to seven.</p>
<p>Andrew Cogliano, Matt Beleskey and Patrick Maroon scored for the Ducks, who allowed six goals in their previous five games. Anaheim had won six in a row.</p>
<p>Ducks goaltender Ilya Bryzgalov made 19 saves before being replaced by Frederik Andersen late in the second period.</p>
<p>BLUES 5, PREDATORS 4, SO</p>
<p>ST. LOUIS (AP) - Kevin Shattenkirk scored in the shootout, lifting St. Louis to the win.</p>
<p>Jaden Schwartz, T.J. Oshie, Steve Ott and Ryan Reaves scored in regulation for the Blues (30-13-4), who improved to 8-0-1 over their last nine games. Brian Elliott made 33 saves.</p>
<p>Mike Fisher had two goals and an assist for Nashville (31-10-6), which fell to 12-8-5 on the road. Carter Hutton made 31 saves.</p>
<p>The Predators, who also got goals from Filip Forsberg and James Neal, finished 3-1-1 against the Blues this season.</p>
<p>LIGHTNING 5, RED WINGS 1</p>
<p>TAMPA, Fla. (AP) - Cedric Paquette had three goals, sending Tampa Bay to a franchise-record ninth consecutive home win.</p>
<p>Steven Stamkos and Mark Barberio also scored for the Lightning, who leapfrogged the Red Wings into first place in the Atlantic Division by a point. Jonathan Drouin and Alex Killorn had two assists apiece.</p>
<p>Tampa Bay took a 4-1 lead at 11:03 of the second when Paquette completed his first hat trick from the right circle during a short-handed 2-on-1. The center has four goals in the past two games after going 29 straight without one.</p>
<p>Darren Helm scored for Detroit, which had won six in a row.</p>
<p>Paquette opened the scoring 2:03 into the game when he used his backhand to beat Petr Mrazek on a rebound. His right-circle goal gave Tampa Bay a 2-1 lead with 36.2 seconds left in the first.</p>
<p>STARS 6, SENATORS 3</p>
<p>OTTAWA, Ontario (AP) - Jamie Benn scored two goals, and the Stars beat the Senators in Jason Spezza's first game in Ottawa since he was traded to Dallas in the offseason.</p>
<p>John Klingberg, Colton Sceviour, Ales Hemsky and Trevor Daley also scored for Dallas, and Kari Lehtonen made 25 saves.</p>
<p>Mika Zibanejad, Bobby Ryan and Alex Chiasson scored for Ottawa. Robin Lehner, making his first start since January 13th, stopped 35 shots.</p>
<p>Spezza made his NHL debut with Ottawa in 2002 and had spent his entire career with the Senators before the trade. The former Senators captain got a standing ovation from the crowd of 18,752 following a video tribute early in the first period.</p>
<p>The Stars grabbed a 4-3 lead midway through the third period when Klingberg took advantage of an Ottawa turnover to break in alone and beat Lehner with a wrist shot.</p>
<p>BRUINS 5, ISLANDERS 2</p>
<p>UNIONDALE, N.Y. (AP) - Boston's Kevan Miller scored the go-ahead goal late in the second period, and Tuukka Rask stopped 43 shots.</p>
<p>Reilly Smith, Patrice Bergeron, Torey Krug and Zdeno Chara also scored for Boston, which won for the seventh time in 10 games. Smith and Milan Lucic also had two assists apiece.</p>
<p>John Tavares and Michael Grabner scored for New York, and Jaroslav Halak stopped 28 shots. The Metropolitan Division-leading Islanders dropped to 17-5 at home this season.</p>
<p>Miller put the Bruins ahead for good with 3.4 seconds left in the second. He intercepted Halak's clearing attempt at the right-wing boards just inside the blue line, and fired a quick shot that lifted Boston to a 3-2 lead.</p>
<p>COYOTES 3, MAPLE LEAFS 1</p>
<p>TORONTO (AP) - Oliver Ekman-Larsson scored off the opening faceoff of the third period, and Arizona rallied for the road win.</p>
<p>Ekman-Larsson's 13th goal was a harmless flip from almost his own blue line and seemed to stun the already-subdued crowd. At five seconds, the short-handed goal tied the fastest of any kind to start a period in Coyotes franchise history, matching Doug Smail of the first Winnipeg Jets in 1981.</p>
<p>Martin Hanzal had a tiebreaking goal at 3:47 of the third, and Sam Gagner added a power-play goal with 3 1/2 minutes left.</p>
<p>Mike Smith had 24 saves for Arizona.</p>
<p>Jonathan Bernier finished with 42 stops for Toronto.</p>
<p>CANADIENS 1, RANGERS 0</p>
<p>NEW YORK (AP) - Max Pacioretty scored with 4:17 left, sending Montreal to the road win.</p>
<p>Pacioretty converted a wrist shot from above the right circle that appeared to surprise Rangers goalie Henrik Lundqvist. It squeezed inside the right post for Pacioretty's 22nd goal.</p>
<p>That was enough to give Carey Price his 26th win and third shutout of the season in a stellar 24-save effort for Montreal, which has won four in a row - three with Price in net.</p>
<p>Lundqvist made 25 saves for the Rangers, who have lost two straight following the All-Star break and managed only one goal. They were beaten 4-1 by the Islanders on Tuesday.</p>
<p>WILD 1, FLAMES 0</p>
<p>CALGARY, Alberta (AP) - Zach Parise scored in the first period for Minnesota, and Devan Dubnyk stopped 30 shots.</p>
<p>It was Parise's sixth goal in his last six games and No. 20 on the season. Thomas Vanek assisted on the only score 8:59 into the game.</p>
<p>Minnesota (22-20-6) moved within five points of the Flames and the second wild-card spot in the Western Conference. The Wild have picked up five of six possible points so far on a four-game trip that wraps up Sunday in Vancouver.</p>
<p>Calgary (26-20-3) dropped to 1-1 on a six-game homestand, which continues Saturday against Edmonton. Jonas Hiller had 31 saves.</p>
<p>FLYERS 5, JETS 2</p>
<p>PHILADELPHIA (AP) - Wayne Simmonds, Chris VandeVelde, Nick Schultz and Brayden Schenn scored, leading Philadelphia to its fourth win in five games.</p>
<p>Sean Couturier added an empty-netter, and Steve Mason made 36 saves.</p>
<p>Mathieu Perreault scored twice for the Jets. Michael Hutchinson had 27 stops.</p>
<p>Schultz snapped a tie game in the second period with his first goal of the season, ending a 125-game drought. Petra Straka got his first NHL point on the assist, and Ryan White also had his first assist of the season on the goal.</p>
<p>PANTHERS 3, BLUE JACKETS 2</p>
<p>SUNRISE, Fla. (AP) - Sean Bergenheim scored late in the third period, and Florida snapped a five-game losing streak.</p>
<p>Aaron Ekblad and Jonathan Huberdeau also scored for the Panthers, and Roberto Luongo made 30 saves.</p>
<p>It was Florida's first win over Columbus since a 5-2 victory on Nov. 21, 2007 - a span of 11 games.</p>
<p>Alexander Wennberg and Jack Johnson scored for the Blue Jackets, and Curtis McElhinney stopped 29 shots.</p>
<p>OILERS 3, SABRES 2</p>
<p>EDMONTON, Alberta (AP) - Anton Lander scored his first goal of the season for Edmonton, and also had two assists.</p>
<p>Matt Fraser and Oscar Klefbom also scored for Edmonton (13-27-9), which has won three of four.</p>
<p>Defensemen Tyler Myers and Rasmus Ristolainen scored for the Sabres (14-31-3), who have lost a franchise-worst 13 games in a row and only have one win in their last 18.</p>
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san jose calif ap patrick marleau barclay goodrow james sheppard goal assist san jose sharks used fivegoal second period beat anaheim ducks 63 thursday night joe pavelski scored first sharks improved 401 divisionleading ducks season antti niemi made 25 stops third consecutive win helping san jose extend home winning streak anaheim seven andrew cogliano matt beleskey patrick maroon scored ducks allowed six goals previous five games anaheim six row ducks goaltender ilya bryzgalov made 19 saves replaced frederik andersen late second period blues 5 predators 4 st louis ap kevin shattenkirk scored shootout lifting st louis win jaden schwartz tj oshie steve ott ryan reaves scored regulation blues 30134 improved 801 last nine games brian elliott made 33 saves mike fisher two goals assist nashville 31106 fell 1285 road carter hutton made 31 saves predators also got goals filip forsberg james neal finished 311 blues season lightning 5 red wings 1 tampa fla ap cedric paquette three goals sending tampa bay franchiserecord ninth consecutive home win steven stamkos mark barberio also scored lightning leapfrogged red wings first place atlantic division point jonathan drouin alex killorn two assists apiece tampa bay took 41 lead 1103 second paquette completed first hat trick right circle shorthanded 2on1 center four goals past two games going 29 straight without one darren helm scored detroit six row paquette opened scoring 203 game used backhand beat petr mrazek rebound rightcircle goal gave tampa bay 21 lead 362 seconds left first stars 6 senators 3 ottawa ontario ap jamie benn scored two goals stars beat senators jason spezzas first game ottawa since traded dallas offseason john klingberg colton sceviour ales hemsky trevor daley also scored dallas kari lehtonen made 25 saves mika zibanejad bobby ryan alex chiasson scored ottawa robin lehner making first start since january 13th stopped 35 shots spezza made nhl debut ottawa 2002 spent entire career senators trade former senators captain got standing ovation crowd 18752 following video tribute early first period stars grabbed 43 lead midway third period klingberg took advantage ottawa turnover break alone beat lehner wrist shot bruins 5 islanders 2 uniondale ny ap bostons kevan miller scored goahead goal late second period tuukka rask stopped 43 shots reilly smith patrice bergeron torey krug zdeno chara also scored boston seventh time 10 games smith milan lucic also two assists apiece john tavares michael grabner scored new york jaroslav halak stopped 28 shots metropolitan divisionleading islanders dropped 175 home season miller put bruins ahead good 34 seconds left second intercepted halaks clearing attempt rightwing boards inside blue line fired quick shot lifted boston 32 lead coyotes 3 maple leafs 1 toronto ap oliver ekmanlarsson scored opening faceoff third period arizona rallied road win ekmanlarssons 13th goal harmless flip almost blue line seemed stun alreadysubdued crowd five seconds shorthanded goal tied fastest kind start period coyotes franchise history matching doug smail first winnipeg jets 1981 martin hanzal tiebreaking goal 347 third sam gagner added powerplay goal 3 12 minutes left mike smith 24 saves arizona jonathan bernier finished 42 stops toronto canadiens 1 rangers 0 new york ap max pacioretty scored 417 left sending montreal road win pacioretty converted wrist shot right circle appeared surprise rangers goalie henrik lundqvist squeezed inside right post paciorettys 22nd goal enough give carey price 26th win third shutout season stellar 24save effort montreal four row three price net lundqvist made 25 saves rangers lost two straight following allstar break managed one goal beaten 41 islanders tuesday wild 1 flames 0 calgary alberta ap zach parise scored first period minnesota devan dubnyk stopped 30 shots parises sixth goal last six games 20 season thomas vanek assisted score 859 game minnesota 22206 moved within five points flames second wildcard spot western conference wild picked five six possible points far fourgame trip wraps sunday vancouver calgary 26203 dropped 11 sixgame homestand continues saturday edmonton jonas hiller 31 saves flyers 5 jets 2 philadelphia ap wayne simmonds chris vandevelde nick schultz brayden schenn scored leading philadelphia fourth win five games sean couturier added emptynetter steve mason made 36 saves mathieu perreault scored twice jets michael hutchinson 27 stops schultz snapped tie game second period first goal season ending 125game drought petra straka got first nhl point assist ryan white also first assist season goal panthers 3 blue jackets 2 sunrise fla ap sean bergenheim scored late third period florida snapped fivegame losing streak aaron ekblad jonathan huberdeau also scored panthers roberto luongo made 30 saves floridas first win columbus since 52 victory nov 21 2007 span 11 games alexander wennberg jack johnson scored blue jackets curtis mcelhinney stopped 29 shots oilers 3 sabres 2 edmonton alberta ap anton lander scored first goal season edmonton also two assists matt fraser oscar klefbom also scored edmonton 13279 three four defensemen tyler myers rasmus ristolainen scored sabres 14313 lost franchiseworst 13 games row one win last 18 san jose calif ap patrick marleau barclay goodrow james sheppard goal assist san jose sharks used fivegoal second period beat anaheim ducks 63 thursday night joe pavelski scored first sharks improved 401 divisionleading ducks season antti niemi made 25 stops third consecutive win helping san jose extend home winning streak anaheim seven andrew cogliano matt beleskey patrick maroon scored ducks allowed six goals previous five games anaheim six row ducks goaltender ilya bryzgalov made 19 saves replaced frederik andersen late second period blues 5 predators 4 st louis ap kevin shattenkirk scored shootout lifting st louis win jaden schwartz tj oshie steve ott ryan reaves scored regulation blues 30134 improved 801 last nine games brian elliott made 33 saves mike fisher two goals assist nashville 31106 fell 1285 road carter hutton made 31 saves predators also got goals filip forsberg james neal finished 311 blues season lightning 5 red wings 1 tampa fla ap cedric paquette three goals sending tampa bay franchiserecord ninth consecutive home win steven stamkos mark barberio also scored lightning leapfrogged red wings first place atlantic division point jonathan drouin alex killorn two assists apiece tampa bay took 41 lead 1103 second paquette completed first hat trick right circle shorthanded 2on1 center four goals past two games going 29 straight without one darren helm scored detroit six row paquette opened scoring 203 game used backhand beat petr mrazek rebound rightcircle goal gave tampa bay 21 lead 362 seconds left first stars 6 senators 3 ottawa ontario ap jamie benn scored two goals stars beat senators jason spezzas first game ottawa since traded dallas offseason john klingberg colton sceviour ales hemsky trevor daley also scored dallas kari lehtonen made 25 saves mika zibanejad bobby ryan alex chiasson scored ottawa robin lehner making first start since january 13th stopped 35 shots spezza made nhl debut ottawa 2002 spent entire career senators trade former senators captain got standing ovation crowd 18752 following video tribute early first period stars grabbed 43 lead midway third period klingberg took advantage ottawa turnover break alone beat lehner wrist shot bruins 5 islanders 2 uniondale ny ap bostons kevan miller scored goahead goal late second period tuukka rask stopped 43 shots reilly smith patrice bergeron torey krug zdeno chara also scored boston seventh time 10 games smith milan lucic also two assists apiece john tavares michael grabner scored new york jaroslav halak stopped 28 shots metropolitan divisionleading islanders dropped 175 home season miller put bruins ahead good 34 seconds left second intercepted halaks clearing attempt rightwing boards inside blue line fired quick shot lifted boston 32 lead coyotes 3 maple leafs 1 toronto ap oliver ekmanlarsson scored opening faceoff third period arizona rallied road win ekmanlarssons 13th goal harmless flip almost blue line seemed stun alreadysubdued crowd five seconds shorthanded goal tied fastest kind start period coyotes franchise history matching doug smail first winnipeg jets 1981 martin hanzal tiebreaking goal 347 third sam gagner added powerplay goal 3 12 minutes left mike smith 24 saves arizona jonathan bernier finished 42 stops toronto canadiens 1 rangers 0 new york ap max pacioretty scored 417 left sending montreal road win pacioretty converted wrist shot right circle appeared surprise rangers goalie henrik lundqvist squeezed inside right post paciorettys 22nd goal enough give carey price 26th win third shutout season stellar 24save effort montreal four row three price net lundqvist made 25 saves rangers lost two straight following allstar break managed one goal beaten 41 islanders tuesday wild 1 flames 0 calgary alberta ap zach parise scored first period minnesota devan dubnyk stopped 30 shots parises sixth goal last six games 20 season thomas vanek assisted score 859 game minnesota 22206 moved within five points flames second wildcard spot western conference wild picked five six possible points far fourgame trip wraps sunday vancouver calgary 26203 dropped 11 sixgame homestand continues saturday edmonton jonas hiller 31 saves flyers 5 jets 2 philadelphia ap wayne simmonds chris vandevelde nick schultz brayden schenn scored leading philadelphia fourth win five games sean couturier added emptynetter steve mason made 36 saves mathieu perreault scored twice jets michael hutchinson 27 stops schultz snapped tie game second period first goal season ending 125game drought petra straka got first nhl point assist ryan white also first assist season goal panthers 3 blue jackets 2 sunrise fla ap sean bergenheim scored late third period florida snapped fivegame losing streak aaron ekblad jonathan huberdeau also scored panthers roberto luongo made 30 saves floridas first win columbus since 52 victory nov 21 2007 span 11 games alexander wennberg jack johnson scored blue jackets curtis mcelhinney stopped 29 shots oilers 3 sabres 2 edmonton alberta ap anton lander scored first goal season edmonton also two assists matt fraser oscar klefbom also scored edmonton 13279 three four defensemen tyler myers rasmus ristolainen scored sabres 14313 lost franchiseworst 13 games row one win last 18
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<p>Humidity was predicted to reach between 85 and 90 percent by nightfall, which can slow fires and help firefighters strengthen containment lines.</p>
<p>But crews also had plans today of dropping ping-pong-ball-like fire starters on the north and west sides of the blaze to ignite low-intensity fires to meet the Thompson Ridge blaze as it head up the ridge.</p>
<p>Crews began dropping the igniting objects from helicopters earlier today, but the winds and dry conditions made them stop early Wednesday afternoon.</p>
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<p>Also, humidity can actually hurt firefighters’ controlled burn efforts, by preventing fires from catching.</p>
<p>“Sometimes you can’t get it to burn,” said fire spokeswoman Lori Cook. “I know that sounds ironic.</p>
<p>The Type 2 Incident Command Team will meet in about and hour and a half to go over the fire’s Wednesday activity, and they will also re-assess the acreage and containment counts.</p>
<p>The Tres Lagunas Fire also saw trace amounts of precipitation Wednesday.</p>
<p>—&#160;Keep with ABQJournal.com for updates, and, of course, pick up tomorrow’s Albuquerque Journal.</p>
<p>Thompson Ridge, 3:34 p.m. — There’s a chance, albeit slim, of thunderstorms this afternoon over the Jemez Mountains, and crews are hoping that rain will allow them to start low-intensity fires to head off the rapid northeast expansion of the Thompson Ridge Fire.</p>
<p>The historic cabins in the Valle Grande appear, at this point, to have been saved thanks to more than 11,000 gallons of flame retardant and late-night firefighter efforts. Also seemingly safe are the 40-to-50 homes west of the fire.</p>
<p>But should rain come, a fire spokeswoman said, it has to be substantial. A small sprinkling not only would offer little help to slowing the blaze but also could create erratic winds that complicate firefighting efforts.</p>
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<p>Despite the chance of rain, the day is shaping up much like Tuesday: High winds and temperatures and low relative humidity.</p>
<p>“The fire was just moving (Tuesday),” fire spokeswoman Lori Cook said. “There wasn’t much anybody could do.”</p>
<p>But crews today could really use some precipitation to airdrop fire-starting “ping pong balls” that spark low-intensity fires that crews manage and direct toward the freight-train-like Thompson Ridge Fire, which has doubled in size almost every day since it sparked May 31.</p>
<p>“We’re hoping, because of these thunderstorms, that there might be a window,” Cook said.</p>
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<p>Keep with ABQJournal.com for updates and pick up tomorrow’s Albuquerque Journal for a full story.</p>
<p>Thompson Ridge, 1:00 p.m.: The Thompson Ridge fire burned down the east side of Redondo Peak overnight, toward the iconic Valle Grande. Fire was visible from State Route 4, the scenic highway that skirts the historic preserve, and flames approached the Valles Grande National Preserve’s building complex in the forest on the edge of the grass-filled valley, according to preserve spokesman Terry McDermott.</p>
<p>Tres Lagunas, Noon: The Tres Lagunas Fire burning north of Pecos is now up to about 9,200 acres, but the good news in the latest report from the fire management team is that wildfire is 15 percent contained.</p>
<p>Also, fire managers opened more of N.M. 63, the road through Pecos Canyon. The closure point was moved north to El Macho church at mile marker 14, allowing some residents and homeowners to return to their houses and cabins. Most of the canyon was evacuated after the fire broke out Thursday.</p>
<p>Farther north in Holy Ghost Canyon, on the west side of the fire, fire crews continue efforts to save homes and other structures. Sprinklers using creek water are operating to keep structures wet and raise humidity levels. The fire is close to some structures in the Holy Ghost area but so far none have burned, the fire team says.</p>
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<p>Sprinklers are being used to wet down the Holy Ghost Canyon area being threatened by the Tres Lagunas Fire.</p>
<p>A new spot fire was discovered north Holy Ghost Canyon last night and it will be attacked with fire retardant from helicopters today.</p>
<p>Crews are said to be improving bulldozer lines in several areas and working to secure the fire’s&#160; southern perimeter. But residents should expect&#160; to see an increase of smoke from “burnouts” by crews trying to improve previously created fire lines. This work will take place east of Cow Creek within the fire scar of the old Viveash Fire of 2000. Downed logs and debris from that fire will contribute to the increase in smoke, the fire team said.</p>
<p>The burnout operation is considered key to clearing up unburned fuel in that area and providing more protection for the Gallinas Watershed, which provides most of the water supply for Las Vegas, N.M., to the east, and&#160; keeping the fire west of Forest Road 92.</p>
<p>Today’s weather is expected to feature dry air to the west that will be meeting more moist air from the east, creating fairly volatile conditions, with a chance of thunderstorms but cooler temperatures. Spot fires are still likely and thunderstorms with lightning are possible, according the fire managers’&#160; morning update.</p>
<p>Fire crews have cleared vegetation from around cabins like this one that could be threatened by the Tres Lagunas Fire.(Courtesy New Mexico Incident Management Team)</p>
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<p>7 a.m. update:</p>
<p>By John Fleck / Journal Staff Writer</p>
<p>An overnight reconnaissance flight by fire teams found the Thompson Ridge fire has continued to grow, covering at least 9,391 acres in the Jemez Mountains, up 4,941 acres from 24 hours earlier.</p>
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<p>Previously: Copyright © 2013 Albuquerque Journal</p>
<p>by T.S. Last and Patrick Lohmann / Journal Staff Writers</p>
<p>From Santa Fe, it looked like a massive volcano was erupting – with a giant plume of smoke reaching skyward Tuesday from the rapidly expanding Thompson Ridge Fire about 10 miles north of Jemez Springs.</p>
<p>Warm temperatures and low humidity had allowed the fire to increase to 4,450 acres by Tuesday morning and then again to 7,400 acres by Tuesday night. Wind gusts up to 30 mph later in the day created an “extreme fire behavior day,” allowing the fire to continue to grow and emit massive smoke throughout the day.</p>
<p>“It’s just being wind-driven and weather-driven,” U.S. Forest Service spokeswoman Jan Bardwell said of the smoke plume. “It really could release a lot.”</p>
<p>The dry, windy conditions did not help efforts to combat the Tres Lagunas Fire, which had burned 9,000 acres in the Santa Fe National Forest and Pecos Wilderness by Tuesday night. It is 15 percent contained.</p>
<p>The fire continued to rage along N.M. 63, closing off major access to the forest and wilderness area.</p>
<p>A major concern of the Tres Lagunas Fire is that it could spread east into the Gallinas River watershed, the source of about 90 percent of the water supply for the city of Las Vegas, N.M., population 13,700.</p>
<p>Firefighters are trying to seal the east side of that fire from the watershed against prevailing westerly winds.</p>
<p>The state Environment Department issued a smoke advisory Tuesday for Pecos, Jemez Springs and La Cueva due to the two fires. The department also warned that other areas, including Las Vegas, Los Alamos, Santa Fe and south of Santa Fe may experience visibility and health issues for residents with respiratory problems.</p>
<p>More than 1,200 firefighters are battling both blazes.</p>
<p>The Thompson Ridge Fire in the Jemez burned an area south of Redondo Peak, and Fenton Lake State Park was closed to allow helicopters to continually scoop water. The park is expected to remain closed until June 20.</p>
<p>Even though the fire is moving east away from the 40 to 50 homes evacuated since the blaze began Friday, evacuations are still in place for Thompson Valley, Rancho de la Cueva and Elk Valley.</p>
<p>A group of a dozen cabins in the Valles Caldera was about a half-mile west of one flank of the Thompson Ridge Fire on Tuesday. Crews were working to douse the area to prevent the fire from consuming the vacant cabins.</p>
<p>In the Tres Lagunas Fire near Pecos, fire crews continued to focus attention in the Holy Ghost Canyon, where a subdivision made up of several homes is located.</p>
<p>An irrigation system set up to douse the property has been running continuously for several days, and helicopters and tanker planes have dumped water in the area in an effort to thwart the threat.</p>
<p>Rita Baysinger, a spokeswoman on the Tres Lagunas Fire, said so far the efforts have proven successful.</p>
<p>“The fire came down all the way to the bottom of Holy Ghost Canyon, and it came down just how they wanted it to,” she said. “It got down to the bottom and just went out.”</p>
<p>In addition, some of the firefighters attacking the blaze worked to establish a direct fire line from Indian Creek toward Holy Ghost to seal off the fire in that section of the forest.</p>
<p>As of this morning, no structures have been destroyed in the fire, which started Thursday. But John Pierson, incident commander for the fire, said flames had come as close as 20 feet to some buildings.</p>
<p>Tres Lagunas Fire crews also have been working to construct a line in the northeast portion of the fire to tie into Forest Road 92 in the southeast corner. Evacuations of 144 homes north from El Macho church remain in effect.</p>
<p>On Monday, a spot fire ignited ahead of the main blaze on the east side.</p>
<p>“Night crews were out for the first time, just to get to that spot,” Baysinger said. “There’s been a lot of attention put in that area, working with helicopters to put that out.”</p>
<p>Baysinger said the spot fire consumed between 30 and 40 acres.</p>
<p>N.M. 63 remains closed through Pecos Canyon, a popular destination for fishing, camping and hiking. Also closed is Forest Road 92, two miles north of the Bull Creek road.</p>
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humidity predicted reach 85 90 percent nightfall slow fires help firefighters strengthen containment lines crews also plans today dropping pingpongballlike fire starters north west sides blaze ignite lowintensity fires meet thompson ridge blaze head ridge crews began dropping igniting objects helicopters earlier today winds dry conditions made stop early wednesday afternoon advertisement also humidity actually hurt firefighters controlled burn efforts preventing fires catching sometimes cant get burn said fire spokeswoman lori cook know sounds ironic type 2 incident command team meet hour half go fires wednesday activity also reassess acreage containment counts tres lagunas fire also saw trace amounts precipitation wednesday 160keep abqjournalcom updates course pick tomorrows albuquerque journal thompson ridge 334 pm theres chance albeit slim thunderstorms afternoon jemez mountains crews hoping rain allow start lowintensity fires head rapid northeast expansion thompson ridge fire historic cabins valle grande appear point saved thanks 11000 gallons flame retardant latenight firefighter efforts also seemingly safe 40to50 homes west fire rain come fire spokeswoman said substantial small sprinkling would offer little help slowing blaze also could create erratic winds complicate firefighting efforts advertisement despite chance rain day shaping much like tuesday high winds temperatures low relative humidity fire moving tuesday fire spokeswoman lori cook said wasnt much anybody could crews today could really use precipitation airdrop firestarting ping pong balls spark lowintensity fires crews manage direct toward freighttrainlike thompson ridge fire doubled size almost every day since sparked may 31 hoping thunderstorms might window cook said 160 keep abqjournalcom updates pick tomorrows albuquerque journal full story thompson ridge 100 pm thompson ridge fire burned east side redondo peak overnight toward iconic valle grande fire visible state route 4 scenic highway skirts historic preserve flames approached valles grande national preserves building complex forest edge grassfilled valley according preserve spokesman terry mcdermott tres lagunas noon tres lagunas fire burning north pecos 9200 acres good news latest report fire management team wildfire 15 percent contained also fire managers opened nm 63 road pecos canyon closure point moved north el macho church mile marker 14 allowing residents homeowners return houses cabins canyon evacuated fire broke thursday farther north holy ghost canyon west side fire fire crews continue efforts save homes structures sprinklers using creek water operating keep structures wet raise humidity levels fire close structures holy ghost area far none burned fire team says 160 sprinklers used wet holy ghost canyon area threatened tres lagunas fire new spot fire discovered north holy ghost canyon last night attacked fire retardant helicopters today crews said improving bulldozer lines several areas working secure fires160 southern perimeter residents expect160 see increase smoke burnouts crews trying improve previously created fire lines work take place east cow creek within fire scar old viveash fire 2000 downed logs debris fire contribute increase smoke fire team said burnout operation considered key clearing unburned fuel area providing protection gallinas watershed provides water supply las vegas nm east and160 keeping fire west forest road 92 todays weather expected feature dry air west meeting moist air east creating fairly volatile conditions chance thunderstorms cooler temperatures spot fires still likely thunderstorms lightning possible according fire managers160 morning update fire crews cleared vegetation around cabins like one could threatened tres lagunas firecourtesy new mexico incident management team 7 update john fleck journal staff writer overnight reconnaissance flight fire teams found thompson ridge fire continued grow covering least 9391 acres jemez mountains 4941 acres 24 hours earlier 160 160 previously copyright 2013 albuquerque journal ts last patrick lohmann journal staff writers santa fe looked like massive volcano erupting giant plume smoke reaching skyward tuesday rapidly expanding thompson ridge fire 10 miles north jemez springs warm temperatures low humidity allowed fire increase 4450 acres tuesday morning 7400 acres tuesday night wind gusts 30 mph later day created extreme fire behavior day allowing fire continue grow emit massive smoke throughout day winddriven weatherdriven us forest service spokeswoman jan bardwell said smoke plume really could release lot dry windy conditions help efforts combat tres lagunas fire burned 9000 acres santa fe national forest pecos wilderness tuesday night 15 percent contained fire continued rage along nm 63 closing major access forest wilderness area major concern tres lagunas fire could spread east gallinas river watershed source 90 percent water supply city las vegas nm population 13700 firefighters trying seal east side fire watershed prevailing westerly winds state environment department issued smoke advisory tuesday pecos jemez springs la cueva due two fires department also warned areas including las vegas los alamos santa fe south santa fe may experience visibility health issues residents respiratory problems 1200 firefighters battling blazes thompson ridge fire jemez burned area south redondo peak fenton lake state park closed allow helicopters continually scoop water park expected remain closed june 20 even though fire moving east away 40 50 homes evacuated since blaze began friday evacuations still place thompson valley rancho de la cueva elk valley group dozen cabins valles caldera halfmile west one flank thompson ridge fire tuesday crews working douse area prevent fire consuming vacant cabins tres lagunas fire near pecos fire crews continued focus attention holy ghost canyon subdivision made several homes located irrigation system set douse property running continuously several days helicopters tanker planes dumped water area effort thwart threat rita baysinger spokeswoman tres lagunas fire said far efforts proven successful fire came way bottom holy ghost canyon came wanted said got bottom went addition firefighters attacking blaze worked establish direct fire line indian creek toward holy ghost seal fire section forest morning structures destroyed fire started thursday john pierson incident commander fire said flames come close 20 feet buildings tres lagunas fire crews also working construct line northeast portion fire tie forest road 92 southeast corner evacuations 144 homes north el macho church remain effect monday spot fire ignited ahead main blaze east side night crews first time get spot baysinger said theres lot attention put area working helicopters put baysinger said spot fire consumed 30 40 acres nm 63 remains closed pecos canyon popular destination fishing camping hiking also closed forest road 92 two miles north bull creek road
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<p>In this July 22, 2014 photo, AIDS activist Gregg Gonsalves walks outside Grand Central Terminal during a photo session, in New York. In the early 1990s, Gonsalves traveled to Washington to confront, provoke and challenge officials at the Food and Drug Administration. A quarter century later, he still travels to Washington, but with a very different agenda: to defend the FDA. (AP Photo/Richard Drew)</p>
<p>WASHINGTON — As an AIDS activist in the early 1990s, Gregg Gonsalves traveled to Washington to challenge the Food and Drug Administration.</p>
<p>Gonsalves was part of the confrontational group AIDS Coalition to Unleash Power, which staged protests outside the FDA’s headquarters, disrupted its public meetings and pressured its leaders into speeding up the approval of experimental drugs for patients dying of AIDS.</p>
<p>A quarter century later, Gonsalves still travels to Washington, but with a different agenda: to defend the FDA.</p>
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<p>At a recent forum on FDA issues, Gonsalves implored congressional staffers to protect the agency from growing anti-regulatory sentiment that he worries will roll back safety and effectiveness standards for all types of drugs. The efforts include new state laws designed to undercut the FDA’s authority by giving patients early access to unapproved drugs and a lobbying push by industry groups to speed up the time it takes the FDA to review new treatments.</p>
<p>Both initiatives come at a time when researchers who study the FDA say the caricature of a slow, outdated bureaucracy is inaccurate. The FDA reviews most drugs in 10 months and high-priority drugs in six months or less. And a 2012 review in the New England Journal of Medicine showed that FDA regulators approve new drugs faster than their counterparts in Europe and Canada.</p>
<p>“The rhetoric we hear today is that FDA stifles innovation, that FDA keeps drugs out of patients’ hands. And you know, that was our rhetoric in 1989,” says 50-year-old Gonsalves, now a program director at Yale University. “But there’s no countervailing narrative that we need a strong FDA.”</p>
<p>The story of how Gonsalves went from FDA critic to supporter is intertwined with the AIDS movement’s impact — and its unintended consequences — on the agency.</p>
<p>Groups like ACT UP showed that FDA’s bureaucracy could be influenced by outside pressure. Following protests by ACT UP, the FDA went from taking over two years to approve most drugs to clearing HIV drugs in a few months. In the early 1990s, those shorter review times were written into laws that have governed FDA procedures ever since. But while the push for ever-faster reviews was kicked off by AIDS activists, it is now primarily driven by pharmaceutical lobbying groups and libertarian think tanks.</p>
<p>Since May, three states — Colorado, Louisiana and Missouri — have passed laws designed to allow terminally ill patients to receive experimental drugs that have not been cleared by the FDA. Arizona will vote on its own so-called “right to try” initiative in November and lawmakers in Florida, Oklahoma and Utah are set to introduce similar bills. All of these efforts are driven by lobbyists from the Goldwater Institute, a libertarian think tank.</p>
<p>Supporters have dubbed the measures “Dallas Buyers Club” laws, after the Oscar-winning movie about an AIDS patient who thwarts FDA regulators by smuggling in HIV drugs from overseas. And lawyers for the Goldwater Institute acknowledge that groups like ACT UP helped pave the way for their strategy, though they say more deregulation is needed.</p>
<p>“Many, many groups have been trying to get FDA reform for decades and the only real successful movement was the AIDS movement,” says Christina Sandefur, an attorney with the Arizona-based Goldwater Institute.</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p>
<p>Mark Harrington, executive director of the Treatment Action Group, which spun off from ACT UP in the 1990s, says AIDS activists have long tried to distance themselves from such anti-Washington efforts. By the mid-1990s, Harrington and Gonsalves were actually pushing for longer, larger studies of HIV drugs. That’s because the first drugs approved by the FDA were linked to dangerous side effects, including anemia and nerve damage.</p>
<p>Harrington says the Goldwater-backed state laws are political theater that will not help desperate patients. “They’re providing false hope and really pushing quack cures and medicines that could be unsafe and ineffective,” he says.</p>
<p>Federal law makes clear that patients do not have a right to experimental drugs and the Supreme Court has refused to hear challenges to FDA’s authority over the matter. For its part, the FDA already gives dying patients access to unapproved medicines if drugmakers are willing to provide them.</p>
<p>“The agency stands ready to work with companies that are interested in providing access to experimental drugs,” said FDA spokesman Stephanie Yao, in a statement.</p>
<p>But there’s nothing in the state laws that require companies to grant early access.</p>
<p>While the FDA faces pushback from conservative activists at the state level, it is also faces industry pressure at the federal level.</p>
<p>House lawmakers have held half a dozen hearings this year on “accelerating the pace of cures in America.” The push is part of a pharmaceutical industry-backed initiative dubbed “21st Century Cures,” designed to streamline the drug approval process.</p>
<p>“There is no doubt that our antiquated, patch-work clinical trial system makes developing new treatments a cumbersome, expensive and protracted process,” said the Friends of Cancer Research group in recent congressional testimony. The group receives funding from Pfizer Inc., GlaxoSmithKline and many other drugmakers.</p>
<p>Some FDA watchers say it’s too early to worry about a major overhaul of the agency. Congress is gridlocked and no major health legislation is expected to pass until after the next presidential election.</p>
<p>But Gonsalves isn’t wasting time. In closing his talk on Capitol Hill earlier this summer, Gonsalves warned Senate staffers that a political shift to the right in coming elections could “change the game” for drug safety and effectiveness.</p>
<p>“We will have a different FDA than we have had for the last 30 years.”</p>
| false | 2 |
july 22 2014 photo aids activist gregg gonsalves walks outside grand central terminal photo session new york early 1990s gonsalves traveled washington confront provoke challenge officials food drug administration quarter century later still travels washington different agenda defend fda ap photorichard drew washington aids activist early 1990s gregg gonsalves traveled washington challenge food drug administration gonsalves part confrontational group aids coalition unleash power staged protests outside fdas headquarters disrupted public meetings pressured leaders speeding approval experimental drugs patients dying aids quarter century later gonsalves still travels washington different agenda defend fda advertisement recent forum fda issues gonsalves implored congressional staffers protect agency growing antiregulatory sentiment worries roll back safety effectiveness standards types drugs efforts include new state laws designed undercut fdas authority giving patients early access unapproved drugs lobbying push industry groups speed time takes fda review new treatments initiatives come time researchers study fda say caricature slow outdated bureaucracy inaccurate fda reviews drugs 10 months highpriority drugs six months less 2012 review new england journal medicine showed fda regulators approve new drugs faster counterparts europe canada rhetoric hear today fda stifles innovation fda keeps drugs patients hands know rhetoric 1989 says 50yearold gonsalves program director yale university theres countervailing narrative need strong fda story gonsalves went fda critic supporter intertwined aids movements impact unintended consequences agency groups like act showed fdas bureaucracy could influenced outside pressure following protests act fda went taking two years approve drugs clearing hiv drugs months early 1990s shorter review times written laws governed fda procedures ever since push everfaster reviews kicked aids activists primarily driven pharmaceutical lobbying groups libertarian think tanks since may three states colorado louisiana missouri passed laws designed allow terminally ill patients receive experimental drugs cleared fda arizona vote socalled right try initiative november lawmakers florida oklahoma utah set introduce similar bills efforts driven lobbyists goldwater institute libertarian think tank supporters dubbed measures dallas buyers club laws oscarwinning movie aids patient thwarts fda regulators smuggling hiv drugs overseas lawyers goldwater institute acknowledge groups like act helped pave way strategy though say deregulation needed many many groups trying get fda reform decades real successful movement aids movement says christina sandefur attorney arizonabased goldwater institute advertisement mark harrington executive director treatment action group spun act 1990s says aids activists long tried distance antiwashington efforts mid1990s harrington gonsalves actually pushing longer larger studies hiv drugs thats first drugs approved fda linked dangerous side effects including anemia nerve damage harrington says goldwaterbacked state laws political theater help desperate patients theyre providing false hope really pushing quack cures medicines could unsafe ineffective says federal law makes clear patients right experimental drugs supreme court refused hear challenges fdas authority matter part fda already gives dying patients access unapproved medicines drugmakers willing provide agency stands ready work companies interested providing access experimental drugs said fda spokesman stephanie yao statement theres nothing state laws require companies grant early access fda faces pushback conservative activists state level also faces industry pressure federal level house lawmakers held half dozen hearings year accelerating pace cures america push part pharmaceutical industrybacked initiative dubbed 21st century cures designed streamline drug approval process doubt antiquated patchwork clinical trial system makes developing new treatments cumbersome expensive protracted process said friends cancer research group recent congressional testimony group receives funding pfizer inc glaxosmithkline many drugmakers fda watchers say early worry major overhaul agency congress gridlocked major health legislation expected pass next presidential election gonsalves isnt wasting time closing talk capitol hill earlier summer gonsalves warned senate staffers political shift right coming elections could change game drug safety effectiveness different fda last 30 years
| 596 |
<p>WASHINGTON (AP) — The Latest on the budget battle (all times local):</p>
<p>8:55 p.m.</p>
<p>The White House says President Donald Trump has signed a bill reopening the government, ending a 69-hour display of partisan dysfunction after Democrats reluctantly voted to temporarily pay for resumed operations.</p>
<p>The shutdown took effect Saturday on the one-year anniversary of the president's inauguration, but the White House maintains that Trump came out the winner in the GOP's standoff with Democrats.</p>
<p>The White House argues Democrats "caved" after Trump refused to negotiate with them on immigration policy until the government reopened. Democrats had been holding out for a firmer commitment to provide protections for some 700,000 younger immigrants brought illegally to the U.S. as children.</p>
<p>__</p>
<p>6:30 p.m.</p>
<p>Prominent immigrant advocacy groups are skewering Democratic senators for relenting in a fight that linked immigration changes to continued government funding.</p>
<p>The youth group United We Dream says Senate Democrats who supported a deal to keep the government running through Feb. 8 are "enablers" of President Donald Trump's agenda.</p>
<p>The Los Angeles-based Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights says Democrats "need to grow some courage."</p>
<p>The American Civil Liberties Union says Republicans and Democrats "betrayed our American values and allowed bigotry and fear to prevail."</p>
<p>America's Voice executive director Frank Sharry says he was moved to tears of disappointment that Democrats "blinked."</p>
<p>__</p>
<p>6:15 p.m.</p>
<p>Congress has approved a bipartisan agreement to re-open the federal government after a three-day partial shutdown.</p>
<p>The House approved the bill, 266-150, hours after the Senate backed it, 81-18. President Donald Trump is expected to quickly sign the measure to fund government operations through Feb. 8.</p>
<p>The votes set the stage for hundreds of thousands of federal workers to return Tuesday, cutting short what could have become a messy and costly impasse.</p>
<p>Senate Democrats reluctantly voted in favor of the bill, relenting in return for Republican assurances that the Senate will soon take up the plight of young immigrant "dreamers" and other contentious issues. Democrats from states won by Trump in 2016 broke with progressives looking to satisfy liberals' and immigrants' demands.</p>
<p>__</p>
<p>4:55 p.m.</p>
<p>Democratic Sen. Jon Tester of Montana has voted against a bipartisan agreement to re-open the federal government after a three-day shutdown. He was the only "no" vote Monday among 10 incumbent Democrats facing re-election this year in states won by President Donald Trump in 2016.</p>
<p>Tester says the budget deal did not include funding for community health centers important to his rural state, nor did it add resources for border security.</p>
<p>Tester says that while pundits have focused on immigration, "this was always about Montana for me and I just won't allow Washington to keep failing our state."</p>
<p>The National Republican Senatorial Committee is blasting Tester for "engaging in political games with vital government funding" and says the two-term senator voted alongside the Senate's most liberal Democrats.</p>
<p>__</p>
<p>4:30 p.m.</p>
<p>The Senate has overwhelmingly approved legislation that will end the federal shutdown, almost certainly in time for the government to reopen Tuesday.</p>
<p>The 81-18 vote came hours after Democrats abandoned their opposition to the measure. They'd been using the shutdown in hopes of pressuring Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell to cut a deal on immigration.</p>
<p>But many moderates from both parties were pushing party leaders to reopen federal agencies.</p>
<p>Democrats backed the bill after Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said he'd try reaching a compromise on immigration and the budget early next month. McConnell said if there was still no immigration agreement by Feb. 8, he'd immediately begin debate on the issue.</p>
<p>The bill will finance government through Feb. 8. House passage was expected later Monday.</p>
<p>__</p>
<p>4:25 p.m.</p>
<p>The Senate has approved legislation to make sure federal workers get paid for the three-day government shutdown.</p>
<p>The unanimous voice vote sends the measure to the House, where approval is expected.</p>
<p>Under the law, workers aren't paid when there's a lapse in funding for the government — even if they're deemed essential and have to show up to work.</p>
<p>Monday's measure would fix that and make sure every federal worker would be paid during the shutdown that began Saturday.</p>
<p>The measure would also add retroactive pay language to a stopgap spending bill to reopen the government that passed the Senate Monday. President Donald Trump is expected to sign the legislation as soon as he receives it.</p>
<p>__</p>
<p>4:20 p.m.</p>
<p>President Donald Trump is meeting with a pair of moderate Democratic senators at the White House Monday afternoon to discuss immigration.</p>
<p>Press secretary Sarah Sanders says West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin and Alabama Sen. Doug Jones are meeting with the president to discuss the legislative path forward after the three-day government shutdown is ended.</p>
<p>The red-state lawmakers both broke with the majority of their party Friday on a vote to keep the government open. But enough Democrats withheld their support from the measure in an effort to force progress on legislation to address immigration policy.</p>
<p>Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell is pledging to bring up immigration legislation next month if agreement isn't reached by Feb. 8.</p>
<p>__</p>
<p>3:25 p.m.</p>
<p>The No. 2 Senate Republican says President Donald Trump is eager to involve himself in the immigration debate and "reach a solution."</p>
<p>Texas Sen. John Cornyn says he and five other GOP senators met Monday with Trump at the White House soon after Democrats halted their blockade against a bill ending the government shutdown.</p>
<p>Cornyn says they discussed how to address immigration issues "in creative ways."</p>
<p>Sens. Charles Grassley of Iowa, Tom Cotton of Arkansas, David Perdue of Georgia, Thom Tillis of North Carolina and James Lankford of Oklahoma also met with Trump. Several of them are among the harder-line Republicans on immigration.</p>
<p>Democrats let the bill ending the shutdown advance after Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said he intended to reach a bipartisan deal on immigration and budget issues.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>2:30 p.m.</p>
<p>President Donald Trump says he is pleased that congressional Democrats "have come to their senses" and abandoned their filibuster that shut down the federal government. Trump says his administration will make a long-term immigration deal "if and only if it's good for our country."</p>
<p>Trump issued a statement Monday afternoon after roughly 25 senators from both parties helped negotiate an end to the federal government shutdown. It was read by spokeswoman Sarah Huckabee Sanders at a press briefing.</p>
<p>Trump said he was glad the government will be funded. He continued: "Once the government is funded, my administration will work toward solving the problem of very unfair illegal immigration."</p>
<p>He added: "We will make a long term deal on immigration if and only if it's good for our country."</p>
<p>__</p>
<p>1:55 p.m.</p>
<p>Sen. Susan Collins of Maine says Monday is "a day to celebrate" after roughly 25 senators from both parties helped negotiate an end to the government shutdown.</p>
<p>The Republican says the group shared a common determination to keep the government running while doing something about "Dreamers" who were brought to the country as children and are now here illegally. Collins says a group of 17 senators grew to a quarter of the Senate over the weekend.</p>
<p>Several Democrats who were part of that group dropped their objections Monday after Majority Leader Mitch McConnell made a final offer to try to reach bipartisan solutions on immigration and other issues by early February.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>1:30 p.m.</p>
<p>Vice President Mike Pence is praising a Senate agreement to reopen the federal government.</p>
<p>Pence says before a dinner in Jerusalem with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (neh-ten-YAH'-hoo) that the shutdown is ending "thanks to the firm stand taken by President Trump" and congressional Republicans.</p>
<p>Pence says Americans know a "minority" in the Senate chose to shut down the government. He said, "But the Schumer shutdown failed." He was referring to Senate Demoratic Leader Chuck Schumer.</p>
<p>Pence was joined by Netanyahu for statements at the prime minister's residence before dinner with their spouses.</p>
<p>__</p>
<p>12:55 p.m.</p>
<p>It looks like the government shutdown will end soon.</p>
<p>The Senate has advanced a bill reopening federal agencies through Feb. 8 after Democrats relented and lifted their blockade against the legislation.</p>
<p>The shutdown began Saturday after Democrats derailed a Republican measure that would have kept government open until Feb. 16. Democrats wanted to pressure the GOP to cut a deal protecting young immigrants from deportation and boosting federal spending.</p>
<p>Moderates from both parties pressured leaders to end the shutdown and compromise.</p>
<p>Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said Democrats agreed to back the bill reopening government after he and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell agreed to begin debating an immigration bill by Feb. 8.</p>
<p>The Senate vote was 81-18 — well above the 60 votes needed. The Senate still must vote on final passage to send the bill to the House.</p>
<p>__</p>
<p>12:35 p.m.</p>
<p>Senate leaders have reached an agreement to reopen the government.</p>
<p>Democrats have yielded and ended their delaying tactics against a bill financing federal agencies through Feb. 8.</p>
<p>Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer says in exchange, Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has agreed to begin debating immigration by that date.</p>
<p>McConnell says the end to the standoff shows "the American people didn't understand" why Democrats shut down the government because they wanted to help "illegal immigrants."</p>
<p>The Senate has started a vote to advance the bill reopening government. It is expected to pass easily, and House approval is expected later.</p>
<p>__</p>
<p>12:10 p.m.</p>
<p>Democrats are aligning behind a plan to reopen the federal government as the Senate heads toward a key vote.</p>
<p>Several Democratic senators predict a proposal to fund the government until Feb. 8 will move forward, overcoming a Democratic filibuster. That would clear the way for an end to the three-day shutdown.</p>
<p>Democrats appear to have jumped on board after two days of negotiations that ended with new reassurances from Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell that the Senate will consider immigration proposals in the coming weeks.</p>
<p>Sen. Amy Klobuchar said Monday morning she believed Democrats and Republicans now have "a path forward."</p>
<p>Florida Democrat Bill Nelson is predicting a resounding yes from Democrats on the plan.</p>
<p>__</p>
<p>10:35 a.m.</p>
<p>Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell says he hopes and intends to resolve immigration and a host of other issues by early February in an effort to come to bipartisan agreement to reopen the federal government.</p>
<p>Senate Democrats blocked a House-passed temporary funding bill to reopen the government through Feb. 16. A pending Senate measure would last through Feb. 8.</p>
<p>Opening the Senate Monday, McConnell said that if they could not find bipartisan solutions on immigration, military spending, disaster aid and other issues by the Feb. 8 deadline then he would hold a vote on those matters. Top Democrat Chuck Schumer did not appear on the floor to respond.</p>
<p>Several members of both parties met Monday morning to try and resolve the shutdown mess.</p>
<p>__</p>
<p>10:25 a.m.</p>
<p>White House Budget Director Mick Mulvaney is defending President Donald Trump's lack of outreach to Democratic lawmakers during the government shutdown.</p>
<p>Mulvaney discussed the shutdown on MSNBC Monday morning.</p>
<p>Trump did not speak with any Democratic senators over the weekend. Asked why, Mulvaney said Trump spoke with Democrats before the shutdown and will speak to them when it is over.</p>
<p>But he says: "we are not going to negotiate immigration in the middle of the shutdown."</p>
<p>__</p>
<p>9:05 a.m.</p>
<p>House Speaker Paul Ryan says if the Senate approves a temporary spending bill to reopen the government through Feb. 8, the House will approve it, too.</p>
<p>Senate Democrats had blocked a stopgap measure passed by the House to keep the federal bureaucracy operating through Feb. 16. But speaking on "Fox and Friends," Ryan says the new date works for the House.</p>
<p>The Wisconsin Republican also says negotiations on an immigration deal are taking place in good faith. Democrats want to protect young immigrants in the country illegally and are skeptical of Republican pledges to bring up free-standing immigration legislation next month.</p>
<p>Democratic Sen. Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut says on MSNBC he has "zero confidence" that Ryan will bring legislation to shield the roughly 700,000 immigrants known as "Dreamers."</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>8:35 a.m.</p>
<p>President Donald Trump is accusing Democrats of prioritizing services and security for noncitizens over U.S. citizens.</p>
<p>He says in a tweet Monday: "Not good!"</p>
<p>Some government functions shut down over the weekend. Democrats are rejecting a funding bill until Republicans agree to protect 700,000 immigrants brought to the U.S. illegally as children.</p>
<p>The Republican president says in a second tweet Monday that "Democrats have shut down our government in the interests of their far left base. They don't want to do it but are powerless!"</p>
<p>Trump's earlier tweet appeared to undercut comments by his legislative affairs director, Marc Short, who told CNN that the immigrants in question are law-abiding and "productive to our society."</p>
<p>Short says the administration wants to "find a pathway for them" to stay in the U.S.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>7:55 a.m.</p>
<p>CIA Director Mike Pompeo says the government shutdown won't affect the spy agency's operations.</p>
<p>He tells "CBS This Morning" in an interview Monday: "We're going to continue crushing our adversaries whether the government's open or closed."</p>
<p>A dispute in Congress over spending and immigration forced scores of federal government agencies and outposts to close their doors early Saturday. But many government functions, particularly those involving national security, are considered essential and won't be affected.</p>
<p>Pompeo also says he doesn't agree that the stalemate on Capitol Hill that led to the shutdown is a signal of dysfunction in Washington.</p>
<p>He says, "The American people are having complicated discussions about their priorities." He says that's entirely appropriate in a democracy.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>1:45 a.m.</p>
<p>The government shutdown is set to complicate the beginning of the workweek. Over the weekend, the Senate inched closer but ultimately fell short of an agreement that would have reopened federal agencies.</p>
<p>Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and Democratic leader Chuck Schumer said negotiations were still underway late into Sunday night, with a vote to break a Democratic filibuster on a short-term funding bill scheduled for noon Monday.</p>
<p>Under the proposal taking shape, Democratic would agree to a three-week spending measure — until Feb. 8 — in return for a commitment from the Republican leadership in the Senate to address immigration policy and other pressing legislative matters in the coming weeks. But there is no agreement yet.</p>
<p>WASHINGTON (AP) — The Latest on the budget battle (all times local):</p>
<p>8:55 p.m.</p>
<p>The White House says President Donald Trump has signed a bill reopening the government, ending a 69-hour display of partisan dysfunction after Democrats reluctantly voted to temporarily pay for resumed operations.</p>
<p>The shutdown took effect Saturday on the one-year anniversary of the president's inauguration, but the White House maintains that Trump came out the winner in the GOP's standoff with Democrats.</p>
<p>The White House argues Democrats "caved" after Trump refused to negotiate with them on immigration policy until the government reopened. Democrats had been holding out for a firmer commitment to provide protections for some 700,000 younger immigrants brought illegally to the U.S. as children.</p>
<p>__</p>
<p>6:30 p.m.</p>
<p>Prominent immigrant advocacy groups are skewering Democratic senators for relenting in a fight that linked immigration changes to continued government funding.</p>
<p>The youth group United We Dream says Senate Democrats who supported a deal to keep the government running through Feb. 8 are "enablers" of President Donald Trump's agenda.</p>
<p>The Los Angeles-based Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights says Democrats "need to grow some courage."</p>
<p>The American Civil Liberties Union says Republicans and Democrats "betrayed our American values and allowed bigotry and fear to prevail."</p>
<p>America's Voice executive director Frank Sharry says he was moved to tears of disappointment that Democrats "blinked."</p>
<p>__</p>
<p>6:15 p.m.</p>
<p>Congress has approved a bipartisan agreement to re-open the federal government after a three-day partial shutdown.</p>
<p>The House approved the bill, 266-150, hours after the Senate backed it, 81-18. President Donald Trump is expected to quickly sign the measure to fund government operations through Feb. 8.</p>
<p>The votes set the stage for hundreds of thousands of federal workers to return Tuesday, cutting short what could have become a messy and costly impasse.</p>
<p>Senate Democrats reluctantly voted in favor of the bill, relenting in return for Republican assurances that the Senate will soon take up the plight of young immigrant "dreamers" and other contentious issues. Democrats from states won by Trump in 2016 broke with progressives looking to satisfy liberals' and immigrants' demands.</p>
<p>__</p>
<p>4:55 p.m.</p>
<p>Democratic Sen. Jon Tester of Montana has voted against a bipartisan agreement to re-open the federal government after a three-day shutdown. He was the only "no" vote Monday among 10 incumbent Democrats facing re-election this year in states won by President Donald Trump in 2016.</p>
<p>Tester says the budget deal did not include funding for community health centers important to his rural state, nor did it add resources for border security.</p>
<p>Tester says that while pundits have focused on immigration, "this was always about Montana for me and I just won't allow Washington to keep failing our state."</p>
<p>The National Republican Senatorial Committee is blasting Tester for "engaging in political games with vital government funding" and says the two-term senator voted alongside the Senate's most liberal Democrats.</p>
<p>__</p>
<p>4:30 p.m.</p>
<p>The Senate has overwhelmingly approved legislation that will end the federal shutdown, almost certainly in time for the government to reopen Tuesday.</p>
<p>The 81-18 vote came hours after Democrats abandoned their opposition to the measure. They'd been using the shutdown in hopes of pressuring Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell to cut a deal on immigration.</p>
<p>But many moderates from both parties were pushing party leaders to reopen federal agencies.</p>
<p>Democrats backed the bill after Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said he'd try reaching a compromise on immigration and the budget early next month. McConnell said if there was still no immigration agreement by Feb. 8, he'd immediately begin debate on the issue.</p>
<p>The bill will finance government through Feb. 8. House passage was expected later Monday.</p>
<p>__</p>
<p>4:25 p.m.</p>
<p>The Senate has approved legislation to make sure federal workers get paid for the three-day government shutdown.</p>
<p>The unanimous voice vote sends the measure to the House, where approval is expected.</p>
<p>Under the law, workers aren't paid when there's a lapse in funding for the government — even if they're deemed essential and have to show up to work.</p>
<p>Monday's measure would fix that and make sure every federal worker would be paid during the shutdown that began Saturday.</p>
<p>The measure would also add retroactive pay language to a stopgap spending bill to reopen the government that passed the Senate Monday. President Donald Trump is expected to sign the legislation as soon as he receives it.</p>
<p>__</p>
<p>4:20 p.m.</p>
<p>President Donald Trump is meeting with a pair of moderate Democratic senators at the White House Monday afternoon to discuss immigration.</p>
<p>Press secretary Sarah Sanders says West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin and Alabama Sen. Doug Jones are meeting with the president to discuss the legislative path forward after the three-day government shutdown is ended.</p>
<p>The red-state lawmakers both broke with the majority of their party Friday on a vote to keep the government open. But enough Democrats withheld their support from the measure in an effort to force progress on legislation to address immigration policy.</p>
<p>Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell is pledging to bring up immigration legislation next month if agreement isn't reached by Feb. 8.</p>
<p>__</p>
<p>3:25 p.m.</p>
<p>The No. 2 Senate Republican says President Donald Trump is eager to involve himself in the immigration debate and "reach a solution."</p>
<p>Texas Sen. John Cornyn says he and five other GOP senators met Monday with Trump at the White House soon after Democrats halted their blockade against a bill ending the government shutdown.</p>
<p>Cornyn says they discussed how to address immigration issues "in creative ways."</p>
<p>Sens. Charles Grassley of Iowa, Tom Cotton of Arkansas, David Perdue of Georgia, Thom Tillis of North Carolina and James Lankford of Oklahoma also met with Trump. Several of them are among the harder-line Republicans on immigration.</p>
<p>Democrats let the bill ending the shutdown advance after Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said he intended to reach a bipartisan deal on immigration and budget issues.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>2:30 p.m.</p>
<p>President Donald Trump says he is pleased that congressional Democrats "have come to their senses" and abandoned their filibuster that shut down the federal government. Trump says his administration will make a long-term immigration deal "if and only if it's good for our country."</p>
<p>Trump issued a statement Monday afternoon after roughly 25 senators from both parties helped negotiate an end to the federal government shutdown. It was read by spokeswoman Sarah Huckabee Sanders at a press briefing.</p>
<p>Trump said he was glad the government will be funded. He continued: "Once the government is funded, my administration will work toward solving the problem of very unfair illegal immigration."</p>
<p>He added: "We will make a long term deal on immigration if and only if it's good for our country."</p>
<p>__</p>
<p>1:55 p.m.</p>
<p>Sen. Susan Collins of Maine says Monday is "a day to celebrate" after roughly 25 senators from both parties helped negotiate an end to the government shutdown.</p>
<p>The Republican says the group shared a common determination to keep the government running while doing something about "Dreamers" who were brought to the country as children and are now here illegally. Collins says a group of 17 senators grew to a quarter of the Senate over the weekend.</p>
<p>Several Democrats who were part of that group dropped their objections Monday after Majority Leader Mitch McConnell made a final offer to try to reach bipartisan solutions on immigration and other issues by early February.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>1:30 p.m.</p>
<p>Vice President Mike Pence is praising a Senate agreement to reopen the federal government.</p>
<p>Pence says before a dinner in Jerusalem with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (neh-ten-YAH'-hoo) that the shutdown is ending "thanks to the firm stand taken by President Trump" and congressional Republicans.</p>
<p>Pence says Americans know a "minority" in the Senate chose to shut down the government. He said, "But the Schumer shutdown failed." He was referring to Senate Demoratic Leader Chuck Schumer.</p>
<p>Pence was joined by Netanyahu for statements at the prime minister's residence before dinner with their spouses.</p>
<p>__</p>
<p>12:55 p.m.</p>
<p>It looks like the government shutdown will end soon.</p>
<p>The Senate has advanced a bill reopening federal agencies through Feb. 8 after Democrats relented and lifted their blockade against the legislation.</p>
<p>The shutdown began Saturday after Democrats derailed a Republican measure that would have kept government open until Feb. 16. Democrats wanted to pressure the GOP to cut a deal protecting young immigrants from deportation and boosting federal spending.</p>
<p>Moderates from both parties pressured leaders to end the shutdown and compromise.</p>
<p>Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said Democrats agreed to back the bill reopening government after he and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell agreed to begin debating an immigration bill by Feb. 8.</p>
<p>The Senate vote was 81-18 — well above the 60 votes needed. The Senate still must vote on final passage to send the bill to the House.</p>
<p>__</p>
<p>12:35 p.m.</p>
<p>Senate leaders have reached an agreement to reopen the government.</p>
<p>Democrats have yielded and ended their delaying tactics against a bill financing federal agencies through Feb. 8.</p>
<p>Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer says in exchange, Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has agreed to begin debating immigration by that date.</p>
<p>McConnell says the end to the standoff shows "the American people didn't understand" why Democrats shut down the government because they wanted to help "illegal immigrants."</p>
<p>The Senate has started a vote to advance the bill reopening government. It is expected to pass easily, and House approval is expected later.</p>
<p>__</p>
<p>12:10 p.m.</p>
<p>Democrats are aligning behind a plan to reopen the federal government as the Senate heads toward a key vote.</p>
<p>Several Democratic senators predict a proposal to fund the government until Feb. 8 will move forward, overcoming a Democratic filibuster. That would clear the way for an end to the three-day shutdown.</p>
<p>Democrats appear to have jumped on board after two days of negotiations that ended with new reassurances from Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell that the Senate will consider immigration proposals in the coming weeks.</p>
<p>Sen. Amy Klobuchar said Monday morning she believed Democrats and Republicans now have "a path forward."</p>
<p>Florida Democrat Bill Nelson is predicting a resounding yes from Democrats on the plan.</p>
<p>__</p>
<p>10:35 a.m.</p>
<p>Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell says he hopes and intends to resolve immigration and a host of other issues by early February in an effort to come to bipartisan agreement to reopen the federal government.</p>
<p>Senate Democrats blocked a House-passed temporary funding bill to reopen the government through Feb. 16. A pending Senate measure would last through Feb. 8.</p>
<p>Opening the Senate Monday, McConnell said that if they could not find bipartisan solutions on immigration, military spending, disaster aid and other issues by the Feb. 8 deadline then he would hold a vote on those matters. Top Democrat Chuck Schumer did not appear on the floor to respond.</p>
<p>Several members of both parties met Monday morning to try and resolve the shutdown mess.</p>
<p>__</p>
<p>10:25 a.m.</p>
<p>White House Budget Director Mick Mulvaney is defending President Donald Trump's lack of outreach to Democratic lawmakers during the government shutdown.</p>
<p>Mulvaney discussed the shutdown on MSNBC Monday morning.</p>
<p>Trump did not speak with any Democratic senators over the weekend. Asked why, Mulvaney said Trump spoke with Democrats before the shutdown and will speak to them when it is over.</p>
<p>But he says: "we are not going to negotiate immigration in the middle of the shutdown."</p>
<p>__</p>
<p>9:05 a.m.</p>
<p>House Speaker Paul Ryan says if the Senate approves a temporary spending bill to reopen the government through Feb. 8, the House will approve it, too.</p>
<p>Senate Democrats had blocked a stopgap measure passed by the House to keep the federal bureaucracy operating through Feb. 16. But speaking on "Fox and Friends," Ryan says the new date works for the House.</p>
<p>The Wisconsin Republican also says negotiations on an immigration deal are taking place in good faith. Democrats want to protect young immigrants in the country illegally and are skeptical of Republican pledges to bring up free-standing immigration legislation next month.</p>
<p>Democratic Sen. Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut says on MSNBC he has "zero confidence" that Ryan will bring legislation to shield the roughly 700,000 immigrants known as "Dreamers."</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>8:35 a.m.</p>
<p>President Donald Trump is accusing Democrats of prioritizing services and security for noncitizens over U.S. citizens.</p>
<p>He says in a tweet Monday: "Not good!"</p>
<p>Some government functions shut down over the weekend. Democrats are rejecting a funding bill until Republicans agree to protect 700,000 immigrants brought to the U.S. illegally as children.</p>
<p>The Republican president says in a second tweet Monday that "Democrats have shut down our government in the interests of their far left base. They don't want to do it but are powerless!"</p>
<p>Trump's earlier tweet appeared to undercut comments by his legislative affairs director, Marc Short, who told CNN that the immigrants in question are law-abiding and "productive to our society."</p>
<p>Short says the administration wants to "find a pathway for them" to stay in the U.S.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>7:55 a.m.</p>
<p>CIA Director Mike Pompeo says the government shutdown won't affect the spy agency's operations.</p>
<p>He tells "CBS This Morning" in an interview Monday: "We're going to continue crushing our adversaries whether the government's open or closed."</p>
<p>A dispute in Congress over spending and immigration forced scores of federal government agencies and outposts to close their doors early Saturday. But many government functions, particularly those involving national security, are considered essential and won't be affected.</p>
<p>Pompeo also says he doesn't agree that the stalemate on Capitol Hill that led to the shutdown is a signal of dysfunction in Washington.</p>
<p>He says, "The American people are having complicated discussions about their priorities." He says that's entirely appropriate in a democracy.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>1:45 a.m.</p>
<p>The government shutdown is set to complicate the beginning of the workweek. Over the weekend, the Senate inched closer but ultimately fell short of an agreement that would have reopened federal agencies.</p>
<p>Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and Democratic leader Chuck Schumer said negotiations were still underway late into Sunday night, with a vote to break a Democratic filibuster on a short-term funding bill scheduled for noon Monday.</p>
<p>Under the proposal taking shape, Democratic would agree to a three-week spending measure — until Feb. 8 — in return for a commitment from the Republican leadership in the Senate to address immigration policy and other pressing legislative matters in the coming weeks. But there is no agreement yet.</p>
| false | 2 |
washington ap latest budget battle times local 855 pm white house says president donald trump signed bill reopening government ending 69hour display partisan dysfunction democrats reluctantly voted temporarily pay resumed operations shutdown took effect saturday oneyear anniversary presidents inauguration white house maintains trump came winner gops standoff democrats white house argues democrats caved trump refused negotiate immigration policy government reopened democrats holding firmer commitment provide protections 700000 younger immigrants brought illegally us children __ 630 pm prominent immigrant advocacy groups skewering democratic senators relenting fight linked immigration changes continued government funding youth group united dream says senate democrats supported deal keep government running feb 8 enablers president donald trumps agenda los angelesbased coalition humane immigrant rights says democrats need grow courage american civil liberties union says republicans democrats betrayed american values allowed bigotry fear prevail americas voice executive director frank sharry says moved tears disappointment democrats blinked __ 615 pm congress approved bipartisan agreement reopen federal government threeday partial shutdown house approved bill 266150 hours senate backed 8118 president donald trump expected quickly sign measure fund government operations feb 8 votes set stage hundreds thousands federal workers return tuesday cutting short could become messy costly impasse senate democrats reluctantly voted favor bill relenting return republican assurances senate soon take plight young immigrant dreamers contentious issues democrats states trump 2016 broke progressives looking satisfy liberals immigrants demands __ 455 pm democratic sen jon tester montana voted bipartisan agreement reopen federal government threeday shutdown vote monday among 10 incumbent democrats facing reelection year states president donald trump 2016 tester says budget deal include funding community health centers important rural state add resources border security tester says pundits focused immigration always montana wont allow washington keep failing state national republican senatorial committee blasting tester engaging political games vital government funding says twoterm senator voted alongside senates liberal democrats __ 430 pm senate overwhelmingly approved legislation end federal shutdown almost certainly time government reopen tuesday 8118 vote came hours democrats abandoned opposition measure theyd using shutdown hopes pressuring senate majority leader mitch mcconnell cut deal immigration many moderates parties pushing party leaders reopen federal agencies democrats backed bill senate majority leader mitch mcconnell said hed try reaching compromise immigration budget early next month mcconnell said still immigration agreement feb 8 hed immediately begin debate issue bill finance government feb 8 house passage expected later monday __ 425 pm senate approved legislation make sure federal workers get paid threeday government shutdown unanimous voice vote sends measure house approval expected law workers arent paid theres lapse funding government even theyre deemed essential show work mondays measure would fix make sure every federal worker would paid shutdown began saturday measure would also add retroactive pay language stopgap spending bill reopen government passed senate monday president donald trump expected sign legislation soon receives __ 420 pm president donald trump meeting pair moderate democratic senators white house monday afternoon discuss immigration press secretary sarah sanders says west virginia sen joe manchin alabama sen doug jones meeting president discuss legislative path forward threeday government shutdown ended redstate lawmakers broke majority party friday vote keep government open enough democrats withheld support measure effort force progress legislation address immigration policy senate majority leader mitch mcconnell pledging bring immigration legislation next month agreement isnt reached feb 8 __ 325 pm 2 senate republican says president donald trump eager involve immigration debate reach solution texas sen john cornyn says five gop senators met monday trump white house soon democrats halted blockade bill ending government shutdown cornyn says discussed address immigration issues creative ways sens charles grassley iowa tom cotton arkansas david perdue georgia thom tillis north carolina james lankford oklahoma also met trump several among harderline republicans immigration democrats let bill ending shutdown advance senate majority leader mitch mcconnell said intended reach bipartisan deal immigration budget issues ___ 230 pm president donald trump says pleased congressional democrats come senses abandoned filibuster shut federal government trump says administration make longterm immigration deal good country trump issued statement monday afternoon roughly 25 senators parties helped negotiate end federal government shutdown read spokeswoman sarah huckabee sanders press briefing trump said glad government funded continued government funded administration work toward solving problem unfair illegal immigration added make long term deal immigration good country __ 155 pm sen susan collins maine says monday day celebrate roughly 25 senators parties helped negotiate end government shutdown republican says group shared common determination keep government running something dreamers brought country children illegally collins says group 17 senators grew quarter senate weekend several democrats part group dropped objections monday majority leader mitch mcconnell made final offer try reach bipartisan solutions immigration issues early february ___ 130 pm vice president mike pence praising senate agreement reopen federal government pence says dinner jerusalem israeli prime minister benjamin netanyahu nehtenyahhoo shutdown ending thanks firm stand taken president trump congressional republicans pence says americans know minority senate chose shut government said schumer shutdown failed referring senate demoratic leader chuck schumer pence joined netanyahu statements prime ministers residence dinner spouses __ 1255 pm looks like government shutdown end soon senate advanced bill reopening federal agencies feb 8 democrats relented lifted blockade legislation shutdown began saturday democrats derailed republican measure would kept government open feb 16 democrats wanted pressure gop cut deal protecting young immigrants deportation boosting federal spending moderates parties pressured leaders end shutdown compromise senate minority leader chuck schumer said democrats agreed back bill reopening government senate majority leader mitch mcconnell agreed begin debating immigration bill feb 8 senate vote 8118 well 60 votes needed senate still must vote final passage send bill house __ 1235 pm senate leaders reached agreement reopen government democrats yielded ended delaying tactics bill financing federal agencies feb 8 senate minority leader chuck schumer says exchange majority leader mitch mcconnell agreed begin debating immigration date mcconnell says end standoff shows american people didnt understand democrats shut government wanted help illegal immigrants senate started vote advance bill reopening government expected pass easily house approval expected later __ 1210 pm democrats aligning behind plan reopen federal government senate heads toward key vote several democratic senators predict proposal fund government feb 8 move forward overcoming democratic filibuster would clear way end threeday shutdown democrats appear jumped board two days negotiations ended new reassurances senate majority leader mitch mcconnell senate consider immigration proposals coming weeks sen amy klobuchar said monday morning believed democrats republicans path forward florida democrat bill nelson predicting resounding yes democrats plan __ 1035 senate majority leader mitch mcconnell says hopes intends resolve immigration host issues early february effort come bipartisan agreement reopen federal government senate democrats blocked housepassed temporary funding bill reopen government feb 16 pending senate measure would last feb 8 opening senate monday mcconnell said could find bipartisan solutions immigration military spending disaster aid issues feb 8 deadline would hold vote matters top democrat chuck schumer appear floor respond several members parties met monday morning try resolve shutdown mess __ 1025 white house budget director mick mulvaney defending president donald trumps lack outreach democratic lawmakers government shutdown mulvaney discussed shutdown msnbc monday morning trump speak democratic senators weekend asked mulvaney said trump spoke democrats shutdown speak says going negotiate immigration middle shutdown __ 905 house speaker paul ryan says senate approves temporary spending bill reopen government feb 8 house approve senate democrats blocked stopgap measure passed house keep federal bureaucracy operating feb 16 speaking fox friends ryan says new date works house wisconsin republican also says negotiations immigration deal taking place good faith democrats want protect young immigrants country illegally skeptical republican pledges bring freestanding immigration legislation next month democratic sen richard blumenthal connecticut says msnbc zero confidence ryan bring legislation shield roughly 700000 immigrants known dreamers ___ 835 president donald trump accusing democrats prioritizing services security noncitizens us citizens says tweet monday good government functions shut weekend democrats rejecting funding bill republicans agree protect 700000 immigrants brought us illegally children republican president says second tweet monday democrats shut government interests far left base dont want powerless trumps earlier tweet appeared undercut comments legislative affairs director marc short told cnn immigrants question lawabiding productive society short says administration wants find pathway stay us ___ 755 cia director mike pompeo says government shutdown wont affect spy agencys operations tells cbs morning interview monday going continue crushing adversaries whether governments open closed dispute congress spending immigration forced scores federal government agencies outposts close doors early saturday many government functions particularly involving national security considered essential wont affected pompeo also says doesnt agree stalemate capitol hill led shutdown signal dysfunction washington says american people complicated discussions priorities says thats entirely appropriate democracy ___ 145 government shutdown set complicate beginning workweek weekend senate inched closer ultimately fell short agreement would reopened federal agencies senate majority leader mitch mcconnell democratic leader chuck schumer said negotiations still underway late sunday night vote break democratic filibuster shortterm funding bill scheduled noon monday proposal taking shape democratic would agree threeweek spending measure feb 8 return commitment republican leadership senate address immigration policy pressing legislative matters coming weeks agreement yet washington ap latest budget battle times local 855 pm white house says president donald trump signed bill reopening government ending 69hour display partisan dysfunction democrats reluctantly voted temporarily pay resumed operations shutdown took effect saturday oneyear anniversary presidents inauguration white house maintains trump came winner gops standoff democrats white house argues democrats caved trump refused negotiate immigration policy government reopened democrats holding firmer commitment provide protections 700000 younger immigrants brought illegally us children __ 630 pm prominent immigrant advocacy groups skewering democratic senators relenting fight linked immigration changes continued government funding youth group united dream says senate democrats supported deal keep government running feb 8 enablers president donald trumps agenda los angelesbased coalition humane immigrant rights says democrats need grow courage american civil liberties union says republicans democrats betrayed american values allowed bigotry fear prevail americas voice executive director frank sharry says moved tears disappointment democrats blinked __ 615 pm congress approved bipartisan agreement reopen federal government threeday partial shutdown house approved bill 266150 hours senate backed 8118 president donald trump expected quickly sign measure fund government operations feb 8 votes set stage hundreds thousands federal workers return tuesday cutting short could become messy costly impasse senate democrats reluctantly voted favor bill relenting return republican assurances senate soon take plight young immigrant dreamers contentious issues democrats states trump 2016 broke progressives looking satisfy liberals immigrants demands __ 455 pm democratic sen jon tester montana voted bipartisan agreement reopen federal government threeday shutdown vote monday among 10 incumbent democrats facing reelection year states president donald trump 2016 tester says budget deal include funding community health centers important rural state add resources border security tester says pundits focused immigration always montana wont allow washington keep failing state national republican senatorial committee blasting tester engaging political games vital government funding says twoterm senator voted alongside senates liberal democrats __ 430 pm senate overwhelmingly approved legislation end federal shutdown almost certainly time government reopen tuesday 8118 vote came hours democrats abandoned opposition measure theyd using shutdown hopes pressuring senate majority leader mitch mcconnell cut deal immigration many moderates parties pushing party leaders reopen federal agencies democrats backed bill senate majority leader mitch mcconnell said hed try reaching compromise immigration budget early next month mcconnell said still immigration agreement feb 8 hed immediately begin debate issue bill finance government feb 8 house passage expected later monday __ 425 pm senate approved legislation make sure federal workers get paid threeday government shutdown unanimous voice vote sends measure house approval expected law workers arent paid theres lapse funding government even theyre deemed essential show work mondays measure would fix make sure every federal worker would paid shutdown began saturday measure would also add retroactive pay language stopgap spending bill reopen government passed senate monday president donald trump expected sign legislation soon receives __ 420 pm president donald trump meeting pair moderate democratic senators white house monday afternoon discuss immigration press secretary sarah sanders says west virginia sen joe manchin alabama sen doug jones meeting president discuss legislative path forward threeday government shutdown ended redstate lawmakers broke majority party friday vote keep government open enough democrats withheld support measure effort force progress legislation address immigration policy senate majority leader mitch mcconnell pledging bring immigration legislation next month agreement isnt reached feb 8 __ 325 pm 2 senate republican says president donald trump eager involve immigration debate reach solution texas sen john cornyn says five gop senators met monday trump white house soon democrats halted blockade bill ending government shutdown cornyn says discussed address immigration issues creative ways sens charles grassley iowa tom cotton arkansas david perdue georgia thom tillis north carolina james lankford oklahoma also met trump several among harderline republicans immigration democrats let bill ending shutdown advance senate majority leader mitch mcconnell said intended reach bipartisan deal immigration budget issues ___ 230 pm president donald trump says pleased congressional democrats come senses abandoned filibuster shut federal government trump says administration make longterm immigration deal good country trump issued statement monday afternoon roughly 25 senators parties helped negotiate end federal government shutdown read spokeswoman sarah huckabee sanders press briefing trump said glad government funded continued government funded administration work toward solving problem unfair illegal immigration added make long term deal immigration good country __ 155 pm sen susan collins maine says monday day celebrate roughly 25 senators parties helped negotiate end government shutdown republican says group shared common determination keep government running something dreamers brought country children illegally collins says group 17 senators grew quarter senate weekend several democrats part group dropped objections monday majority leader mitch mcconnell made final offer try reach bipartisan solutions immigration issues early february ___ 130 pm vice president mike pence praising senate agreement reopen federal government pence says dinner jerusalem israeli prime minister benjamin netanyahu nehtenyahhoo shutdown ending thanks firm stand taken president trump congressional republicans pence says americans know minority senate chose shut government said schumer shutdown failed referring senate demoratic leader chuck schumer pence joined netanyahu statements prime ministers residence dinner spouses __ 1255 pm looks like government shutdown end soon senate advanced bill reopening federal agencies feb 8 democrats relented lifted blockade legislation shutdown began saturday democrats derailed republican measure would kept government open feb 16 democrats wanted pressure gop cut deal protecting young immigrants deportation boosting federal spending moderates parties pressured leaders end shutdown compromise senate minority leader chuck schumer said democrats agreed back bill reopening government senate majority leader mitch mcconnell agreed begin debating immigration bill feb 8 senate vote 8118 well 60 votes needed senate still must vote final passage send bill house __ 1235 pm senate leaders reached agreement reopen government democrats yielded ended delaying tactics bill financing federal agencies feb 8 senate minority leader chuck schumer says exchange majority leader mitch mcconnell agreed begin debating immigration date mcconnell says end standoff shows american people didnt understand democrats shut government wanted help illegal immigrants senate started vote advance bill reopening government expected pass easily house approval expected later __ 1210 pm democrats aligning behind plan reopen federal government senate heads toward key vote several democratic senators predict proposal fund government feb 8 move forward overcoming democratic filibuster would clear way end threeday shutdown democrats appear jumped board two days negotiations ended new reassurances senate majority leader mitch mcconnell senate consider immigration proposals coming weeks sen amy klobuchar said monday morning believed democrats republicans path forward florida democrat bill nelson predicting resounding yes democrats plan __ 1035 senate majority leader mitch mcconnell says hopes intends resolve immigration host issues early february effort come bipartisan agreement reopen federal government senate democrats blocked housepassed temporary funding bill reopen government feb 16 pending senate measure would last feb 8 opening senate monday mcconnell said could find bipartisan solutions immigration military spending disaster aid issues feb 8 deadline would hold vote matters top democrat chuck schumer appear floor respond several members parties met monday morning try resolve shutdown mess __ 1025 white house budget director mick mulvaney defending president donald trumps lack outreach democratic lawmakers government shutdown mulvaney discussed shutdown msnbc monday morning trump speak democratic senators weekend asked mulvaney said trump spoke democrats shutdown speak says going negotiate immigration middle shutdown __ 905 house speaker paul ryan says senate approves temporary spending bill reopen government feb 8 house approve senate democrats blocked stopgap measure passed house keep federal bureaucracy operating feb 16 speaking fox friends ryan says new date works house wisconsin republican also says negotiations immigration deal taking place good faith democrats want protect young immigrants country illegally skeptical republican pledges bring freestanding immigration legislation next month democratic sen richard blumenthal connecticut says msnbc zero confidence ryan bring legislation shield roughly 700000 immigrants known dreamers ___ 835 president donald trump accusing democrats prioritizing services security noncitizens us citizens says tweet monday good government functions shut weekend democrats rejecting funding bill republicans agree protect 700000 immigrants brought us illegally children republican president says second tweet monday democrats shut government interests far left base dont want powerless trumps earlier tweet appeared undercut comments legislative affairs director marc short told cnn immigrants question lawabiding productive society short says administration wants find pathway stay us ___ 755 cia director mike pompeo says government shutdown wont affect spy agencys operations tells cbs morning interview monday going continue crushing adversaries whether governments open closed dispute congress spending immigration forced scores federal government agencies outposts close doors early saturday many government functions particularly involving national security considered essential wont affected pompeo also says doesnt agree stalemate capitol hill led shutdown signal dysfunction washington says american people complicated discussions priorities says thats entirely appropriate democracy ___ 145 government shutdown set complicate beginning workweek weekend senate inched closer ultimately fell short agreement would reopened federal agencies senate majority leader mitch mcconnell democratic leader chuck schumer said negotiations still underway late sunday night vote break democratic filibuster shortterm funding bill scheduled noon monday proposal taking shape democratic would agree threeweek spending measure feb 8 return commitment republican leadership senate address immigration policy pressing legislative matters coming weeks agreement yet
| 3,002 |
<p>NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jan 7, 2018-- <a href="http://cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&amp;url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.kolibree.com%2Fen%2F&amp;esheet=51739163&amp;newsitemid=20180107005101&amp;lan=en-US&amp;anchor=Kolibree&amp;index=1&amp;md5=a45c923eb80420e61bcc387fd8c86d22" type="external">Kolibree</a> ( <a href="http://cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&amp;url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.kolibree.com&amp;esheet=51739163&amp;newsitemid=20180107005101&amp;lan=en-US&amp;anchor=www.kolibree.com&amp;index=2&amp;md5=cc517cfa79fff9e838baed7dfa7cf62e" type="external">www.kolibree.com</a> ), a member of the Baracoda group, delivering connected oral care solutions, launches Magik at CES Unveiled 2018, the kid’s AR-enabled toothbrush that turns any smartphone into a game console for fighting cavities and plaque. A CES 2018 Innovation Award honoree, Magik uses Augmented Reality (AR) to gamify teeth brushing with its interactive toothbrush for children. It uses fun, imaginative filters, sticker packs and more to turn a chore into a magical experience.</p>
<p>Remember when you were eight years old, dressing up as a pirate or playing Pretty Pretty Princess? Just like Cinderella, your parents came in and announced playtime was over and it was now time to brush your teeth. What if toothbrush time and playtime didn’t cancel each other out? With Magik’s toothbrush and AR app with computer vision, utilizing the smartphone’s camera, imagination and play are a part of the routine.</p>
<p>Magik bridges the gap between oral hygiene and fun by connecting kids toothbrushes to an in-app game through advanced AR technology. Magik’s app offers 15 different worlds for kids to immerse themselves in, turning the chore of getting ready for bed into a ‘choose your own adventure’. The brush and app work together allowing children to hit the right spot while brushing and get rewarded with fun, interactive masks when they’ve brushed thoroughly. After deciding between an evening spent with pirates, a royal princess experience, or more, kids earn Magik Masks and stickers as a reward for good brushing.</p>
<p>Magik’s app takes brushers on wild pirate rides, or magic kingdom adventures with interactive gameplay to help kids learn healthy brushing habits. Each toothbrush uses brush tracking to detect movement and speed with sessions and feedback from within the app. Monitoring what kids are really doing in the bathroom is easy, with remote session monitoring to ensure proper brushing. With Magik’s AR-enabled toothbrush, parents are able to monitor their child’s progress with maintenance tracking. Magik is fun and offers guidance with its instructional brushing features, teaching kids exactly where to brush, and how long they should focus on each spot. With interactive games and monitoring dashboard guiding them to brush thoroughly, they will never miss a spot.</p>
<p>“Games are proven to keep the attention of children, so why not use that to combat and eradicate cavities?” says Thomas Serval, CEO, Chairman, and Co-Founder of Kolibree. “Magik is the start of our vision to transform the way children approach oral care routines, from an obligatory chore to a fun and educational pillar of their nighttime routine.”</p>
<p>About Kolibree:</p>
<p>Kolibree, the smart oral care company dedicated to the innovation of connected health solutions, including the first toothbrush with embedded AI, and the first connected sonic toothbrush with 3-D motion sensors. Kolibree uses proprietary technology and patented M2M technology to provide a personalized, interactive tooth brushing experience for children and adults.</p>
<p />
<p />
<p>View source version on businesswire.com: <a href="http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180107005101/en/" type="external" /> <a href="http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180107005101/en/" type="external">http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180107005101/en/</a></p>
<p>CONTACT: Blonde 2.0 for Kolibree</p>
<p>Michelle Chiera, +972-526000446 (Cell)</p>
<p>[email protected]</p>
<p>KEYWORD: UNITED STATES NORTH AMERICA NEW YORK</p>
<p>INDUSTRY KEYWORD: TECHNOLOGY CONSUMER ELECTRONICS HARDWARE SOFTWARE OTHER TECHNOLOGY HEALTH DENTAL CHILDREN CONSUMER</p>
<p>SOURCE: Kolibree</p>
<p>Copyright Business Wire 2018.</p>
<p>PUB: 01/07/2018 08:00 PM/DISC: 01/07/2018 08:00 PM</p>
<p><a href="http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180107005101/en" type="external">http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180107005101/en</a></p>
<p>NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jan 7, 2018-- <a href="http://cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&amp;url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.kolibree.com%2Fen%2F&amp;esheet=51739163&amp;newsitemid=20180107005101&amp;lan=en-US&amp;anchor=Kolibree&amp;index=1&amp;md5=a45c923eb80420e61bcc387fd8c86d22" type="external">Kolibree</a> ( <a href="http://cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&amp;url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.kolibree.com&amp;esheet=51739163&amp;newsitemid=20180107005101&amp;lan=en-US&amp;anchor=www.kolibree.com&amp;index=2&amp;md5=cc517cfa79fff9e838baed7dfa7cf62e" type="external">www.kolibree.com</a> ), a member of the Baracoda group, delivering connected oral care solutions, launches Magik at CES Unveiled 2018, the kid’s AR-enabled toothbrush that turns any smartphone into a game console for fighting cavities and plaque. A CES 2018 Innovation Award honoree, Magik uses Augmented Reality (AR) to gamify teeth brushing with its interactive toothbrush for children. It uses fun, imaginative filters, sticker packs and more to turn a chore into a magical experience.</p>
<p>Remember when you were eight years old, dressing up as a pirate or playing Pretty Pretty Princess? Just like Cinderella, your parents came in and announced playtime was over and it was now time to brush your teeth. What if toothbrush time and playtime didn’t cancel each other out? With Magik’s toothbrush and AR app with computer vision, utilizing the smartphone’s camera, imagination and play are a part of the routine.</p>
<p>Magik bridges the gap between oral hygiene and fun by connecting kids toothbrushes to an in-app game through advanced AR technology. Magik’s app offers 15 different worlds for kids to immerse themselves in, turning the chore of getting ready for bed into a ‘choose your own adventure’. The brush and app work together allowing children to hit the right spot while brushing and get rewarded with fun, interactive masks when they’ve brushed thoroughly. After deciding between an evening spent with pirates, a royal princess experience, or more, kids earn Magik Masks and stickers as a reward for good brushing.</p>
<p>Magik’s app takes brushers on wild pirate rides, or magic kingdom adventures with interactive gameplay to help kids learn healthy brushing habits. Each toothbrush uses brush tracking to detect movement and speed with sessions and feedback from within the app. Monitoring what kids are really doing in the bathroom is easy, with remote session monitoring to ensure proper brushing. With Magik’s AR-enabled toothbrush, parents are able to monitor their child’s progress with maintenance tracking. Magik is fun and offers guidance with its instructional brushing features, teaching kids exactly where to brush, and how long they should focus on each spot. With interactive games and monitoring dashboard guiding them to brush thoroughly, they will never miss a spot.</p>
<p>“Games are proven to keep the attention of children, so why not use that to combat and eradicate cavities?” says Thomas Serval, CEO, Chairman, and Co-Founder of Kolibree. “Magik is the start of our vision to transform the way children approach oral care routines, from an obligatory chore to a fun and educational pillar of their nighttime routine.”</p>
<p>About Kolibree:</p>
<p>Kolibree, the smart oral care company dedicated to the innovation of connected health solutions, including the first toothbrush with embedded AI, and the first connected sonic toothbrush with 3-D motion sensors. Kolibree uses proprietary technology and patented M2M technology to provide a personalized, interactive tooth brushing experience for children and adults.</p>
<p />
<p />
<p>View source version on businesswire.com: <a href="http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180107005101/en/" type="external" /> <a href="http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180107005101/en/" type="external">http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180107005101/en/</a></p>
<p>CONTACT: Blonde 2.0 for Kolibree</p>
<p>Michelle Chiera, +972-526000446 (Cell)</p>
<p>[email protected]</p>
<p>KEYWORD: UNITED STATES NORTH AMERICA NEW YORK</p>
<p>INDUSTRY KEYWORD: TECHNOLOGY CONSUMER ELECTRONICS HARDWARE SOFTWARE OTHER TECHNOLOGY HEALTH DENTAL CHILDREN CONSUMER</p>
<p>SOURCE: Kolibree</p>
<p>Copyright Business Wire 2018.</p>
<p>PUB: 01/07/2018 08:00 PM/DISC: 01/07/2018 08:00 PM</p>
<p><a href="http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180107005101/en" type="external">http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180107005101/en</a></p>
| false | 2 |
new yorkbusiness wirejan 7 2018 kolibree wwwkolibreecom member baracoda group delivering connected oral care solutions launches magik ces unveiled 2018 kids arenabled toothbrush turns smartphone game console fighting cavities plaque ces 2018 innovation award honoree magik uses augmented reality ar gamify teeth brushing interactive toothbrush children uses fun imaginative filters sticker packs turn chore magical experience remember eight years old dressing pirate playing pretty pretty princess like cinderella parents came announced playtime time brush teeth toothbrush time playtime didnt cancel magiks toothbrush ar app computer vision utilizing smartphones camera imagination play part routine magik bridges gap oral hygiene fun connecting kids toothbrushes inapp game advanced ar technology magiks app offers 15 different worlds kids immerse turning chore getting ready bed choose adventure brush app work together allowing children hit right spot brushing get rewarded fun interactive masks theyve brushed thoroughly deciding evening spent pirates royal princess experience kids earn magik masks stickers reward good brushing magiks app takes brushers wild pirate rides magic kingdom adventures interactive gameplay help kids learn healthy brushing habits toothbrush uses brush tracking detect movement speed sessions feedback within app monitoring kids really bathroom easy remote session monitoring ensure proper brushing magiks arenabled toothbrush parents able monitor childs progress maintenance tracking magik fun offers guidance instructional brushing features teaching kids exactly brush long focus spot interactive games monitoring dashboard guiding brush thoroughly never miss spot games proven keep attention children use combat eradicate cavities says thomas serval ceo chairman cofounder kolibree magik start vision transform way children approach oral care routines obligatory chore fun educational pillar nighttime routine kolibree kolibree smart oral care company dedicated innovation connected health solutions including first toothbrush embedded ai first connected sonic toothbrush 3d motion sensors kolibree uses proprietary technology patented m2m technology provide personalized interactive tooth brushing experience children adults view source version businesswirecom httpwwwbusinesswirecomnewshome20180107005101en contact blonde 20 kolibree michelle chiera 972526000446 cell michelleblonde20com keyword united states north america new york industry keyword technology consumer electronics hardware software technology health dental children consumer source kolibree copyright business wire 2018 pub 01072018 0800 pmdisc 01072018 0800 pm httpwwwbusinesswirecomnewshome20180107005101en new yorkbusiness wirejan 7 2018 kolibree wwwkolibreecom member baracoda group delivering connected oral care solutions launches magik ces unveiled 2018 kids arenabled toothbrush turns smartphone game console fighting cavities plaque ces 2018 innovation award honoree magik uses augmented reality ar gamify teeth brushing interactive toothbrush children uses fun imaginative filters sticker packs turn chore magical experience remember eight years old dressing pirate playing pretty pretty princess like cinderella parents came announced playtime time brush teeth toothbrush time playtime didnt cancel magiks toothbrush ar app computer vision utilizing smartphones camera imagination play part routine magik bridges gap oral hygiene fun connecting kids toothbrushes inapp game advanced ar technology magiks app offers 15 different worlds kids immerse turning chore getting ready bed choose adventure brush app work together allowing children hit right spot brushing get rewarded fun interactive masks theyve brushed thoroughly deciding evening spent pirates royal princess experience kids earn magik masks stickers reward good brushing magiks app takes brushers wild pirate rides magic kingdom adventures interactive gameplay help kids learn healthy brushing habits toothbrush uses brush tracking detect movement speed sessions feedback within app monitoring kids really bathroom easy remote session monitoring ensure proper brushing magiks arenabled toothbrush parents able monitor childs progress maintenance tracking magik fun offers guidance instructional brushing features teaching kids exactly brush long focus spot interactive games monitoring dashboard guiding brush thoroughly never miss spot games proven keep attention children use combat eradicate cavities says thomas serval ceo chairman cofounder kolibree magik start vision transform way children approach oral care routines obligatory chore fun educational pillar nighttime routine kolibree kolibree smart oral care company dedicated innovation connected health solutions including first toothbrush embedded ai first connected sonic toothbrush 3d motion sensors kolibree uses proprietary technology patented m2m technology provide personalized interactive tooth brushing experience children adults view source version businesswirecom httpwwwbusinesswirecomnewshome20180107005101en contact blonde 20 kolibree michelle chiera 972526000446 cell michelleblonde20com keyword united states north america new york industry keyword technology consumer electronics hardware software technology health dental children consumer source kolibree copyright business wire 2018 pub 01072018 0800 pmdisc 01072018 0800 pm httpwwwbusinesswirecomnewshome20180107005101en
| 694 |
<p>ZURICH, Jan 19 (Reuters) - The Swiss blue-chip SMI was seen opening 0.13 percent lower at 9,440 points on Friday, according to premarket indications by bank Julius Baer .</p>
<p>The following are some of the main factors expected to affect Swiss stocks:</p> NESTLE
<p>The world’s biggest food group proposed three new independent directors to its board on Thursday as it seeks to accelerate its transformation into a company that makes health products.</p>
<p>For more, click on</p> OERLIKON
<p>The Swiss surfacing, textile machinery and automotive conglomerate said it secured two major contracts worth 540 million Swiss francs for its synthetic fiber textile machinery business, a development that will help boost the segment’s margins.</p>
<p>The shares were seen rising.</p>
<p>For more click</p> COMPANY STATEMENTS
<p>* Roche said Japanese regulators approved its immunotherapy Tecentriq for a form of lung cancer.</p>
<p>* Schmolz+Bickenbach increases offer for Asco Industries to 195 million euros ($239.01 million), including 82 million euros in investments in Asco Industries’ production facilities over the next four years.</p>
<p>* Elma Group said the U.S. tax changes have led to an unanticipated 1 million Swiss franc ($1.04 million) writeoff of deferred tax assets, which will reduce the previously released estimated net profit figure of 4 million francs.</p>
<p>* BB Biotech said it had a net gain of 688 million Swiss francs in 2017, compared to a net loss of 802 million francs in 2016.</p>
<p>* Santhera said it plans to announce 2017 key preliminary figures and regulatory feedback on Raxone on Jan. 26.</p>
<p>* Burkhalter Holding Ltd said it is selling its share in Alpiq Burkhalter Technik AG to Alpiq InTec AG.</p>
<p>* Zehnder Group said 2017 sales rose 8 percent to 582.4 million francs and that it improved its operating margin compared to the previous year.</p>
<p>* Clariant opened a new masterbatch production site in Saudi Arabia</p> ECONOMY
<p>* Swiss producer and import price index due at 0815 GMT ($1 = 0.8159 euros) ($1 = 0.9573 Swiss francs) (Reporting by Zurich newsroom)</p> Our Standards:
<a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a>
<p>NEW YORK (Reuters) - Investors are not giving Alphabet Inc ( <a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=GOOGL.O" type="external">GOOGL.O</a>) sufficient credit for its growth outlook and franchise value, as the tech company could see profits expand 15 to 20 percent annually over the next three years, Barron’s said in an article on Sunday.</p> Silhouettes of mobile users are seen next to a screen projection of Google logo in this picture illustration taken March 28, 2018. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration
<a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=GOOGL.O" type="external">Alphabet Inc</a> 1009.95 GOOGL.O Nasdaq -22.69 (-2.20%) GOOGL.O FB.O AAPL.O MSFT.O AMZN.O
<p>Shares in the parent company of Google look inexpensive trading at 25 times projected 2018 earnings of about $42 a share, Barron’s said. While that’s a premium to the Standard &amp; Poor’s 500 index, which fetches around 16 times estimated 2018 earnings, Alphabet’s growth stands apart given its large revenue base of $111 billion.</p>
<p>Over 86 percent of its revenue comes from advertising, much of which is tied to search queries. That market is likely to keep growing as more ad spending shifts online, it said.</p>
<p>Alphabet is also in a better position than Facebook Inc ( <a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=FB.O" type="external">FB.O</a>) on data privacy, has better growth prospects than Apple Inc ( <a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=AAPL.O" type="external">AAPL.O</a>), has a lower valuation than Microsoft Corp ( <a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=MSFT.O" type="external">MSFT.O</a>) and a fraction of the price-earnings ratio to Amazon Inc ( <a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=AMZN.O" type="external">AMZN.O</a>), making it a strong contender in the Big Tech stocks, Barron’s added.</p>
<p>Alpha’s stock price ended Friday at $1109.95 a share.</p>
<p>Reporting by Catherine Ngai; Editing by David Gregorio</p> Our Standards:
<a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a>
<p>HOUSTON (Reuters) - Saudi Aramco took the first steps to integrating a petrochemicals business into the United States’ biggest oil refinery, which is operated by its subsidiary Motiva Enterprises.</p> FILE PHOTO - Logo of Saudi Aramco is seen at the 20th Middle East Oil &amp; Gas Show and Conference (MOES 2017) in Manama, Bahrain, March 7, 2017. REUTERS/Hamad I Mohammed/File Photo
<p>Aramco’s Chief Executive Amin Nasser signed memoranda of understanding (MoUs) worth $8 billion-$10 billion with Honeywell UOP ( <a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=HON.N" type="external">HON.N</a>) and Technip FMC ( <a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=FTI.N" type="external">FTI.N</a>) to study petrochemical production technology for use in a chemical plant the company is considering building at the Port Arthur refinery.</p>
<p>Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, who was winding up a two-week visit to the United States, was present at the signing in Houston, Texas, on Saturday along with Saudi Energy Minister Khalid al-Falih and U.S. Energy Secretary Rick Perry.</p>
<p>“These agreements signal our plans for expansion into petrochemicals,” Motiva’s Chief Executive Brian Coffman said.</p>
<p>Aramco, which wants to develop its downstream business as the government prepares to sell up to 5 percent of the world’s largest oil firm in an initial public offering (IPO) this year, wants to use oil as a major petrochemicals feedstock.</p>
<p>Coffman also said Motiva was evaluating boosting the 603,000 barrel-per-day (bpd) Port Arthur refinery’s capacity to 1 million or 1.5 million bpd, which would make it the largest in the world.</p>
<p>The aromatics unit for which Honeywell UOP’s technology is being considered under one of the MoUs, would convert benzene and paraxylene, byproducts of gasoline production, into 2 million tons annually of feedstocks for chemicals and plastics.</p> FILE PHOTO - Chief Executive Officer of ARAMCO, Amin Nasser speaks during an interview with REUTERS in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia, December 13, 2017. REUTERS/Hamad I Mohammed
<p>The other MoU would allow Aramco to use Technip FMC’s mixed-feed ethylene production technologies in the United States. The technology would produce 2 million tons a year of ethylene, which is used to make plastics, Motiva said.</p>
<p>The final investment decision on setting up a multi-billion-dollar petrochemical plant at Port Arthur is not expected until 2019, and is “dependent on strong economics, competitive incentives, and regulatory support,” Aramco said in a statement.</p>
<p>Coffman did not provide a timeline for the possible expansion of the Port Arthur refinery’s crude oil processing capacity.</p>
<a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=HON.N" type="external">Honeywell International Inc</a> 142.74 HON.N New York Stock Exchange -3.66 (-2.50%) HON.N FTI.N RELI.NS CVX.N PSX.N
<p>“That’s something we’re evaluating, we’re studying for in the future,” he said.</p>
<p>The 1.2-million bpd Reliance Industries ( <a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=RELI.NS" type="external">RELI.NS</a>) refinery in Jamnagar, India, has the world’s largest crude oil processing capacity.</p>
<p>Aramco said last year that it would invest $18 billion in Motiva to expand the refinery and move into petrochemical production.</p>
<p>Other U.S. companies, including Chevron Phillips Chemical Co CHEPH.UL - a joint venture of Chevron Corp ( <a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=CVX.N" type="external">CVX.N</a>) and Phillips 66 ( <a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=PSX.N" type="external">PSX.N</a>) - and Exxon Mobil Corp ( <a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=XOM.N" type="external">XOM.N</a>), have recently opened plants, like the one Motiva is considering, to process ethane into ethylene.</p>
<p>Chevron Phillips is considering building a second ethane cracker on the Gulf Coast of Texas.</p>
<p>The price tag for a large ethane cracker is typically over $6 billion, according to analysts. In addition to taking refining byproducts, ethane crackers provide hydrogen for refineries to use in making motor fuels.</p>
<p>Additional reporting by Rania El Gamal; Editing by Susan Fenton</p> Our Standards:
<a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a>
<p>BEIJING (Reuters) - China’s foreign exchange reserves rose slightly in March as broad U.S. dollar weakness continued and escalating trade tensions between the world’s two largest economies bolstered expectations of a firmer Chinese currency.</p> U.S. Dollar and China Yuan notes are seen in this picture illustration June 2, 2017. REUTERS/Thomas White/Illustration
<p>Reserves rose $9 billion in March to $3.143 trillion, compared with a drop of $27 billion in February, central bank data showed on Sunday.</p>
<p>Economists polled by Reuters had expected reserves to increase by around $6 billion in March to $3.14 trillion.</p>
<p>Capital flight was seen as a major risk for China at the start of 2017, but a combination of tighter capital controls and a faltering dollar helped the yuan stage a strong turnaround, bolstering confidence in the economy.</p>
<p>Last year China’s reserves rose for the first time since 2014 and its cross-border capital flows went from net outflows to basically stable.</p>
<p>China’s foreign exchange regulator said in late March it expected cross-border capital flows to remain basically stable this year.</p>
<p>The Chinese currency rose 0.8 percent versus the U.S. dollar in March and posted its biggest quarterly gain in a decade during the January-March period.</p>
<p>Caitong International attributed the recent yuan strength partly to the newly launched crude oil futures in Shanghai, which the brokerage said triggered demand for the yuan from foreign investors.</p>
<p>In 2017, the yuan rose around 6.8 percent against the greenback, reversing three straight years of depreciation.</p>
<p>The Trump administration slapped hefty tariffs on steel and aluminum imports last week and then announced 25 percent tariffs on some 1,300 Chinese industrial technology, transport and medical products this week in an attempt to force changes in Beijing’s intellectual property practices.</p>
<p>In response, China has slapped extra tariffs of up to 25 percent on 128 U.S. products including frozen pork, as well as on wine and certain fruits and nuts, and said it would soon announce more measures of equal intensity and scale against U.S. goods.</p>
<p>The looming specter of a trade war between the two countries fueled expectations that Beijing may be happy to see a stronger yuan at this stage to defuse tensions with Washington.</p>
<p>The value of China’s gold reserves rose to $78.419 billion at the end of March, from $78.064 billion at the end of February.</p>
<p>Reporting by Cate Cadell</p> Our Standards:
<a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a>
<p>FRANKFURT (Reuters) - Deutsche Bank ( <a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=DBKGn.DE" type="external">DBKGn.DE</a>) plans to continue with its co-deputy structure under a new chief executive, a person with knowledge of the matter said on Sunday.</p>
<p>Deutsche Bank’s supervisory board is currently meeting to discuss promoting Christian Sewing to CEO, taking over from John Cryan, the source said.</p>
<a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=DBKGn.DE" type="external">Deutsche Bank AG</a> 11.352 DBKGn.DE Xetra -0.31 (-2.64%) DBKGn.DE
<p>Garth Ritchie, the bank’s co-head of corporate and investment banking, is likely to be one of two co-deputy CEO’s under Sewing, the source said.</p>
<p>Reporting by Andreas Framke; Writing by Tom Sims; Editing by Edward Taylor</p> Our Standards:
<a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a>
| false | 2 |
zurich jan 19 reuters swiss bluechip smi seen opening 013 percent lower 9440 points friday according premarket indications bank julius baer following main factors expected affect swiss stocks nestle worlds biggest food group proposed three new independent directors board thursday seeks accelerate transformation company makes health products click oerlikon swiss surfacing textile machinery automotive conglomerate said secured two major contracts worth 540 million swiss francs synthetic fiber textile machinery business development help boost segments margins shares seen rising click company statements roche said japanese regulators approved immunotherapy tecentriq form lung cancer schmolzbickenbach increases offer asco industries 195 million euros 23901 million including 82 million euros investments asco industries production facilities next four years elma group said us tax changes led unanticipated 1 million swiss franc 104 million writeoff deferred tax assets reduce previously released estimated net profit figure 4 million francs bb biotech said net gain 688 million swiss francs 2017 compared net loss 802 million francs 2016 santhera said plans announce 2017 key preliminary figures regulatory feedback raxone jan 26 burkhalter holding ltd said selling share alpiq burkhalter technik ag alpiq intec ag zehnder group said 2017 sales rose 8 percent 5824 million francs improved operating margin compared previous year clariant opened new masterbatch production site saudi arabia economy swiss producer import price index due 0815 gmt 1 08159 euros 1 09573 swiss francs reporting zurich newsroom standards thomson reuters trust principles new york reuters investors giving alphabet inc googlo sufficient credit growth outlook franchise value tech company could see profits expand 15 20 percent annually next three years barrons said article sunday silhouettes mobile users seen next screen projection google logo picture illustration taken march 28 2018 reutersdado ruvicillustration alphabet inc 100995 googlo nasdaq 2269 220 googlo fbo aaplo msfto amzno shares parent company google look inexpensive trading 25 times projected 2018 earnings 42 share barrons said thats premium standard amp poors 500 index fetches around 16 times estimated 2018 earnings alphabets growth stands apart given large revenue base 111 billion 86 percent revenue comes advertising much tied search queries market likely keep growing ad spending shifts online said alphabet also better position facebook inc fbo data privacy better growth prospects apple inc aaplo lower valuation microsoft corp msfto fraction priceearnings ratio amazon inc amzno making strong contender big tech stocks barrons added alphas stock price ended friday 110995 share reporting catherine ngai editing david gregorio standards thomson reuters trust principles houston reuters saudi aramco took first steps integrating petrochemicals business united states biggest oil refinery operated subsidiary motiva enterprises file photo logo saudi aramco seen 20th middle east oil amp gas show conference moes 2017 manama bahrain march 7 2017 reutershamad mohammedfile photo aramcos chief executive amin nasser signed memoranda understanding mous worth 8 billion10 billion honeywell uop honn technip fmc ftin study petrochemical production technology use chemical plant company considering building port arthur refinery saudi arabias crown prince mohammed bin salman winding twoweek visit united states present signing houston texas saturday along saudi energy minister khalid alfalih us energy secretary rick perry agreements signal plans expansion petrochemicals motivas chief executive brian coffman said aramco wants develop downstream business government prepares sell 5 percent worlds largest oil firm initial public offering ipo year wants use oil major petrochemicals feedstock coffman also said motiva evaluating boosting 603000 barrelperday bpd port arthur refinerys capacity 1 million 15 million bpd would make largest world aromatics unit honeywell uops technology considered one mous would convert benzene paraxylene byproducts gasoline production 2 million tons annually feedstocks chemicals plastics file photo chief executive officer aramco amin nasser speaks interview reuters dhahran saudi arabia december 13 2017 reutershamad mohammed mou would allow aramco use technip fmcs mixedfeed ethylene production technologies united states technology would produce 2 million tons year ethylene used make plastics motiva said final investment decision setting multibilliondollar petrochemical plant port arthur expected 2019 dependent strong economics competitive incentives regulatory support aramco said statement coffman provide timeline possible expansion port arthur refinerys crude oil processing capacity honeywell international inc 14274 honn new york stock exchange 366 250 honn ftin relins cvxn psxn thats something evaluating studying future said 12million bpd reliance industries relins refinery jamnagar india worlds largest crude oil processing capacity aramco said last year would invest 18 billion motiva expand refinery move petrochemical production us companies including chevron phillips chemical co chephul joint venture chevron corp cvxn phillips 66 psxn exxon mobil corp xomn recently opened plants like one motiva considering process ethane ethylene chevron phillips considering building second ethane cracker gulf coast texas price tag large ethane cracker typically 6 billion according analysts addition taking refining byproducts ethane crackers provide hydrogen refineries use making motor fuels additional reporting rania el gamal editing susan fenton standards thomson reuters trust principles beijing reuters chinas foreign exchange reserves rose slightly march broad us dollar weakness continued escalating trade tensions worlds two largest economies bolstered expectations firmer chinese currency us dollar china yuan notes seen picture illustration june 2 2017 reutersthomas whiteillustration reserves rose 9 billion march 3143 trillion compared drop 27 billion february central bank data showed sunday economists polled reuters expected reserves increase around 6 billion march 314 trillion capital flight seen major risk china start 2017 combination tighter capital controls faltering dollar helped yuan stage strong turnaround bolstering confidence economy last year chinas reserves rose first time since 2014 crossborder capital flows went net outflows basically stable chinas foreign exchange regulator said late march expected crossborder capital flows remain basically stable year chinese currency rose 08 percent versus us dollar march posted biggest quarterly gain decade januarymarch period caitong international attributed recent yuan strength partly newly launched crude oil futures shanghai brokerage said triggered demand yuan foreign investors 2017 yuan rose around 68 percent greenback reversing three straight years depreciation trump administration slapped hefty tariffs steel aluminum imports last week announced 25 percent tariffs 1300 chinese industrial technology transport medical products week attempt force changes beijings intellectual property practices response china slapped extra tariffs 25 percent 128 us products including frozen pork well wine certain fruits nuts said would soon announce measures equal intensity scale us goods looming specter trade war two countries fueled expectations beijing may happy see stronger yuan stage defuse tensions washington value chinas gold reserves rose 78419 billion end march 78064 billion end february reporting cate cadell standards thomson reuters trust principles frankfurt reuters deutsche bank dbkgnde plans continue codeputy structure new chief executive person knowledge matter said sunday deutsche banks supervisory board currently meeting discuss promoting christian sewing ceo taking john cryan source said deutsche bank ag 11352 dbkgnde xetra 031 264 dbkgnde garth ritchie banks cohead corporate investment banking likely one two codeputy ceos sewing source said reporting andreas framke writing tom sims editing edward taylor standards thomson reuters trust principles
| 1,127 |
<p>WASHINGTON (AP) — As the Senate nears renewal of a key U.S. spy program, law enforcement veterans and privacy advocates say the bill's demand for a warrant in some cases when the FBI digs into Americans' emails and other communications will amount to little more than a nuisance.</p>
<p>The bill's proponents say the new provision will further safeguard Americans' communications. But opponents say the warrant requirement would rarely kick in and investigators could find ways to avoid it. The main thrust of the intelligence program, which provides insights into the thinking and actions of U.S. adversaries, is unaffected.</p>
<p>The legislation, approved by the House and now before the Senate, allows the FBI to continue scanning a database of intelligence collected on foreign targets, using search terms, for information on Americans. But it would require investigators to get probable cause warrants to view the actual content in cases unrelated to national security. Exceptions would apply, such as for murder and kidnapping cases. It also would require a warrant only in criminal investigations that are in their final stages.</p>
<p>This isn't "real reform," says Elizabeth Goitein with the Brennan Center for Justice. She said that in 2014, the government's civil liberties watchdog office reported that the FBI routinely conducts these searchers at the very earliest stages of its investigations. The warrant requirement is designed "to have no effect whatsoever," she said.</p>
<p>The intelligence program expires Friday. The House reauthorized it last week and the Senate is poised to follow suit in the next day or two. President Donald Trump has vowed to sign into law, which reauthorizes the program six more years.</p>
<p>While the program focuses on foreign targets, Americans' emails, phone calls and other communications get vacuumed up in the process. Privacy advocates and lawmakers from both parties have argued for years that government agencies should need warrants to look at Americans' communications in the database.</p>
<p>Republican Sen. Mike Lee said not requiring a warrant to access the information leaves open a "backdoor to government spying on American citizens." While Lee doesn't suspect the information is being used improperly, he said bureaucrats could use it to "snoop on anyone the government doesn't like."</p>
<p>Advocates don't see that these problems have been fixed.</p>
<p>Paul J. Hetznecker, a civil rights lawyer who filed a lawsuit to make intelligence agencies turn over any evidence that they spied on demonstrators in Philadelphia protesting income inequality, said the modified rule "does not curtail the reach of these agencies to spy on U.S. citizens."</p>
<p>"The intelligence agencies can easily circumvent this requirement by broadly asserting that there is a remote and/or tangential connection to a national security 'interest' and therefore no warrant is required," he said.</p>
<p>The FBI declined to comment on the legislation. While former FBI agents acknowledged the new regime might mean occasional delays, it won't hugely inconvenience investigators.</p>
<p>The privacy concerns are "overblown," said Frank Montoya Jr., a former FBI special agent with a background in counterintelligence investigations, who argued the FBI and Justice Department already have sufficient oversight. "It's not like we're casting out these wide nets ... and just randomly listening to people or randomly reading emails," he said. "We don't have the resources to just cast wide nets."</p>
<p>Montoya said the communications database is "all about focused investigations on specific individuals" and that investigators conduct "rigorous self-policing." The FBI should be able to access information in its possession "without jumping through more hoops than necessary," he said, fearing the additional warrant requirement would slow down investigations.</p>
<p>Former FBI counterterrorism official David Gomez said warrant requirements can be tedious, but the bureau's agents are generally accustomed to them.</p>
<p>"It's not such a burden that it's going to slow things down," Gomez said. "Is it going to slow things down a little bit? Yeah, but it's what you do."</p>
<p>Intelligence and law enforcement bodies lobbied hard for the program to be reauthorized with as few changes as possible. Several senators of both parties pushed for stricter rules governing FBI access to information on Americans in the foreign intelligence database, losing a battle in a close vote Tuesday that would have given them the chance to amend the bill with tougher rules.</p>
<p>Robert S. Litt, the national intelligence director's lead lawyer from 2009 to 2017, said government agencies can live with the outcome.</p>
<p>"There were some changes on the margin, but they are changes that are not going to significantly impede lawful intelligence activity," Litt said.</p>
<p>WASHINGTON (AP) — As the Senate nears renewal of a key U.S. spy program, law enforcement veterans and privacy advocates say the bill's demand for a warrant in some cases when the FBI digs into Americans' emails and other communications will amount to little more than a nuisance.</p>
<p>The bill's proponents say the new provision will further safeguard Americans' communications. But opponents say the warrant requirement would rarely kick in and investigators could find ways to avoid it. The main thrust of the intelligence program, which provides insights into the thinking and actions of U.S. adversaries, is unaffected.</p>
<p>The legislation, approved by the House and now before the Senate, allows the FBI to continue scanning a database of intelligence collected on foreign targets, using search terms, for information on Americans. But it would require investigators to get probable cause warrants to view the actual content in cases unrelated to national security. Exceptions would apply, such as for murder and kidnapping cases. It also would require a warrant only in criminal investigations that are in their final stages.</p>
<p>This isn't "real reform," says Elizabeth Goitein with the Brennan Center for Justice. She said that in 2014, the government's civil liberties watchdog office reported that the FBI routinely conducts these searchers at the very earliest stages of its investigations. The warrant requirement is designed "to have no effect whatsoever," she said.</p>
<p>The intelligence program expires Friday. The House reauthorized it last week and the Senate is poised to follow suit in the next day or two. President Donald Trump has vowed to sign into law, which reauthorizes the program six more years.</p>
<p>While the program focuses on foreign targets, Americans' emails, phone calls and other communications get vacuumed up in the process. Privacy advocates and lawmakers from both parties have argued for years that government agencies should need warrants to look at Americans' communications in the database.</p>
<p>Republican Sen. Mike Lee said not requiring a warrant to access the information leaves open a "backdoor to government spying on American citizens." While Lee doesn't suspect the information is being used improperly, he said bureaucrats could use it to "snoop on anyone the government doesn't like."</p>
<p>Advocates don't see that these problems have been fixed.</p>
<p>Paul J. Hetznecker, a civil rights lawyer who filed a lawsuit to make intelligence agencies turn over any evidence that they spied on demonstrators in Philadelphia protesting income inequality, said the modified rule "does not curtail the reach of these agencies to spy on U.S. citizens."</p>
<p>"The intelligence agencies can easily circumvent this requirement by broadly asserting that there is a remote and/or tangential connection to a national security 'interest' and therefore no warrant is required," he said.</p>
<p>The FBI declined to comment on the legislation. While former FBI agents acknowledged the new regime might mean occasional delays, it won't hugely inconvenience investigators.</p>
<p>The privacy concerns are "overblown," said Frank Montoya Jr., a former FBI special agent with a background in counterintelligence investigations, who argued the FBI and Justice Department already have sufficient oversight. "It's not like we're casting out these wide nets ... and just randomly listening to people or randomly reading emails," he said. "We don't have the resources to just cast wide nets."</p>
<p>Montoya said the communications database is "all about focused investigations on specific individuals" and that investigators conduct "rigorous self-policing." The FBI should be able to access information in its possession "without jumping through more hoops than necessary," he said, fearing the additional warrant requirement would slow down investigations.</p>
<p>Former FBI counterterrorism official David Gomez said warrant requirements can be tedious, but the bureau's agents are generally accustomed to them.</p>
<p>"It's not such a burden that it's going to slow things down," Gomez said. "Is it going to slow things down a little bit? Yeah, but it's what you do."</p>
<p>Intelligence and law enforcement bodies lobbied hard for the program to be reauthorized with as few changes as possible. Several senators of both parties pushed for stricter rules governing FBI access to information on Americans in the foreign intelligence database, losing a battle in a close vote Tuesday that would have given them the chance to amend the bill with tougher rules.</p>
<p>Robert S. Litt, the national intelligence director's lead lawyer from 2009 to 2017, said government agencies can live with the outcome.</p>
<p>"There were some changes on the margin, but they are changes that are not going to significantly impede lawful intelligence activity," Litt said.</p>
| false | 2 |
washington ap senate nears renewal key us spy program law enforcement veterans privacy advocates say bills demand warrant cases fbi digs americans emails communications amount little nuisance bills proponents say new provision safeguard americans communications opponents say warrant requirement would rarely kick investigators could find ways avoid main thrust intelligence program provides insights thinking actions us adversaries unaffected legislation approved house senate allows fbi continue scanning database intelligence collected foreign targets using search terms information americans would require investigators get probable cause warrants view actual content cases unrelated national security exceptions would apply murder kidnapping cases also would require warrant criminal investigations final stages isnt real reform says elizabeth goitein brennan center justice said 2014 governments civil liberties watchdog office reported fbi routinely conducts searchers earliest stages investigations warrant requirement designed effect whatsoever said intelligence program expires friday house reauthorized last week senate poised follow suit next day two president donald trump vowed sign law reauthorizes program six years program focuses foreign targets americans emails phone calls communications get vacuumed process privacy advocates lawmakers parties argued years government agencies need warrants look americans communications database republican sen mike lee said requiring warrant access information leaves open backdoor government spying american citizens lee doesnt suspect information used improperly said bureaucrats could use snoop anyone government doesnt like advocates dont see problems fixed paul j hetznecker civil rights lawyer filed lawsuit make intelligence agencies turn evidence spied demonstrators philadelphia protesting income inequality said modified rule curtail reach agencies spy us citizens intelligence agencies easily circumvent requirement broadly asserting remote andor tangential connection national security interest therefore warrant required said fbi declined comment legislation former fbi agents acknowledged new regime might mean occasional delays wont hugely inconvenience investigators privacy concerns overblown said frank montoya jr former fbi special agent background counterintelligence investigations argued fbi justice department already sufficient oversight like casting wide nets randomly listening people randomly reading emails said dont resources cast wide nets montoya said communications database focused investigations specific individuals investigators conduct rigorous selfpolicing fbi able access information possession without jumping hoops necessary said fearing additional warrant requirement would slow investigations former fbi counterterrorism official david gomez said warrant requirements tedious bureaus agents generally accustomed burden going slow things gomez said going slow things little bit yeah intelligence law enforcement bodies lobbied hard program reauthorized changes possible several senators parties pushed stricter rules governing fbi access information americans foreign intelligence database losing battle close vote tuesday would given chance amend bill tougher rules robert litt national intelligence directors lead lawyer 2009 2017 said government agencies live outcome changes margin changes going significantly impede lawful intelligence activity litt said washington ap senate nears renewal key us spy program law enforcement veterans privacy advocates say bills demand warrant cases fbi digs americans emails communications amount little nuisance bills proponents say new provision safeguard americans communications opponents say warrant requirement would rarely kick investigators could find ways avoid main thrust intelligence program provides insights thinking actions us adversaries unaffected legislation approved house senate allows fbi continue scanning database intelligence collected foreign targets using search terms information americans would require investigators get probable cause warrants view actual content cases unrelated national security exceptions would apply murder kidnapping cases also would require warrant criminal investigations final stages isnt real reform says elizabeth goitein brennan center justice said 2014 governments civil liberties watchdog office reported fbi routinely conducts searchers earliest stages investigations warrant requirement designed effect whatsoever said intelligence program expires friday house reauthorized last week senate poised follow suit next day two president donald trump vowed sign law reauthorizes program six years program focuses foreign targets americans emails phone calls communications get vacuumed process privacy advocates lawmakers parties argued years government agencies need warrants look americans communications database republican sen mike lee said requiring warrant access information leaves open backdoor government spying american citizens lee doesnt suspect information used improperly said bureaucrats could use snoop anyone government doesnt like advocates dont see problems fixed paul j hetznecker civil rights lawyer filed lawsuit make intelligence agencies turn evidence spied demonstrators philadelphia protesting income inequality said modified rule curtail reach agencies spy us citizens intelligence agencies easily circumvent requirement broadly asserting remote andor tangential connection national security interest therefore warrant required said fbi declined comment legislation former fbi agents acknowledged new regime might mean occasional delays wont hugely inconvenience investigators privacy concerns overblown said frank montoya jr former fbi special agent background counterintelligence investigations argued fbi justice department already sufficient oversight like casting wide nets randomly listening people randomly reading emails said dont resources cast wide nets montoya said communications database focused investigations specific individuals investigators conduct rigorous selfpolicing fbi able access information possession without jumping hoops necessary said fearing additional warrant requirement would slow investigations former fbi counterterrorism official david gomez said warrant requirements tedious bureaus agents generally accustomed burden going slow things gomez said going slow things little bit yeah intelligence law enforcement bodies lobbied hard program reauthorized changes possible several senators parties pushed stricter rules governing fbi access information americans foreign intelligence database losing battle close vote tuesday would given chance amend bill tougher rules robert litt national intelligence directors lead lawyer 2009 2017 said government agencies live outcome changes margin changes going significantly impede lawful intelligence activity litt said
| 876 |
<p>SPOKANE, Wash. (AP) — Cleanup crews took to the streets Wednesday in Washington state after a powerful storm killed three people, cut power to more than 350,000 residents and flooded rivers.</p>
<p>The winds on Tuesday exceeded 100 mph in some areas of the Inland Northwest, where fallen trees were blamed for the deaths.</p>
<p>A woman in her 50s was killed when a tree fell in Spokane. A man in his mid-20s died when a tree crushed his car as he was driving in Snohomish County, authorities said. Their identities were not yet available.</p>
<p>The third victim, identified by authorities as Carolyn M. Wilford, 70, died of head injuries after a tree landed on her car on Highway 904 about 15 miles southwest of Spokane.</p>
<p>Crews in Spokane were working to clear at least 175 fallen trees that blocked streets and slowed the morning commute.</p>
<p>Allen Kam, with the National Weather Service in Seattle, said rain last weekend may have saturated soil, making it easier for the winds to topple trees.</p>
<p>Avista Corp. was trying to restore power to more than 142,000 customers, most in Spokane County and northern Idaho.</p>
<p>The utility said customers who lost power Tuesday should be prepared to go three to five days without electricity. Crews were expected to work around the clock until service was restored.</p>
<p>“This is the largest crisis Avista has experienced in the company’s 126-year history,” Avista said in a news s release.</p>
<p>An estimated 700 miles of overhead power lines were damaged by the wind storm, it said.</p>
<p>In Portland, Oregon, an 80-year-old woman spent the night trapped in bed after a tree fell on her home and missed her by inches during the wind storm.</p>
<p>When firefighters arrived, the woman told them she had a few scratches but wasn’t hurt.</p>
<p>She told officials that she had gone to bed earlier than usual Tuesday because her home lost power. It wasn’t long before the tree landed near her.</p>
<p>Public schools were closed in Spokane, nearby Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, and smaller districts. Also shut down were Gonzaga, Whitworth, Washington State-Spokane and Eastern Washington universities.</p>
<p>Gusts reached 100 mph near Wenatchee and 80 mph near Mattawa. Spokane International Airport reported a top wind speed of 71 mph. The airport near Pullman saw 69 mph winds.</p>
<p>The National Weather Service said the winds would give way to rain and chillier temperatures.</p>
<p>Puget Sound Energy said more than 30 transmission lines were badly damaged and about 100,000 customers were still without power early Wednesday. The Snohomish County Public Utility District tweeted that about 130,000 of its customers lacked power.</p>
<p>The strong winds and extended downpour caused fewer problems in Oregon, but roughly 2,000 Portland General Electric customers remained without power in the Portland area Wednesday afternoon.</p>
<p>Wind gusts around 100 mph rattled areas west and north of Denver, blowing snow from Tuesday’s wintery storm across roads and knocking out power in some spots.</p>
<p>The storm dumped over a foot of snow in some parts of the plains and strong winds created snow drifts several feet high.</p>
<p>SPOKANE, Wash. (AP) — Cleanup crews took to the streets Wednesday in Washington state after a powerful storm killed three people, cut power to more than 350,000 residents and flooded rivers.</p>
<p>The winds on Tuesday exceeded 100 mph in some areas of the Inland Northwest, where fallen trees were blamed for the deaths.</p>
<p>A woman in her 50s was killed when a tree fell in Spokane. A man in his mid-20s died when a tree crushed his car as he was driving in Snohomish County, authorities said. Their identities were not yet available.</p>
<p>The third victim, identified by authorities as Carolyn M. Wilford, 70, died of head injuries after a tree landed on her car on Highway 904 about 15 miles southwest of Spokane.</p>
<p>Crews in Spokane were working to clear at least 175 fallen trees that blocked streets and slowed the morning commute.</p>
<p>Allen Kam, with the National Weather Service in Seattle, said rain last weekend may have saturated soil, making it easier for the winds to topple trees.</p>
<p>Avista Corp. was trying to restore power to more than 142,000 customers, most in Spokane County and northern Idaho.</p>
<p>The utility said customers who lost power Tuesday should be prepared to go three to five days without electricity. Crews were expected to work around the clock until service was restored.</p>
<p>“This is the largest crisis Avista has experienced in the company’s 126-year history,” Avista said in a news s release.</p>
<p>An estimated 700 miles of overhead power lines were damaged by the wind storm, it said.</p>
<p>In Portland, Oregon, an 80-year-old woman spent the night trapped in bed after a tree fell on her home and missed her by inches during the wind storm.</p>
<p>When firefighters arrived, the woman told them she had a few scratches but wasn’t hurt.</p>
<p>She told officials that she had gone to bed earlier than usual Tuesday because her home lost power. It wasn’t long before the tree landed near her.</p>
<p>Public schools were closed in Spokane, nearby Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, and smaller districts. Also shut down were Gonzaga, Whitworth, Washington State-Spokane and Eastern Washington universities.</p>
<p>Gusts reached 100 mph near Wenatchee and 80 mph near Mattawa. Spokane International Airport reported a top wind speed of 71 mph. The airport near Pullman saw 69 mph winds.</p>
<p>The National Weather Service said the winds would give way to rain and chillier temperatures.</p>
<p>Puget Sound Energy said more than 30 transmission lines were badly damaged and about 100,000 customers were still without power early Wednesday. The Snohomish County Public Utility District tweeted that about 130,000 of its customers lacked power.</p>
<p>The strong winds and extended downpour caused fewer problems in Oregon, but roughly 2,000 Portland General Electric customers remained without power in the Portland area Wednesday afternoon.</p>
<p>Wind gusts around 100 mph rattled areas west and north of Denver, blowing snow from Tuesday’s wintery storm across roads and knocking out power in some spots.</p>
<p>The storm dumped over a foot of snow in some parts of the plains and strong winds created snow drifts several feet high.</p>
| false | 2 |
spokane wash ap cleanup crews took streets wednesday washington state powerful storm killed three people cut power 350000 residents flooded rivers winds tuesday exceeded 100 mph areas inland northwest fallen trees blamed deaths woman 50s killed tree fell spokane man mid20s died tree crushed car driving snohomish county authorities said identities yet available third victim identified authorities carolyn wilford 70 died head injuries tree landed car highway 904 15 miles southwest spokane crews spokane working clear least 175 fallen trees blocked streets slowed morning commute allen kam national weather service seattle said rain last weekend may saturated soil making easier winds topple trees avista corp trying restore power 142000 customers spokane county northern idaho utility said customers lost power tuesday prepared go three five days without electricity crews expected work around clock service restored largest crisis avista experienced companys 126year history avista said news release estimated 700 miles overhead power lines damaged wind storm said portland oregon 80yearold woman spent night trapped bed tree fell home missed inches wind storm firefighters arrived woman told scratches wasnt hurt told officials gone bed earlier usual tuesday home lost power wasnt long tree landed near public schools closed spokane nearby coeur dalene idaho smaller districts also shut gonzaga whitworth washington statespokane eastern washington universities gusts reached 100 mph near wenatchee 80 mph near mattawa spokane international airport reported top wind speed 71 mph airport near pullman saw 69 mph winds national weather service said winds would give way rain chillier temperatures puget sound energy said 30 transmission lines badly damaged 100000 customers still without power early wednesday snohomish county public utility district tweeted 130000 customers lacked power strong winds extended downpour caused fewer problems oregon roughly 2000 portland general electric customers remained without power portland area wednesday afternoon wind gusts around 100 mph rattled areas west north denver blowing snow tuesdays wintery storm across roads knocking power spots storm dumped foot snow parts plains strong winds created snow drifts several feet high spokane wash ap cleanup crews took streets wednesday washington state powerful storm killed three people cut power 350000 residents flooded rivers winds tuesday exceeded 100 mph areas inland northwest fallen trees blamed deaths woman 50s killed tree fell spokane man mid20s died tree crushed car driving snohomish county authorities said identities yet available third victim identified authorities carolyn wilford 70 died head injuries tree landed car highway 904 15 miles southwest spokane crews spokane working clear least 175 fallen trees blocked streets slowed morning commute allen kam national weather service seattle said rain last weekend may saturated soil making easier winds topple trees avista corp trying restore power 142000 customers spokane county northern idaho utility said customers lost power tuesday prepared go three five days without electricity crews expected work around clock service restored largest crisis avista experienced companys 126year history avista said news release estimated 700 miles overhead power lines damaged wind storm said portland oregon 80yearold woman spent night trapped bed tree fell home missed inches wind storm firefighters arrived woman told scratches wasnt hurt told officials gone bed earlier usual tuesday home lost power wasnt long tree landed near public schools closed spokane nearby coeur dalene idaho smaller districts also shut gonzaga whitworth washington statespokane eastern washington universities gusts reached 100 mph near wenatchee 80 mph near mattawa spokane international airport reported top wind speed 71 mph airport near pullman saw 69 mph winds national weather service said winds would give way rain chillier temperatures puget sound energy said 30 transmission lines badly damaged 100000 customers still without power early wednesday snohomish county public utility district tweeted 130000 customers lacked power strong winds extended downpour caused fewer problems oregon roughly 2000 portland general electric customers remained without power portland area wednesday afternoon wind gusts around 100 mph rattled areas west north denver blowing snow tuesdays wintery storm across roads knocking power spots storm dumped foot snow parts plains strong winds created snow drifts several feet high
| 658 |
<p>Congress has the lowest public approval rating in history.</p>
<p>There are plenty of other specific reasons for public dissatisfaction with Congress. But one reason underlies them all: Congress is not doing its job—and the most basic job Congress has is deciding how much money the government takes in and how much it spends.</p>
<p>You can’t do this job responsibly without a budget.</p>
<p>A budget is a blueprint. It allows us to take stock of our resources, to evaluate which programs are succeeding and which need to be reassessed or eliminated. It forces us to ask the two most fundamental questions of governing:</p>
<p>“What are our nation's priorities, and how much are we going to spend on those priorities?”</p>
<p>1. <a href="" type="internal">Click here to EMAIL your members of Congress and tell them to co-sponsor the No Budget, No Pay Act.</a></p>
<p>2. <a href="" type="internal">Click here to CALL your members of Congress and tell them to co-sponsor the No Budget, No Pay Act.</a></p>
<p>3.&#160; <a href="" type="internal">Check out our No Budget, No Pay toolkit for easier ways to spread the word.</a></p>
<p>Even though the budget is just a guiding document that doesn’t actually authorize any money to be spent, it is still critically important. Without a budget, Congress is essentially spending taxpayer money first and asking questions later. Unfortunately, Congress rarely passes budgets on time.</p>
<p>The upshot is a more wasteful and inefficient government. Late budgets lead to late spending bills, and when Congress fails to pass spending bills on time, it relies on temporary spending measures—including eight “continuing resolutions” this past fiscal year alone. This constant stop-and-go budgeting creates havoc for government agencies and the citizens who rely on them.</p>
<p>And it’s not a new problem. Congress has passed budget and spending bills on time only four times in the last 60 years.</p>
<p>This is no way to run the largest organization in the world—one that spent $3.6 trillion last year. This is no way to win the trust of the American people—and that’s what’s really at stake here.</p>
<p>At a time when our nation faces immense challenges, the American people have never had less faith in the ability of Congress to do anything about them. This problem couldn’t be more serious—because if Congress is broken, so is the United States of America.</p>
<p>Every law addressing any issue we could conceivably care about has to go through Congress first. Congress simply has to work better today—this can’t wait until after the 2012 elections.</p>
<p>Whoever wins in November 2012, the American people will expect them to get things done in 2013. That’s unlikely to happen unless we fix the structural problems in our government that make it virtually impossible to get anything done regardless of which party is in office.</p>
<p>That’s why No Labels released its Make Congress Work! action plan, which features a dozen common-sense proposals to fix the outdated rules, procedures and traditions that have turned Congress into a broken institution. It all begins with fixing the process for how we spend money.</p>
<p>About No Budget, No Pay</p>
<p>No budget No pay is the first proposal in No Labels’ Make Congress Work! action plan. It begins with a simple premise:</p>
<p>If Congress can't make spending and budget decisions on time, if they can't do their job – they should not be paid.</p>
<p>The federal government’s fiscal year begins October 1, which means the annual congressional appropriations (spending) process needs to be completed by September 30. Under No Budget, No Pay, if the budget and appropriations process is not completed on time, then congressional pay ceases as of October 1. Congressional salaries would not be paid again until the budget and appropriations are completed, and members would not receive their lost salaries retroactively. This is the only Make Congress Work! proposal that requires a new law. No Budget, No Pay could be passed in 2012, and take effect when the new Congress is seated in 2013. &#160;</p>
<p>No Budget, No Pay bills have already been introduced in the Senate (S. 1981) by Senator Dean Heller (R-NV) and in the House (H.R. 3643) by Representative Jim Cooper (D-TN), and both bills have numerous bipartisan co-sponsors.</p>
<p>No Budget, No Pay is not a gimmick. It simply holds Congress to the same standard as the American people, who go to work every day knowing that we have to do our job if we want to get paid.</p>
<p>Congress works for us—and 88% of us support No Budget, No Pay.</p>
<p>But No Budget, No Pay is not designed to be punitive—to “stick it” to Congress. Instead, the bill will help advance two goals that should be a priority of every member of Congress.</p>
<p>1.&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; No Budget, No Pay will actually make government work better</p>
<p>It encourages members of Congress to come to the negotiating table and stay there until they reach an agreement on the budget and spending bills. Most members of Congress are just as frustrated by congressional gridlock as the American people. Members arrive at the U.S. Capitol with dreams of&#160; doing, not dysfunction. No Budget, No Pay creates additional incentive for Congress to do its job.&#160;</p>
<p>2.&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; No Budget, No Pay will begin to restore Americans' trust in Congress</p>
<p>At this moment of intense anger and cynicism, the American people want more than election year promises. We want action. We want a signal that Congress understands our frustration, and that they are taking concrete steps to address it. Passing this bill is an opportunity for Congress to tell the American people that they won’t earn their salaries until they earn back our trust.&#160;</p>
<p>How the Budget and Spending Process Works</p>
<p>1.&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; The President Presents his Budget Request</p>
<p>After reviewing the needs of each federal agency, the White House Office of Management and Budget submits the President’s budget request to Congress in one massive, budgetary bundle. The President’s budget, which is supposed to be delivered to Congress by the first Monday in February, includes spending and revenue projections as well as details on specific policy proposals.&#160;</p>
<p>2.&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; Crafting the Budget Resolution</p>
<p>The House and Senate Budget committees separately consider the President’s budget request and then each work to establish congressional priorities in their respective budget resolutions. A budget resolution is a legislative measure that reflects the decisions of each chamber, but does not have to be signed into law by the President.</p>
<p>3.&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; Voting on the Budget</p>
<p>The full House and Senate vote on their respective resolutions. If the resolutions pass, they are reconciled through a “conference committee” made up of members from each party in each chamber who work out the differences between the resolutions. When the conference committee is finished, each chamber votes one last time to adopt a concurrent resolution as the federal budget for the coming fiscal year. Congress is required by the Budget Control Act of 1974 to both construct a budget and to pass it every year by April 15—but it almost never does.</p>
<p>4.&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; Appropriations Process in Committee</p>
<p>Assuming a concurrent budget resolution passes, it becomes the blueprint for the appropriations process. Without it, the appropriations process goes forward, but without any binding fiscal guidance. Individual appropriations subcommittees in both chambers—covering everything from defense to health a nd education spending—hear testimony from agency officials and “mark up” each of a dozen appropriations bills. These bills are then reported to the full appropriations committee, which may further amend the bills before reporting them to their respective chambers.</p>
<p>5.&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; Appropriations Process in the Full House and Senate</p>
<p>Ideally, each chamber debates the appropriations bills, reconciles the differences, and then votes to send the measures for the President to sign and enact by October 1, the beginning of the next fiscal year. This process has not finished on time in 15 years.</p>
<p>How We Turn No Budget, No Pay from a Great Bill into a Great LawWe all remember learning in school how a bill becomes a law. But the reality is that most bills don’t become laws. At every step of the lawmaking process bills can be killed by design or delay. What often stands between a well-meaning bill signed into law and the thousands that languish with no hearings and no hope, is you. Here’s a refresher—a reminder to keep the pressure on your senators and representatives. We need to hear your voice so that no part of the process becomes a chokepoint on the way to change.</p>
<p>1.&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; No Budget, No Pay Act Introduced</p>
<p>No Budget, No Pay bills have already been introduced in the Senate (S. 1981) by Senator Dean Heller (R-NV) and in the House (H.R. 3643) by Representative Jim Cooper (D-TN), and both bills have numerous bipartisan co-sponsors. S. 1981 was referred to the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs and H.R. 3643 was referred to the House Committee on House Administration. From here, the respective committees can choose to hold hearings on the bills or move directly to the committee markup and voting process.</p>
<p>The U.S. Senate Committee on Homeland Security &amp; Governmental Affairs</p>
<p>·&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; Sen. Joseph I. Lieberman (I-CT),&#160;Chairman</p>
<p>·&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; Sen. Susan M. Collins (R-ME),&#160;Ranking Member</p>
<p>·&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; Sen. Daniel K. Akaka (D-HI)</p>
<p>·&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; Sen. Mark Begich (D-AK)</p>
<p>·&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; Sen. Scott Brown (R-MA)</p>
<p>·&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; Sen. Thomas R. Carper (D-DE)</p>
<p>·&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; Sen. Tom Coburn (R-OK)</p>
<p>·&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; Sen. Ron Johnson (R-WI)</p>
<p>·&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; Sen. Mary L. Landrieu (D-LA)</p>
<p>·&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; Sen. Carl Levin (D-MI)</p>
<p>·&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; Sen. John McCain (R-AZ)</p>
<p>·&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; Sen. Claire McCaskill (D-MO)</p>
<p>·&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; Sen. Jerry Moran (R-KS)</p>
<p>·&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY)</p>
<p>·&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; Sen. Rob Portman (R-OH)</p>
<p>·&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; Sen. Mark L. Pryor (D-AR)</p>
<p>·&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; Sen. Jon Tester (D-MT)</p>
<p>2.&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; Hearings Held</p>
<p>Thanks to the hard work and advocacy of No Labels members, the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs has planned a hearing to discuss the No Budget, No Pay Act. It’s a big deal for a bill to even receive a hearing. During the current session of Congress, over 2,000 bills have been introduced in the Senate. Only 225 have been given committee hearings. A hearing has yet to be scheduled in the House of Representatives.</p>
<p>This is where the House and Senate No Budget, No Pay bills stand as of March 2012. It’s up to the No Labels community to help turn this great idea into a great law. Here are the steps still left to go:</p>
<p>3.&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; Committee Markup</p>
<p>After a bill is introduced, or after hearings are held, committees can choose to review the text of the bill and mark it up with any changes, before voting on whether to report the bill to the full House or Senate. If a majority of a quorum of the committee members vote in favor, the bill makes its way to the floor to be considered by the full House or Senate.</p>
<p>4.&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; Debate on the Floor</p>
<p>Once the bill comes out of a committee, then it goes to the floor of the respective chamber to be debated and considered under the rules of that chamber, which, among other things, can include amendments to the original bill by individual members.</p>
<p>5.&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; Conference Committee</p>
<p>If there are differences between the versions of the bills passed in the House and Senate, then each chamber appoints members from each party to a “conference committee,” where they work out the differences between the two bills.</p>
<p>6.&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; Passage</p>
<p>Then, both the House and the Senate have to vote again on the compromise bill that the conference committee produces. If a majority again votes in favor in both chambers, the bill makes its way to the President.</p>
<p>7.&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; Enactment</p>
<p>If the President objects to the bill, he can veto it. Otherwise, the President signs the bill into law or allows it to become law after 10 days without his signature.</p>
<p>The BIG Questions</p>
<p>Is No Budget, No Pay Constitutional?</p>
<p>Yes.</p>
<p>Article I, Section 6 of the U.S. Constitution states that “the Senators and Representatives shall receive a compensation for their services, to be ascertained by law, and paid out of the Treasury of the United States.” While No Budget, No Pay would alter that compensation, congressional compensation is whatever is “ascertained by law,” and of course, laws can change. During the first session of Congress, Senators and Representatives received $6 a day for their service. Today, that number is much different because Congress chose to change it.</p>
<p>There’s only one Constitutional caveat to Congress’ ability to determine its own pay. The most recent amendment to the Constitution—the 27th Amendment—provides that “no law, varying the compensation for the services of the Senators and Representatives, shall take effect, until an election of Representatives shall have intervened.”</p>
<p>This amendment is intended to prohibit members of Congress from dramatically raising their own salaries before having to face the voters. If members of Congress want to raise their salaries, Americans want a chance to express our approval or disapproval in an election.</p>
<p>That’s why a new No Budget, No Pay law would not take effect until after the 113th Congress is seated in 2013. If Congress doesn’t act in 2012, a No Budget, No Pay law could not take effect until 2015 at the earliest—meaning we’re more likely to have another three years of budgetary dysfunction.</p>
<p>Many Members of Congress are wealthy, so won't No Budget, No Pay not really affect them?</p>
<p>Plenty of members of Congress need their salary to pay living expenses, just like everyone else in America. If congressional pay stopped, even those members who don’t particularly need their salaries would face pressure from their colleagues who do, and from a public that’s being reminded every single day that Congress isn’t getting paid because it’s not doing its job.</p>
<p>Why is my senator saying that the Senate already passed a budget?</p>
<p>Your senator is likely referring to the Budget Control Act of 2011, which was passed in August of that&#160;year when Congress couldn’t agree on how to raise the nation’s debt ceil ing. But the Budget Control&#160;Act of 2011 was certainly not a real budget in any traditional sense of the word.</p>
<p>A real budget is a blueprint. It forces us to take stock of our resources, to evaluate which programs&#160;are succeeding and which need to be reassessed or eliminated. The Budget Control Act of 2011 does&#160;none of these things. The act contained some caps on discretionary spending and other complex&#160;mechanisms (such as the creation of the failed congressional “Super Committee”) to control future&#160;spending. But the Budget Control Act of 2011 was essentially a stopgap measure designed to avert&#160;an immediate crisis and it did not make any serious attempt to assess how we should fund our&#160;nation’s priorities.</p>
<p>And remember that passing a budget is only half the battle. A budget sets a blueprint while the&#160;appropriations bills actually spend the money. But Congress has passed budget and spending bills&#160;on time only four times in the last 60 years.</p>
<p>What are the 12 Appropriations bills that Congress must pass by September 30 to satisfy the requirements of No Budget, No Pay?</p>
<p>1.&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies</p>
<p>2.&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies</p>
<p>3.&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; Defense</p>
<p>4.&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; Energy and Water Development, and Related Agencies</p>
<p>5.&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; Financial Services and General Government</p>
<p>6.&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; Homeland Security</p>
<p>7.&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies</p>
<p>8.&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies</p>
<p>9.&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; Legislative Branch</p>
<p>10.&#160; Military Construction, Veterans Affairs, and Related Agencies</p>
<p>11.&#160; State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs</p>
<p>12.&#160; Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies</p>
<p>What if the President vetoes any of the 12 appropriations bills that Congress sends him? Under No Budget, No Pay, would Members still have their pay suspended?</p>
<p>No. If Congress passes a concurrent budget resolution and can deliver completed spending bills to the President by September 30, they have done their job and should be paid.</p>
<p>If Congress passes continuing resolutions to fund the government, does that fulfill their work requirements under No Budget, No Pay?</p>
<p>No. Continuing resolutions are the stopgap spending measures that Congress all too often uses to&#160;fund itself today. No Budget, No Pay requires Congress to pass all 12 full annual appropriations bills&#160;by September 30.</p>
<p>What is the salary for a Member of Congress?</p>
<p>The base salary for a member of Congress is $174,000 per year, with higher pay given to members in leadership positions. This base salary does not include the generous retirement, medical, travel and other benefits that all members of Congress also receive.</p>
<p>Shouldn't No Budget, No Pay only apply to leadership?</p>
<p>Our proposal would give the rank and file the incentive it needs to stand up to obstuctionists in the leadership and elsewhere and demand action. The reality is that right now, a handful of people are exerting disproportional influence over the entire process; No Budget, No Pay would help rectify the balance.</p>
<p>No Budget, No Pay: A Small but Important Step Forward</p>
<p>No Budget, No Pay will not miraculously fix what ails Congress. No single bill and no one election can. It has taken years for Congress to become the dysfunctional institution it is today. It won’t be fixed overnight.</p>
<p>But we’ve got to start somewhere, and fixing the budget and spending process is a great place to start.</p>
<p>No Budget, No Pay. We are asking all members of Congress to support it.</p>
<p>We are asking Congress to restore our trust in our government.</p>
<p>We are asking Congress to do its job.</p>
<p>Really, it’s time.</p>
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congress lowest public approval rating history plenty specific reasons public dissatisfaction congress one reason underlies congress joband basic job congress deciding much money government takes much spends cant job responsibly without budget budget blueprint allows us take stock resources evaluate programs succeeding need reassessed eliminated forces us ask two fundamental questions governing nations priorities much going spend priorities 1 click email members congress tell cosponsor budget pay act 2 click call members congress tell cosponsor budget pay act 3160 check budget pay toolkit easier ways spread word even though budget guiding document doesnt actually authorize money spent still critically important without budget congress essentially spending taxpayer money first asking questions later unfortunately congress rarely passes budgets time upshot wasteful inefficient government late budgets lead late spending bills congress fails pass spending bills time relies temporary spending measuresincluding eight continuing resolutions past fiscal year alone constant stopandgo budgeting creates havoc government agencies citizens rely new problem congress passed budget spending bills time four times last 60 years way run largest organization worldone spent 36 trillion last year way win trust american peopleand thats whats really stake time nation faces immense challenges american people never less faith ability congress anything problem couldnt seriousbecause congress broken united states america every law addressing issue could conceivably care go congress first congress simply work better todaythis cant wait 2012 elections whoever wins november 2012 american people expect get things done 2013 thats unlikely happen unless fix structural problems government make virtually impossible get anything done regardless party office thats labels released make congress work action plan features dozen commonsense proposals fix outdated rules procedures traditions turned congress broken institution begins fixing process spend money budget pay budget pay first proposal labels make congress work action plan begins simple premise congress cant make spending budget decisions time cant job paid federal governments fiscal year begins october 1 means annual congressional appropriations spending process needs completed september 30 budget pay budget appropriations process completed time congressional pay ceases october 1 congressional salaries would paid budget appropriations completed members would receive lost salaries retroactively make congress work proposal requires new law budget pay could passed 2012 take effect new congress seated 2013 160 budget pay bills already introduced senate 1981 senator dean heller rnv house hr 3643 representative jim cooper dtn bills numerous bipartisan cosponsors budget pay gimmick simply holds congress standard american people go work every day knowing job want get paid congress works usand 88 us support budget pay budget pay designed punitiveto stick congress instead bill help advance two goals priority every member congress 1160160160160 budget pay actually make government work better encourages members congress come negotiating table stay reach agreement budget spending bills members congress frustrated congressional gridlock american people members arrive us capitol dreams of160 dysfunction budget pay creates additional incentive congress job160 2160160160160 budget pay begin restore americans trust congress moment intense anger cynicism american people want election year promises want action want signal congress understands frustration taking concrete steps address passing bill opportunity congress tell american people wont earn salaries earn back trust160 budget spending process works 1160160160160 president presents budget request reviewing needs federal agency white house office management budget submits presidents budget request congress one massive budgetary bundle presidents budget supposed delivered congress first monday february includes spending revenue projections well details specific policy proposals160 2160160160160 crafting budget resolution house senate budget committees separately consider presidents budget request work establish congressional priorities respective budget resolutions budget resolution legislative measure reflects decisions chamber signed law president 3160160160160 voting budget full house senate vote respective resolutions resolutions pass reconciled conference committee made members party chamber work differences resolutions conference committee finished chamber votes one last time adopt concurrent resolution federal budget coming fiscal year congress required budget control act 1974 construct budget pass every year april 15but almost never 4160160160160 appropriations process committee assuming concurrent budget resolution passes becomes blueprint appropriations process without appropriations process goes forward without binding fiscal guidance individual appropriations subcommittees chamberscovering everything defense health nd education spendinghear testimony agency officials mark dozen appropriations bills bills reported full appropriations committee may amend bills reporting respective chambers 5160160160160 appropriations process full house senate ideally chamber debates appropriations bills reconciles differences votes send measures president sign enact october 1 beginning next fiscal year process finished time 15 years turn budget pay great bill great lawwe remember learning school bill becomes law reality bills dont become laws every step lawmaking process bills killed design delay often stands wellmeaning bill signed law thousands languish hearings hope heres refreshera reminder keep pressure senators representatives need hear voice part process becomes chokepoint way change 1160160160160 budget pay act introduced budget pay bills already introduced senate 1981 senator dean heller rnv house hr 3643 representative jim cooper dtn bills numerous bipartisan cosponsors 1981 referred senate committee homeland security governmental affairs hr 3643 referred house committee house administration respective committees choose hold hearings bills move directly committee markup voting process us senate committee homeland security amp governmental affairs 160160160160160160 sen joseph lieberman ict160chairman 160160160160160160 sen susan collins rme160ranking member 160160160160160160 sen daniel k akaka dhi 160160160160160160 sen mark begich dak 160160160160160160 sen scott brown rma 160160160160160160 sen thomas r carper dde 160160160160160160 sen tom coburn rok 160160160160160160 sen ron johnson rwi 160160160160160160 sen mary l landrieu dla 160160160160160160 sen carl levin dmi 160160160160160160 sen john mccain raz 160160160160160160 sen claire mccaskill dmo 160160160160160160 sen jerry moran rks 160160160160160160 sen rand paul rky 160160160160160160 sen rob portman roh 160160160160160160 sen mark l pryor dar 160160160160160160 sen jon tester dmt 2160160160160 hearings held thanks hard work advocacy labels members senate committee homeland security governmental affairs planned hearing discuss budget pay act big deal bill even receive hearing current session congress 2000 bills introduced senate 225 given committee hearings hearing yet scheduled house representatives house senate budget pay bills stand march 2012 labels community help turn great idea great law steps still left go 3160160160160 committee markup bill introduced hearings held committees choose review text bill mark changes voting whether report bill full house senate majority quorum committee members vote favor bill makes way floor considered full house senate 4160160160160 debate floor bill comes committee goes floor respective chamber debated considered rules chamber among things include amendments original bill individual members 5160160160160 conference committee differences versions bills passed house senate chamber appoints members party conference committee work differences two bills 6160160160160 passage house senate vote compromise bill conference committee produces majority votes favor chambers bill makes way president 7160160160160 enactment president objects bill veto otherwise president signs bill law allows become law 10 days without signature big questions budget pay constitutional yes article section 6 us constitution states senators representatives shall receive compensation services ascertained law paid treasury united states budget pay would alter compensation congressional compensation whatever ascertained law course laws change first session congress senators representatives received 6 day service today number much different congress chose change theres one constitutional caveat congress ability determine pay recent amendment constitutionthe 27th amendmentprovides law varying compensation services senators representatives shall take effect election representatives shall intervened amendment intended prohibit members congress dramatically raising salaries face voters members congress want raise salaries americans want chance express approval disapproval election thats new budget pay law would take effect 113th congress seated 2013 congress doesnt act 2012 budget pay law could take effect 2015 earliestmeaning likely another three years budgetary dysfunction many members congress wealthy wont budget pay really affect plenty members congress need salary pay living expenses like everyone else america congressional pay stopped even members dont particularly need salaries would face pressure colleagues public thats reminded every single day congress isnt getting paid job senator saying senate already passed budget senator likely referring budget control act 2011 passed august that160year congress couldnt agree raise nations debt ceil ing budget control160act 2011 certainly real budget traditional sense word real budget blueprint forces us take stock resources evaluate programs160are succeeding need reassessed eliminated budget control act 2011 does160none things act contained caps discretionary spending complex160mechanisms creation failed congressional super committee control future160spending budget control act 2011 essentially stopgap measure designed avert160an immediate crisis make serious attempt assess fund our160nations priorities remember passing budget half battle budget sets blueprint the160appropriations bills actually spend money congress passed budget spending bills160on time four times last 60 years 12 appropriations bills congress must pass september 30 satisfy requirements budget pay 1160160160160 agriculture rural development food drug administration related agencies 2160160160160 commerce justice science related agencies 3160160160160 defense 4160160160160 energy water development related agencies 5160160160160 financial services general government 6160160160160 homeland security 7160160160160 interior environment related agencies 8160160160160 labor health human services education related agencies 9160160160160 legislative branch 10160 military construction veterans affairs related agencies 11160 state foreign operations related programs 12160 transportation housing urban development related agencies president vetoes 12 appropriations bills congress sends budget pay would members still pay suspended congress passes concurrent budget resolution deliver completed spending bills president september 30 done job paid congress passes continuing resolutions fund government fulfill work requirements budget pay continuing resolutions stopgap spending measures congress often uses to160fund today budget pay requires congress pass 12 full annual appropriations bills160by september 30 salary member congress base salary member congress 174000 per year higher pay given members leadership positions base salary include generous retirement medical travel benefits members congress also receive shouldnt budget pay apply leadership proposal would give rank file incentive needs stand obstuctionists leadership elsewhere demand action reality right handful people exerting disproportional influence entire process budget pay would help rectify balance budget pay small important step forward budget pay miraculously fix ails congress single bill one election taken years congress become dysfunctional institution today wont fixed overnight weve got start somewhere fixing budget spending process great place start budget pay asking members congress support asking congress restore trust government asking congress job really time
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<p>Fascism was born in Italy during World War I and came to power with the ex-journalist and war veteran Benito Mussolini in 1922. Since the 1950s, dozens of top historians and political scientists have put fascism, especially the Italian and German versions, under the microscope. They’ve come up with a pretty solid agreement on what it is, both as a political ideology and as a political movement, factoring in all the (sometimes contradictory) things its progenitors said as they ascended to power. As a political ideology, fascism has eight main traits. As a political movement, it has three more. So: Just how fascist is Trump? On the fascist meter, we can award him from zero to four “Benitos.”</p>
<p>First, the ideological features:</p>
<p>1. Hyper-nationalism. This attribute is not confined to fascism, but it is central to all fascism. Trump regularly promises to put America first and extolls the virtues of ordinary Americans (by which he often seems to mean white Americans). His trade policy qualifies as economic nationalism. By the standards of American politics he is a hyper-nationalist, but by the standards of historical fascism, he is not in the upper echelon. Two Benitos.</p>
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<p>2. Militarism. Fascists routinely lionized military institutions and military virtues, and at least rhetorically sought military solutions to political issues. Trump lavishes praise on the troops, as almost all American politicians do these days, and he has proposed (in vague and vulgar terms) a militaristic solution to the problem posed by the Islamic State. He has recommend taking the oil of the Middle East, which presumably would require armed force. But by and large, Trump does not blithely recommend military action and often lambastes his rivals for allegedly incompetent military adventurism. He does not dress his followers in ersatz military garb. Two Benitos.</p>
<p>3. Glorification of violence and readiness to use it in politics. Fascists such as Mussolini thought violence could cleanse and redeem a tarnished nation. They encouraged loyal thugs to rough up, and occasionally kill, people whose politics differed from theirs. Trump scores low here. His rallies, according to many reports, have a frisson of menace to them; he has said things that could be interpreted asinvitations to assassination; his followers often speak longingly of violent acts they wish to see committed against others; he has recommended using torture and killing the families of terrorists. But this still leaves him well short of the standard of Mussolini’s blackshirts or Hitler’s brownshirts, who not only called for political violence but resorted to it extensively. One Benito.</p>
<p>4. Fetishization of youth. Fascist movements, even when led by middle-aged men, always extolled the vigor and promise of youth and made special efforts to appeal to young people. Trump, as a septuagenarian, is ill-positioned here. He has no special youth organization to speak of. His most devoted followers are long in the tooth. Zero Benitos.</p>
<p>5. Fetishization of masculinity. Fascists trumpeted what they saw as masculine virtues and supported male authority within family and society, urging women to confine their sphere to home and children (the more of which the better). Trump shares much of this outlook, lauding his own stamina and accusing his femalerival, Hillary Clinton, of lacking it. He mocks men whom he deems deficient in virility. But whereas Mussolini liked to hold up his own mother, devoted to home and hearth, as the feminine ideal, Trump’s vision of the proper woman seems to be a supermodel, more in line with Hugh Hefner’s ideology than Mussolini’s. Nonetheless, on swaggering machismo he gets full marks. Four Benitos.</p>
<p>6. Leader cult. Fascists always looked to a leader who was bold, decisive, manly, uncompromising and cruel when necessary – because the parlous state of the nation required such qualities. Mussolini and Hitler, both veterans of World War I, drew their models of leadership from army officers and worked hard to polish their images as dauntless rulers beholden to no one. They encouraged their followers to idolize them as Il Duce and der Führer. They claimed special insight into the will of the people. Trump, although not a war veteran, fully embraces the cult of the leader. He offers his business experience as evidence of his decisive leadership and is very testy when his business acumen is doubted. He also claims to channel the common man, enjoying a connection all other politicians lack. Four Benitos.</p>
<p>7. Lost-golden-age syndrome. Italian and German fascism shared a strong commitment to the notion of national rebirth. Mussolini and Hitler encouraged their supporters to believe in lost (or stolen) greatness, in a glorious past. That could be long ago, as with the Roman Empire, which Mussolini liked to invoke, or only a couple of decades prior, as with the German Reich that was, according to Hitler, “stabbed in the back” in 1918. Trump makes this appeal to a golden age the centerpiece of his campaign, assuring audiences that only he can “make America great again.” Four Benitos.</p>
<p>8. Self-definition by opposition. Fascists defined themselves as the bulwark against various evils and menaces to the nation. Those included communism, routine democratic politics, the traditional conservatism of industrial and agrarian elites (although both Mussolini and Hitler eventually made peace with these elites), and, especially in the German case, foreigners and minorities. Communism is no longer an issue for American politics. But Trump constantly rails against politics as usual, against political correctness, against elites of all kinds (including, curiously, business elites), and he has made a habit of vilifying minorities. He does not advocate their annihilation, as Hitler did. Three Benitos.</p>
<p>As a political movement, fascism displayed three further important traits:</p>
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<p>9. Mass mobilization and mass party. Both Mussolini and Hitler rode to power on tidal waves of support that were organized into new political parties. A new party might fit Trump better, but he has not created one. Instead he has made a venerable one, the Grand Old Party, into his vehicle. He likes to refer to his following as a movement, and since the GOP convention in July has rarely tried to brand himself as a Republican. Many in his party loathe him. Two Benitos.</p>
<p>10. Hierarchical party structure and tendency to purge the disloyal. Fascist movements, like revolutions, ate their children. Anyone who displayed only tepid loyalty to the leader or who showed the potential to outshine the leader risked being purged or killed. So did followers who outlived their usefulness. Trump’s campaign shares this tendency toward purges, but the Republican Party under his leadership does not. And violence plays no role. One Benito.</p>
<p>11. Theatricality. In style and rhetoric, fascism was highly theatrical. Film and audio of Mussolini and Hitler make them seem like clownish buffoons, with their exaggerated gestures, their salutes, their overheated speeches full of absolutes and superlatives. Their rallies evolved into elaborate collective rituals for loyalists. Trump does not strut across stages like a Mussolini, and Nazi-style torchlit parades are out, but his rhetoric fits the fascist style well. He constantly calls things and people the worst or the best ever. His rallies feature repetitive chants. Even his studied frown of disapproval recalls a classic Mussolini pose. Three Benitos.</p>
<p>Add all this up, and you get 26 out of a possible 44 Benitos. In the fascist derby, Trump is a loser. Even Spain’s Francisco Franco and Portugal’s António de Oliveira Salazar might score higher. While there is a strong family resemblance, and with some features an uncanny likeness, Trump doesn’t fit the profile so well on those points where the use of violence is required. Projecting an air of menace at rallies, uttering ambiguous calls for assassinations, tacitly endorsing the roughing-up of protesters, urging the killing of terrorists’ families and whatever else Trump does – while shocking by the standards of American politics – fall far short of the genuinely murderous violence endorsed and unleashed by authentic fascists.</p>
<p>In a more nuanced approach, we might weight the various traits of fascism differently, but it’s not obvious how best to do so. Hyper-nationalism, for example, is more consequential than the youth fetish and perhaps ought to be taken more seriously. But it is also less distinctively fascist, being common to many types of political regimes. A longer list, too, might add refinement and complexity. But Trump does not do nuance. A crude, quick and flippant assessment is what he deserves. He is semi-fascist: more fascist than any successful American politician yet, and the most dangerous threat to pluralist democracy in this country in more than a century, but – thank our stars – an amateurish imitation of the real thing.</p>
<p>– – –</p>
<p>McNeill is a professor of history at Georgetown University.</p>
<p>trump-fascist-comment</p>
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fascism born italy world war came power exjournalist war veteran benito mussolini 1922 since 1950s dozens top historians political scientists put fascism especially italian german versions microscope theyve come pretty solid agreement political ideology political movement factoring sometimes contradictory things progenitors said ascended power political ideology fascism eight main traits political movement three fascist trump fascist meter award zero four benitos first ideological features 1 hypernationalism attribute confined fascism central fascism trump regularly promises put america first extolls virtues ordinary americans often seems mean white americans trade policy qualifies economic nationalism standards american politics hypernationalist standards historical fascism upper echelon two benitos advertisement 2 militarism fascists routinely lionized military institutions military virtues least rhetorically sought military solutions political issues trump lavishes praise troops almost american politicians days proposed vague vulgar terms militaristic solution problem posed islamic state recommend taking oil middle east presumably would require armed force large trump blithely recommend military action often lambastes rivals allegedly incompetent military adventurism dress followers ersatz military garb two benitos 3 glorification violence readiness use politics fascists mussolini thought violence could cleanse redeem tarnished nation encouraged loyal thugs rough occasionally kill people whose politics differed trump scores low rallies according many reports frisson menace said things could interpreted asinvitations assassination followers often speak longingly violent acts wish see committed others recommended using torture killing families terrorists still leaves well short standard mussolinis blackshirts hitlers brownshirts called political violence resorted extensively one benito 4 fetishization youth fascist movements even led middleaged men always extolled vigor promise youth made special efforts appeal young people trump septuagenarian illpositioned special youth organization speak devoted followers long tooth zero benitos 5 fetishization masculinity fascists trumpeted saw masculine virtues supported male authority within family society urging women confine sphere home children better trump shares much outlook lauding stamina accusing femalerival hillary clinton lacking mocks men deems deficient virility whereas mussolini liked hold mother devoted home hearth feminine ideal trumps vision proper woman seems supermodel line hugh hefners ideology mussolinis nonetheless swaggering machismo gets full marks four benitos 6 leader cult fascists always looked leader bold decisive manly uncompromising cruel necessary parlous state nation required qualities mussolini hitler veterans world war drew models leadership army officers worked hard polish images dauntless rulers beholden one encouraged followers idolize il duce der führer claimed special insight people trump although war veteran fully embraces cult leader offers business experience evidence decisive leadership testy business acumen doubted also claims channel common man enjoying connection politicians lack four benitos 7 lostgoldenage syndrome italian german fascism shared strong commitment notion national rebirth mussolini hitler encouraged supporters believe lost stolen greatness glorious past could long ago roman empire mussolini liked invoke couple decades prior german reich according hitler stabbed back 1918 trump makes appeal golden age centerpiece campaign assuring audiences make america great four benitos 8 selfdefinition opposition fascists defined bulwark various evils menaces nation included communism routine democratic politics traditional conservatism industrial agrarian elites although mussolini hitler eventually made peace elites especially german case foreigners minorities communism longer issue american politics trump constantly rails politics usual political correctness elites kinds including curiously business elites made habit vilifying minorities advocate annihilation hitler three benitos political movement fascism displayed three important traits advertisement 9 mass mobilization mass party mussolini hitler rode power tidal waves support organized new political parties new party might fit trump better created one instead made venerable one grand old party vehicle likes refer following movement since gop convention july rarely tried brand republican many party loathe two benitos 10 hierarchical party structure tendency purge disloyal fascist movements like revolutions ate children anyone displayed tepid loyalty leader showed potential outshine leader risked purged killed followers outlived usefulness trumps campaign shares tendency toward purges republican party leadership violence plays role one benito 11 theatricality style rhetoric fascism highly theatrical film audio mussolini hitler make seem like clownish buffoons exaggerated gestures salutes overheated speeches full absolutes superlatives rallies evolved elaborate collective rituals loyalists trump strut across stages like mussolini nazistyle torchlit parades rhetoric fits fascist style well constantly calls things people worst best ever rallies feature repetitive chants even studied frown disapproval recalls classic mussolini pose three benitos add get 26 possible 44 benitos fascist derby trump loser even spains francisco franco portugals antónio de oliveira salazar might score higher strong family resemblance features uncanny likeness trump doesnt fit profile well points use violence required projecting air menace rallies uttering ambiguous calls assassinations tacitly endorsing roughingup protesters urging killing terrorists families whatever else trump shocking standards american politics fall far short genuinely murderous violence endorsed unleashed authentic fascists nuanced approach might weight various traits fascism differently obvious best hypernationalism example consequential youth fetish perhaps ought taken seriously also less distinctively fascist common many types political regimes longer list might add refinement complexity trump nuance crude quick flippant assessment deserves semifascist fascist successful american politician yet dangerous threat pluralist democracy country century thank stars amateurish imitation real thing mcneill professor history georgetown university trumpfascistcomment
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<p>FILE -In this Jan. 15, 1998 file photo, a women sifts through rubble near her destroyed home after much of the town of Santa Teresa in Cuzco, was destroyed by a mudslide brought on by persistent rains attributed El Nino. It can be both godsend and catastrophe. In California, they're counting on it to end a more than $2 billion drought and in Peru they have already declared a pre-emptive emergency, reinforcing protection against devastating flooding. It's both an economic stimulus and a recession-maker. And it's likely to increase the price of coffee, chocolate and sugar. (AP photo/Oscar Paredes, File)</p>
<p>WASHINGTON - In California, they're counting on it to end an historic drought; in Peru, they've already declared a pre-emptive emergency to prepare for devastating flooding. It's both an economic stimulus and a recession-maker. And it's likely to increase the price of coffee, chocolate and sugar.</p>
<p>It's El Nino - most likely, the largest in well over a decade, forecasters say. A lot more than mere weather, it affects lives and pocketbooks in different ways in different places.</p>
<p>Every few years, the winds shift and the water in the Pacific Ocean gets warmer than usual. That water sloshes back and forth around the equator in the Pacific, interacts with the winds above and then changes weather worldwide. This is El Nino. Droughts are triggered in places like Australia and India, but elsewhere, droughts are quenched and floods replace them. The Pacific gets more hurricanes; the Atlantic fewer. Winter gets milder and wetter in much of the United States. The world warms, goosing Earth's already rising thermometer from man-made climate change.</p>
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<p>Peruvian sailors named the formation El Nino - the (Christ) Child - because it was most noticeable around Christmas. An El Nino means the Pacific Ocean off Peru's coast is warm, especially a huge patch 330 feet (100 meters) below the surface, and as it gets warmer and close to the surface, the weather "is just going to be a river falling from the sky," said biophysicist Michael Ferrari, director of climate services for agriculture at the Colorado firm aWhere Inc.</p>
<p>Around the world, crops fail in some places, thrive elsewhere. Commercial fishing shifts. More people die of flooding, fewer from freezing. Americans spend less on winter heating. The global economy shifts.</p>
<p>"El Nino is not the end of the world so you don't have to hide under the bed. The reality is that in the U.S. an El Nino can be a good thing," said Mike Halpert, deputy director of the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Climate Prediction Center.</p>
<p>This El Nino officially started in March and keeps getting stronger. If current trends continue, it should officially be termed a strong El Nino early in August, peak sometime near the end of year and peter out sometime next spring. Meteorologists say it looks like the biggest such event since the fierce El Nino of 1997-1998.</p>
<p>California mudslides notwithstanding, the U.S. economy benefited by nearly $22 billion from that El Nino, according to a 1999 study. That study found that 189 people were killed in the U.S, mainly from tornadoes linked to El Nino, but an estimated 850 lives were saved due to a milder winter.</p>
<p>A United Nations-backed study said that El Nino cost Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and Venezuela nearly $11 billion. Flooding in Peru destroyed bridges, homes, hospitals and crops and left 354 dead and 112 missing, according to the Pan-American Health Organization. The mining industry in Peru and Chile was hammered as flooding hindered exports.</p>
<p>Though this year's El Nino is likely to be weaker than the 1997-1998 version, the economic impact may be greater because the world's interconnected economy has changed with more vulnerable supply chains, said risk and climate expert Ferrari.</p>
<p>Economic winners include the U.S., China, Mexico and Europe while India, Australia and Peru are among El Nino's biggest losers.</p>
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<p>On average, a healthy El Nino can boost the U.S. economy by about 0.55 percent of Gross Domestic Product, which would translate more than $90 billion this year, an International Monetary Fund study calculated this spring. But it could also slice an entire percentage point off Indonesia's GDP.</p>
<p>Indonesia gets hit particularly hard because an expected El Nino drought affects the country's mining, power, cocoa, and coffee industries, said IMF study co-author Kamiar Mohaddes, an economist at the University of Cambridge in London.</p>
<p>The expected El Nino drought in parts of Australia has started and may trim as much as 1 percent off of the country's GDP, said Andrew Watkins, supervisor of climate prediction services at the Australian Bureau of Meteorology.</p>
<p>Tony Barnston, lead El Nino forecaster at the International Research Institute for Climate and Society at Columbia University, cautioned that while El Nino has predictable effects and this one is strong, what happens next is not exactly certain.</p>
<p>But Peruvians are worried. Abraham Levy, director of Ambiental Andina, which advises businesses on meteorology- and hydrology-related issues, believes this El Nino could lead Peru into recession. Important export crops such as mangos and asparagus that grow in coastal valleys are already being adversely affected by the unseasonably high temperatures, said Levy.</p>
<p>"The export mango crop has not yet flowered," he said. "And if we don't have flowers we don't have fruit."</p>
<p>And then there's the flooding. Peru declared a pre-emptive state of emergency this month for 14 of its 25 states, appropriating some $70 million to prepare. Hilopito Cruchaga, the civil defense director in Peru's northern region of Piura, said authorities are clearing river beds of debris, reinforcing river banks with rock and fortifying reservoir walls. Sandbags and rocks are also being piled on some river banks.</p>
<p>"If the sea stays this hot at the end of August I'm afraid we're doomed," he said.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>Bajak reported from Lima, Peru.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>Online: NOAA's El Nino page: <a href="http://www.cpc.ncep.noaa.gov/products/precip/CWlink/MJO/enso.shtml" type="external">http://www.cpc.ncep.noaa.gov/products/precip/CWlink/MJO/enso.shtml</a></p>
<p>___</p>
<p>Seth Borenstein can be followed at <a href="http://twitter.com/borenbears" type="external">http://twitter.com/borenbears</a></p>
<p>Frank Bajak can be followed at <a href="http://twitter.com/fbajak" type="external">http://twitter.com/fbajak</a></p>
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file jan 15 1998 file photo women sifts rubble near destroyed home much town santa teresa cuzco destroyed mudslide brought persistent rains attributed el nino godsend catastrophe california theyre counting end 2 billion drought peru already declared preemptive emergency reinforcing protection devastating flooding economic stimulus recessionmaker likely increase price coffee chocolate sugar ap photooscar paredes file washington california theyre counting end historic drought peru theyve already declared preemptive emergency prepare devastating flooding economic stimulus recessionmaker likely increase price coffee chocolate sugar el nino likely largest well decade forecasters say lot mere weather affects lives pocketbooks different ways different places every years winds shift water pacific ocean gets warmer usual water sloshes back forth around equator pacific interacts winds changes weather worldwide el nino droughts triggered places like australia india elsewhere droughts quenched floods replace pacific gets hurricanes atlantic fewer winter gets milder wetter much united states world warms goosing earths already rising thermometer manmade climate change advertisement peruvian sailors named formation el nino christ child noticeable around christmas el nino means pacific ocean perus coast warm especially huge patch 330 feet 100 meters surface gets warmer close surface weather going river falling sky said biophysicist michael ferrari director climate services agriculture colorado firm awhere inc around world crops fail places thrive elsewhere commercial fishing shifts people die flooding fewer freezing americans spend less winter heating global economy shifts el nino end world dont hide bed reality us el nino good thing said mike halpert deputy director us national oceanic atmospheric administrations climate prediction center el nino officially started march keeps getting stronger current trends continue officially termed strong el nino early august peak sometime near end year peter sometime next spring meteorologists say looks like biggest event since fierce el nino 19971998 california mudslides notwithstanding us economy benefited nearly 22 billion el nino according 1999 study study found 189 people killed us mainly tornadoes linked el nino estimated 850 lives saved due milder winter united nationsbacked study said el nino cost bolivia colombia ecuador peru venezuela nearly 11 billion flooding peru destroyed bridges homes hospitals crops left 354 dead 112 missing according panamerican health organization mining industry peru chile hammered flooding hindered exports though years el nino likely weaker 19971998 version economic impact may greater worlds interconnected economy changed vulnerable supply chains said risk climate expert ferrari economic winners include us china mexico europe india australia peru among el ninos biggest losers advertisement average healthy el nino boost us economy 055 percent gross domestic product would translate 90 billion year international monetary fund study calculated spring could also slice entire percentage point indonesias gdp indonesia gets hit particularly hard expected el nino drought affects countrys mining power cocoa coffee industries said imf study coauthor kamiar mohaddes economist university cambridge london expected el nino drought parts australia started may trim much 1 percent countrys gdp said andrew watkins supervisor climate prediction services australian bureau meteorology tony barnston lead el nino forecaster international research institute climate society columbia university cautioned el nino predictable effects one strong happens next exactly certain peruvians worried abraham levy director ambiental andina advises businesses meteorology hydrologyrelated issues believes el nino could lead peru recession important export crops mangos asparagus grow coastal valleys already adversely affected unseasonably high temperatures said levy export mango crop yet flowered said dont flowers dont fruit theres flooding peru declared preemptive state emergency month 14 25 states appropriating 70 million prepare hilopito cruchaga civil defense director perus northern region piura said authorities clearing river beds debris reinforcing river banks rock fortifying reservoir walls sandbags rocks also piled river banks sea stays hot end august im afraid doomed said ___ bajak reported lima peru ___ online noaas el nino page httpwwwcpcncepnoaagovproductsprecipcwlinkmjoensoshtml ___ seth borenstein followed httptwittercomborenbears frank bajak followed httptwittercomfbajak
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<p>In the Alta Monte neighborhood between Comanche and Candelaria in Northeast Albuquerque, an average of one in 25 of that area’s residents was assaulted or robbed from 2014 through 2016, according to a recent analysis of Albuquerque crime statistics.</p>
<p>At one corner on Central Avenue NE, 98 violent crime incidents were reported to police in those same years.</p>
<p>And even though only 37,600 people live in a section of Southeast Albuquerque – or less than 7 percent of city residents – more than 27 percent of the city’s murders happened there in the three-year period.</p>
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<p>Those grim statistics were found through research by the Albuquerque Innovation Team, or ABQ i-team, which reported that a disproportionate amount of the city’s crime, especially violent crime, happens in five clusters around the city where only about 10 percent of its population lives.</p>
<p>The research, the first phase of a three-phase crime analysis, used multiple databases to study where most crime occurs in the city and where offenders committing the crimes live.</p>
<p>Albuquerque Innovation Team’s Scott Darnell</p>
<p>The research is now being used to help make decisions about how to allocate the city’s police force and other resources, said Scott Darnell, the director of ABQ i-team, which is doing the analysis along with the police department’s Real Time Crime Center.</p>
<p>“It is not just about information for information’s sake,” Mayor Richard Berry said in an interview with Journal reporters and editors. “This is not just about police work. This is about social services. This is about resource allocation.”</p>
<p>Darnell said the next phase, scheduled to be released in coming weeks, analyzes who is being arrested in Albuquerque and Bernalillo County. The final phase will use focus groups, surveys and interviews to look beyond the data.</p>
<p>The 145-page report describes the data as “groundbreaking research” that will be shared with partners such as local law enforcement, neighborhood groups, social service agencies, as well as parts of the criminal justice system. The hope is that the data will be used for increased collaborative efforts and new tools to combat crime.</p>
<p>ABQ i-team was created in 2015 with a three-year grant the city received from Bloomberg Philanthropies. The group originally focused on opportunities for local youths before switching to crime analysis, Berry said.</p>
<p>The biggest and most violent of the five clusters identified in the study is referred to simply as Southeast/Primary. The study marked the area as roughly from Carlisle to Eubank and from Lomas to Gibson.</p>
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<p>That part of town accounted for 27 percent of the murders, 20 percent of carjackings and 37 percent of nonfatal shootings in the past three years, according to the report.</p>
<p>“It sticks out like a sore thumb, all the murders that are happening in (the) area,” Darnell said.</p>
<p><a href="" type="internal" />Other high-crime clusters were roughly: Downtown, from Lomas as far south as Pacific and from Eighth Street to Broadway; Far Southeast, from I-40 south to Horseshoe and from Juan Tabo to Tramway; San Mateo, a triangular area bordered by San Mateo and I-25 and stretching south of Comanche, including the Alta Monte neighborhood; and Southwest, which includes Avalon south to Bridge and Old Coors to new Coors, according to the report.</p>
<p>From 2014 to 2016, 43.6 percent of murders, 36.2 percent of robberies of individuals and nearly half of all shootings with injuries happened in those five clusters in Albuquerque.</p>
<p>Combined, these areas have a population of about 57,000 people and cover a little more than nine square miles. By comparison, Albuquerque’s total population is about 560,000 and the city covers about 189 square miles.</p>
<p>Property crimes are spread out across the city, but they still occur more in the five clusters compared to other parts of the city, Darnell said.</p>
<p>And people arrested for property crimes and violent crimes that occur throughout the city give addresses that are heavily concentrated in these cluster areas.</p>
<p>The report dug deep into each area, coming up with such facts as:</p>
<p>• More violent and property crime occurs at multi-family housing. For example, 79 percent of the home invasions in the Southeast/Primary area occurred in multi-family housing.</p>
<p>• Crime along Central Avenue was a central theme throughout most of the crime clusters. In the Downtown area, 75 percent of nonfatal shootings with injuries occurred on Central Avenue between First and Sixth streets.</p>
<p>• In the Alta Monte area, nearly one in five residents have reported that their car was stolen or burglarized, or that their home was burglarized.</p>
<p>Albuquerque police officers stand near a crime scene in Southeast Albuquerque earlier this year. A study by the Albuquerque Innovation Team found that Southeast Albuquerque is the most violent place in the city. (Roberto E. Rosales/Albuquerque Journal)</p>
<p>Berry said he will use the data during the twilight of his administration to target high-crime areas for things such as lighting improvements, deciding where to focus police and social service resources and where to launch public awareness campaigns about crime and other efforts.</p>
<p>“We’re trying to put this information together … so we can hand this information off,” Berry said. “So (the next administration) has much better information to launch from as they start making decisions on how they want to combat crime in the community.”</p>
<p>Crime has been on the upswing in the city since about 2010. From 2013 to 2016, murders increased 65 percent, from 37 to 61. In that same period, auto thefts were up 157 percent and robberies were up 87 percent, according to the study.</p>
<p>“We are not in any way shape or form, saying that (the five clusters are) the only place where crime occurs in the city,” Darnell said. “We are simply identifying areas where the concentration is very heavy.”</p>
<p>Albuquerque Police Chief Gorden Eden said the police have already used some of the data in the i-team’s study to create assignments for police officers.</p>
<p>Eden said the department is using a mixture of officers who work 8-, 10- and 12-hour shifts to ensure there are the maximum number of officers on patrol during times with high numbers of calls for service.</p>
<p>“How can we use this data now to concentrate on these areas, both from an intervention standpoint and from a badge and gun standpoint,” Berry said. “It’s really helping allocate resources … to do more good things with less resources.”</p>
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alta monte neighborhood comanche candelaria northeast albuquerque average one 25 areas residents assaulted robbed 2014 2016 according recent analysis albuquerque crime statistics one corner central avenue ne 98 violent crime incidents reported police years even though 37600 people live section southeast albuquerque less 7 percent city residents 27 percent citys murders happened threeyear period advertisement grim statistics found research albuquerque innovation team abq iteam reported disproportionate amount citys crime especially violent crime happens five clusters around city 10 percent population lives research first phase threephase crime analysis used multiple databases study crime occurs city offenders committing crimes live albuquerque innovation teams scott darnell research used help make decisions allocate citys police force resources said scott darnell director abq iteam analysis along police departments real time crime center information informations sake mayor richard berry said interview journal reporters editors police work social services resource allocation darnell said next phase scheduled released coming weeks analyzes arrested albuquerque bernalillo county final phase use focus groups surveys interviews look beyond data 145page report describes data groundbreaking research shared partners local law enforcement neighborhood groups social service agencies well parts criminal justice system hope data used increased collaborative efforts new tools combat crime abq iteam created 2015 threeyear grant city received bloomberg philanthropies group originally focused opportunities local youths switching crime analysis berry said biggest violent five clusters identified study referred simply southeastprimary study marked area roughly carlisle eubank lomas gibson advertisement part town accounted 27 percent murders 20 percent carjackings 37 percent nonfatal shootings past three years according report sticks like sore thumb murders happening area darnell said highcrime clusters roughly downtown lomas far south pacific eighth street broadway far southeast i40 south horseshoe juan tabo tramway san mateo triangular area bordered san mateo i25 stretching south comanche including alta monte neighborhood southwest includes avalon south bridge old coors new coors according report 2014 2016 436 percent murders 362 percent robberies individuals nearly half shootings injuries happened five clusters albuquerque combined areas population 57000 people cover little nine square miles comparison albuquerques total population 560000 city covers 189 square miles property crimes spread across city still occur five clusters compared parts city darnell said people arrested property crimes violent crimes occur throughout city give addresses heavily concentrated cluster areas report dug deep area coming facts violent property crime occurs multifamily housing example 79 percent home invasions southeastprimary area occurred multifamily housing crime along central avenue central theme throughout crime clusters downtown area 75 percent nonfatal shootings injuries occurred central avenue first sixth streets alta monte area nearly one five residents reported car stolen burglarized home burglarized albuquerque police officers stand near crime scene southeast albuquerque earlier year study albuquerque innovation team found southeast albuquerque violent place city roberto e rosalesalbuquerque journal berry said use data twilight administration target highcrime areas things lighting improvements deciding focus police social service resources launch public awareness campaigns crime efforts trying put information together hand information berry said next administration much better information launch start making decisions want combat crime community crime upswing city since 2010 2013 2016 murders increased 65 percent 37 61 period auto thefts 157 percent robberies 87 percent according study way shape form saying five clusters place crime occurs city darnell said simply identifying areas concentration heavy albuquerque police chief gorden eden said police already used data iteams study create assignments police officers eden said department using mixture officers work 8 10 12hour shifts ensure maximum number officers patrol times high numbers calls service use data concentrate areas intervention standpoint badge gun standpoint berry said really helping allocate resources good things less resources abqjournalcom area around street saw 36 percent citys murders 31 percent carjackings continue reading abqjournalcom apd commander armed robbery epidemic us fight city continue reading abqjournalcom violent place albuquerque past three years continue reading abqjournalcom area saw 23 murders 5 robberies city continue reading abqjournalcom many incidents recorded occur along central continue reading abqjournalcom area features large concentration multifamily housing continue reading abqjournalcom murders shootings occur near central 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<p>Operation Iraqi Freedom, after all, ended three years ago. U.S. forces in Afghanistan no longer engage routinely in combat. The Department of Defense lists fewer than 52,000 wounded in the two wars, including through March 2 for Afghanistan. The Department of Veterans Affairs says its own spending on disability compensation, health care, rehabilitation, vocational training and caregiver support is up 73 percent just since 2009.</p>
<p>So why do Wounded Warrior Project ads still populate our prime-time hours, and appear in our mailboxes and favorite websites?</p>
<p>The Audie Murphy Club sponsors a 5K run for the Wounded Warrior Project. (Courtesy of U.S. Army)</p>
<p>Steven Nardizzi, chief executive officer of WWP, said it’s because the project is busier than ever filling gaps in education, counseling and other activities needed to “honor and empower” warriors of recent wars. The goal is to make Iraq and Afghanistan veterans “the most successful and well-adjusted generation of wounded service members in our nation’s history.”</p>
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<p>DoD data on wounded don’t include many thousands of vets with post-traumatic stress or mild-to-moderate traumatic brain injury, he said. The mentally wounded are now 78 percent of warriors using WWP services and yet represent only a fraction of what the total could be, Nardizzi added.</p>
<p>So far, America is onboard.</p>
<p>WWP didn’t exist a dozen years ago. Then a few concerned vets and friends began giving returning wounded backpacks of socks, toiletries and other items to make hospital stays more comfortable. Today, WWP has annual revenues of $325 million, 500 employees, and a spectrum of programs to help warriors heal body and mind, secure jobs and engage in society.</p>
<p>WWP assets jumped $56 million in fiscal 2013 alone to more than $166 million. Its fundraising is more than double that of the USO and is a juggernaut alongside many other veterans charities. Its program spending of $117 million in 2013 included $16.8 million in grants to other charities, including a $250,000 donation to American Red Cross to help wounded warriors affected by Hurricane Sandy.</p>
<p>Its most successful fundraising tool is TV ads with wounded warriors and spouses, mellow music and celebrity spokesmen. WWP also raises millions through direct mail solicitations and online advertising.</p>
<p>“Our fundraising has been growing at a compound annual growth rate of between 40-50 percent, year over year, every year, and through the recession as well, by the way,” Nardizzi said. “So I would agree with you we’re incredibly sound in fundraising. But if you go back over the same period (and look at) program spending, it’s grown by the same rate, a compound annual growth rate of 40-50 percent.”</p>
<p>WWP is “fundraising to plan,” he said, “not raising money for the sake of raising money. We raise money to do our programs and make an impact.”</p>
<p>To date, 67,000 wounded have used at least one WWP service or benefit. The goal is 100,000 “alumni” by 2017.</p>
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<p>In a lengthy phone interview, Nardizzi reviewed the breadth of WWP services, which are exclusive to the generation who served after 9/11. WWP counts itself among newer charities that offer human services to warriors so they don’t feel isolated and shoved aside or suffer a loss of dignity during their recovery.</p>
<p>“Could the government put clothing and comfort items at the bedside of every wounded warrior? I absolutely think (it) could,” Nardizzi said. “Does that send the same signal to somebody’s who’s struggling, that your community is here for you, the American public hasn’t forgotten you and we’re supporting your recovery? No, I don’t think (it) would.”</p>
<p>WWP programs fall into four categories. Engagement programs help 28,600 warriors interact with communities and other vets; cognitive health courses help 4,260 warriors recover from post-traumatic stress or mild traumatic brain injury; physical health programs provide 8,800 warriors with wellness and nutrition counseling, and adaptive sporting events; and 8,700 warriors take WWP courses or receive skill training toward finding work, with a special emphasis on career paths in computers and information technology.</p>
<p>An Independence Program, he said, keeps 250 warriors with moderate-to-severe brain injury, spinal-cord injury or severe neurological conditions out of state nursing homes by ensuring that their family caregivers and support teams have all the resources needed to care for them at home.</p>
<p>Nardizzi said he welcomed a question on his WWP compensation, which IRS forms show was almost $400,000 in 2013, with 10 other WWP executives receiving at least $150,000. The WWP board of directors, he said, sets his salary based on CEO compensation at like-size charities.</p>
<p>“We’re trying to solve the world’s ills here … . We’re not putting a car out to market, (but) providing comprehensive services to help wounded warriors (to) move forward. And you don’t do that on a shoestring budget or with less-than-professional services, not if you want to do it right. So we pay people a competitive salary in the profession they’re in.”</p>
<p>To comment, write Military Update, P.O. Box 231111, Centreville, VA, 20120-1111; email <a href="mailto:[email protected]" type="external">[email protected]</a>; or tweet @Military_Update.</p>
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operation iraqi freedom ended three years ago us forces afghanistan longer engage routinely combat department defense lists fewer 52000 wounded two wars including march 2 afghanistan department veterans affairs says spending disability compensation health care rehabilitation vocational training caregiver support 73 percent since 2009 wounded warrior project ads still populate primetime hours appear mailboxes favorite websites audie murphy club sponsors 5k run wounded warrior project courtesy us army steven nardizzi chief executive officer wwp said project busier ever filling gaps education counseling activities needed honor empower warriors recent wars goal make iraq afghanistan veterans successful welladjusted generation wounded service members nations history advertisement dod data wounded dont include many thousands vets posttraumatic stress mildtomoderate traumatic brain injury said mentally wounded 78 percent warriors using wwp services yet represent fraction total could nardizzi added far america onboard wwp didnt exist dozen years ago concerned vets friends began giving returning wounded backpacks socks toiletries items make hospital stays comfortable today wwp annual revenues 325 million 500 employees spectrum programs help warriors heal body mind secure jobs engage society wwp assets jumped 56 million fiscal 2013 alone 166 million fundraising double uso juggernaut alongside many veterans charities program spending 117 million 2013 included 168 million grants charities including 250000 donation american red cross help wounded warriors affected hurricane sandy successful fundraising tool tv ads wounded warriors spouses mellow music celebrity spokesmen wwp also raises millions direct mail solicitations online advertising fundraising growing compound annual growth rate 4050 percent year year every year recession well way nardizzi said would agree incredibly sound fundraising go back period look program spending grown rate compound annual growth rate 4050 percent wwp fundraising plan said raising money sake raising money raise money programs make impact date 67000 wounded used least one wwp service benefit goal 100000 alumni 2017 advertisement lengthy phone interview nardizzi reviewed breadth wwp services exclusive generation served 911 wwp counts among newer charities offer human services warriors dont feel isolated shoved aside suffer loss dignity recovery could government put clothing comfort items bedside every wounded warrior absolutely think could nardizzi said send signal somebodys whos struggling community american public hasnt forgotten supporting recovery dont think would wwp programs fall four categories engagement programs help 28600 warriors interact communities vets cognitive health courses help 4260 warriors recover posttraumatic stress mild traumatic brain injury physical health programs provide 8800 warriors wellness nutrition counseling adaptive sporting events 8700 warriors take wwp courses receive skill training toward finding work special emphasis career paths computers information technology independence program said keeps 250 warriors moderatetosevere brain injury spinalcord injury severe neurological conditions state nursing homes ensuring family caregivers support teams resources needed care home nardizzi said welcomed question wwp compensation irs forms show almost 400000 2013 10 wwp executives receiving least 150000 wwp board directors said sets salary based ceo compensation likesize charities trying solve worlds ills putting car market providing comprehensive services help wounded warriors move forward dont shoestring budget lessthanprofessional services want right pay people competitive salary profession theyre comment write military update po box 231111 centreville va 201201111 email milupdateaolcom tweet military_update 160
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<p>Indexes rose throughout the day and finished with their biggest gains in about five months. Asian stocks jumped after the Bank of Japan moved to stimulate the economy, and European markets also rose. In the U.S, tech stocks climbed following strong quarterly results from Microsoft and Visa. Materials companies and banks also made large gains, and the price of oil rose for the fourth day in a row.</p>
<p>The U.S. government said Friday that the economy slowed in the fourth quarter, a possibility that had worried investors. But its estimate of the country's gross domestic product was about equal to analysts' forecasts and didn't hurt stocks.</p>
<p>The Dow Jones industrial average surged 396.66 points, or 2.5 percent, to 16,466.30. The Standard &amp; Poor's 500 index rose 46.88 points, or 2.5 percent, to 1,940.24, as more than 480 of its component stocks rose. The Nasdaq composite index jumped 107.28 points, or 2.4 percent, to 4,613.95.</p>
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<p>Stocks made some big gains in the last two weeks, but still finished January with hefty losses.</p>
<p>Microsoft added $3.04, or 5.8 percent, to $55.09 after its profit and revenue beat expectations. The tech giant posted strong results from its cloud computing business and the unit that sells PC software and Surface tablets and Xbox game consoles.</p>
<p>Visa and MasterCard both rose after reporting solid results. Visa climbed $5.16, or 7.4 percent, to $74.49 and MasterCard picked up $5.60, or 6.7 percent, to $89.03.</p>
<p>E-commerce company Amazon took its largest one-day slide in more than a year. Amazon's quarterly profit more than doubled, but it still fell short of Wall Street's forecasts because of increased costs. Some of those related to its Fulfillment by Amazon service, which handles shipping for sellers and makes them eligible for Amazon Prime shipping. The stock lost $48.35, or 7.6 percent, to $587.</p>
<p>Honeywell advanced $5.23, or 5.3 percent, to $103.20 following its fourth-quarter report, and General Electric added 89 cents, or 3.2 percent, to $29.10.</p>
<p>Xerox said it will split into two publicly traded companies after pressure from activist investor Carl Icahn. Its stock gained 52 cents, or 5.6 percent, to $9.75.</p>
<p>The Commerce Department said U.S. gross domestic product grew only 0.7 percent over the last three months of 2015, while analyst expected 0.8 percent. The agency said consumers spent less, businesses invested less, and exports were down because of global instability.</p>
<p>The U.S. economy has been expanding for six and a half years, but on Wednesday the Federal Reserve cautioned that the U.S. economy is slowing down. The Fed also expressed concerns about global growth. Stocks tumbled after the Fed released its assessment.</p>
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<p>Crude oil prices kept rising. Benchmark U.S. oil added 40 cents, or 1.2 percent, to $33.62 a barrel in New York. Brent crude, a benchmark for international oils, gained 85 cents, or 2.5 percent, to $34.74. Oil prices have increased for four days in a row as investors hope for cuts in global production.</p>
<p>U.S. government bond prices rose. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note fell to 1.93 percent from 1.98 percent. European bond yields also sank. The euro weakened to $1.0829 from $1.0955.</p>
<p>Consol Energy jumped $1.19, or 18 percent, to $7.94 following its fourth-quarter report and another increase in the price of natural gas.</p>
<p>Electronic Arts traded lower. Its profit and revenue forecasts fell a bit short of Wall Street estimates. The video game maker said sales of its "Star Wars: Battlefront" game were strong, but analysts said investors were disappointed with the number of downloads, which are more profitable than sales of physical games.</p>
<p>The stock gave up $5.25, or 7.5 percent, to $64.55. That was its largest daily loss in almost three years.</p>
<p>January was a tough month for the market, and the beginning of the year was the worst in the history of the Dow average and the S&amp;P 500 index. Both fell into a correction, or a drop of at least 10 percent from a recent peak.</p>
<p>The small-cap Russell 2000 index entered a bear market, which means a 20 percent slide.</p>
<p>The Dow and S&amp;P 500 both fell more than 5 percent in January, while the Nasdaq lost almost 8 percent. For each index, that was the largest drop in a single month in years. The Russell finished January down almost 9 percent.</p>
<p>Google's parent, Alphabet, might soon overtake Apple as the world's most valuable publicly traded company. Alphabet has surged over the last year while Apple has struggled. Both companies are valued at more than $500 billion, and Apple is currently about $16 billion above Alphabet.</p>
<p>On Friday the Bank of Japan said it will charge money to banks that leave large amounts of cash parked at the central bank. The policy is intended to encourage commercial banks to lend more money. That could stimulate investment and growth in Japan's struggling economy.</p>
<p>Japanese bonds and fell the dollar got stronger compared to the yen. Friday afternoon the dollar traded at 121.10 yen, a huge move for the currency, which traded at 118.78 yen late Thursday.</p>
<p>Luke Bartholomew, investment manager at Aberdeen Capital Management, said the move by Japan's central bank is a change of course for the bank and for its governor, Haruhiko Kuroda.</p>
<p>"The surprise is they're going to negative rates a little more than a week after Kuroda explicitly said they had no intention of doing so," Bartholomew said. He said the Bank of Japan will need to do more to strengthen Japan's economy.</p>
<p>Japan's Nikkei 225 jumped 2.8 percent and Hong Kong's Hang Seng gained 2.5 percent. The Shanghai Composite in mainland China rose 3.1 percent. European indexes also rose. Germany's DAX climbed 1.6 percent. Britain's FTSE 100 added 2.6 percent and France's CAC 40 advanced 2.2 percent.</p>
<p>Wholesale gasoline picked up 2.4 cents, or 2.2 percent, to $1.103 a gallon. Heating oil added 2.4 cents, or 2.3 percent, to $1.055 a gallon. Natural gas rose 11.6 cents, or 5.3 percent, to $2.298 per 1,000 cubic feet.</p>
<p>Metals prices didn't change much. Gold rose 80 cents to $1,116.40 an ounce and silver gained 1.1 cents to $14.243 an ounce. Copper added 1.6 cents to $2.067 a pound.</p>
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indexes rose throughout day finished biggest gains five months asian stocks jumped bank japan moved stimulate economy european markets also rose us tech stocks climbed following strong quarterly results microsoft visa materials companies banks also made large gains price oil rose fourth day row us government said friday economy slowed fourth quarter possibility worried investors estimate countrys gross domestic product equal analysts forecasts didnt hurt stocks dow jones industrial average surged 39666 points 25 percent 1646630 standard amp poors 500 index rose 4688 points 25 percent 194024 480 component stocks rose nasdaq composite index jumped 10728 points 24 percent 461395 advertisement stocks made big gains last two weeks still finished january hefty losses microsoft added 304 58 percent 5509 profit revenue beat expectations tech giant posted strong results cloud computing business unit sells pc software surface tablets xbox game consoles visa mastercard rose reporting solid results visa climbed 516 74 percent 7449 mastercard picked 560 67 percent 8903 ecommerce company amazon took largest oneday slide year amazons quarterly profit doubled still fell short wall streets forecasts increased costs related fulfillment amazon service handles shipping sellers makes eligible amazon prime shipping stock lost 4835 76 percent 587 honeywell advanced 523 53 percent 10320 following fourthquarter report general electric added 89 cents 32 percent 2910 xerox said split two publicly traded companies pressure activist investor carl icahn stock gained 52 cents 56 percent 975 commerce department said us gross domestic product grew 07 percent last three months 2015 analyst expected 08 percent agency said consumers spent less businesses invested less exports global instability us economy expanding six half years wednesday federal reserve cautioned us economy slowing fed also expressed concerns global growth stocks tumbled fed released assessment advertisement crude oil prices kept rising benchmark us oil added 40 cents 12 percent 3362 barrel new york brent crude benchmark international oils gained 85 cents 25 percent 3474 oil prices increased four days row investors hope cuts global production us government bond prices rose yield 10year treasury note fell 193 percent 198 percent european bond yields also sank euro weakened 10829 10955 consol energy jumped 119 18 percent 794 following fourthquarter report another increase price natural gas electronic arts traded lower profit revenue forecasts fell bit short wall street estimates video game maker said sales star wars battlefront game strong analysts said investors disappointed number downloads profitable sales physical games stock gave 525 75 percent 6455 largest daily loss almost three years january tough month market beginning year worst history dow average sampp 500 index fell correction drop least 10 percent recent peak smallcap russell 2000 index entered bear market means 20 percent slide dow sampp 500 fell 5 percent january nasdaq lost almost 8 percent index largest drop single month years russell finished january almost 9 percent googles parent alphabet might soon overtake apple worlds valuable publicly traded company alphabet surged last year apple struggled companies valued 500 billion apple currently 16 billion alphabet friday bank japan said charge money banks leave large amounts cash parked central bank policy intended encourage commercial banks lend money could stimulate investment growth japans struggling economy japanese bonds fell dollar got stronger compared yen friday afternoon dollar traded 12110 yen huge move currency traded 11878 yen late thursday luke bartholomew investment manager aberdeen capital management said move japans central bank change course bank governor haruhiko kuroda surprise theyre going negative rates little week kuroda explicitly said intention bartholomew said said bank japan need strengthen japans economy japans nikkei 225 jumped 28 percent hong kongs hang seng gained 25 percent shanghai composite mainland china rose 31 percent european indexes also rose germanys dax climbed 16 percent britains ftse 100 added 26 percent frances cac 40 advanced 22 percent wholesale gasoline picked 24 cents 22 percent 1103 gallon heating oil added 24 cents 23 percent 1055 gallon natural gas rose 116 cents 53 percent 2298 per 1000 cubic feet metals prices didnt change much gold rose 80 cents 111640 ounce silver gained 11 cents 14243 ounce copper added 16 cents 2067 pound ___
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<p>MOSCOW — Russia’s doping cover-up went far beyond the Olympics, according to a vast archive of emails released by a World Anti-Doping Agency investigator.</p>
<p>Besides the 12 medal winners from the 2014 Winter Olympics whose samples were supposedly tampered with, messages show a system which covered up drug use by blind athletes and children as young as 15.</p>
<p>In 2015, a year after the Olympics, Russia’s top doping scientist, Grigory Rodchenkov, complained that the scheme Richard McLaren termed the “disappearing positive methodology” had grown so large it was covering for doping — and apparent abuse of power — in disabled sports.</p>
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<p>Five blind athletes in powerlifting, a form of weightlifting, had tested positive for the banned steroid methandienone at the same training camp. Rodchenkov suspected unscrupulous coaches eager for medals were doping the athletes without their knowledge.</p>
<p>“It’s a disgrace,” Rodchenkov wrote to Alexei Velikodny of Russian state’s Sports Training Center. The coaches were “picking on the blind (who) can’t even see what people are giving them.”</p>
<p>A year earlier, the records show Velikodny issuing a “save” order for a 15-year-old competitor in track and field — the instruction which meant a failed test was reported as negative.</p>
<p>The young athlete — one of the most promising juniors in Russia at the time — was flagged up as a “Crimean athlete” in the emails, a distinction which may have helped him avoid a ban after testing positive for marijuana. It was May 2015, two months after Russia’s annexation of the Crimean peninsula, and a failed test at one of the first competitions in Russia featuring Crimeans could have been embarrassing.</p>
<p>McLaren’s report alleges more than 1,000 Russian athletes benefited from a cover-up scheme administered by government officials and Rodchenkov, the Moscow lab director who later fled Russia and turned his emails over to WADA. Following criticism that his intermediate report in July lacked evidence to back up its claims, McLaren’s full investigation is accompanied by a website containing thousands of pages of documents including years of emails, charts listing hundreds of suppressed tests and copious photographs of urine sample bottles with telltale scratches that McLaren says indicate they were tampered with.</p>
<p>None of the writers of the emails responded to requests for comment. However, the Russian authorities have not disputed the content of the messages. Some of the authors have been suspended from their jobs, as was then-Deputy Sports Minister Yuri Nagornykh, who was placed on leave in the summer and resigned in October.</p>
<p>The emails show a deeply corrupt system, with lab staff worried about their industrial-scale doping cover-up being exposed while they faced pressure from ambitious officials to “save” more top Russian athletes from doping scandals. Even Rodchenkov struggled to keep pace with the sheer scale of Russian doping.</p>
<p>In early March 2014, shortly after the Sochi Olympics had finished with Russia at the top of the medals table, Rodchenkov remained under pressure.</p>
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<p>By his own admission, Rodchenkov had spent Russia’s home Winter Olympics swapping dirty samples in the dead of night in the temporary Olympic laboratory in Sochi, covering for up to 12 medal winners whose samples appear to have been tampered with, according to the McLaren report.</p>
<p>Still, running the Sochi lab ahead of the Paralympics later in March, Rodchenkov was trying to hide his deceptions from the numerous foreign experts drafted in to ensure the lab ran smoothly. That didn’t stop him from coming under state pressure to cover up more cases, emails leaked by Rodchenkov and published by McLaren show.</p>
<p>“I can’t ignore OBVIOUSLY POSITIVE samples in front of everybody,” he wrote to the Sports Training Center’s Velikodny. That was in response to a message asking Rodchenkov to cover for nine track and field competitors shortly before the world indoor championships in Poland that month.</p>
<p>Six athletes could be “saved,” but Rodchenkov insisted three particularly egregious cases couldn’t be covered up. The athletes who gave them were now “corpses who can’t be brought back to life.”</p>
<p>Two months later Rodchenkov was again exasperated, telling Velikodny to “get track and field together and give them a final warning. They’ve lost all fear. They should all just be banned already.”</p>
<p>Velikodny’s response: “I agree!”</p>
<p>The Russian track team would be banned by the end of the year, though not in the way Rodchenkov had envisioned. A World Anti-Doping Agency investigation into the team was already underway and would publish a damning report in November 2015, causing track’s governing body to suspend Russia from all international competition, eventually including the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics.</p>
<p>The email archive contains hundreds of pages of messages, mostly between Rodchenkov and Velikodny, with occasional cameos from junior lab staff, drug-testing officials and Nataliya Zhelanova, who was anti-doping adviser to Sports Minister Vitaly Mutko. Mentions of Mutko and his deputy Nagornykh are limited to initials, making their direct involvement difficult to prove.</p>
<p>Russia’s cover-up was vast, with more than 1,000 athletes estimated to have been included. The sheer size was key to its success, giving the impression of an active, fully-functioning anti-doping system which in some years collected more samples than any other country, only to make positive tests vanish in the lab.</p>
<p>That size also meant involving many people at various level of the state sports system, a liability which was devastatingly exposed when a husband-and-wife team of whistleblowers — one an athlete on steroids, the other a disillusioned drug-test agency worker — went public in 2014 with damning, yet only partial, revelations about the system. That, in turn, led to the WADA reports which exposed the lab’s deepest secrets.</p>
<p>While covering for stars, officials routinely allowed obscure athletes to be banned in order to keep up the appearance of an efficient drug-testing system. Athletes’ well-being was almost never discussed. Despite repeated cases involving GW1516, a substance not considered fit for human consumption because of repeated cancer cases in animal testing, none of the emails contain any suggestions of discouraging its use.</p>
<p>The archive has its flaws, though. Documents from the Sochi Olympics themselves are notable by their absence — Rodchenkov has previously said he received instructions about the games in face-to-face meetings with Nagornykh, the deputy sports minister, and a “handler” from the FSB security service. Many documents are only available in the original Russian, or only in the English translation. Athletes’ names have been redacted but enough details of their competitive records remain that it’s possible to deduce many identities.</p>
<p>The writers certainly knew the risk if their emails were ever made public.</p>
<p>In November 2013, three months before the Olympics, Rodchenkov issued an order that Russian officials may wish he, too, had followed: “Delete all messages urgently!”</p>
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moscow russias doping coverup went far beyond olympics according vast archive emails released world antidoping agency investigator besides 12 medal winners 2014 winter olympics whose samples supposedly tampered messages show system covered drug use blind athletes children young 15 2015 year olympics russias top doping scientist grigory rodchenkov complained scheme richard mclaren termed disappearing positive methodology grown large covering doping apparent abuse power disabled sports advertisement five blind athletes powerlifting form weightlifting tested positive banned steroid methandienone training camp rodchenkov suspected unscrupulous coaches eager medals doping athletes without knowledge disgrace rodchenkov wrote alexei velikodny russian states sports training center coaches picking blind cant even see people giving year earlier records show velikodny issuing save order 15yearold competitor track field instruction meant failed test reported negative young athlete one promising juniors russia time flagged crimean athlete emails distinction may helped avoid ban testing positive marijuana may 2015 two months russias annexation crimean peninsula failed test one first competitions russia featuring crimeans could embarrassing mclarens report alleges 1000 russian athletes benefited coverup scheme administered government officials rodchenkov moscow lab director later fled russia turned emails wada following criticism intermediate report july lacked evidence back claims mclarens full investigation accompanied website containing thousands pages documents including years emails charts listing hundreds suppressed tests copious photographs urine sample bottles telltale scratches mclaren says indicate tampered none writers emails responded requests comment however russian authorities disputed content messages authors suspended jobs thendeputy sports minister yuri nagornykh placed leave summer resigned october emails show deeply corrupt system lab staff worried industrialscale doping coverup exposed faced pressure ambitious officials save top russian athletes doping scandals even rodchenkov struggled keep pace sheer scale russian doping early march 2014 shortly sochi olympics finished russia top medals table rodchenkov remained pressure advertisement admission rodchenkov spent russias home winter olympics swapping dirty samples dead night temporary olympic laboratory sochi covering 12 medal winners whose samples appear tampered according mclaren report still running sochi lab ahead paralympics later march rodchenkov trying hide deceptions numerous foreign experts drafted ensure lab ran smoothly didnt stop coming state pressure cover cases emails leaked rodchenkov published mclaren show cant ignore obviously positive samples front everybody wrote sports training centers velikodny response message asking rodchenkov cover nine track field competitors shortly world indoor championships poland month six athletes could saved rodchenkov insisted three particularly egregious cases couldnt covered athletes gave corpses cant brought back life two months later rodchenkov exasperated telling velikodny get track field together give final warning theyve lost fear banned already velikodnys response agree russian track team would banned end year though way rodchenkov envisioned world antidoping agency investigation team already underway would publish damning report november 2015 causing tracks governing body suspend russia international competition eventually including 2016 rio de janeiro olympics email archive contains hundreds pages messages mostly rodchenkov velikodny occasional cameos junior lab staff drugtesting officials nataliya zhelanova antidoping adviser sports minister vitaly mutko mentions mutko deputy nagornykh limited initials making direct involvement difficult prove russias coverup vast 1000 athletes estimated included sheer size key success giving impression active fullyfunctioning antidoping system years collected samples country make positive tests vanish lab size also meant involving many people various level state sports system liability devastatingly exposed husbandandwife team whistleblowers one athlete steroids disillusioned drugtest agency worker went public 2014 damning yet partial revelations system turn led wada reports exposed labs deepest secrets covering stars officials routinely allowed obscure athletes banned order keep appearance efficient drugtesting system athletes wellbeing almost never discussed despite repeated cases involving gw1516 substance considered fit human consumption repeated cancer cases animal testing none emails contain suggestions discouraging use archive flaws though documents sochi olympics notable absence rodchenkov previously said received instructions games facetoface meetings nagornykh deputy sports minister handler fsb security service many documents available original russian english translation athletes names redacted enough details competitive records remain possible deduce many identities writers certainly knew risk emails ever made public november 2013 three months olympics rodchenkov issued order russian officials may wish followed delete messages urgently
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<p>NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Oklahoma’s Baker Mayfield says one of his top priorities as he prepares for the NFL draft is to allay concerns about his character.</p>
<p>“People will have their guesses and their opinions on my character, but anyone that’s actually sat down and talked to me knows that I don’t have any character issues, any off-the-field issues,” Mayfield said Thursday night during a conference call after being selected the 2017 Manning Award winner.</p>
<p>Mayfield, who passed for 4,627 yards and 43 touchdowns, is the first Sooner and first former walk-on to win the Manning Award, which is given to the nation’s top college quarterback. It is the only award to consider postseason performances in voting by a national media panel as well as Archie, Peyton and Eli Manning.</p>
<p>Mayfield also won the Heisman Trophy this season. And after racking up prestigious accolades for his performances during live snaps, Mayfield said he’s eager to meet with NFL coaches and front-office personnel and explain why some of his antics after the whistle and his behavior off the field won’t be an issue going forward.</p>
<p>Last offseason, he was arrested on public intoxication charges, for which he reached a plea deal. His sportsmanship also was scrutinized after he planted a flag on the field after a victory at Ohio State, and after he made an obscene gesture toward opponents during a lopsided victory at Kansas.</p>
<p>“Mistakes happen. I feel like I’ve owned up to those mistakes and I’ve grown and learned from them,” Mayfield said. “So just moving forward, getting in front of (NFL coaches and front office personnel), I think that’s going to be the first thing I address. And then after that, it’s going to be about playing ball, competitiveness, about how much I care to win and how much I will do to achieve that.”</p>
<p>One person who does not need to be convinced is Archie Manning, who said he knows Mayfield personally as a participant in the Manning Passing Academy.</p>
<p>“We’re all crazy about Baker and thoroughly enjoyed his career,” Manning said. “He plays the game with passion. ... That’s why he’s been successful. I think that’s why he’ll continue to be successful.”</p>
<p>Mayfield led the Sooners to a Big 12 championship, as well as a semifinal berth in the College Football Playoff. But he said the semifinal loss to Georgia in the Rose Bowl still hurts and haunts him.</p>
<p>“Still haven’t really gotten over it,” he said. “Still having nightmares about some of the reads and some of the throws I made.”</p>
<p>Now, Mayfield asserts he’ll prepare for the NFL draft the same way he prepared to prove himself as a college — his numerous football honors notwithstanding.</p>
<p>“This type of training, it’s the type of stuff that I thrive on,” Mayfield said. “I know how to work. Not everything was given to me. I had to play the cards I was dealt, get better mentally, physically, push myself to limits that I didn’t think I was capable of, so this is another one of those scenarios.”</p>
<p>Mayfield, now working out in California, said he was in the gym recently when he noticed on TV that several draft projections did not list him among the top four quarterback prospects.</p>
<p>“So it’s the same thing over again, which is why I’m going to enjoy this,” Mayfield said. “Winning speaks for itself — competitive nature — those go a lot farther than any height and weight, any big arms can take you.”</p>
<p>Other finalists for this year’s Manning Award were: Ohio State’s J.T. Barrett, Clemson’s Kelly Bryant, Southern California’s Sam Darnold, Alabama’s Jalen Hurts, Louisville’s Lamar Jackson, Penn State’s Trace McSorley, UCF’s McKenzie Milton, Oklahoma State’s Mason Rudolph, Auburn’s Jarrett Stidham and Arizona’s Khalil Tate.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>For more AP college football coverage: <a href="http://collegefootball.ap.org" type="external" /> <a href="http://collegefootball.ap.org" type="external">http://collegefootball.ap.org</a> and <a href="http://twitter.com/AP_Top25" type="external" /> <a href="http://twitter.com/AP_Top25" type="external">http://twitter.com/AP_Top25</a></p>
<p>NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Oklahoma’s Baker Mayfield says one of his top priorities as he prepares for the NFL draft is to allay concerns about his character.</p>
<p>“People will have their guesses and their opinions on my character, but anyone that’s actually sat down and talked to me knows that I don’t have any character issues, any off-the-field issues,” Mayfield said Thursday night during a conference call after being selected the 2017 Manning Award winner.</p>
<p>Mayfield, who passed for 4,627 yards and 43 touchdowns, is the first Sooner and first former walk-on to win the Manning Award, which is given to the nation’s top college quarterback. It is the only award to consider postseason performances in voting by a national media panel as well as Archie, Peyton and Eli Manning.</p>
<p>Mayfield also won the Heisman Trophy this season. And after racking up prestigious accolades for his performances during live snaps, Mayfield said he’s eager to meet with NFL coaches and front-office personnel and explain why some of his antics after the whistle and his behavior off the field won’t be an issue going forward.</p>
<p>Last offseason, he was arrested on public intoxication charges, for which he reached a plea deal. His sportsmanship also was scrutinized after he planted a flag on the field after a victory at Ohio State, and after he made an obscene gesture toward opponents during a lopsided victory at Kansas.</p>
<p>“Mistakes happen. I feel like I’ve owned up to those mistakes and I’ve grown and learned from them,” Mayfield said. “So just moving forward, getting in front of (NFL coaches and front office personnel), I think that’s going to be the first thing I address. And then after that, it’s going to be about playing ball, competitiveness, about how much I care to win and how much I will do to achieve that.”</p>
<p>One person who does not need to be convinced is Archie Manning, who said he knows Mayfield personally as a participant in the Manning Passing Academy.</p>
<p>“We’re all crazy about Baker and thoroughly enjoyed his career,” Manning said. “He plays the game with passion. ... That’s why he’s been successful. I think that’s why he’ll continue to be successful.”</p>
<p>Mayfield led the Sooners to a Big 12 championship, as well as a semifinal berth in the College Football Playoff. But he said the semifinal loss to Georgia in the Rose Bowl still hurts and haunts him.</p>
<p>“Still haven’t really gotten over it,” he said. “Still having nightmares about some of the reads and some of the throws I made.”</p>
<p>Now, Mayfield asserts he’ll prepare for the NFL draft the same way he prepared to prove himself as a college — his numerous football honors notwithstanding.</p>
<p>“This type of training, it’s the type of stuff that I thrive on,” Mayfield said. “I know how to work. Not everything was given to me. I had to play the cards I was dealt, get better mentally, physically, push myself to limits that I didn’t think I was capable of, so this is another one of those scenarios.”</p>
<p>Mayfield, now working out in California, said he was in the gym recently when he noticed on TV that several draft projections did not list him among the top four quarterback prospects.</p>
<p>“So it’s the same thing over again, which is why I’m going to enjoy this,” Mayfield said. “Winning speaks for itself — competitive nature — those go a lot farther than any height and weight, any big arms can take you.”</p>
<p>Other finalists for this year’s Manning Award were: Ohio State’s J.T. Barrett, Clemson’s Kelly Bryant, Southern California’s Sam Darnold, Alabama’s Jalen Hurts, Louisville’s Lamar Jackson, Penn State’s Trace McSorley, UCF’s McKenzie Milton, Oklahoma State’s Mason Rudolph, Auburn’s Jarrett Stidham and Arizona’s Khalil Tate.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>For more AP college football coverage: <a href="http://collegefootball.ap.org" type="external" /> <a href="http://collegefootball.ap.org" type="external">http://collegefootball.ap.org</a> and <a href="http://twitter.com/AP_Top25" type="external" /> <a href="http://twitter.com/AP_Top25" type="external">http://twitter.com/AP_Top25</a></p>
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new orleans ap oklahomas baker mayfield says one top priorities prepares nfl draft allay concerns character people guesses opinions character anyone thats actually sat talked knows dont character issues offthefield issues mayfield said thursday night conference call selected 2017 manning award winner mayfield passed 4627 yards 43 touchdowns first sooner first former walkon win manning award given nations top college quarterback award consider postseason performances voting national media panel well archie peyton eli manning mayfield also heisman trophy season racking prestigious accolades performances live snaps mayfield said hes eager meet nfl coaches frontoffice personnel explain antics whistle behavior field wont issue going forward last offseason arrested public intoxication charges reached plea deal sportsmanship also scrutinized planted flag field victory ohio state made obscene gesture toward opponents lopsided victory kansas mistakes happen feel like ive owned mistakes ive grown learned mayfield said moving forward getting front nfl coaches front office personnel think thats going first thing address going playing ball competitiveness much care win much achieve one person need convinced archie manning said knows mayfield personally participant manning passing academy crazy baker thoroughly enjoyed career manning said plays game passion thats hes successful think thats hell continue successful mayfield led sooners big 12 championship well semifinal berth college football playoff said semifinal loss georgia rose bowl still hurts haunts still havent really gotten said still nightmares reads throws made mayfield asserts hell prepare nfl draft way prepared prove college numerous football honors notwithstanding type training type stuff thrive mayfield said know work everything given play cards dealt get better mentally physically push limits didnt think capable another one scenarios mayfield working california said gym recently noticed tv several draft projections list among top four quarterback prospects thing im going enjoy mayfield said winning speaks competitive nature go lot farther height weight big arms take finalists years manning award ohio states jt barrett clemsons kelly bryant southern californias sam darnold alabamas jalen hurts louisvilles lamar jackson penn states trace mcsorley ucfs mckenzie milton oklahoma states mason rudolph auburns jarrett stidham arizonas khalil tate ___ ap college football coverage httpcollegefootballaporg httptwittercomap_top25 new orleans ap oklahomas baker mayfield says one top priorities prepares nfl draft allay concerns character people guesses opinions character anyone thats actually sat talked knows dont character issues offthefield issues mayfield said thursday night conference call selected 2017 manning award winner mayfield passed 4627 yards 43 touchdowns first sooner first former walkon win manning award given nations top college quarterback award consider postseason performances voting national media panel well archie peyton eli manning mayfield also heisman trophy season racking prestigious accolades performances live snaps mayfield said hes eager meet nfl coaches frontoffice personnel explain antics whistle behavior field wont issue going forward last offseason arrested public intoxication charges reached plea deal sportsmanship also scrutinized planted flag field victory ohio state made obscene gesture toward opponents lopsided victory kansas mistakes happen feel like ive owned mistakes ive grown learned mayfield said moving forward getting front nfl coaches front office personnel think thats going first thing address going playing ball competitiveness much care win much achieve one person need convinced archie manning said knows mayfield personally participant manning passing academy crazy baker thoroughly enjoyed career manning said plays game passion thats hes successful think thats hell continue successful mayfield led sooners big 12 championship well semifinal berth college football playoff said semifinal loss georgia rose bowl still hurts haunts still havent really gotten said still nightmares reads throws made mayfield asserts hell prepare nfl draft way prepared prove college numerous football honors notwithstanding type training type stuff thrive mayfield said know work everything given play cards dealt get better mentally physically push limits didnt think capable another one scenarios mayfield working california said gym recently noticed tv several draft projections list among top four quarterback prospects thing im going enjoy mayfield said winning speaks competitive nature go lot farther height weight big arms take finalists years manning award ohio states jt barrett clemsons kelly bryant southern californias sam darnold alabamas jalen hurts louisvilles lamar jackson penn states trace mcsorley ucfs mckenzie milton oklahoma states mason rudolph auburns jarrett stidham arizonas khalil tate ___ ap college football coverage httpcollegefootballaporg httptwittercomap_top25
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<p>Martin O’Malley and Hillary Clinton disagreed last year on what to do about the Central American children who illegally crossed the border. But O’Malley went too far in claiming that Clinton wanted to “return refugee children from Central America summarily back to death gangs and the drug gangs.”</p>
<p>Clinton drew a distinction last year between migrants who crossed the border illegally for economic or family reasons and refugees whose lives would be in danger if they were deported. She favored returning migrant children to “responsible adults in their families” back in Central America. But she also said that she would not deport children who had “a legitimate claim for asylum” and “would face some terrible danger if they return.”</p>
<p>O’Malley, who served as mayor of Baltimore and governor of Maryland, is one of a few Democrats <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/post-politics/wp/2015/05/14/omalley-eyeing-the-presidency-plans-may-30-announcement/" type="external">preparing to challenge Clinton</a> for the Democratic presidential nomination. It has been clear for many months that O’Malley likely would run against Clinton and he gained some press coverage last summer when, on July 11, 2014, he “went to the left of Hillary Clinton on the border crisis,” <a href="http://www.realclearpolitics.com/video/2014/07/11/martin_omalley_we_are_not_a_country_that_should_turn_children_away.html" type="external">as Real Clear Politics put it</a>.</p>
<p>In the summer of 2014, there was a <a href="http://www.cbp.gov/newsroom/stats/southwest-border-unaccompanied-children" type="external">sharp increase in the number of unaccompanied immigrant children</a> from El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras who illegally crossed the U.S.-Mexico border. On June 30, 2014, President Obama <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2014/06/30/letter-president-efforts-address-humanitarian-situation-rio-grande-valle" type="external">sought money</a> from Congress to, among other things, expedite the deportation of the unaccompanied minors – which <a href="http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2014/07/02/immigration-obama-deportation-children-border/11915723/" type="external">drew criticism</a> from groups that support civil rights and less restrictive immigration policies.</p>
<p>Clinton supported the president’s position. But O’Malley said the Obama administration’s proposal would send the children “back to certain death.”</p>
<p>So there are differences between the candidates on that issue.</p>
<p>But O’Malley went too far when he recalled the border crisis during a campaign visit to New Hampshire, <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/post-politics/wp/2015/05/13/in-new-hampshire-omalley-makes-baltimore-unrest-part-of-his-pitch/" type="external">as reported by the Washington Post</a>:</p>
<p>Washington Post, May 13: O’Malley was also asked whether he thought Clinton’s embrace last week of several pro-immigration measures was genuine.</p>
<p>He instead cited his own record, which included standing up to the White House last year in the midst of a wave of undocumented minors coming over the border from Central America.</p>
<p>“I said many, many months ago when some were suggesting — including Secretary Clinton — that we should return refugee children from Central America summarily back to death gangs and the drug gangs in Honduras and Guatemala,” O’Malley said. “I said that that was inconsistent with our moral principles as a people, that we are a generous and compassionate nation.”</p>
<p>Clinton did not say or suggest that “refugee children” should be sent “summarily back to death gangs.” In fact, she said the opposite.</p>
<p>O’Malley’s staff forwarded us numerous citations of Clinton’s statements on the border crisis, beginning with remarks she made at a <a href="http://www.cnn.com/2014/06/17/politics/clinton-town-hall-what-to-watch/" type="external">June 17, 2014 town hall meeting</a> that were televised on CNN. The former Secretary of State attracted <a href="http://www.politico.com/story/2014/06/hillary-clinton-immigration-united-we-dream-blasts-108002.html" type="external">sharp</a> <a href="http://www.mercurynews.com/opinion/ci_26040461/ruben-navarrette-hillary-clintons-immigration-misstep" type="external">criticism</a> for saying: “We have to send a clear message. Just because your child gets across the border, that doesn’t mean the child gets to stay.” But that wasn’t all she said.</p>
<p>Her full response to the question shows she said some children should be returned to “responsible adults in their families” back home, but not all of them should be deported. She also said that allowing all of the children to stay would “encourage more children to make that dangerous journey” to the U.S.</p>
<p>Christiane Amanpour of CNN, June 17, 2014: So you are saying they should be sent back now.</p>
<p>Clinton: Well, they should be sent back as soon as it can be determined who responsible adults in their families are, because there are concerns about whether all of them can be sent back, but I think all of them who can be should be reunited with their families. And just as Vice President Joe Biden is arguing today in Central American, we’ve got to do more. I started this when I was secretary, to deal with the violence in this region, to deal with border security. But we have to send a clear message: Just because your child gets across the border, that doesn’t mean the child gets to stay. So we don’t want to send a message that’s contrary to our laws or will encourage more children to make that dangerous journey.</p>
<p>Clinton expounded on that answer five weeks later in interviews with John Harwood of the New York Times and Jorge Ramos of Fusion, a media company that is jointly owned by Univision and Disney/ABC Television.</p>
<p>In the interview with the Times, which appeared on July 24, 2014, Clinton made a distinction between migrant children and refugee children.</p>
<p>“We have two categories of people that are represented by these poor children that have come across our border. We have migrants, children who are leaving for a variety of reasons — economic, they want to reunite with family members,” she told the Times. “And we have refugees, people who have reason to be threatened, people who have bad probabilities if they return home as to what might happen to them.”</p>
<p>She said something similar to Ramos, who asked the question: “Who would you deport?” She responded: “Whoever was in the category of where they don’t have a legitimate claim for asylum.”</p>
<p>She also told Ramos that the Obama administration made a “good suggestion” to airlift certain at-risk Central American children to the U.S. A day earlier, on July 24, 2014, <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2014/07/25/world/americas/administration-weighs-plan-to-move-processing-of-youths-seeking-entry-to-honduras-.html" type="external">the New York Times reported</a> that the administration was considering creating a refugee program for children from Honduras. Clinton spoke about doing the same for children from El Salvador and Guatemala as well.</p>
<p>Ramos, July 25, 2014: I think no government should be in the business of deporting endangered children.</p>
<p>Clinton: No, of course not. That’s why we need a process to determine who falls into that category, and then I do think the Obama administration has made a good suggestion. We’ve done this in Vietnam. We’ve done this in Haiti. We should be setting up a system in Honduras, Guatemala, El Salvador, to screen kids. And in fact John McCain –</p>
<p>Ramos: Over there?</p>
<p>Clinton: Over there. Before they get in the hands of coyotes or get on ‘The Beast’ or they’re raped or terrible things happen to them.</p>
<p>That’s exactly what the Obama administration did in November, as we <a href="" type="internal">recently wrote about</a>.</p>
<p>As for tens of thousands of children who came here illegally, they were turned over to the Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) for placement under its <a href="http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/orr/programs/ucs/about" type="external">Unaccompanied Alien Children (UAC) program, as required by law</a>. Initially, the children were placed in temporary shelters, but they since have “either been transferred to standard shelters or released to sponsors while they await immigration proceedings,” according to the <a href="http://www.acf.hhs.gov/unaccompanied-children-frequently-asked-questions" type="external">ORR website</a>. The sponsors could be foster parents or relatives living in the U.S., <a href="" type="internal">as we explained in an item last year.</a></p>
<p>O’Malley’s staff makes the point that any child deported faces certain death. We understand the governor’s point, but in making it he misrepresented Clinton’s position.</p>
<p>Clinton advocated last year to protect refugee children from Central America — those living in the U.S. and those still in Central America — contrary to O’Malley’s claim that she suggested “we should return refugee children from Central America summarily back to death gangs and the drug gangs.”</p>
<p>— Eugene Kiely</p>
| false | 2 |
martin omalley hillary clinton disagreed last year central american children illegally crossed border omalley went far claiming clinton wanted return refugee children central america summarily back death gangs drug gangs clinton drew distinction last year migrants crossed border illegally economic family reasons refugees whose lives would danger deported favored returning migrant children responsible adults families back central america also said would deport children legitimate claim asylum would face terrible danger return omalley served mayor baltimore governor maryland one democrats preparing challenge clinton democratic presidential nomination clear many months omalley likely would run clinton gained press coverage last summer july 11 2014 went left hillary clinton border crisis real clear politics put summer 2014 sharp increase number unaccompanied immigrant children el salvador guatemala honduras illegally crossed usmexico border june 30 2014 president obama sought money congress among things expedite deportation unaccompanied minors drew criticism groups support civil rights less restrictive immigration policies clinton supported presidents position omalley said obama administrations proposal would send children back certain death differences candidates issue omalley went far recalled border crisis campaign visit new hampshire reported washington post washington post may 13 omalley also asked whether thought clintons embrace last week several proimmigration measures genuine instead cited record included standing white house last year midst wave undocumented minors coming border central america said many many months ago suggesting including secretary clinton return refugee children central america summarily back death gangs drug gangs honduras guatemala omalley said said inconsistent moral principles people generous compassionate nation clinton say suggest refugee children sent summarily back death gangs fact said opposite omalleys staff forwarded us numerous citations clintons statements border crisis beginning remarks made june 17 2014 town hall meeting televised cnn former secretary state attracted sharp criticism saying send clear message child gets across border doesnt mean child gets stay wasnt said full response question shows said children returned responsible adults families back home deported also said allowing children stay would encourage children make dangerous journey us christiane amanpour cnn june 17 2014 saying sent back clinton well sent back soon determined responsible adults families concerns whether sent back think reunited families vice president joe biden arguing today central american weve got started secretary deal violence region deal border security send clear message child gets across border doesnt mean child gets stay dont want send message thats contrary laws encourage children make dangerous journey clinton expounded answer five weeks later interviews john harwood new york times jorge ramos fusion media company jointly owned univision disneyabc television interview times appeared july 24 2014 clinton made distinction migrant children refugee children two categories people represented poor children come across border migrants children leaving variety reasons economic want reunite family members told times refugees people reason threatened people bad probabilities return home might happen said something similar ramos asked question would deport responded whoever category dont legitimate claim asylum also told ramos obama administration made good suggestion airlift certain atrisk central american children us day earlier july 24 2014 new york times reported administration considering creating refugee program children honduras clinton spoke children el salvador guatemala well ramos july 25 2014 think government business deporting endangered children clinton course thats need process determine falls category think obama administration made good suggestion weve done vietnam weve done haiti setting system honduras guatemala el salvador screen kids fact john mccain ramos clinton get hands coyotes get beast theyre raped terrible things happen thats exactly obama administration november recently wrote tens thousands children came illegally turned office refugee resettlement orr placement unaccompanied alien children uac program required law initially children placed temporary shelters since either transferred standard shelters released sponsors await immigration proceedings according orr website sponsors could foster parents relatives living us explained item last year omalleys staff makes point child deported faces certain death understand governors point making misrepresented clintons position clinton advocated last year protect refugee children central america living us still central america contrary omalleys claim suggested return refugee children central america summarily back death gangs drug gangs eugene kiely
| 669 |
<p>ABUJA, Jan 24 (Reuters) - Nigeria will hold an investigation into alleged corruption involving the state oil firm’s long-awaited Brass LNG project, including questions over the use of government funds.</p>
<p>The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation’s (NNPC) liquefied natural gas project has been stuck in the planning stages for more than a decade, with some Western partners having pulled out because of tough operating conditions and an unfavourable investment environment.</p>
<p>Nigeria’s Senate, the West African nation’s upper legislative house, voted on Wednesday to launch the investigation of Brass LNG and its banking records, the Senate motion document showed.</p>
<p>A spokesman for NNPC said the company has not received an invitation from the Senate regarding the investigation, declining to provide further comment.</p>
<p>The Brass LNG company was originally set up in 2003, with NNPC owning 49 percent and affiliates of Conoco Phillips , ENI and Chevron each holding 17 percent, according to the Senate motion, citing corporate records.</p>
<p>Since then, Chevron and Conoco Phillips have dropped out of the project.</p>
<p>In 2008 Total said that it had taken a stake in Brass LNG, without specifying the size.</p>
<p>Spokeswomen for ENI and Chevron declined to provide immediate comment. Total and Conoco Phillips did not respond immediately to emails seeking comment.</p>
<p>According to the Senate motion, while Brass LNG’s bank account was intended to be held by the Central Bank of Nigeria, corporate records show it is with Keystone Bank.</p>
<p>The Senate documents said that the most recent deposit into the account was $648 million in September 2016 and that it currently holds $137 million. It did not provide detail on the discrepancy between the September 2016 deposit and the current balance.</p>
<p>A Senate committee will examine investments into Brass LNG, returns for the federal government, whether due process was followed and the signatories to the bank account. It is due to report back in four weeks.</p>
<p>Adding to challenges faced by investors, the Brass LNG project, which was to have annual capacity of 10 million tonnes, also suffered from a lack of dedicated gas reserves to underpin 20-year supply deals. (Reporting by Camillus Eboh; Additional reporting by Oleg Vukmanovic in London; Writing by Paul Carsten; Editing by David Goodman)</p> Our Standards:
<a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a>
<p>WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Trump administration is expected to unveil up to $60 billion in new tariffs on Chinese imports by Friday, targeting technology, telecommunications and intellectual property, two officials briefed on the matter said Monday.</p>
<p>One business source, who has discussed the issue with the administration, said that the China tariffs may be subject to a public comment period, which would delay their effective date and allow industry groups and companies to lodge objections.</p>
<p>This would be considerably different from the quick implementation of the steel and aluminum tariffs, which are set to go into effect on March 23, just 15 days after President Donald Trump signed the proclamations.</p>
<p>A delayed approach could allow time for negotiations with Beijing to try to resolve trade issues related to the administration’s “Section 301” probe into China’s intellectual property practices before tariffs take effect.</p>
<p>The White House declined to comment Monday. China has vowed to take retaliatory measures in response.</p> Shipping containers are seen at Nansha terminal of Guangzhou port, in Guangdong province, China June 14, 2017. Picture taken June 14, 2017. REUTERS/Stringer
<p>Reuters first reported on the $60 billion in tariffs last week.</p>
<p>A source who had direct knowledge of the administration’s thinking told Reuters last week that the tariffs, authorized under the 1974 U.S. Trade Act, would be chiefly targeted at information technology, consumer electronics and telecoms and other products benefiting from U.S. intellectual property. But they could be much broader and hit consumer products such as clothing and footwear, with a list eventually running to 100 products, this person said.</p> FILE PHOTO - A U.S. flag is tweaked ahead of a news conference at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Beijing, Wednesday, Jan. 27, 2016. REUTERS/Jacquelyn Martin/Pool
<p>China runs a $375 billion trade surplus with the United States and when President Xi Jinping’s top economic adviser visited Washington recently, the administration pressed him to come up with a way of reducing that number.</p>
<p>In January, Trump told Reuters he was considering a big “fine” as part of a probe into China’s alleged theft of intellectual property. Trump said the Chinese government had forced U.S. companies to transfer their intellectual property to China as a cost of doing business there.</p>
<p>Expectations of the anti-China tariffs have alarmed dozens of U.S. business groups, who warned on Sunday they would raise prices for consumers, kill jobs and drive down financial markets.</p>
<p>Reporting by David Shepardson and Steve Holland in Washington and David Lawder in Buenos Aires; Editing by Lisa Shumaker</p> Our Standards:
<a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a>
<p>NEW YORK (Reuters) - As a senior vice president at Wachovia and then Morgan Stanley during the dark months of the 2008 and 2009 financial crisis, Derek Peterson watched as colleagues lost their jobs and life savings and wondered if he was next.</p>
<p>At the time, he was managing approximately $120 million in client assets, but was growing disenchanted with what he saw as a U.S. stock market driven by high-frequency trading and algorithms rather than fundamentals. He started looking for other opportunities, and soon stumbled on some of the first legal medical marijuana dispensaries that had opened in the San Francisco Bay Area.</p>
<p>“I started looking at this through a finance guy’s eyes and saw that maybe there was something going on here,” he said.</p>
<p>He soon discovered that dispensaries were bringing in sales of more than $4,000 per square foot, a rate higher than any U.S. retailer but Apple Inc , and more than 12 times the average $325 per square foot among all companies in the sector.</p>
<p>“You had places the size of Starbucks bringing in $15 million a year, which is absurd,” Peterson said.</p>
<p>He quit his day job at Morgan Stanley in late 2010, and in 2012 became chief executive officer and president of Terra Tech Corp, which is now a $247 million company that cultivates medical marijuana and whose shares trade on the over-the-counter market, making it one of the few publicly traded pot stocks.</p>
<p>Peterson is not alone in the jump from Wall Street to weed.</p>
<p>Ten years after the start of the financial crisis, what was once the province of shady stoners and drug cartels is now a thriving industry, with recreational marijuana legal in states ranging from California to Massachusetts. (Map: <a href="http://tmsnrt.rs/2AFalvZ" type="external">tmsnrt.rs/2AFalvZ</a>)</p>
<p>Powering the expansion of the industry are former Wall Street executives like Peterson that hail from such staid firms as BlackRock Inc , Goldman Sachs Group Inc and Prudential Financial Inc, all of whom say that they might not have ever left traditional finance if not for the lingering damage of the 2008 crisis.</p>
<p>There are few reliable numbers on how many former Wall Street professionals who now work in the cannabis industry, though those in the sector say that they expect the migration to accelerate as revenue growth continues to attract talent.</p>
<p>Companies in the U.S. marijuana market posted revenues of approximately $6 billion in 2017, a 500 percent increase from the roughly $1 billion in 2011, according to estimates from Marijuana Business Daily, a trade publication.</p> FILE PHOTO: A billboard advertising marijuana in advance of the upcoming legalization of recreational marijuana in San Francisco, California, U.S., December 29, 2017. REUTERS/Jim Christie/File Photo
<p>Approximately 250,000 people work in the sector, and both jobs and revenues are expected to double or triple over the next four years, the publication estimates.</p>
<p>“The financial crisis and the stagnation of many industries in the U.S. in its aftermath have led many people to consider this a viable career,” said Chris Walsh, editorial vice president at Marijuana Business Daily.</p> Slideshow (2 Images) LINGERING FEARS OF WASHINGTON
<p>Despite the growth prospects, many financial professionals are still too leery of federal law, which considers marijuana an illegal drug, to take a job in the industry until there are clear signals from Washington or a change in the makeup of government, said Ruth Epstein, a partner at San Francisco-based BGP Advisors, a business advisory firm that focuses on companies in the cannabis sector.</p>
<p>In January, the Justice Department reversed a policy from the Obama administration which allowed states to legalize marijuana without fears of a federal crackdown. That has had a “chilling effect” on recruiting within the industry, Epstein said.</p>
<p>“People have really been scared away from investing and to a large extent that same mentality is keeping the talent away,” said Epstein, a Harvard Business School graduate who spent nearly 10 years on the corporate finance desk at Goldman Sachs. That, in turn, has “created a massive opportunity for someone who understands finance and is willing to be out on the vanguard,” she added.</p>
<p>Morgan Paxhia, co-founder of San Francisco-based Poseidon Asset Management, a $25 million hedge fund that focuses exclusively on the marijuana sector, was a trader on the municipal debt desk at UBS in New York during the financial crisis. He would pass by the Lehman Brothers building each day on the way to work, and it felt as if “the building were just cratering around you,” he said.</p>
<p>He was laid off on March 9, 2009, the day that the U.S. stock market finally bottomed out. He spent a few years at a registered investment adviser before starting Poseidon with his sister, Emily, in 2013, attracted by the possibility of growth at a time when financial companies seemed to be overly cautious, he said.</p>
<p>“If the financial crisis never happened we would have banks in this industry already, but they won’t push this industry forward because they’re too afraid,” he said. “It’s opened up huge opportunities for those who are willing to come in and capitalize it.”</p>
<p>Peterson, the Terra Tech CEO, said that he now routinely fields calls from employees of large banks and investment firms who are looking to enter the industry. That is a steep change from his first few years in the pot sector, when it was still largely ruled by black-market growers and questionable outfits.</p>
<p>“When I first started out, the fact that I had worked on Wall Street made me seem like a real outsider, to the point where people would ask, “Are you a narc?’” he said, referring to a federal narcotics officer. “It’s in the last two years that we’ve seen a tremendous influx of people from traditional business backgrounds.”</p>
<p>Reporting by David Randall; Editing by Jennifer Ablan and Lisa Shumaker</p> Our Standards:
<a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a>
<p>(Reuters) - Salesforce.com Inc ( <a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=CRM.N" type="external">CRM.N</a>) is in advanced discussions to acquire U.S. software maker MuleSoft Inc ( <a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=MULE.N" type="external">MULE.N</a>), people familiar with the matter told Reuters on Tuesday, as it looks to expand its offerings beyond customer relationship management software.</p> FILE PHOTO - The Salesforce logo is pictured on a building in San Francisco, California, U.S. October 12, 2016. REUTERS/Lily Jamali/File Photo
<p>The acquisition, which the sources said could be worth more than $6 billion, would be Salesforce’s biggest ever deal, illustrating Chief Executive Marc Benioff’s push to supplement the company’s cloud-based portfolio with new technology.</p>
<p>A deal could be announced as soon as this week, the sources said, cautioning that negotiations had not been finalized and that an agreement was not certain.</p>
<p>The sources asked not to be identified because the negotiations are confidential. Salesforce and MuleSoft declined to comment.</p>
<p>MuleSoft shares jumped more than 20 percent to $39.88 after Reuters reported the talks, giving the company a market value of $5.3 billion. Salesforce shares were up 0.3 percent at $125.31.</p>
<p>Based in San Francisco, MuleSoft makes software that automatically integrates disparate data, devices and applications to help companies’ networks run faster. It could help Salesforce win business from customers which are not yet ready to transition their systems to the cloud.</p>
<p>Buying MuleSoft would help Salesforce build a larger enterprise apps ecosystem around its own products, Barclays Plc ( <a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=BARC.L" type="external">BARC.L</a>) analysts wrote in a research note, adding that MuleSoft could command a premium given its rapid growth and good fit.</p>
<p>Salesforce Ventures, the company’s venture capital arm, led a $128 million funding round in MuleSoft in 2015.</p>
<a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=CRM.N" type="external">Salesforce.com Inc</a> 125.12 CRM.N New York Stock Exchange +0.14 (+0.11%) CRM.N MULE.N BARC.L KO.N MCD.N
<p>MuleSoft has more than 1,000 customers, including Coca-Cola Co ( <a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=KO.N" type="external">KO.N</a>), McDonald’s Corp ( <a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=MCD.N" type="external">MCD.N</a>), Spotify and Unilever ( <a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=ULVR.L" type="external">ULVR.L</a>). It went public about a year ago.</p>
<p>Salesforce holds more than 18 percent of the global customer relationship management software market, followed by Oracle Corp ( <a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=ORCL.N" type="external">ORCL.N</a>) with 9.4 percent, according to 2016 figures provided by research firm IDC.</p>
<p>Alphabet Inc’s ( <a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=GOOGL.O" type="external">GOOGL.O</a>) Google acquired a competitor of MuleSoft called Apigee Corp in a $625 million deal in 2016.</p>
<p>Salesforce has benefited from companies switching to cloud-based services due to the lower costs and high level of scalability. Last month, it posted a quarterly profit that topped Wall Street targets, fueled by growth in its cloud-based sales and marketing software.</p>
<p>Reporting by Liana B. Baker and Greg Roumeliotis in New York; Additional reporting by Stephen Nellis in San Francisco; Editing by Bill Rigby and Meredith Mazzilli</p> Our Standards:
<a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a>
<p>(Reuters) - Toys ‘R’ Us said at a bankruptcy court hearing on Tuesday that it was working hard to maximize payments to suppliers and lenders, as it starts to shutter 735 big-box toy stores across the United States.</p> FILE PHOTO - People pass by Toys R Us store at Times Square in New York, U.S., March 9, 2018. REUTERS/Eduardo Munoz/File Photo
<p>More than 50 suppliers, including Barbie maker Mattel ( <a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=MAT.O" type="external">MAT.O</a>) and Lego, have objected in some form to the proceedings by the storied toy retailer to liquidate its U.S. business, putting 30,000 jobs at risk.</p>
<p>Toys ‘R’ Us had been trying to reorganize under U.S. Chapter 11 but last week said those efforts had failed and it was quickly running out of cash. It is also winding down its U.K business, but is looking for a buyer for operations in Canada, Europe and Asia.</p>
<p>Some trade vendors are demanding the company return any unpaid inventory rather than selling it and using going out of business sales to pay secured lenders and bankruptcy lawyers, at their cost, court papers showed.</p>
<p>“We’re making every effort to make sure (trade vendors) will be paid in full,” Lazard’s David Kurtz, who is advising Toys ‘R’ Us, testified at a hearing at U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Richmond, Virginia.</p>
<p>The company is seeking approval for a March 26 deadline for bids for each of its foreign businesses, minus U.K., followed by an auction on March 29.</p>
<p>It is also seeking approval for a series of U.S. liquidation procedures including a halt to more than $450 million in supplier payments as part of a plan that experts told Reuters could cause many small toy makers to disappear.</p>
<p>Toys ‘R’ Us was the last remaining specialty toy retailer in the United States. Hundreds of companies relied on its big-box stores as a showcase for both innovative toys as well as classics.</p>
<a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=MAT.O" type="external">Mattel Inc</a> 12.97 MAT.O Nasdaq -0.25 (-1.89%) MAT.O
<p>Under trade agreements, vendors were required to ship goods to Toys ‘R’ Us on unsecured trade credit.</p>
<p>In a court filing, Lego said any “wind-down must be implemented in a manner that is fair and equitable to all” of the company’s creditors.</p>
<p>The U.S. Trustee, a bankruptcy watchdog, has also objected, saying that while it is “resigned” to the company’s future, it is concerned about certain of the procedures and relief proposed as part of the liquidation.</p>
<p>Toys ‘R’ Us financial advisor Bill Kosturos of Alvarez &amp; Marsal was also testifying at the hearing before U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Keith Phillips, which could run into Wednesday.</p>
<p>Reporting by Tracy Rucinski; Editing by David Gregorio</p> Our Standards:
<a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a>
| false | 2 |
abuja jan 24 reuters nigeria hold investigation alleged corruption involving state oil firms longawaited brass lng project including questions use government funds nigerian national petroleum corporations nnpc liquefied natural gas project stuck planning stages decade western partners pulled tough operating conditions unfavourable investment environment nigerias senate west african nations upper legislative house voted wednesday launch investigation brass lng banking records senate motion document showed spokesman nnpc said company received invitation senate regarding investigation declining provide comment brass lng company originally set 2003 nnpc owning 49 percent affiliates conoco phillips eni chevron holding 17 percent according senate motion citing corporate records since chevron conoco phillips dropped project 2008 total said taken stake brass lng without specifying size spokeswomen eni chevron declined provide immediate comment total conoco phillips respond immediately emails seeking comment according senate motion brass lngs bank account intended held central bank nigeria corporate records show keystone bank senate documents said recent deposit account 648 million september 2016 currently holds 137 million provide detail discrepancy september 2016 deposit current balance senate committee examine investments brass lng returns federal government whether due process followed signatories bank account due report back four weeks adding challenges faced investors brass lng project annual capacity 10 million tonnes also suffered lack dedicated gas reserves underpin 20year supply deals reporting camillus eboh additional reporting oleg vukmanovic london writing paul carsten editing david goodman standards thomson reuters trust principles washington reuters trump administration expected unveil 60 billion new tariffs chinese imports friday targeting technology telecommunications intellectual property two officials briefed matter said monday one business source discussed issue administration said china tariffs may subject public comment period would delay effective date allow industry groups companies lodge objections would considerably different quick implementation steel aluminum tariffs set go effect march 23 15 days president donald trump signed proclamations delayed approach could allow time negotiations beijing try resolve trade issues related administrations section 301 probe chinas intellectual property practices tariffs take effect white house declined comment monday china vowed take retaliatory measures response shipping containers seen nansha terminal guangzhou port guangdong province china june 14 2017 picture taken june 14 2017 reutersstringer reuters first reported 60 billion tariffs last week source direct knowledge administrations thinking told reuters last week tariffs authorized 1974 us trade act would chiefly targeted information technology consumer electronics telecoms products benefiting us intellectual property could much broader hit consumer products clothing footwear list eventually running 100 products person said file photo us flag tweaked ahead news conference ministry foreign affairs beijing wednesday jan 27 2016 reutersjacquelyn martinpool china runs 375 billion trade surplus united states president xi jinpings top economic adviser visited washington recently administration pressed come way reducing number january trump told reuters considering big fine part probe chinas alleged theft intellectual property trump said chinese government forced us companies transfer intellectual property china cost business expectations antichina tariffs alarmed dozens us business groups warned sunday would raise prices consumers kill jobs drive financial markets reporting david shepardson steve holland washington david lawder buenos aires editing lisa shumaker standards thomson reuters trust principles new york reuters senior vice president wachovia morgan stanley dark months 2008 2009 financial crisis derek peterson watched colleagues lost jobs life savings wondered next time managing approximately 120 million client assets growing disenchanted saw us stock market driven highfrequency trading algorithms rather fundamentals started looking opportunities soon stumbled first legal medical marijuana dispensaries opened san francisco bay area started looking finance guys eyes saw maybe something going said soon discovered dispensaries bringing sales 4000 per square foot rate higher us retailer apple inc 12 times average 325 per square foot among companies sector places size starbucks bringing 15 million year absurd peterson said quit day job morgan stanley late 2010 2012 became chief executive officer president terra tech corp 247 million company cultivates medical marijuana whose shares trade overthecounter market making one publicly traded pot stocks peterson alone jump wall street weed ten years start financial crisis province shady stoners drug cartels thriving industry recreational marijuana legal states ranging california massachusetts map tmsnrtrs2afalvz powering expansion industry former wall street executives like peterson hail staid firms blackrock inc goldman sachs group inc prudential financial inc say might ever left traditional finance lingering damage 2008 crisis reliable numbers many former wall street professionals work cannabis industry though sector say expect migration accelerate revenue growth continues attract talent companies us marijuana market posted revenues approximately 6 billion 2017 500 percent increase roughly 1 billion 2011 according estimates marijuana business daily trade publication file photo billboard advertising marijuana advance upcoming legalization recreational marijuana san francisco california us december 29 2017 reutersjim christiefile photo approximately 250000 people work sector jobs revenues expected double triple next four years publication estimates financial crisis stagnation many industries us aftermath led many people consider viable career said chris walsh editorial vice president marijuana business daily slideshow 2 images lingering fears washington despite growth prospects many financial professionals still leery federal law considers marijuana illegal drug take job industry clear signals washington change makeup government said ruth epstein partner san franciscobased bgp advisors business advisory firm focuses companies cannabis sector january justice department reversed policy obama administration allowed states legalize marijuana without fears federal crackdown chilling effect recruiting within industry epstein said people really scared away investing large extent mentality keeping talent away said epstein harvard business school graduate spent nearly 10 years corporate finance desk goldman sachs turn created massive opportunity someone understands finance willing vanguard added morgan paxhia cofounder san franciscobased poseidon asset management 25 million hedge fund focuses exclusively marijuana sector trader municipal debt desk ubs new york financial crisis would pass lehman brothers building day way work felt building cratering around said laid march 9 2009 day us stock market finally bottomed spent years registered investment adviser starting poseidon sister emily 2013 attracted possibility growth time financial companies seemed overly cautious said financial crisis never happened would banks industry already wont push industry forward theyre afraid said opened huge opportunities willing come capitalize peterson terra tech ceo said routinely fields calls employees large banks investment firms looking enter industry steep change first years pot sector still largely ruled blackmarket growers questionable outfits first started fact worked wall street made seem like real outsider point people would ask narc said referring federal narcotics officer last two years weve seen tremendous influx people traditional business backgrounds reporting david randall editing jennifer ablan lisa shumaker standards thomson reuters trust principles reuters salesforcecom inc crmn advanced discussions acquire us software maker mulesoft inc mulen people familiar matter told reuters tuesday looks expand offerings beyond customer relationship management software file photo salesforce logo pictured building san francisco california us october 12 2016 reuterslily jamalifile photo acquisition sources said could worth 6 billion would salesforces biggest ever deal illustrating chief executive marc benioffs push supplement companys cloudbased portfolio new technology deal could announced soon week sources said cautioning negotiations finalized agreement certain sources asked identified negotiations confidential salesforce mulesoft declined comment mulesoft shares jumped 20 percent 3988 reuters reported talks giving company market value 53 billion salesforce shares 03 percent 12531 based san francisco mulesoft makes software automatically integrates disparate data devices applications help companies networks run faster could help salesforce win business customers yet ready transition systems cloud buying mulesoft would help salesforce build larger enterprise apps ecosystem around products barclays plc barcl analysts wrote research note adding mulesoft could command premium given rapid growth good fit salesforce ventures companys venture capital arm led 128 million funding round mulesoft 2015 salesforcecom inc 12512 crmn new york stock exchange 014 011 crmn mulen barcl kon mcdn mulesoft 1000 customers including cocacola co kon mcdonalds corp mcdn spotify unilever ulvrl went public year ago salesforce holds 18 percent global customer relationship management software market followed oracle corp orcln 94 percent according 2016 figures provided research firm idc alphabet incs googlo google acquired competitor mulesoft called apigee corp 625 million deal 2016 salesforce benefited companies switching cloudbased services due lower costs high level scalability last month posted quarterly profit topped wall street targets fueled growth cloudbased sales marketing software reporting liana b baker greg roumeliotis new york additional reporting stephen nellis san francisco editing bill rigby meredith mazzilli standards thomson reuters trust principles reuters toys r us said bankruptcy court hearing tuesday working hard maximize payments suppliers lenders starts shutter 735 bigbox toy stores across united states file photo people pass toys r us store times square new york us march 9 2018 reuterseduardo munozfile photo 50 suppliers including barbie maker mattel mato lego objected form proceedings storied toy retailer liquidate us business putting 30000 jobs risk toys r us trying reorganize us chapter 11 last week said efforts failed quickly running cash also winding uk business looking buyer operations canada europe asia trade vendors demanding company return unpaid inventory rather selling using going business sales pay secured lenders bankruptcy lawyers cost court papers showed making every effort make sure trade vendors paid full lazards david kurtz advising toys r us testified hearing us bankruptcy court richmond virginia company seeking approval march 26 deadline bids foreign businesses minus uk followed auction march 29 also seeking approval series us liquidation procedures including halt 450 million supplier payments part plan experts told reuters could cause many small toy makers disappear toys r us last remaining specialty toy retailer united states hundreds companies relied bigbox stores showcase innovative toys well classics mattel inc 1297 mato nasdaq 025 189 mato trade agreements vendors required ship goods toys r us unsecured trade credit court filing lego said winddown must implemented manner fair equitable companys creditors us trustee bankruptcy watchdog also objected saying resigned companys future concerned certain procedures relief proposed part liquidation toys r us financial advisor bill kosturos alvarez amp marsal also testifying hearing us bankruptcy judge keith phillips could run wednesday reporting tracy rucinski editing david gregorio standards thomson reuters trust principles
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<p>The Springs Resort and Spa in Pagosa Springs, Colo., is owned by the daughters of Bill Whittington, who, with his brother Don, is under federal investigation for possibly laundering drug money. (Source: <a href="http://DurangoHerald.com" type="external">DurangoHerald.com</a>)</p>
<p>Copyright © 2013 Albuquerque Journal</p>
<p>Federal agents are investigating two brothers – former race car drivers with ties to New Mexico – for alleged drug trafficking and money laundering, the latter connected to a Pagosa Springs resort owned by a pair of prominent businesswomen from the same family who have many Albuquerque investments.</p>
<p>Don Whittington, 67, and Bill Whittington, 64, leased aircraft from their Florida business, World Jet Inc., at inflated prices to drug cartels, then laundered the proceeds through The Springs Resort &amp; Spa in Colorado, owned by Bill Whittington’s daughters – Keely and Nerissa Whittington – according to allegations in a DEA search warrant affidavit.</p>
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<p>The city of Pagosa Springs recently approved an expansion at the resort.</p>
<p>The Whittingtons have denied any wrongdoing and no one has been arrested or charged with a crime.</p>
<p>Nerissa Whittington and Keely Whittington have been prominent members of Albuquerque’s business community for more than a decade. They are best known for their companies Gulfstream Worldwide Realty, a commercial real estate services firm, and bigbyte.cc, a co-location data center, as well as their charitable work and public service.</p>
<p>“Keely and I have been maintaining our businesses and various ventures in New Mexico for over twenty years,” Nerissa said in a statement to the Journal. “Like ourselves, the businesses participate in community efforts, community support and other social engagements to be the best neighbors we can.</p>
<p>“Keely and I plan to submit documents as requested to any federal authorities. We have not been charged with any crime and are fully participating in the ongoing record review.”</p>
<p>Nerissa Whittington, who is currently on the board of the Downtown Action Team, served on the State Fair Commission in the late 2000s and was named a 2009 Women in Technology winner by the New Mexico Technology Council. Keely was an unsuccessful candidate for Albuquerque City Council in 2003.</p>
<p>Both have served on the boards of numerous charities and nonprofits.</p>
<p>DEA, FBI and Homeland Security agents raided the offices of World Jet Inc. in Fort Lauderdale last week. Mia Ro, a DEA spokeswoman in Miami, confirmed to the Associated Press that her agency is leading the investigation but declined to provide details.</p>
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<p>The DEA affidavit filed in a Colorado federal court said World Jet leased aircraft for inflated prices to drug traffickers in Colombia, Venezuela, Mexico and Africa, keeping the planes under the Whittington name or that of a third party and maintaining a U.S. tail number. After a certain period, the aircraft would be returned to World Jet.</p>
<p>“In the event that the aircraft is seized pursuant to a narcotics interdiction, both parties can deny responsibility and World Jet Inc. can reclaim the aircraft,” the DEA said in the affidavit.</p>
<p>The case has attracted national attention because Bill and Don Whittington raced in the Indianapolis 500 and other races, teaming up with a third driver to win France’s 24 Hours of Le Mans race in 1979.</p>
<p>In 1986, the brothers entered into a plea agreement in federal court in Florida on charges stemming from an investigation into what was described as a $73 million marijuana-smuggling enterprise. Prosecutors alleged the drug profits financed their racing careers.</p>
<p>In early 1987, Bill Whittington was sentenced to five years in prison and the forfeiture of between $7 million and $12 million in assets. Don Whittington was sentenced to 18 months in prison, according to published reports.</p>
<p>Family ties</p>
<p>The Journal reported the purchase of the Springs Resort &amp; Spa by Nerissa and Keely Whittington in January 2005 in a story that reported the women had owned property in the Pagosa Springs area for decades and that Nerissa graduated from the local high school.</p>
<p>The proposed expansion includes raising the number of geothermal pools from 18 to 23 and building a 29-room hotel. The DEA in court documents said it suspects money from the aircraft operation to drug smugglers has been invested in the resort.</p>
<p>The spa’s parent company has the same address as World Jet in Fort Lauderdale. The Durango Herald newspaper reported that the address is for a hangar at Fort Lauderdale Executive Airport.</p>
<p>The DEA visited Whittington Motor Sports, a car dealership near Menaul and San Pedro in Albuquerque, on Nov. 22, but the agency didn’t say what it was looking for or why it was there. The dealership is owned by Dale Whittington Jr., the nephew of Don and Bill Whittington.</p>
<p>“We’re not commenting on what we did and what we didn’t do,” Eduardo Chavez, a group supervisor for the DEA in Albuquerque, told the Journal. “We can confirm we were there.”</p>
<p>In a Nov. 9 Journal story, Dale Whittington attributed his success with the dealership to his uncle Bill Whittington.</p>
<p>According to the DEA affidavit obtained by the Journal, Dale Whittington Jr. has picked up Don and Bill Whittington from the Albuquerque International Sunport, and the DEA noted suspicious activity around the local business.</p>
<p>“Initial bank record checks revealed multiple suspicious cash transactions being conducted by Whittington Motorsports of Albuquerque with multiple used car auction houses and brokers/sellers,” the 30-page affidavit reads.</p>
<p>ABQ investments</p>
<p>In early 2001, the Whittington family invested some $6 million to convert a 60,000-square-foot former bank building at 123 Central NW into a wired-up, backup-powered “telecom hotel,” or data center. The building, which sits on about two acres, was part of the site that the city of Albuquerque was considering for a Downtown arena in the mid-2000s. The Whittingtons were reluctant to sell the property because of their investment, according to media reports at the time. The arena idea eventually died.</p>
<p>The Gulfstream company has been a major player in commercial real estate.</p>
<p>The company bought the 18-story office building at Central and San Mateo NE in the early 1990s and sold it about 10 years later. In the mid-2000s, it also bought and sold the Santa Fe Outlets shopping center at Cerrillos Road and Interstate 25 in Santa Fe. Ten years ago, Gulfstream got the listing to sell what was then the Philips Semiconductors plant, now the I-25 Studios.</p>
<p>The Whittington family has roots in New Mexico dating back to the 1800s, when a forebear settled in Tucumcari, according to the Gulfstream website. Bill and Don’s father, R.D. Whittington, opened the first car dealership in Tucumcari before eventually moving the family to Fort Lauderdale.</p>
<p>The Associated Press and Durango Herald contributed to this report.</p>
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springs resort spa pagosa springs colo owned daughters bill whittington brother federal investigation possibly laundering drug money source durangoheraldcom copyright 2013 albuquerque journal federal agents investigating two brothers former race car drivers ties new mexico alleged drug trafficking money laundering latter connected pagosa springs resort owned pair prominent businesswomen family many albuquerque investments whittington 67 bill whittington 64 leased aircraft florida business world jet inc inflated prices drug cartels laundered proceeds springs resort amp spa colorado owned bill whittingtons daughters keely nerissa whittington according allegations dea search warrant affidavit advertisement city pagosa springs recently approved expansion resort whittingtons denied wrongdoing one arrested charged crime nerissa whittington keely whittington prominent members albuquerques business community decade best known companies gulfstream worldwide realty commercial real estate services firm bigbytecc colocation data center well charitable work public service keely maintaining businesses various ventures new mexico twenty years nerissa said statement journal like businesses participate community efforts community support social engagements best neighbors keely plan submit documents requested federal authorities charged crime fully participating ongoing record review nerissa whittington currently board downtown action team served state fair commission late 2000s named 2009 women technology winner new mexico technology council keely unsuccessful candidate albuquerque city council 2003 served boards numerous charities nonprofits dea fbi homeland security agents raided offices world jet inc fort lauderdale last week mia ro dea spokeswoman miami confirmed associated press agency leading investigation declined provide details advertisement dea affidavit filed colorado federal court said world jet leased aircraft inflated prices drug traffickers colombia venezuela mexico africa keeping planes whittington name third party maintaining us tail number certain period aircraft would returned world jet event aircraft seized pursuant narcotics interdiction parties deny responsibility world jet inc reclaim aircraft dea said affidavit case attracted national attention bill whittington raced indianapolis 500 races teaming third driver win frances 24 hours le mans race 1979 1986 brothers entered plea agreement federal court florida charges stemming investigation described 73 million marijuanasmuggling enterprise prosecutors alleged drug profits financed racing careers early 1987 bill whittington sentenced five years prison forfeiture 7 million 12 million assets whittington sentenced 18 months prison according published reports family ties journal reported purchase springs resort amp spa nerissa keely whittington january 2005 story reported women owned property pagosa springs area decades nerissa graduated local high school proposed expansion includes raising number geothermal pools 18 23 building 29room hotel dea court documents said suspects money aircraft operation drug smugglers invested resort spas parent company address world jet fort lauderdale durango herald newspaper reported address hangar fort lauderdale executive airport dea visited whittington motor sports car dealership near menaul san pedro albuquerque nov 22 agency didnt say looking dealership owned dale whittington jr nephew bill whittington commenting didnt eduardo chavez group supervisor dea albuquerque told journal confirm nov 9 journal story dale whittington attributed success dealership uncle bill whittington according dea affidavit obtained journal dale whittington jr picked bill whittington albuquerque international sunport dea noted suspicious activity around local business initial bank record checks revealed multiple suspicious cash transactions conducted whittington motorsports albuquerque multiple used car auction houses brokerssellers 30page affidavit reads abq investments early 2001 whittington family invested 6 million convert 60000squarefoot former bank building 123 central nw wiredup backuppowered telecom hotel data center building sits two acres part site city albuquerque considering downtown arena mid2000s whittingtons reluctant sell property investment according media reports time arena idea eventually died gulfstream company major player commercial real estate company bought 18story office building central san mateo ne early 1990s sold 10 years later mid2000s also bought sold santa fe outlets shopping center cerrillos road interstate 25 santa fe ten years ago gulfstream got listing sell philips semiconductors plant i25 studios whittington family roots new mexico dating back 1800s forebear settled tucumcari according gulfstream website bill dons father rd whittington opened first car dealership tucumcari eventually moving family fort lauderdale associated press durango herald contributed report 160
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<a href="http://www.rudaw.net/english/kurdistan/260920176" type="external">reports</a> from Kurdish news outlet Rudaw, an independence referendum passed in
<a href="http://www.kurdishaspect.com/doc060910SK.html" type="external">Kurdistan</a>, a geo-cultural region in the Middle East that roughly encompasses northeastern Syria, northern Iraq, eastern Iran, and southeastern Turkey. 91.83% of voters said yes to independence, with a total voter turnout of 77.83%. This vote was first
<a href="http://www.rudaw.net/mobile/english/kurdistan/070620171" type="external">announced</a> on 7 June by the Kurdistan Regional Government. Speaking at a press conference in Istanbul on Monday, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan denounced the independence referendum and promised that “economic, trade, and security counter-measures” would be taken against the province if it became independent, according to
<a href="http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/turkey-to-act-if-iraqi-kurdish-referendum-poses-security-risk.aspx?pageID=238&amp;nID=118356&amp;NewsCatID=510" type="external">Hurriyet Daily News</a>. Erdogan mentioned military exercises already taking place in Silopi, a Turkish district that lies on the Turkey-Iraq border,
<a href="http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/turkey-to-act-if-iraqi-kurdish-referendum-poses-security-risk.aspx?pageID=238&amp;nID=118356&amp;NewsCatID=510" type="external">Hurriyet</a> reported. Erdogan also threatened to cut off Kurdistan’s oil exports, as reported by
<a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/us-mideast-crisis-kurds-referendum-turke/we-have-the-tap-turkeys-erdogan-threatens-oil-flow-from-iraqs-kurdish-area-idUSKCN1C018V" type="external">Reuters</a>. Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim corroborated Erdogan’s threats, as reported by
<a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/us-mideast-crisis-kurds-referendum-turke/we-have-the-tap-turkeys-erdogan-threatens-oil-flow-from-iraqs-kurdish-area-idUSKCN1C018V" type="external">Reuters</a>. Yildirim also addressed the Turkish government’s policy towards Kurdistan,
<a href="http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/turkey-to-act-if-iraqi-kurdish-referendum-poses-security-risk.aspx?pageID=238&amp;nID=118356&amp;NewsCatID=510" type="external">Hurriyet</a> reported. Keyvan Khosravi, a spokesman for Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, announced Sunday that all flights to and from Kurdistan would be blocked, according to a
<a href="http://www.irna.ir/en/News/82675771" type="external">statement</a> from Iran’s government news outlet Islamic Republic News Agency. 98.8% of voters in Kurdistan voted for independence during an
<a href="https://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2005/02/09/17205061.php" type="external">informal independence referendum</a> in 2005. President Masoud Barzani, the leader of the Kurdistan Regional Government, called for a referendum for Kurdistan’s independence a few years ago, according to a July 2014 report from the
<a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-28103124" type="external">BBC</a>. A
<a href="http://www.kurdish-consultancy.com/polling-survey-on-the-upcoming-referendum-on-the-independence-of-kurdistan/" type="external">poll</a> conducted between 21 and 27 August by the Kurdish Knowledge Centre showed that 52.9% of voters would vote yes, 25.6% would vote no, 17.9% were undecided, and 3.6% were not voting. Iraqi leadership made attempts to block the 25 September vote. On 12 September, the Iraqi Parliament gave the Prime Minister of Iraq, Haider Al-Abadi, the authority “to take all necessary measures to preserve Iraq’s unity,” according to
<a href="https://www.thenational.ae/world/mena/iraqi-parliament-rejects-kurdistan-independence-referendum-1.627743" type="external">The National</a>. On 18 September, Haider Al-Abadi, the Prime Minister of Iraq
<a href="http://www.pmo.iq/pme/press2017en/18-9-20171en.htm" type="external">sent a request</a> to the Supreme Court of Iraq to block the referendum, which the court accepted. On 20 September, foreign ministers of Iraq, Iran, and Turkey met in a trilateral meeting in New York to discuss the referendum. According to a
<a href="http://en.mfa.ir/uploads/4_5915759306354983245_123219.pdf" type="external">statement</a>, the diplomats denounced the referendum, calling it “unconstitutional” and claiming that it “runs the risk of provoking new conflicts in the region, that will prove difficult to contain.” The diplomats also decided that Iraq, Iran, and Turkey should coordinate their diplomatic and military responses to the referendum.
<a href="http://www.kurdishaspect.com/doc060910SK.html" type="external">Kurdish</a> people share a language and culture, though the political situations for the people living in each country can differ substantially. According to
<a href="https://www.globalsecurity.org/military/world/war/kurdistan-turkey.htm" type="external">Global Security</a>, there has been
<a href="http://syriancivilwarmap.com/syrian-democratic-forces/" type="external">ongoing conflict</a> between Turkish forces and members of the separatist group, the Kurdish Workers Party, since 1984. On 24 July 2015, the government of Turkey officially began a military campaign against ISIL and the Kurdish Workers Party. As a result of this conflict and other Turkish attempts to assimilate the large Kurdish minority, many Kurds have been displaced from Kurdistan. According to a 2008 Amnesty International
<a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20140826072002/http://www.amnesty.org/en/library/asset/MDE13/088/2008/en/d140767b-5e45-11dd-a592-c739f9b70de8/mde130882008eng.pdf" type="external">report</a> titled “Iran: Human Rights Abuses against the Kurdish Minority,” the government of Iran neglects Kurdish regions economically and discriminates against Kurdish language, culture, and religious expression through the gozinesh system, which requires prospective politicians and state employees to demonstrate their allegiance to the country and national religion. In Syria, the Syrian Democratic Forces include many Kurdish militias, including the YPG. Following an ISIL invasion of northern Iraq in June 2014, national Iraqi forces abandoned much of the country’s Kurdish province and other areas in northern Iraq, according to the
<a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-28103124" type="external">BBC</a>. The regional government of the Iraqi Kurdistan province, the Kurdistan Regional Government, and their military forces, the Peshmerga, retook these areas from ISIL, including disputed and ethnically mixed areas that are now claimed by both the Iraqi federal government and the Kurdish provisional government, the BBC also reported. Kirkuk, one of these disputed areas that voted in the referendum, is rich in oil and thus economically important to both the federal and provincial governments. In an
<a href="http://cabinet.gov.krd/a/d.aspx?s=010000&amp;l=12&amp;a=55842" type="external">interview</a> with Russia Today, Nechirvan Barzani, the Prime Minister of Iraqi Kurdistan and nephew of President Barzani, argued that the province was not satisfied with the leadership of the Iraqi federal government and that the referendum will be used to renegotiate the relationship between the province and the federal government. Qubad Talabani, Deputy Prime Minister of the Kurdistan Regional Government, wrote an opinion piece for the
<a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/democracy-post/wp/2017/09/22/heres-why-we-kurds-deserve-a-country-of-our-own/?utm_term=.6865812e8523" type="external">Washington Post</a> arguing for the referendum despite the danger it may pose to security in the region. Heather Nauert, spokesperson for the US State department, said in a
<a href="https://www.state.gov/r/pa/prs/ps/2017/09/274419.htm" type="external">statement</a>: On Monday, United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres argued in a
<a href="https://www.un.org/sg/en/content/sg/statement/2017-09-25/statement-attributable-spokesman-secretary-general-referendum" type="external">statement</a> that the referendum could have “potentially destabilizing effects:” Shaswar Abdulwahid, owner of the Kurdish media outlet the NRT, has promoted a “
<a href="http://www.nrttv.com/En/Details.aspx?Jimare=15955" type="external">No for Now</a>” campaign against the referendum. On the subject of the referendum, Abdulwahid argued in a
<a href="http://www.nrttv.com/en/Details.aspx?Jimare=15934" type="external">statement</a> that the referendum will not lead to an independent Kurdistan, and will only cause war. Justin Trudeau, Prime Minister of Canada, told
<a href="https://globalnews.ca/news/3767626/justin-trudeau-iraq-referendum/" type="external">reporters</a> on Monday that it was “too early to weigh in” on the referendum: Share on
<a href="" type="internal">Facebook</a>
<a href="" type="internal">Twitter</a>
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reports kurdish news outlet rudaw independence referendum passed kurdistan geocultural region middle east roughly encompasses northeastern syria northern iraq eastern iran southeastern turkey 9183 voters said yes independence total voter turnout 7783 vote first announced 7 june kurdistan regional government speaking press conference istanbul monday turkish president recep tayyip erdogan denounced independence referendum promised economic trade security countermeasures would taken province became independent according hurriyet daily news erdogan mentioned military exercises already taking place silopi turkish district lies turkeyiraq border hurriyet reported erdogan also threatened cut kurdistans oil exports reported reuters turkish prime minister binali yildirim corroborated erdogans threats reported reuters yildirim also addressed turkish governments policy towards kurdistan hurriyet reported keyvan khosravi spokesman irans supreme national security council announced sunday flights kurdistan would blocked according statement irans government news outlet islamic republic news agency 988 voters kurdistan voted independence informal independence referendum 2005 president masoud barzani leader kurdistan regional government called referendum kurdistans independence years ago according july 2014 report bbc poll conducted 21 27 august kurdish knowledge centre showed 529 voters would vote yes 256 would vote 179 undecided 36 voting iraqi leadership made attempts block 25 september vote 12 september iraqi parliament gave prime minister iraq haider alabadi authority take necessary measures preserve iraqs unity according national 18 september haider alabadi prime minister iraq sent request supreme court iraq block referendum court accepted 20 september foreign ministers iraq iran turkey met trilateral meeting new york discuss referendum according statement diplomats denounced referendum calling unconstitutional claiming runs risk provoking new conflicts region prove difficult contain diplomats also decided iraq iran turkey coordinate diplomatic military responses referendum kurdish people share language culture though political situations people living country differ substantially according global security ongoing conflict turkish forces members separatist group kurdish workers party since 1984 24 july 2015 government turkey officially began military campaign isil kurdish workers party result conflict turkish attempts assimilate large kurdish minority many kurds displaced kurdistan according 2008 amnesty international report titled iran human rights abuses kurdish minority government iran neglects kurdish regions economically discriminates kurdish language culture religious expression gozinesh system requires prospective politicians state employees demonstrate allegiance country national religion syria syrian democratic forces include many kurdish militias including ypg following isil invasion northern iraq june 2014 national iraqi forces abandoned much countrys kurdish province areas northern iraq according bbc regional government iraqi kurdistan province kurdistan regional government military forces peshmerga retook areas isil including disputed ethnically mixed areas claimed iraqi federal government kurdish provisional government bbc also reported kirkuk one disputed areas voted referendum rich oil thus economically important federal provincial governments interview russia today nechirvan barzani prime minister iraqi kurdistan nephew president barzani argued province satisfied leadership iraqi federal government referendum used renegotiate relationship province federal government qubad talabani deputy prime minister kurdistan regional government wrote opinion piece washington post arguing referendum despite danger may pose security region heather nauert spokesperson us state department said statement monday united nations secretarygeneral antónio guterres argued statement referendum could potentially destabilizing effects shaswar abdulwahid owner kurdish media outlet nrt promoted campaign referendum subject referendum abdulwahid argued statement referendum lead independent kurdistan cause war justin trudeau prime minister canada told reporters monday early weigh referendum share facebook twitter email
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<p>LONDON (Reuters Breakingviews) - Customers rarely complain that prices are too low. Mostly they just take pleasure in getting a bargain. If they bother to think about it, they probably assume there must be some good industrial reason for any discount, such as better technology or economies of scale.</p> A Carillion sign can be seen in Manchester, Britain July 13, 2017. REUTERS/Phil Noble
<p>Sometimes, though, it pays to pay more. Carillion provides a fine example. The customers of the British contractor presumably thought they were getting good deals, but they were wrong. Low prices have turned into bad news – disrupted projects, disgruntled subcontractors and higher costs, not to mention terrible publicity for the UK government, which was closely connected to the company and its bosses. And shareholders really suffered. The company’s market capitalisation was nearly $2 billion two years ago; as of Jan. 15 it is in liquidation.</p>
<p>Carillion was an extreme case. To fail so totally in a business which requires very little long-term investment is always hard. It is almost impossible when the economy is strong. The collapse was caused by incompetence in many parts of the organization, and ultimately, a toxic level of under-pricing.</p>
<p>The damage from charging too little is usually subtle. For example, the hypothetical losses suffered by shareholders when companies charge less than customers would theoretically be prepared to pay are so subtle as to exist only in a conceptual region, known to economists as opportunity costs. Shareholders’ pain in these cases generally receives, and deserves, little sympathy.</p>
<p>However, under-pricing can cause substantial damages. Consider Uber. The ride-hailing service offers its customers an alternative to traditional taxis, and an unrealistic bargain. The company does not disclose full financial results, but the most recent quarter showed a negative profit margin of 15 percent. No wonder passengers often feel they are getting a wonderful deal.</p>
<p>Average prices would need to be almost 30 percent higher to give Uber the 10 percent margin typical of a successful and growing company. The actual boost to prices would probably be larger, since the riders of a profitable Uber would have to pay the higher costs that come with participating in a regulated industry and equitable treatment of drivers. If Uber were to achieve market dominance, it would have a strong incentive to charge much higher fares.</p>
<p>Success is doubtful, but Uber has more time than Carillion. It can run losses as long as investors shovel in cash. That may well be long enough to do significant and unmerited damage to the existing taxi systems. But this bait-and-switch strategy undermines the common good of society. It is not just the licensed taxi drivers who are at risk. The final result may be a less efficient or more expensive system than the one which Uber disrupted with unsustainable and unfair low prices.</p>
<p>Amazon’s situation has a certain similarity. While the U.S. e-commerce giant’s domestic retail operations are now profitable, the company can afford to run them at close to breakeven, because it can rely on a comforting gush of cash from its commercially unrelated Web Services business. That operation provides about three quarters of the company’s operating profit from less than 10 percent of its revenue, based on its full-year accounts for 2016.</p>
<p>Amazon’s mail order revolution promises far more good than Uber’s transit disruption. However, the strategy of persistently undercharging for shipping is almost as aggressive as undercharging for rides. While the company stays on the right side of laws against below-cost pricing, rivals have just grounds for complaint.</p>
<p>Loss-making shipping prices are no longer a justifiable investment in the future, but a barrier to entry. Today’s Amazon is a multi-category-killer and its $7.2 billion losses on shipping in 2016 dwarfed the two retail divisions’ combined operating profit of $1.1 billion. Now only rivals with very deep pockets can hope to keep down with Amazon’s prices.</p>
<p>As economist Friedrich von Hayek pointed out in 1945, the fast responses of the price system usually work far better than the heavy hand of central planners. However, the gains only come when prices are realistic. And too low can be just as disruptive as too high.</p>
<p>One option is for governments to step in. Many of them recognise the problem. Many jurisdictions have laws which limit below-cost pricing. For example, the discounts available and length of sales are limited in many European countries. The legal system, though, has not kept up with technology. A renewed effort is in order, including regulations to ensure that current prices reflect likely future costs, not investors’ rapacious dreams.</p>
<p>It is hard to ban Carillion’s style of under-pricing – bidding too low for complex contracts. However, it is possible to firm up the rules on which bids are deemed acceptable. Better still, governments and other purchasers of outsourced services should learn that penny-wise really can be pound-foolish.</p> Breakingviews
<p>Reuters Breakingviews is the world's leading source of agenda-setting financial insight. As the Reuters brand for financial commentary, we dissect the big business and economic stories as they break around the world every day. A global team of about 30 correspondents in New York, London, Hong Kong and other major cities provides expert analysis in real time.</p>
<p>Sign up for a free trial of our full service at <a href="https://www.breakingviews.com/trial" type="external">https://www.breakingviews.com/trial</a> and follow us on Twitter <a href="https://twitter.com/breakingviews" type="external">@Breakingviews</a> and at <a href="https://www.breakingviews.com" type="external">www.breakingviews.com</a>. All opinions expressed are those of the authors.</p>
<p>(Reuters) - Salesforce.com Inc ( <a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=CRM.N" type="external">CRM.N</a>) is in advanced discussions to acquire U.S. software maker MuleSoft Inc ( <a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=MULE.N" type="external">MULE.N</a>), people familiar with the matter told Reuters on Tuesday, as it looks to expand its offerings beyond customer relationship management software.</p> FILE PHOTO - The Salesforce logo is pictured on a building in San Francisco, California, U.S. October 12, 2016. REUTERS/Lily Jamali/File Photo
<p>The acquisition, which the sources said could be worth more than $6 billion, would be Salesforce’s biggest ever deal, illustrating Chief Executive Marc Benioff’s push to supplement the company’s cloud-based portfolio with new technology.</p>
<p>A deal could be announced as soon as this week, the sources said, cautioning that negotiations had not been finalized and that an agreement was not certain.</p>
<p>The sources asked not to be identified because the negotiations are confidential. Salesforce and MuleSoft declined to comment.</p>
<p>MuleSoft shares jumped more than 20 percent to $39.88 after Reuters reported the talks, giving the company a market value of $5.3 billion. Salesforce shares were up 0.3 percent at $125.31.</p>
<p>Based in San Francisco, MuleSoft makes software that automatically integrates disparate data, devices and applications to help companies’ networks run faster. It could help Salesforce win business from customers which are not yet ready to transition their systems to the cloud.</p>
<p>Buying MuleSoft would help Salesforce build a larger enterprise apps ecosystem around its own products, Barclays Plc ( <a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=BARC.L" type="external">BARC.L</a>) analysts wrote in a research note, adding that MuleSoft could command a premium given its rapid growth and good fit.</p>
<p>Salesforce Ventures, the company’s venture capital arm, led a $128 million funding round in MuleSoft in 2015.</p>
<a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=CRM.N" type="external">Salesforce.com Inc</a> 125.12 CRM.N New York Stock Exchange +0.14 (+0.11%) CRM.N MULE.N BARC.L KO.N MCD.N
<p>MuleSoft has more than 1,000 customers, including Coca-Cola Co ( <a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=KO.N" type="external">KO.N</a>), McDonald’s Corp ( <a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=MCD.N" type="external">MCD.N</a>), Spotify and Unilever ( <a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=ULVR.L" type="external">ULVR.L</a>). It went public about a year ago.</p>
<p>Salesforce holds more than 18 percent of the global customer relationship management software market, followed by Oracle Corp ( <a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=ORCL.N" type="external">ORCL.N</a>) with 9.4 percent, according to 2016 figures provided by research firm IDC.</p>
<p>Alphabet Inc’s ( <a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=GOOGL.O" type="external">GOOGL.O</a>) Google acquired a competitor of MuleSoft called Apigee Corp in a $625 million deal in 2016.</p>
<p>Salesforce has benefited from companies switching to cloud-based services due to the lower costs and high level of scalability. Last month, it posted a quarterly profit that topped Wall Street targets, fueled by growth in its cloud-based sales and marketing software.</p>
<p>Reporting by Liana B. Baker and Greg Roumeliotis in New York; Additional reporting by Stephen Nellis in San Francisco; Editing by Bill Rigby and Meredith Mazzilli</p> Our Standards:
<a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a>
<p>SYDNEY (Reuters) - A hush settled over financial markets on Wednesday as investors counted down to a likely hike in U.S. interest rates and guidance on how many more to expect this year, while trade war fears kept export nations’ currencies on edge.</p> FILE PHOTO: A man looks at an electronic stock quotation board outside a brokerage in Tokyo, Japan February 9, 2018. REUTERS/Toru Hanai
<p>MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan .MIAPJ0000PUS edged up 0.5 percent after a run of losses, tracking overnight gains on Wall Street.</p>
<p>Chinese shares were a bit more buoyant with Hong Kong's Hang Seng index <a href="/finance/markets/index?symbol=.HSI" type="external">.HSI</a> gaining 1.2 percent as real estate firms posted stellar profits.</p>
<p>E-Mini futures for the S&amp;P 500 ESc1 inched up 0.1 percent, while FTSE futures FFIc1 were off a fraction.</p>
<p>Markets are convinced the Federal Reserve will announce a quarter point hike at 1800 GMT, but are less sure if it will signal three or four for the year as a whole.</p>
<p>“A significant weighting toward four hikes this year may well cause both equity and bond markets to sell off,” Jonathan Sheridan, analyst at FIIG Securities in Sydney, said.</p>
<p>“The concerns here are that the Fed overshoots with raising rates into a faltering economy,” Sheridan added.</p>
<p>“If this opinion takes hold then we may well see falling longer term rates and a flatter yield curve, and it would also be negative for equities as it increases the chances of a recession.”</p>
<p>The Fed has raised rates five times since it began tightening policy in late 2015. Yet the dollar has not really responded, ending 2017 down about 10 percent against a basket of currencies. .DXY</p>
<p>“We remind readers that every single FOMC rate hike this cycle has been a ‘dovish hike’ and the USD has declined on the day(s) post the rise,” Richard Grace, chief currency strategist at Commonwealth Bank of Australia wrote in a note to clients.</p>
<p>On Wednesday, the dollar index held near three-week highs around at 90.267 .DXY. Against the Japanese yen <a href="/finance/currencies/quote?srcCurr=JPY&amp;destCurr=USD" type="external">JPY=</a>, the greenback hovered near a one-week top at 106.46.</p>
<p>(GRAPHIC: Developed market currencies against the Dollar - <a href="http://reut.rs/2FYAg0X" type="external">reut.rs/2FYAg0X</a>)</p> TRADE WAR FEARS
<p>Another major overhang for financial markets is the specter of a global trade war.</p>
<p>U.S. President Donald Trump is expected to unveil up to $60 billion in import duties on Chinese goods by Friday. The move comes after Trump imposed tariffs on imported steel and aluminum earlier this month.</p>
<p>Investors are worried Trump’s actions could escalate into a full-blown trade war if China and other countries retaliate with similar or harsher measures, threatening global growth.</p>
<p>To add to these concerns, a meeting of finance ministers and central banks of the world’s 20 biggest economies this week failed to diffuse the threat.</p>
<a href="/finance/markets/index?symbol=.HSI" type="external">Hang Seng Indexes Co Ltd</a> 31414.52 .HSI Hong Kong Stock -135.41 (-0.43%) .HSI
<p>The so-called G20 agreed only to stand by an ambiguous declaration on trade from 2017 and “recognized” the need for more “dialogue and actions”.</p>
<p>The currencies of export-heavy nations such as the Australian, New Zealand and Canadian dollars were on the defensive after being knocked down to multi-month lows.</p>
<p>The Aussie <a href="/finance/currencies/quote?srcCurr=AUD&amp;destCurr=USD" type="external">AUD=D4</a> fell to a three-month trough of $0.7679 overnight while the kiwi dollar <a href="/finance/currencies/quote?srcCurr=NZD&amp;destCurr=USD" type="external">NZD=D4</a> hit the lowest since early January. The Canadian dollar <a href="/finance/currencies/quote?srcCurr=CAD&amp;destCurr=USD" type="external">CAD=D4</a> held at $1.3029 from Monday's low of $1.3124, a level not seen since mid-2017.</p>
<p>Equity analysts have also turned increasingly downbeat.</p>
<p>“Cracks in the bull case are starting to emerge,” said Michael Hartnett, chief investment strategist at Bank of America Merrill Lynch, citing the bank’s March fund manager survey.</p>
<p>“The threat of a trade war returns to the top of the list of tail risks most commonly cited by investors, followed by inflation and a slowdown in global growth,” he added.</p>
<p>“Investors have yet to act on these fears, however, as rates and earnings are keeping the bulls bullish.”</p>
<p>Among major commodities, oil prices were lifted by tensions in the Middle East and healthy demand. [O/R]</p>
<p>U.S. crude CLc1 rose 15 cents to $63.69 per barrel. Brent LCOc1 gained 16 cents to $67.58.</p> Related Video
<p>Spot gold added 0.2 percent to $1,313.31 an ounce XAU=.</p>
<p>Reporting by Swati Pandey, Editing by Simon Cameron-Moore and Himani Sarkar</p> Our Standards:
<a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a>
<p>WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Federal Reserve is expected to raise interest rates at its first policy meeting under Chairman Jerome Powell and may signal more hikes are coming in response to tax cuts and government spending that could further stoke a robust U.S. economy.</p> FILE PHOTO: Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell delivers the semi-annual Monetary Policy Report to the House Financial Services Committee hearing in Washington, U.S., February 27, 2018. REUTERS/Joshua Roberts/File Photo
<p>The U.S. central bank projected late last year that it would lift rates three times in 2018, but some investors believe the fiscal stimulus and recent hints of inflation pressures will push policymakers to add an additional increase to the mix.</p>
<p>(Interactive graphic of Fed's forecasts, dove-hawk divide: <a href="http://tmsnrt.rs/2gsUVwB" type="external">tmsnrt.rs/2gsUVwB</a>)</p>
<p>The Fed is scheduled to issue its latest policy statement at 2 p.m. EDT (1800 GMT). Powell is due to hold a press conference half an hour later.</p>
<p>Fed officials have speculated in recent weeks that the stimulus could drive more Americans into an already tight labor market and lift inflation to the central bank’s 2 percent target, or much above that level if the economy gets too hot.</p>
<p>Yet analysts are split over whether the Fed, which is wary of an early misstep under its new leadership, will raise policy tightening expectations until more price pressures are clearly evident, especially given outside risks to the economy such as a possible global trade war.</p>
<p>“A prudent institution would probably give more weight to the facts, at least for the moment,” Roberto Perli, a former Fed economist who is now a partner at Cornerstone Macro, wrote in a note predicting the Fed would stick with three projected rate increases for this year.</p>
<p>The Fed’s drive to stimulate the world’s largest economy in the wake of the 2007-2009 financial crisis and recession is drawing to a close. It raised its benchmark overnight lending rate three times last year, to a range of 1.25 to 1.50 percent, as joblessness fell and economic growth accelerated. It is expected to raise rates by another 25 basis points on Wednesday.</p>
<p>With futures markets anticipating another increase in June, Powell's Fed could leave its rate outlook unchanged until then to see how the economy absorbs the $1.8 trillion in stimulus expected from the Trump administration tax cuts and planned spending. (Graphic of Fed forecasts: <a href="http://tmsnrt.rs/2gsUVwB" type="external">tmsnrt.rs/2gsUVwB</a>)</p> POWELL IN SPOTLIGHT
<p>While recent home sales and retail spending data have been on the weak side, the overall economic picture has brightened this year. Inflation has strengthened after remaining below the Fed’s target for more than five years, and there have been more hints of wage gains.</p>
<p>The central bank is expected on Wednesday to boost its economic growth forecasts for the next few years, and could project that the unemployment rate will fall well below the current 4.1 percent, which is seen as a low but stable level.</p>
<p>The blockbuster U.S. jobs report for February could further convince Powell and his colleagues that the Fed’s stated “gradual” rate hike path could carry on longer than previously thought. A sign of this would be a rise in the Fed’s longer-term, or neutral, expected policy rate, currently at 2.8 percent.</p>
<p>Powell, who took over from former Fed chief Janet Yellen in early February, triggered a brief global market selloff when he told U.S. lawmakers late last month that he had grown more confident in the economic outlook. Yet worries over a new hawkish central bank are likely overblown given Powell’s cautious, consensus-building approach.</p>
<p>Seven of the 15 Fed policymakers who will update their forecasts on Wednesday have recently indicated the fiscal stimulus could boost their expectations for the economy, rate hikes, or for both, according to an analysis of public statements.</p>
<p>New York Fed President William Dudley, one of the most influential policymakers, said four rate increases this year would still be considered “gradual,” noting that fiscal policy is turning “quite stimulative.”</p>
<p>The comments suggested a shift “towards a potentially faster pace of tightening ... particularly with tax cuts now implemented and with an additional fiscal boost from federal spending arriving this year,” Jan Hatzius, chief U.S. economist at Goldman Sachs, wrote in a note predicting that the Fed would signal on Wednesday that rates will rise four times this year.</p>
<p>Reporting by Jonathan Spicer; Editing by Paul Simao</p> Our Standards:
<a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a>
<p>(Reuters) - Toys ‘R’ Us said at a bankruptcy court hearing on Tuesday that it was working hard to maximize payments to suppliers and lenders, as it starts to shutter 735 big-box toy stores across the United States.</p> FILE PHOTO - People pass by Toys R Us store at Times Square in New York, U.S., March 9, 2018. REUTERS/Eduardo Munoz/File Photo
<p>More than 50 suppliers, including Barbie maker Mattel ( <a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=MAT.O" type="external">MAT.O</a>) and Lego, have objected in some form to the proceedings by the storied toy retailer to liquidate its U.S. business, putting 30,000 jobs at risk.</p>
<p>Toys ‘R’ Us had been trying to reorganize under U.S. Chapter 11 but last week said those efforts had failed and it was quickly running out of cash. It is also winding down its U.K business, but is looking for a buyer for operations in Canada, Europe and Asia.</p>
<p>Some trade vendors are demanding the company return any unpaid inventory rather than selling it and using going out of business sales to pay secured lenders and bankruptcy lawyers, at their cost, court papers showed.</p>
<p>“We’re making every effort to make sure (trade vendors) will be paid in full,” Lazard’s David Kurtz, who is advising Toys ‘R’ Us, testified at a hearing at U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Richmond, Virginia.</p>
<p>The company is seeking approval for a March 26 deadline for bids for each of its foreign businesses, minus U.K., followed by an auction on March 29.</p>
<p>It is also seeking approval for a series of U.S. liquidation procedures including a halt to more than $450 million in supplier payments as part of a plan that experts told Reuters could cause many small toy makers to disappear.</p>
<p>Toys ‘R’ Us was the last remaining specialty toy retailer in the United States. Hundreds of companies relied on its big-box stores as a showcase for both innovative toys as well as classics.</p>
<a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=MAT.O" type="external">Mattel Inc</a> 12.97 MAT.O Nasdaq -- (--%) MAT.O
<p>Under trade agreements, vendors were required to ship goods to Toys ‘R’ Us on unsecured trade credit.</p>
<p>In a court filing, Lego said any “wind-down must be implemented in a manner that is fair and equitable to all” of the company’s creditors.</p>
<p>The U.S. Trustee, a bankruptcy watchdog, has also objected, saying that while it is “resigned” to the company’s future, it is concerned about certain of the procedures and relief proposed as part of the liquidation.</p>
<p>Toys ‘R’ Us financial advisor Bill Kosturos of Alvarez &amp; Marsal was also testifying at the hearing before U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Keith Phillips, which could run into Wednesday.</p>
<p>Reporting by Tracy Rucinski; Editing by David Gregorio</p> Our Standards:
<a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a>
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london reuters breakingviews customers rarely complain prices low mostly take pleasure getting bargain bother think probably assume must good industrial reason discount better technology economies scale carillion sign seen manchester britain july 13 2017 reutersphil noble sometimes though pays pay carillion provides fine example customers british contractor presumably thought getting good deals wrong low prices turned bad news disrupted projects disgruntled subcontractors higher costs mention terrible publicity uk government closely connected company bosses shareholders really suffered companys market capitalisation nearly 2 billion two years ago jan 15 liquidation carillion extreme case fail totally business requires little longterm investment always hard almost impossible economy strong collapse caused incompetence many parts organization ultimately toxic level underpricing damage charging little usually subtle example hypothetical losses suffered shareholders companies charge less 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undermines common good society licensed taxi drivers risk final result may less efficient expensive system one uber disrupted unsustainable unfair low prices amazons situation certain similarity us ecommerce giants domestic retail operations profitable company afford run close breakeven rely comforting gush cash commercially unrelated web services business operation provides three quarters companys operating profit less 10 percent revenue based fullyear accounts 2016 amazons mail order revolution promises far good ubers transit disruption however strategy persistently undercharging shipping almost aggressive undercharging rides company stays right side laws belowcost pricing rivals grounds complaint lossmaking shipping prices longer justifiable investment future barrier entry todays amazon multicategorykiller 72 billion losses shipping 2016 dwarfed two retail divisions combined operating profit 11 billion rivals deep pockets hope keep amazons prices economist friedrich von hayek pointed 1945 fast responses price system usually work far better heavy hand central planners however gains come prices realistic low disruptive high one option governments step many recognise problem many jurisdictions laws limit belowcost pricing example discounts available length sales limited many european countries legal system though kept technology renewed effort order including regulations ensure current prices reflect likely future costs investors rapacious dreams hard ban carillions style underpricing bidding low complex contracts however possible firm rules bids deemed acceptable better still governments purchasers outsourced services learn pennywise really poundfoolish breakingviews reuters breakingviews worlds leading source agendasetting financial insight reuters brand financial commentary dissect big business economic stories break around world every day global team 30 correspondents new york london hong kong major cities provides expert analysis real time sign free trial full service httpswwwbreakingviewscomtrial follow us twitter breakingviews wwwbreakingviewscom opinions expressed authors reuters salesforcecom inc crmn advanced discussions acquire us software maker mulesoft inc mulen people familiar matter told reuters tuesday looks expand offerings beyond customer relationship management software file photo salesforce logo pictured building san francisco california us october 12 2016 reuterslily jamalifile photo acquisition sources said could worth 6 billion would salesforces biggest ever deal illustrating chief executive marc benioffs push supplement companys cloudbased portfolio new technology deal could announced soon week sources said cautioning negotiations finalized agreement certain sources asked identified negotiations confidential salesforce mulesoft declined comment mulesoft shares jumped 20 percent 3988 reuters reported talks giving company market value 53 billion salesforce shares 03 percent 12531 based san francisco mulesoft makes software automatically integrates disparate data devices applications help companies networks run faster could help salesforce win business customers yet ready transition systems cloud buying mulesoft would help salesforce build larger enterprise apps ecosystem around products barclays plc barcl analysts wrote research note adding mulesoft could command premium given rapid growth good fit salesforce ventures companys venture capital arm led 128 million funding round mulesoft 2015 salesforcecom inc 12512 crmn new york stock exchange 014 011 crmn mulen barcl kon mcdn mulesoft 1000 customers including cocacola co kon mcdonalds corp mcdn spotify unilever ulvrl went public year ago salesforce holds 18 percent global customer relationship management software market followed oracle corp orcln 94 percent according 2016 figures provided research firm idc alphabet incs googlo google acquired competitor mulesoft called apigee corp 625 million deal 2016 salesforce benefited companies switching cloudbased services due lower costs high level scalability last month posted quarterly profit topped wall street targets fueled growth cloudbased sales marketing software reporting liana b baker greg roumeliotis new york additional reporting stephen nellis san francisco editing bill rigby meredith mazzilli standards thomson reuters trust principles sydney reuters hush settled financial markets wednesday investors counted likely hike us interest rates guidance many expect year trade war fears kept export nations currencies edge file photo man looks electronic stock quotation board outside brokerage tokyo japan february 9 2018 reuterstoru hanai mscis broadest index asiapacific shares outside japan miapj0000pus edged 05 percent run losses tracking overnight gains wall street chinese shares bit buoyant hong kongs hang seng index hsi gaining 12 percent real estate firms posted stellar profits emini futures sampp 500 esc1 inched 01 percent ftse futures ffic1 fraction markets convinced federal reserve announce quarter point hike 1800 gmt less sure signal three four year whole significant weighting toward four hikes year may well cause equity bond markets sell jonathan sheridan analyst fiig securities sydney said concerns fed overshoots raising rates faltering economy sheridan added opinion takes hold may well see falling longer term rates flatter yield curve would also negative equities increases chances recession fed raised rates five times since began tightening policy late 2015 yet dollar really responded ending 2017 10 percent basket currencies dxy remind readers every single fomc rate hike cycle dovish hike usd declined days post rise richard grace chief currency strategist commonwealth bank australia wrote note clients wednesday dollar index held near threeweek highs around 90267 dxy japanese yen jpy greenback hovered near oneweek top 10646 graphic developed market currencies dollar reutrs2fyag0x trade war fears another major overhang financial markets specter global trade war us president donald trump expected unveil 60 billion import duties chinese goods friday move comes trump imposed tariffs imported steel aluminum earlier month investors worried trumps actions could escalate fullblown trade war china countries retaliate similar harsher measures threatening global growth add concerns meeting finance ministers central banks worlds 20 biggest economies week failed diffuse threat hang seng indexes co ltd 3141452 hsi hong kong stock 13541 043 hsi socalled g20 agreed stand ambiguous declaration trade 2017 recognized need dialogue actions currencies exportheavy nations australian new zealand canadian dollars defensive knocked multimonth lows aussie audd4 fell threemonth trough 07679 overnight kiwi dollar nzdd4 hit lowest since early january canadian dollar cadd4 held 13029 mondays low 13124 level seen since mid2017 equity analysts also turned increasingly downbeat cracks bull case starting emerge said michael hartnett chief investment strategist bank america merrill lynch citing banks march fund manager survey threat trade war returns top list tail risks commonly cited investors followed inflation slowdown global growth added investors yet act fears however rates earnings keeping bulls bullish among major commodities oil prices lifted tensions middle east healthy demand us crude clc1 rose 15 cents 6369 per barrel brent lcoc1 gained 16 cents 6758 related video spot gold added 02 percent 131331 ounce xau reporting swati pandey editing simon cameronmoore himani sarkar standards thomson reuters trust principles washington reuters federal reserve expected raise interest rates first policy meeting chairman jerome powell may signal hikes coming response tax cuts government spending could stoke robust us economy file photo federal reserve chairman jerome powell delivers semiannual monetary policy report house financial services committee hearing washington us february 27 2018 reutersjoshua robertsfile photo us central bank projected late last year would lift rates three times 2018 investors believe fiscal stimulus recent hints inflation pressures push policymakers add additional increase mix interactive graphic feds forecasts dovehawk divide tmsnrtrs2gsuvwb fed scheduled issue latest policy statement 2 pm edt 1800 gmt powell due hold press conference half hour later fed officials speculated recent weeks stimulus could drive americans already tight labor market lift inflation central banks 2 percent target much level economy gets hot yet analysts split whether fed wary early misstep new leadership raise policy tightening expectations price pressures clearly evident especially given outside risks economy possible global trade war prudent institution would probably give weight facts least moment roberto perli former fed economist partner cornerstone macro wrote note predicting fed would stick three projected rate increases year feds drive stimulate worlds largest economy wake 20072009 financial crisis recession drawing close raised benchmark overnight lending rate three times last year range 125 150 percent joblessness fell economic growth accelerated expected raise rates another 25 basis points wednesday futures markets anticipating another increase june powells fed could leave rate outlook unchanged see economy absorbs 18 trillion stimulus expected trump administration tax cuts planned spending graphic fed forecasts tmsnrtrs2gsuvwb powell spotlight recent home sales retail spending data weak side overall economic picture brightened year inflation strengthened remaining feds target five years hints wage gains central bank expected wednesday boost economic growth forecasts next years could project unemployment rate fall well current 41 percent seen low stable level blockbuster us jobs report february could convince powell colleagues feds stated gradual rate hike path could carry longer previously thought sign would rise feds longerterm neutral expected policy rate currently 28 percent powell took former fed chief janet yellen early february triggered brief global market selloff told us lawmakers late last month grown confident economic outlook yet worries new hawkish central bank likely overblown given powells cautious consensusbuilding approach seven 15 fed policymakers update forecasts wednesday recently indicated fiscal stimulus could boost expectations economy rate hikes according analysis public statements new york fed president william dudley one influential policymakers said four rate increases year would still considered gradual noting fiscal policy turning quite stimulative comments suggested shift towards potentially faster pace tightening particularly tax cuts implemented additional fiscal boost federal spending arriving year jan hatzius chief us economist goldman sachs wrote note predicting fed would signal wednesday rates rise four times year reporting jonathan spicer editing paul simao standards thomson reuters trust principles reuters toys r us said bankruptcy court hearing tuesday working hard maximize payments suppliers lenders starts shutter 735 bigbox toy stores across united states file photo people pass toys r us store times square new york us march 9 2018 reuterseduardo munozfile photo 50 suppliers including barbie maker mattel mato lego objected form proceedings storied toy retailer liquidate us business putting 30000 jobs risk toys r us trying reorganize us chapter 11 last week said efforts failed quickly running cash also winding uk business looking buyer operations canada europe asia trade vendors demanding company return unpaid inventory rather selling using going business sales pay secured lenders bankruptcy lawyers cost court papers showed making every effort make sure trade vendors paid full lazards david kurtz advising toys r us testified hearing us bankruptcy court richmond virginia company seeking approval march 26 deadline bids foreign businesses minus uk followed auction march 29 also seeking approval series us liquidation procedures including halt 450 million supplier payments part plan experts told reuters could cause many small toy makers disappear toys r us last remaining specialty toy retailer united states hundreds companies relied bigbox stores showcase innovative toys well classics mattel inc 1297 mato nasdaq mato trade agreements vendors required ship goods toys r us unsecured trade credit court filing lego said winddown must implemented manner fair equitable companys creditors us trustee bankruptcy watchdog also objected saying resigned companys future concerned certain procedures relief proposed part liquidation toys r us financial advisor bill kosturos alvarez amp marsal also testifying hearing us bankruptcy judge keith phillips could run wednesday reporting tracy rucinski editing david gregorio standards thomson reuters trust principles
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<p />
<p>The other top Senate Democrat with a bull’s-eye on his back, Majority Leader Michael Sanchez, fended off his GOP opponent Tuesday, according to unofficial results.</p>
<p>Jennings lost his District 32 seat to GOP newcomer Cliff Pirtle, according to complete but unofficial election returns giving Pirtle 52 percent of the vote.</p>
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<p>Sanchez defeated Rep. David Chavez, a Los Lunas Republican backed by Martinez, in Valencia County’s District 29.</p>
<p>Senate Majority Whip Mary Jane Garcia, D-Doña Ana, was trailing her Republican challenger, Lee Cotter, in District 36 as she ran for a seventh term. Garcia recently paid a fine to the secretary of state for alleged violations of a law governing campaign funds, after a complaint from Cotter’s campaign treasurer.</p>
<p>The Senate’s top Democratic leaders were among several Legislature incumbents fighting to keep their seats in tough re-election battles.</p>
<p>It appeared Republicans would pick up at least three seats in the Senate, where Democrats currently outnumber Republicans 28-14.</p>
<p>Jennings, a Roswell-area rancher, is the second-longest serving member of the Senate; he’s been there since 1979, and he’s held the Senate’s top post since 2008. He has also been majority leader and majority whip.</p>
<p>“It’s been a hell of a run. … I have absolutely no regrets,” Jennings told the Journal.</p>
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<p>Jennings criticized the attack ads against him funded by a group run by Martinez’s political adviser, Jay McCleskey, and said his heavily Republican district made him vulnerable.</p>
<p>Pirtle, a 27-year-old farmer, ran for Congress two years ago, losing the Republican primary to Steve Pearce for the U.S. House.</p>
<p>“It looks like it’s going to fall in my direction … It’s a great feeling. I’m honored that people have faith in me,” Pirtle told the Journal. He thanked Jennings for “34 years of selfless service.”</p>
<p>Voters in Sanchez’s and Jennings’ districts saw a flood of hard-hitting campaign mailers, many of them sent by independent political groups, or super PACs, that spent an unprecedented amount of money — at least $3 million at last count — on state legislative races.</p>
<p>In an Albuquerque state Senate race, Democratic incumbent Lisa Curtis lost to the GOP’s Mark Moores, returning the District 21 seat to the Republican column. Curtis was appointed to the seat late last year after then-Sen. Kent Cravens, a Republican, resigned.</p>
<p>House races</p>
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<p>Rep. Andy Nuñez of Hatch, the lone independent in the Legislature, was trailing both a Democratic and a Republican opponent in House District 36.</p>
<p>Nuñez sponsored the legislation sought by Martinez to repeal the law allowing illegal immigrants to get driver’s licenses, but the governor’s camp backed the Republican candidate in the race.</p>
<p>Seven-term incumbent Rep. Ray Begaye, D-Shiprock, was lagging behind GOP candidate Sharon Clahchischilliage in returns in House District 4. Begaye has been under investigation by the state Attorney General’s Office after it was disclosed he was reimbursed twice for a legislative conference in Phoenix.</p>
<p>And it was recently reported that he used legislative stationery to write letters to San Juan County magistrates on behalf of his daughter, who faced drunken driving charges.</p>
<p>In the Doña Ana County state House District 37 race, first-term Republican Rep. Terry McMillan and Democratic challenger Joanne Ferrary were in a seesawing contest.</p>
<p>Also in tight races were GOP incumbents Conrad James in Albuquerque’s House District 24 and Dianne Hamilton of Silver City in House District 38.</p>
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<p>There was another squeaker in House District 43, where Rep. Jim Hall of Los Alamos narrowly led Democrat Stephanie Garcia Richard.</p>
<p>Martinez and fellow Republicans had hoped to win control of the state House for the first time since 1954.</p>
<p>Going into the election, Democrats outnumbered Republicans 36-33 in the House, with independent Nuñez the 70th member.</p>
<p>Key parts of Martinez’s legislative agenda were at stake with the outcome of legislative races, including a measure that would require third-graders who are not proficient in reading to repeat the grade level and a proposed repeal of the 2003 law that allows illegal immigrants to obtain New Mexico driver’s licenses.</p>
<p>Both of those proposals from the Republican governor have stalled during the last two years in the Democratic-controlled Legislature. Martinez has targeted Sanchez, in particular, as a “roadblock” to her agenda.</p>
<p>Reform New Mexico Now, run by McCleskey, spent at least $1.8 million during the general election to advance Martinez’s agenda.</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p>
<p>The group sent out mailers in roughly two dozen legislative districts and paid for television ads that specifically criticized Sanchez and Jennings for past votes.</p>
<p>The biggest spender of several Democratic-leaning groups, Patriot Majority New Mexico, spent more than $1.3 million on state races during a recent monthlong period. It received most of its money from national labor unions.</p>
<p>A total of 38 incumbent lawmakers — 20 Democrats, 17 Republicans and one independent — faced re-election challenges.</p>
<p>All 112 legislative seats were up for grabs Tuesday. Not all were contested, but it was clear there would be new faces in Santa Fe starting in January 2013, when a 60-day regular session begins.</p>
<p>Five legislators were defeated in primary election contests in June, and a number of others either decided not to seek re-election or opted to run for a different office. — This article appeared on page C1 of the Albuquerque Journal</p>
| false | 2 |
top senate democrat bullseye back majority leader michael sanchez fended gop opponent tuesday according unofficial results jennings lost district 32 seat gop newcomer cliff pirtle according complete unofficial election returns giving pirtle 52 percent vote advertisement sanchez defeated rep david chavez los lunas republican backed martinez valencia countys district 29 senate majority whip mary jane garcia ddoña ana trailing republican challenger lee cotter district 36 ran seventh term garcia recently paid fine secretary state alleged violations law governing campaign funds complaint cotters campaign treasurer senates top democratic leaders among several legislature incumbents fighting keep seats tough reelection battles appeared republicans would pick least three seats senate democrats currently outnumber republicans 2814 jennings roswellarea rancher secondlongest serving member senate hes since 1979 hes held senates top post since 2008 also majority leader majority whip hell run absolutely regrets jennings told journal advertisement jennings criticized attack ads funded group run martinezs political adviser jay mccleskey said heavily republican district made vulnerable pirtle 27yearold farmer ran congress two years ago losing republican primary steve pearce us house looks like going fall direction great feeling im honored people faith pirtle told journal thanked jennings 34 years selfless service voters sanchezs jennings districts saw flood hardhitting campaign mailers many sent independent political groups super pacs spent unprecedented amount money least 3 million last count state legislative races albuquerque state senate race democratic incumbent lisa curtis lost gops mark moores returning district 21 seat republican column curtis appointed seat late last year thensen kent cravens republican resigned house races advertisement rep andy nuñez hatch lone independent legislature trailing democratic republican opponent house district 36 nuñez sponsored legislation sought martinez repeal law allowing illegal immigrants get drivers licenses governors camp backed republican candidate race seventerm incumbent rep ray begaye dshiprock lagging behind gop candidate sharon clahchischilliage returns house district 4 begaye investigation state attorney generals office disclosed reimbursed twice legislative conference phoenix recently reported used legislative stationery write letters san juan county magistrates behalf daughter faced drunken driving charges doña ana county state house district 37 race firstterm republican rep terry mcmillan democratic challenger joanne ferrary seesawing contest also tight races gop incumbents conrad james albuquerques house district 24 dianne hamilton silver city house district 38 advertisement another squeaker house district 43 rep jim hall los alamos narrowly led democrat stephanie garcia richard martinez fellow republicans hoped win control state house first time since 1954 going election democrats outnumbered republicans 3633 house independent nuñez 70th member key parts martinezs legislative agenda stake outcome legislative races including measure would require thirdgraders proficient reading repeat grade level proposed repeal 2003 law allows illegal immigrants obtain new mexico drivers licenses proposals republican governor stalled last two years democraticcontrolled legislature martinez targeted sanchez particular roadblock agenda reform new mexico run mccleskey spent least 18 million general election advance martinezs agenda advertisement group sent mailers roughly two dozen legislative districts paid television ads specifically criticized sanchez jennings past votes biggest spender several democraticleaning groups patriot majority new mexico spent 13 million state races recent monthlong period received money national labor unions total 38 incumbent lawmakers 20 democrats 17 republicans one independent faced reelection challenges 112 legislative seats grabs tuesday contested clear would new faces santa fe starting january 2013 60day regular session begins five legislators defeated primary election contests june number others either decided seek reelection opted run different office article appeared page c1 albuquerque journal
| 564 |
<p>Q: Why does diesel fuel cost more than gasoline?</p>
<p>A: The main reason is rising global demand, but new environmental restrictions and higher federal taxes also are factors.</p>
<p>FULL QUESTION</p>
<p>Diesel fuel used to cost less than the more highly refined gasoline. Is there a real reason for this, or is it price gouging?</p>
<p>FULL ANSWER</p>
<p>Historically, the price of diesel fuel at the pump actually has been higher than that of regular gasoline more often than it has been lower, as can be seen in this chart, which is based on weekly statistics from the federal Energy Information Administration.</p>
<p />
<p>Until recently the normal pattern has been for gasoline to cost more than diesel during the summer months, when families use their autos for vacation travel, and for diesel to cost more during the winter months, when demand for home heating oil rises. (Diesel and home heating oil are similar fuels, and the price of home heating oil tends to set a floor for diesel, which could be substituted if it became cheaper.)</p>
<p>Lately, however, that pattern has not held. Since September 2004 there have been few weeks when diesel wasn’t selling for more than gasoline&#160;– usually a lot more. For the most recent week, ending May 19, regular gasoline sold for a national average of $3.79 per gallon at the pump, while diesel was $4.50. The price spread reached a record 22.4 percent in favor of diesel during the week ending March 24, 2008. That’s a stark difference from the week of June 19, 2000, when diesel sold for 15.3 percent less than regular gasoline, the cheapest diesel has ever been relative to gasoline. So what’s going on?</p>
<p>Rising Demand</p>
<p>If any illegal price manipulation is going on we’ve seen no evidence of it. The EIA&#160; <a href="http://www.eia.doe.gov/bookshelf/brochures/diesel/index.html" type="external">cites</a> other factors, chiefly high "worldwide demand" not only in the U.S., but also in Europe, China and India. In Europe, for example, diesel-powered automobiles have been outselling those with gasoline engines in recent years. According to the European Union’s most recent <a href="http://www.acea.be/images/uploads/files/20080219_ER%200802%20CONSOLIDATED%20-%20website.pdf" type="external">economic report</a>, diesel autos accounted for 53.3 percent of all new registrations in 2007, a huge increase from the 13.8 percent share recorded in 1990. That’s several million new diesel-consuming vehicles every year.</p>
<p>In India, the number of diesel-powered passenger vehicles is also rising rapidly. The number of all new passenger vehicles sold in India more than doubled in the past five years, according to <a href="http://www.siamindia.com/scripts/domestic-sales-trend.aspx" type="external">statistics</a> from the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers, hitting more than 1.5 million during the most recent model year. Diesel accounts for more than 30 percent of new vehicles sold in India and is expected to hit 50 percent by 2010. Just this month, Ford India, a subsidiary of Ford Motor Company, <a href="http://uk.reuters.com/article/basicIndustries/idUKBOM34101120080513" type="external">started production</a> of diesel engines at a new engine assembly plant to turn out another 50,000 diesel engines a year for the local market. India’s leading environmental group, the Centre for Science and Environment, is fighting what it calls a " <a href="http://www.cseindia.org/dte-supplement/air20040331/dieselised.htm" type="external">mad craze for diesel</a>" in the country, so far with little effect.</p>
<p>In China especially, diesel consumption has been soaring as the economy booms. The country also is reported to be <a href="http://online.wsj.com/article/SB121115504197802283.html?mod=WSJBlog" type="external">importing diesel fuel</a> for stockpiling, to avoid any interruptions in power during the Olympics in August. Energy traders also say they foresee even <a href="http://money.cnn.com/2008/05/20/markets/oil_stead/index.htm?section=money_latest&amp;referer=sphere_related_content&amp;referer=sphere_related_content" type="external">more demand for diesel</a> fuel in China to run heavy equipment and emergency generators in the wake of the recent earthquake.</p>
<p>"Cheap" Gasoline</p>
<p>Higher Taxes</p>
<p>Finally, higher federal taxes account for 6 cents per gallon of the price difference at the pump. Gasoline is <a href="http://www.irs.gov/publications/p510/ch01.html#d0e1293" type="external">taxed</a> at 18.4 cents per gallon, and diesel at 24.4 cents per gallon. That’s been true for years and explains why diesel has sold for an average of 1.3 percent more than gasoline over the time period covered by the EIA’s figures. It does not explain why the spread has gotten so wide recently, however. Again, the main factor is demand.</p>
<p>-Brooks Jackson</p>
<p>Energy Information Administration. " <a href="http://www.eia.doe.gov/bookshelf/brochures/diesel/index.html" type="external">Diesel Fuel Prices: What Consumers Should Know</a>," 24 May 2007.</p>
<p>Energy Information Administration. " <a href="http://tonto.eia.doe.gov/oog/info/twip/twiparch/080326/twipprint.html" type="external">This Week in Petroleum</a>," 26 March 2008.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.acea.be/images/uploads/files/20080219_ER%200802%20CONSOLIDATED%20-%20website.pdf" type="external">European Union Economic Report.</a> Table: "New Passenger Car Registrations Breakdown by Specifications: Share of Diesel," February 2008; 12.</p>
<p>Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers. " <a href="http://www.siamindia.com/scripts/domestic-sales-trend.aspx" type="external">Domestic Sales Trend</a>," undated Web site accessed 22 May 2008.</p>
<p>Reuters. " <a href="http://uk.reuters.com/article/basicIndustries/idUKBOM34101120080513" type="external">Ford Motor launches engine plant in India</a>," 13 May 2008.</p>
<p>Raff, Anna. " <a href="http://online.wsj.com/article/SB121115504197802283.html?mod=WSJBlog" type="external">Diesel Prices Soar Ahead of Olympics</a>." Wall Street Journal, 19 May 2008.</p>
<p>Internal Revenue Service,Publication 510 (2008). Excise Taxes, Chapter One: " <a href="http://www.irs.gov/publications/p510/ch01.html#d0e1293" type="external">Fuel Taxes</a>," online publication accessed 22 May 2008.</p>
<p>Wall Street Journal. " <a href="http://money.cnn.com/2008/05/20/markets/oil_stead/index.htm?section=money_latest&amp;referer=sphere_related_content&amp;referer=sphere_related_content" type="external">Oil ends at record above $129</a>; Talk of $150-a-barrel crude and concern about diesel use in China spark another big advance," 20 May 2008.</p>
<p>Energy Information Administration. " <a href="http://www.eia.doe.gov/oiaf/servicerpt/ulsd/index.html" type="external">The Transition to Ultra-Low-Sulfur Diesel Fuel: Effects on Prices and Supply</a>" Report #: SR-OIAF/2001-01, May 2001.</p>
| false | 2 |
q diesel fuel cost gasoline main reason rising global demand new environmental restrictions higher federal taxes also factors full question diesel fuel used cost less highly refined gasoline real reason price gouging full answer historically price diesel fuel pump actually higher regular gasoline often lower seen chart based weekly statistics federal energy information administration recently normal pattern gasoline cost diesel summer months families use autos vacation travel diesel cost winter months demand home heating oil rises diesel home heating oil similar fuels price home heating oil tends set floor diesel could substituted became cheaper lately however pattern held since september 2004 weeks diesel wasnt selling gasoline160 usually lot recent week ending may 19 regular gasoline sold national average 379 per gallon pump diesel 450 price spread reached record 224 percent favor diesel week ending march 24 2008 thats stark difference week june 19 2000 diesel sold 153 percent less regular gasoline cheapest diesel ever relative gasoline whats going rising demand illegal price manipulation going weve seen evidence eia160 cites factors chiefly high worldwide demand us also europe china india europe example dieselpowered automobiles outselling gasoline engines recent years according european unions recent economic report diesel autos accounted 533 percent new registrations 2007 huge increase 138 percent share recorded 1990 thats several million new dieselconsuming vehicles every year india number dieselpowered passenger vehicles also rising rapidly number new passenger vehicles sold india doubled past five years according statistics society indian automobile manufacturers hitting 15 million recent model year diesel accounts 30 percent new vehicles sold india expected hit 50 percent 2010 month ford india subsidiary ford motor company started production diesel engines new engine assembly plant turn another 50000 diesel engines year local market indias leading environmental group centre science environment fighting calls mad craze diesel country far little effect china especially diesel consumption soaring economy booms country also reported importing diesel fuel stockpiling avoid interruptions power olympics august energy traders also say foresee even demand diesel fuel china run heavy equipment emergency generators wake recent earthquake cheap gasoline higher taxes finally higher federal taxes account 6 cents per gallon price difference pump gasoline taxed 184 cents per gallon diesel 244 cents per gallon thats true years explains diesel sold average 13 percent gasoline time period covered eias figures explain spread gotten wide recently however main factor demand brooks jackson energy information administration diesel fuel prices consumers know 24 may 2007 energy information administration week petroleum 26 march 2008 european union economic report table new passenger car registrations breakdown specifications share diesel february 2008 12 society indian automobile manufacturers domestic sales trend undated web site accessed 22 may 2008 reuters ford motor launches engine plant india 13 may 2008 raff anna diesel prices soar ahead olympics wall street journal 19 may 2008 internal revenue servicepublication 510 2008 excise taxes chapter one fuel taxes online publication accessed 22 may 2008 wall street journal oil ends record 129 talk 150abarrel crude concern diesel use china spark another big advance 20 may 2008 energy information administration transition ultralowsulfur diesel fuel effects prices supply report sroiaf200101 may 2001
| 513 |
<p>WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump has proven himself an unconventional leader time and time again in his first year in office. Here are some of the more memorable moments from the AP reporters tasked with covering this whirlwind presidency:</p>
<p>CAN I SHOW YOU MY BUTTON?</p>
<p>Midway through my April 23, 2017, interview with President Donald Trump, he reached over and pressed a red button on his desk in the Oval Office.</p>
<p>It didn't trigger a nuclear launch or send advisers scurrying into the room. Instead, a White House butler walked in with a single glass of Diet Coke on a silver tray for the commander in chief.</p>
<p>Trump was still relatively new in office and seemed to relish the trappings of his new digs. Moments before pressing the button, in the middle of an answer about his dealings with China, he said to me without skipping a beat: "Do you want a Coke or anything?"</p>
<p>Months later, Trump would tweet about another "button" in a taunt to the North Koreans, declaring, "my Button works!"</p>
<p>In reality, there's no such thing as a nuclear button for the president to launch a nuclear attack. But his Diet Coke button indeed works.</p>
<p>— By Julie Pace</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>NO-GO ZONE</p>
<p>Before dawn in a windowless room in a Seoul hotel, White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders gathered a group of reporters sworn to secrecy to inform them of their next destination.</p>
<p>Sanders held up a slip of paper, saying this was how she was told to convey the sensitive information. It read: "DMZ."</p>
<p>Ever the showman, Trump had hoped to punctuate his war of words with Pyongyang with a surprise Nov. 7 visit to the Demilitarized Zone, the heavily fortified border between North and South Korea.</p>
<p>But he never made it.</p>
<p>His convoy of helicopters was just five minutes from the border when heavy fog forced them to turn back. Trump urged another try but, after nearly an hour of waiting, military pilots and the Secret Service deemed it unsafe to make another try.</p>
<p>In a rage, Trump told an aide he thought the failed flight made him look weak.</p>
<p>"He's pretty frustrated," Sanders, wearing pearls and a borrowed military jacket, told reporters later.</p>
<p>— By Jonathan Lemire</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>GRIP-AND-GRIN AND BEAR IT</p>
<p>"Handshake?" members of the German media prodded at the start of Chancellor Angela Merkel's first Oval Office meeting with Trump in March.</p>
<p>The two leaders never locked hands during the photo op. It was an awkward tête-à-tête, one of multiple odd interactions between the new president and other world leaders in his first year.</p>
<p>There was Trump's white-knuckle grip and stare-down with French President Emmanuel Macron. Trump's mangled attempt at an interlocking handshake with world leaders in the Philippines. His gone-viral shove of Montenegro's leader at NATO headquarters.</p>
<p>Trump's highlight reel also includes a brief hand-holding moment with a baffled British Prime Minister Theresa May, a 19-second handshake/pat-down with Japan's Shinzo Abe, and multiple bear hugs with India's Narendra Modi.</p>
<p>Taken together, the encounters turned the tradition of staid grip-and-grins between world leaders on its head.</p>
<p>— By Ken Thomas</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>TWO SCOOPS</p>
<p>Trump beckoned a trio of reporters into his private dining room with a wave.</p>
<p>Just off the Oval Office, the room featured a newly installed 60-inch television and a chandelier, selected personally by the president, that he boasted restored the character of the room.</p>
<p>Surrounded by briefing papers and periodicals, Trump grabbed the remote and proceeded to offer color commentary on congressional testimony earlier that day from former acting Attorney General Sally Yates and former Director of National Intelligence James Clapper.</p>
<p>"Watch them start to choke like dogs," he said, already well versed in what he was to show us over and again.</p>
<p>It was a front-row seat to the president's voluminous media diet and a window into his consumption habits: Fox News programs recorded on TiVo, and later, two scoops of ice cream at dinner.</p>
<p>Everyone else at the dinner was served one scoop.</p>
<p>— By Zeke Miller</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>MAR-A-LAGO DIPLOMACY</p>
<p>Trump was hosting Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe for a February weekend of golf and get-to-know-you meetings at his Mar-a-Lago club in Palm Beach, Florida, when the press pool traveling with the new president was hastily summoned.</p>
<p>Reporters were led past a wedding arch on the lawn to an ornate ballroom, where the two leaders soon delivered brief statements responding to North Korea's first ballistic missile test of Trump's presidency. Party music from the wedding could be heard in the distance as they spoke.</p>
<p>It was an early indication of Trump's very different approach to foreign provocations.</p>
<p>Earlier in the evening, it would later emerge, Trump and Abe sat on the club's terrace, in full view of dues-paying club members and their guests, working out a response to the missile test.</p>
<p>Then-Press Secretary Sean Spicer insisted no classified material had been discussed.</p>
<p>All the while, members snapped photos. One guest posed with the military official carrying the nuclear football.</p>
<p>— By Jill Colvin</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>GREAT OR GREATEST?</p>
<p>It was the presidential version of "You like me, you really like me."</p>
<p>At Trump's first full Cabinet meeting in June, his top aides gathered at a long table in the Cabinet Room and reporters filed in for an opening photo opportunity.</p>
<p>Usually journalists are allowed into these gatherings for only a few remarks before being ushered out.</p>
<p>Not this time. After the president extoled his young administration, he asked the other participants to weigh in.</p>
<p>One by one, the Cabinet secretaries spoke out, touching on policy but most focused on something else: the president's ego, singing his praises in the kind of glowing language typically reserved for greeting cards.</p>
<p>Vice President Mike Pence called his job "the greatest privilege of my life."</p>
<p>Former Chief of Staff Reince Priebus thanked Trump for the "opportunity and the blessing that you've given us to serve your agenda."</p>
<p>Priebus was ousted the following month. But the meeting lives on as one of the oddest moments of Trump's first year.</p>
<p>— By Catherine Lucey</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>COMEY'S EXIT</p>
<p>White House reporters were anticipating a press statement, topic unknown, late in the day on May 9.</p>
<p>Then it came: a three-paragraph announcement from then-press secretary Spicer. I read it quickly and blurted out to my colleagues: "Oh my God. He just fired Jim Comey."</p>
<p>Trump roiled Washington by firing the FBI director overseeing the investigation into possible election-year collusion between Trump's campaign and Russian government officials. Trump had seethed about the investigation leading up to Comey's dismissal.</p>
<p>He sent his longtime bodyguard and confidant Keith Schiller to hand-deliver Comey's termination letter. But apparently no one bothered to check on Comey's whereabouts. The director was in Los Angeles, speaking to agents at the FBI field office, and learned from TV that he had just been fired.</p>
<p>At the White House, Spicer struggled to explain the stunning decision.</p>
<p>Between media interviews, the press secretary collected his thoughts while waiting among the hedges.</p>
<p>— By Darlene Superville</p>
<p>WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump has proven himself an unconventional leader time and time again in his first year in office. Here are some of the more memorable moments from the AP reporters tasked with covering this whirlwind presidency:</p>
<p>CAN I SHOW YOU MY BUTTON?</p>
<p>Midway through my April 23, 2017, interview with President Donald Trump, he reached over and pressed a red button on his desk in the Oval Office.</p>
<p>It didn't trigger a nuclear launch or send advisers scurrying into the room. Instead, a White House butler walked in with a single glass of Diet Coke on a silver tray for the commander in chief.</p>
<p>Trump was still relatively new in office and seemed to relish the trappings of his new digs. Moments before pressing the button, in the middle of an answer about his dealings with China, he said to me without skipping a beat: "Do you want a Coke or anything?"</p>
<p>Months later, Trump would tweet about another "button" in a taunt to the North Koreans, declaring, "my Button works!"</p>
<p>In reality, there's no such thing as a nuclear button for the president to launch a nuclear attack. But his Diet Coke button indeed works.</p>
<p>— By Julie Pace</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>NO-GO ZONE</p>
<p>Before dawn in a windowless room in a Seoul hotel, White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders gathered a group of reporters sworn to secrecy to inform them of their next destination.</p>
<p>Sanders held up a slip of paper, saying this was how she was told to convey the sensitive information. It read: "DMZ."</p>
<p>Ever the showman, Trump had hoped to punctuate his war of words with Pyongyang with a surprise Nov. 7 visit to the Demilitarized Zone, the heavily fortified border between North and South Korea.</p>
<p>But he never made it.</p>
<p>His convoy of helicopters was just five minutes from the border when heavy fog forced them to turn back. Trump urged another try but, after nearly an hour of waiting, military pilots and the Secret Service deemed it unsafe to make another try.</p>
<p>In a rage, Trump told an aide he thought the failed flight made him look weak.</p>
<p>"He's pretty frustrated," Sanders, wearing pearls and a borrowed military jacket, told reporters later.</p>
<p>— By Jonathan Lemire</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>GRIP-AND-GRIN AND BEAR IT</p>
<p>"Handshake?" members of the German media prodded at the start of Chancellor Angela Merkel's first Oval Office meeting with Trump in March.</p>
<p>The two leaders never locked hands during the photo op. It was an awkward tête-à-tête, one of multiple odd interactions between the new president and other world leaders in his first year.</p>
<p>There was Trump's white-knuckle grip and stare-down with French President Emmanuel Macron. Trump's mangled attempt at an interlocking handshake with world leaders in the Philippines. His gone-viral shove of Montenegro's leader at NATO headquarters.</p>
<p>Trump's highlight reel also includes a brief hand-holding moment with a baffled British Prime Minister Theresa May, a 19-second handshake/pat-down with Japan's Shinzo Abe, and multiple bear hugs with India's Narendra Modi.</p>
<p>Taken together, the encounters turned the tradition of staid grip-and-grins between world leaders on its head.</p>
<p>— By Ken Thomas</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>TWO SCOOPS</p>
<p>Trump beckoned a trio of reporters into his private dining room with a wave.</p>
<p>Just off the Oval Office, the room featured a newly installed 60-inch television and a chandelier, selected personally by the president, that he boasted restored the character of the room.</p>
<p>Surrounded by briefing papers and periodicals, Trump grabbed the remote and proceeded to offer color commentary on congressional testimony earlier that day from former acting Attorney General Sally Yates and former Director of National Intelligence James Clapper.</p>
<p>"Watch them start to choke like dogs," he said, already well versed in what he was to show us over and again.</p>
<p>It was a front-row seat to the president's voluminous media diet and a window into his consumption habits: Fox News programs recorded on TiVo, and later, two scoops of ice cream at dinner.</p>
<p>Everyone else at the dinner was served one scoop.</p>
<p>— By Zeke Miller</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>MAR-A-LAGO DIPLOMACY</p>
<p>Trump was hosting Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe for a February weekend of golf and get-to-know-you meetings at his Mar-a-Lago club in Palm Beach, Florida, when the press pool traveling with the new president was hastily summoned.</p>
<p>Reporters were led past a wedding arch on the lawn to an ornate ballroom, where the two leaders soon delivered brief statements responding to North Korea's first ballistic missile test of Trump's presidency. Party music from the wedding could be heard in the distance as they spoke.</p>
<p>It was an early indication of Trump's very different approach to foreign provocations.</p>
<p>Earlier in the evening, it would later emerge, Trump and Abe sat on the club's terrace, in full view of dues-paying club members and their guests, working out a response to the missile test.</p>
<p>Then-Press Secretary Sean Spicer insisted no classified material had been discussed.</p>
<p>All the while, members snapped photos. One guest posed with the military official carrying the nuclear football.</p>
<p>— By Jill Colvin</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>GREAT OR GREATEST?</p>
<p>It was the presidential version of "You like me, you really like me."</p>
<p>At Trump's first full Cabinet meeting in June, his top aides gathered at a long table in the Cabinet Room and reporters filed in for an opening photo opportunity.</p>
<p>Usually journalists are allowed into these gatherings for only a few remarks before being ushered out.</p>
<p>Not this time. After the president extoled his young administration, he asked the other participants to weigh in.</p>
<p>One by one, the Cabinet secretaries spoke out, touching on policy but most focused on something else: the president's ego, singing his praises in the kind of glowing language typically reserved for greeting cards.</p>
<p>Vice President Mike Pence called his job "the greatest privilege of my life."</p>
<p>Former Chief of Staff Reince Priebus thanked Trump for the "opportunity and the blessing that you've given us to serve your agenda."</p>
<p>Priebus was ousted the following month. But the meeting lives on as one of the oddest moments of Trump's first year.</p>
<p>— By Catherine Lucey</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>COMEY'S EXIT</p>
<p>White House reporters were anticipating a press statement, topic unknown, late in the day on May 9.</p>
<p>Then it came: a three-paragraph announcement from then-press secretary Spicer. I read it quickly and blurted out to my colleagues: "Oh my God. He just fired Jim Comey."</p>
<p>Trump roiled Washington by firing the FBI director overseeing the investigation into possible election-year collusion between Trump's campaign and Russian government officials. Trump had seethed about the investigation leading up to Comey's dismissal.</p>
<p>He sent his longtime bodyguard and confidant Keith Schiller to hand-deliver Comey's termination letter. But apparently no one bothered to check on Comey's whereabouts. The director was in Los Angeles, speaking to agents at the FBI field office, and learned from TV that he had just been fired.</p>
<p>At the White House, Spicer struggled to explain the stunning decision.</p>
<p>Between media interviews, the press secretary collected his thoughts while waiting among the hedges.</p>
<p>— By Darlene Superville</p>
| false | 2 |
washington ap president donald trump proven unconventional leader time time first year office memorable moments ap reporters tasked covering whirlwind presidency show button midway april 23 2017 interview president donald trump reached pressed red button desk oval office didnt trigger nuclear launch send advisers scurrying room instead white house butler walked single glass diet coke silver tray commander chief trump still relatively new office seemed relish trappings new digs moments pressing button middle answer dealings china said without skipping beat want coke anything months later trump would tweet another button taunt north koreans declaring button works reality theres thing nuclear button president launch nuclear attack diet coke button indeed works julie pace ___ nogo zone dawn windowless room seoul hotel white house press secretary sarah huckabee sanders gathered group reporters sworn secrecy inform next destination sanders held slip paper saying told convey sensitive information read dmz ever showman trump hoped punctuate war words pyongyang surprise nov 7 visit demilitarized zone heavily fortified border north south korea never made convoy helicopters five minutes border heavy fog forced turn back trump urged another try nearly hour waiting military pilots secret service deemed unsafe make another try rage trump told aide thought failed flight made look weak hes pretty frustrated sanders wearing pearls borrowed military jacket told reporters later jonathan lemire ___ gripandgrin bear handshake members german media prodded start chancellor angela merkels first oval office meeting trump march two leaders never locked hands photo op awkward têteàtête one multiple odd interactions new president world leaders first year trumps whiteknuckle grip staredown french president emmanuel macron trumps mangled attempt interlocking handshake world leaders philippines goneviral shove montenegros leader nato headquarters trumps highlight reel also includes brief handholding moment baffled british prime minister theresa may 19second handshakepatdown japans shinzo abe multiple bear hugs indias narendra modi taken together encounters turned tradition staid gripandgrins world leaders head ken thomas ___ two scoops trump beckoned trio reporters private dining room wave oval office room featured newly installed 60inch television chandelier selected personally president boasted restored character room surrounded briefing papers periodicals trump grabbed remote proceeded offer color commentary congressional testimony earlier day former acting attorney general sally yates former director national intelligence james clapper watch start choke like dogs said already well versed show us frontrow seat presidents voluminous media diet window consumption habits fox news programs recorded tivo later two scoops ice cream dinner everyone else dinner served one scoop zeke miller ___ maralago diplomacy trump hosting japanese prime minister shinzo abe february weekend golf gettoknowyou meetings maralago club palm beach florida press pool traveling new president hastily summoned reporters led past wedding arch lawn ornate ballroom two leaders soon delivered brief statements responding north koreas first ballistic missile test trumps presidency party music wedding could heard distance spoke early indication trumps different approach foreign provocations earlier evening would later emerge trump abe sat clubs terrace full view duespaying club members guests working response missile test thenpress secretary sean spicer insisted classified material discussed members snapped photos one guest posed military official carrying nuclear football jill colvin ___ great greatest presidential version like really like trumps first full cabinet meeting june top aides gathered long table cabinet room reporters filed opening photo opportunity usually journalists allowed gatherings remarks ushered time president extoled young administration asked participants weigh one one cabinet secretaries spoke touching policy focused something else presidents ego singing praises kind glowing language typically reserved greeting cards vice president mike pence called job greatest privilege life former chief staff reince priebus thanked trump opportunity blessing youve given us serve agenda priebus ousted following month meeting lives one oddest moments trumps first year catherine lucey ___ comeys exit white house reporters anticipating press statement topic unknown late day may 9 came threeparagraph announcement thenpress secretary spicer read quickly blurted colleagues oh god fired jim comey trump roiled washington firing fbi director overseeing investigation possible electionyear collusion trumps campaign russian government officials trump seethed investigation leading comeys dismissal sent longtime bodyguard confidant keith schiller handdeliver comeys termination letter apparently one bothered check comeys whereabouts director los angeles speaking agents fbi field office learned tv fired white house spicer struggled explain stunning decision media interviews press secretary collected thoughts waiting among hedges darlene superville washington ap president donald trump proven unconventional leader time time first year office memorable moments ap reporters tasked covering whirlwind presidency show button midway april 23 2017 interview president donald trump reached pressed red button desk oval office didnt trigger nuclear launch send advisers scurrying room instead white house butler walked single glass diet coke silver tray commander chief trump still relatively new office seemed relish trappings new digs moments pressing button middle answer dealings china said without skipping beat want coke anything months later trump would tweet another button taunt north koreans declaring button works reality theres thing nuclear button president launch nuclear attack diet coke button indeed works julie pace ___ nogo zone dawn windowless room seoul hotel white house press secretary sarah huckabee sanders gathered group reporters sworn secrecy inform next destination sanders held slip paper saying told convey sensitive information read dmz ever showman trump hoped punctuate war words pyongyang surprise nov 7 visit demilitarized zone heavily fortified border north south korea never made convoy helicopters five minutes border heavy fog forced turn back trump urged another try nearly hour waiting military pilots secret service deemed unsafe make another try rage trump told aide thought failed flight made look weak hes pretty frustrated sanders wearing pearls borrowed military jacket told reporters later jonathan lemire ___ gripandgrin bear handshake members german media prodded start chancellor angela merkels first oval office meeting trump march two leaders never locked hands photo op awkward têteàtête one multiple odd interactions new president world leaders first year trumps whiteknuckle grip staredown french president emmanuel macron trumps mangled attempt interlocking handshake world leaders philippines goneviral shove montenegros leader nato headquarters trumps highlight reel also includes brief handholding moment baffled british prime minister theresa may 19second handshakepatdown japans shinzo abe multiple bear hugs indias narendra modi taken together encounters turned tradition staid gripandgrins world leaders head ken thomas ___ two scoops trump beckoned trio reporters private dining room wave oval office room featured newly installed 60inch television chandelier selected personally president boasted restored character room surrounded briefing papers periodicals trump grabbed remote proceeded offer color commentary congressional testimony earlier day former acting attorney general sally yates former director national intelligence james clapper watch start choke like dogs said already well versed show us frontrow seat presidents voluminous media diet window consumption habits fox news programs recorded tivo later two scoops ice cream dinner everyone else dinner served one scoop zeke miller ___ maralago diplomacy trump hosting japanese prime minister shinzo abe february weekend golf gettoknowyou meetings maralago club palm beach florida press pool traveling new president hastily summoned reporters led past wedding arch lawn ornate ballroom two leaders soon delivered brief statements responding north koreas first ballistic missile test trumps presidency party music wedding could heard distance spoke early indication trumps different approach foreign provocations earlier evening would later emerge trump abe sat clubs terrace full view duespaying club members guests working response missile test thenpress secretary sean spicer insisted classified material discussed members snapped photos one guest posed military official carrying nuclear football jill colvin ___ great greatest presidential version like really like trumps first full cabinet meeting june top aides gathered long table cabinet room reporters filed opening photo opportunity usually journalists allowed gatherings remarks ushered time president extoled young administration asked participants weigh one one cabinet secretaries spoke touching policy focused something else presidents ego singing praises kind glowing language typically reserved greeting cards vice president mike pence called job greatest privilege life former chief staff reince priebus thanked trump opportunity blessing youve given us serve agenda priebus ousted following month meeting lives one oddest moments trumps first year catherine lucey ___ comeys exit white house reporters anticipating press statement topic unknown late day may 9 came threeparagraph announcement thenpress secretary spicer read quickly blurted colleagues oh god fired jim comey trump roiled washington firing fbi director overseeing investigation possible electionyear collusion trumps campaign russian government officials trump seethed investigation leading comeys dismissal sent longtime bodyguard confidant keith schiller handdeliver comeys termination letter apparently one bothered check comeys whereabouts director los angeles speaking agents fbi field office learned tv fired white house spicer struggled explain stunning decision media interviews press secretary collected thoughts waiting among hedges darlene superville
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<p>ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — 1. Do you support or oppose including student achievement as part of teacher evaluations?</p>
<p>2. Do you support or oppose changes to the workers compensation system to reduce payments to workers impaired by drugs or alcohol when injured?</p>
<p>3. Do you support or oppose raising New Mexico’s minimum wage, currently set at $7.50 per hour? If so, by how much?</p>
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<p>4. Do you support or oppose repeal of the 2003 New Mexico law that allows immigrants in the country illegally to obtain state-issued driver’s licenses?</p>
<p>5. Do you support or oppose legalizing recreational marijuana use in New Mexico, as has been done in Colorado and Washington?</p>
<p>6. Given the national debate about gun control, do you support or oppose requiring private sellers to have background checks for prospective buyers at gun shows and elsewhere?</p>
<p>7. Coupled with reading intervention efforts, do you support or oppose legislation that would require third-graders without adequate reading skills to repeat the grade level, ending the practice known as “social promotion”?</p>
<p>8. To provide more money for early childhood programs, do you support or oppose taking more money out of the state’s largest permanent fund on an annual basis?</p>
<p>9. Would you support or oppose “scholarships” to families of poor kids to enroll their kids in any high-performing pre-kindergarten program, including faith based programs?</p>
<p>10. Would you support or oppose a measure to allow utilities to offer lower electrical rates to companies as an economic development tool, even if it meant slightly higher rates for other customers?</p>
<p>11. In the wake of several high-profile child-abuse cases, do you support or oppose the state requiring that parents or guardians participate in counseling or treatment programs in cases where there is evidence of child abuse or neglect?</p>
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<p>12. Would you support or oppose a law providing that court and police records for people arrested but not convicted of a crime could be removed from public view? (This would not include crimes against children, sex offenses and drunken driving).</p>
<p>13. Have you or your business, if you are a business owner, ever been the subject of any state or federal tax liens?</p>
<p>14. Have you ever been involved in a personal or business bankruptcy proceeding?</p>
<p>15. Have you ever been arrested for, charged with, or convicted of drunken driving, any misdemeanor or any felony in New Mexico or any other state? If so, explain.</p>
<p><a href="" type="internal" />Javier I. Martinez</p>
<p>POLITICAL PARTY: Democratic</p>
<p>OCCUPATION: Attorney</p>
<p>RESIDENCE: Albuquerque</p>
<p>RELEVANT EXPERIENCE: I have more than 10 years of experience as an advocate and community organizer at the local and at the state level. I’ve worked to secure funding for early childhood education, promote sustainable economic development, and protect the civil rights of all New Mexicans.</p>
<p>EDUCATION: J.D., University of New Mexico School of Law; bachelor’s in political science, UNM.</p>
<p>CAMPAIGN WEBSITE: <a href="http://www.javiermartinezfornewmexico.com/" type="external">www.javiermartinezfornewmexico.com</a></p>
<p>CANDIDATE STATEMENT: I’m running for state representative as a father, concerned citizen and community advocate&#160;because New Mexico is at a crossroads. The policies we enact, or fail to enact, will define us for generations to come.&#160;As state representative, my priorities will be to secure permanent investments for early childhood education, enact a living wage for New Mexicans, and support smaller class sizes and higher teacher pay. Furthermore,&#160;the state can leverage the&#160;Patient Protection and Affordable&#160;Care Act to reform local health systems and ensure quality and affordable services, including mental and behavioral health, for all New Mexicans.</p>
<p>1. Oppose. The governor’s “my way or the highway” approach to public education has hurt New Mexico’s children. I support fair evaluation systems that are developed in collaboration with public school educators, parents and students.</p>
<p>2. As written above, I oppose such a proposal. I believe the problem – if indeed there is a systemic problem with workers being impaired on the job and that impairment resulting in injury – merits more in-depth discussion and debate. While I agree with a recent Journal editorial regarding overhaul of our workers compensation system, I do not think that simply reducing payments to workers impaired when injured is the one solution to the larger problem. I welcome a healthy discussion on this issue to ensure a solvent and healthy worker’s compensation system for all our workers.</p>
<p>3. I support a minimum wage of $10.10 an hour and will work hard to establish a living wage in New Mexico. If you work full time you shouldn’t live in poverty – it’s that simple. This is not only a sound economic policy; it’s also our moral responsibility to ensure that all our workers are paid a fair wage.</p>
<p>4. I oppose repeal of a law that, by all reputable accounts, works. Our current law ensures the public safety of all New Mexicans. It’s the responsibility of the federal government to fix our broken immigration system, not our state. While we await federal immigration reform, I support policies that are inclusive of all people living in the great state of New Mexico.</p>
<p>5. Support. As a border state I’m especially worried about the transnational drug trade and the violence it breeds. The marijuana trade represents more than 60 percent of drug cartel cash flow. By legalizing, we deal a substantial blow to criminal cartels on both sides of the border. But it’s not simply a matter of legalizing. We must also invest in quality substance abuse prevention and treatment systems to ensure the health of our people. The current drug war is inhumane and ineffective. We need to shift our focus from criminalization to a more cooperative and inclusive model focused on healing.</p>
<p>6. Support. Requiring background checks is good for public safety. This will not only help keep guns out of the hands of the mentally ill, but also out of the hands of dangerous criminals. Furthermore, our current gun laws have negative ramifications far beyond our borders. According to the Bureau of Alcohol,Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives more than 70 percent of guns seized from international drug cartels operating out of Mexico were U.S.-sourced. Sensible gun laws do not infringe on people’s Second Amendment rights. In fact, promoting safe gun policies helps protect the rights of qualified, law-abiding citizens to own guns.</p>
<p>7. Oppose. I support a targeted approach to education reform that provides for quality intervention efforts for children who are struggling academically, emotionally, physically and economically. Simply holding back students without a “wrap-around” approach that helps address the stress caused on them by poverty and lack of opportunity will do nothing for the child. Simply holding a student back without appropriate support will not improve their educational outcomes. Furthermore, the decision of whether to hold back a student should be in the hands of parents in collaboration with the teacher – not in the hands of bureaucrats or politicians.</p>
<p>8. Support. In order tackle New Mexico’s generational poverty and educational outcomes, we must make permanent investments in quality early childhood education. Furthermore, even if we invest the additional 1.5 percent, the fund continues to grow at a very healthy rate. Currently our “rainy day fund” is at $14 billion and, as we all know, it’s pouring rain in New Mexico. The Legislature doesn’t have the power by itself to increase distribution from the fund – it only has the ability to send the proposal to the voters. I trust the voters to decide how they want to invest the people’s money.</p>
<p>9. Oppose. Simple “scholarships” are not an investment in a robust early childhood education system. Rather, I support investing 1.5 percent out of the permanent fund and working with public and local-private early childhood education providers to build a quality system for ALL our children. Nobel-Prize winning economist James Heckman has extensively studied the return on investment of early childhood education – and concludes the return is 7 percent to 10 percent a year over the life of the child. That is substantially higher than the 5.8 percent long-term growth of the stock market where our permanent fund is currently invested.</p>
<p>10. Oppose. For the past several years, we have continually used corporate tax breaks as “tools for economic development.” Notwithstanding the huge tax breaks we’ve given corporations, New Mexico continues to struggle with joblessness. We cannot continue to place the burden of economic recovery solely on the backs of the working poor and the middle class. It must be a shared sacrifice.</p>
<p>11. Support. I also support reforming our current mental and behavioral health systems to make services more accessible for New Mexicans regardless of geographic location or ability to pay. We can leverage state and local resources with federal resources that are coming to the state via the Affordable Care Act.</p>
<p>12. Support. We have created a permanent underclass of New Mexicans who are arrested but never convicted and therefore cannot secure gainful employment because they may not pass a background check. In addition, there are many New Mexicans who may have been victims of identity theft and who currently have very little recourse to clear their name.</p>
<p>13. No.</p>
<p>14. No.</p>
<p>15. No.</p>
<p>&#160;</p>
<p>&#160;</p>
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albuquerque nm 1 support oppose including student achievement part teacher evaluations 2 support oppose changes workers compensation system reduce payments workers impaired drugs alcohol injured 3 support oppose raising new mexicos minimum wage currently set 750 per hour much advertisement 4 support oppose repeal 2003 new mexico law allows immigrants country illegally obtain stateissued drivers licenses 5 support oppose legalizing recreational marijuana use new mexico done colorado washington 6 given national debate gun control support oppose requiring private sellers background checks prospective buyers gun shows elsewhere 7 coupled reading intervention efforts support oppose legislation would require thirdgraders without adequate reading skills repeat grade level ending practice known social promotion 8 provide money early childhood programs support oppose taking money states largest permanent fund annual basis 9 would support oppose scholarships families poor kids enroll kids highperforming prekindergarten program including faith based programs 10 would support oppose measure allow utilities offer lower electrical rates companies economic development tool even meant slightly higher rates customers 11 wake several highprofile childabuse cases support oppose state requiring parents guardians participate counseling treatment programs cases evidence child abuse neglect advertisement 12 would support oppose law providing court police records people arrested convicted crime could removed public view would include crimes children sex offenses drunken driving 13 business business owner ever subject state federal tax liens 14 ever involved personal business bankruptcy proceeding 15 ever arrested charged convicted drunken driving misdemeanor felony new mexico state explain javier martinez political party democratic occupation attorney residence albuquerque relevant experience 10 years experience advocate community organizer local state level ive worked secure funding early childhood education promote sustainable economic development protect civil rights new mexicans education jd university new mexico school law bachelors political science unm campaign website wwwjaviermartinezfornewmexicocom candidate statement im running state representative father concerned citizen community advocate160because new mexico crossroads policies enact fail enact define us generations come160as state representative priorities secure permanent investments early childhood education enact living wage new mexicans support smaller class sizes higher teacher pay furthermore160the state leverage the160patient protection affordable160care act reform local health systems ensure quality affordable services including mental behavioral health new mexicans 1 oppose governors way highway approach public education hurt new mexicos children support fair evaluation systems developed collaboration public school educators parents students 2 written oppose proposal believe problem indeed systemic problem workers impaired job impairment resulting injury merits indepth discussion debate agree recent journal editorial regarding overhaul workers compensation system think simply reducing payments workers impaired injured one solution larger problem welcome healthy discussion issue ensure solvent healthy workers compensation system workers 3 support minimum wage 1010 hour work hard establish living wage new mexico work full time shouldnt live poverty simple sound economic policy also moral responsibility ensure workers paid fair wage 4 oppose repeal law reputable accounts works current law ensures public safety new mexicans responsibility federal government fix broken immigration system state await federal immigration reform support policies inclusive people living great state new mexico 5 support border state im especially worried transnational drug trade violence breeds marijuana trade represents 60 percent drug cartel cash flow legalizing deal substantial blow criminal cartels sides border simply matter legalizing must also invest quality substance abuse prevention treatment systems ensure health people current drug war inhumane ineffective need shift focus criminalization cooperative inclusive model focused healing 6 support requiring background checks good public safety help keep guns hands mentally ill also hands dangerous criminals furthermore current gun laws negative ramifications far beyond borders according bureau alcoholtobacco firearms explosives 70 percent guns seized international drug cartels operating mexico ussourced sensible gun laws infringe peoples second amendment rights fact promoting safe gun policies helps protect rights qualified lawabiding citizens guns 7 oppose support targeted approach education reform provides quality intervention efforts children struggling academically emotionally physically economically simply holding back students without wraparound approach helps address stress caused poverty lack opportunity nothing child simply holding student back without appropriate support improve educational outcomes furthermore decision whether hold back student hands parents collaboration teacher hands bureaucrats politicians 8 support order tackle new mexicos generational poverty educational outcomes must make permanent investments quality early childhood education furthermore even invest additional 15 percent fund continues grow healthy rate currently rainy day fund 14 billion know pouring rain new mexico legislature doesnt power increase distribution fund ability send proposal voters trust voters decide want invest peoples money 9 oppose simple scholarships investment robust early childhood education system rather support investing 15 percent permanent fund working public localprivate early childhood education providers build quality system children nobelprize winning economist james heckman extensively studied return investment early childhood education concludes return 7 percent 10 percent year life child substantially higher 58 percent longterm growth stock market permanent fund currently invested 10 oppose past several years continually used corporate tax breaks tools economic development notwithstanding huge tax breaks weve given corporations new mexico continues struggle joblessness continue place burden economic recovery solely backs working poor middle class must shared sacrifice 11 support also support reforming current mental behavioral health systems make services accessible new mexicans regardless geographic location ability pay leverage state local resources federal resources coming state via affordable care act 12 support created permanent underclass new mexicans arrested never convicted therefore secure gainful employment may pass background check addition many new mexicans may victims identity theft currently little recourse clear name 13 14 15 160 160
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<p>BATON ROUGE, La. — The U.S. Justice Department has decided not to charge two white Baton Rouge police officers in the death of a black man whose fatal shooting was captured on cellphone video, fueling protests in Louisiana’s capital and beyond, The Associated Press has learned.</p>
<p>Federal authorities opened a civil rights investigation immediately after the July 5, 2016, police shooting that killed Alton Sterling, 37, outside a convenience store where he was selling homemade CDs.</p>
<p>A person familiar with the decision disclosed it to the AP on Tuesday. The person was not authorized to talk publicly about the decision and spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity.</p>
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<p>The department’s decision doesn’t preclude state authorities from conducting their own investigation and pursuing their own criminal charges.</p>
<p>Two cellphone videos of Sterling’s deadly struggle with two white officers, Blane Salamoni and Howie Lake II, quickly spread on social media after the shooting.</p>
<p>A police report says Sterling was initially jolted with a stun gun after he didn’t comply with the officers’ commands to put his hands on the hood of a car. The report also says the officers saw the butt of a gun in one of Sterling’s pants pockets and saw him try to reach for it before he was shot.</p>
<p>Outside the convenience store, dozens of people gathered Tuesday upon hearing the news and held a vigil. One of Alton’s aunts spoke at the vigil and led the crowd in chants of “No justice, no peace!”</p>
<p>“It’s been almost a year and we’re still suffering like it happened yesterday,” said one of Sterling’s aunts, Veda Sterling. “We need closure. We need a conviction. We need justice.”</p>
<p>Arthur Reed, a local activist, said he broke the news to another of Sterling’s aunts, Sandra, in a phone call after seeing the news reports. Reed says she broke down crying and is “heartbroken,” not only because of the decision but because the Justice Department didn’t notify the family first.</p>
<p>“We just think it wasn’t done properly,” he said.</p>
<p>No public announcement has been made by the Department of Justice, and many officials in Baton Rouge said they haven’t been notified.</p>
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<p>“The Governor’s Office has not been notified of a timeline or decision regarding the Alton Sterling investigation. We have been in constant contact with the U.S. Attorney’s Office and were assured that both our office and the Sterling family would be given advance notice,” said Richard Carbo, a spokesman for Gov. John Bel Edwards.</p>
<p>John McLindon, Salamoni’s attorney, said he can’t comment until he reads an official report from the Justice Department. An attorney for Lake did not return a call seeking comment.</p>
<p>Ryan Julison, a spokesman for two attorneys representing some members of Alton Sterling’s family, said the family hasn’t been notified of any DOJ decision.</p>
<p>Justin Bamberg, an attorney for some of Sterling’s relatives, has said the family wanted an indictment.</p>
<p>Bamberg also represents relatives of Walter Scott, an unarmed black man who was running from a traffic stop in Charleston, South Carolina, when a white police officer shot and killed him in 2015. The former officer, 35-year-old Michael Slager, pleaded guilty to federal civil rights charges Tuesday, five months after a jury deadlocked on state murder charges against him.</p>
<p>Tuesday’s decision in the Sterling case was the highest profile decision not to bring charges against police officers in a deadly shooting since Jeff Sessions became attorney general. But the federal investigation into possible civil rights violations by the officers was seen as problematic. Authorities in such cases must meet a difficult standard of proof, a challenge that has complicated prosecutions in past police shootings.</p>
<p>Sessions has said his Justice Department is committed to holding individual officers accountable when they break the law. But he also believes too much federal scrutiny of police departments can diminish officers’ effectiveness and hurt morale, and has ordered a sweeping review of federal consent decrees that force cities to agree to major policing overhauls.</p>
<p>Louisiana’s governor immediately requested a federal investigation of Sterling’s death last summer and called cellphone video of the incident “disturbing.”</p>
<p>The videos show Sterling scuffling with Salamoni and Lake after they responded to a caller’s complaint that Sterling had threatened the caller with a gun outside the convenience store.</p>
<p>The two officers had Sterling pinned on his back when gunfire erupted, moments after someone yelled, “He’s got a gun!”</p>
<p>The Baton Rouge police chief has said Sterling was armed. The store’s owner has said Sterling wasn’t holding a gun during the shooting but he saw officers remove one from his pocket afterward.</p>
<p>As a convicted felon, Sterling couldn’t legally carry a gun. Court records show Sterling had pleaded guilty in 2011 to being a felon in possession of a firearm and illegally carrying a weapon and was arrested in May 2009 after an officer confronted him outside another store where he was selling CDs.</p>
<p>Police said they have dashcam and bodycam video and store surveillance footage of the shooting; none has been released. A coroner’s report on Sterling’s autopsy has been sealed.</p>
<p>Both officers were placed on administrative leave, a standard procedure. Each officer had two prior “use of force” complaints against them, and records indicate they were cleared in all cases.</p>
<p>The East Baton Rouge District Attorney recused himself from any state criminal investigation into Sterling’s death, citing his professional relationship with Salamoni’s parents. They are current and former police officers in Baton Rouge.</p>
<p>Moore’s recusal left Louisiana Attorney General Jeff Landry to decide whether to have his own office review evidence for possible state charges or to appoint another district attorney to the case.</p>
<p>A spokesman for Landry said Tuesday their office would not comment until after an official Justice Department announcement.</p>
<p>Sterling’s death sparked widespread protests last summer during which police arrested nearly 200 protesters. The mass arrests led to federal lawsuits accusing police of using excessive force and violating protesters’ civil rights.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>Gurman reported from Washington. Associated Press reporter Melinda Deslatte in Baton Rouge contributed to this report.</p>
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baton rouge la us justice department decided charge two white baton rouge police officers death black man whose fatal shooting captured cellphone video fueling protests louisianas capital beyond associated press learned federal authorities opened civil rights investigation immediately july 5 2016 police shooting killed alton sterling 37 outside convenience store selling homemade cds person familiar decision disclosed ap tuesday person authorized talk publicly decision spoke ap condition anonymity advertisement departments decision doesnt preclude state authorities conducting investigation pursuing criminal charges two cellphone videos sterlings deadly struggle two white officers blane salamoni howie lake ii quickly spread social media shooting police report says sterling initially jolted stun gun didnt comply officers commands put hands hood car report also says officers saw butt gun one sterlings pants pockets saw try reach shot outside convenience store dozens people gathered tuesday upon hearing news held vigil one altons aunts spoke vigil led crowd chants justice peace almost year still suffering like happened yesterday said one sterlings aunts veda sterling need closure need conviction need justice arthur reed local activist said broke news another sterlings aunts sandra phone call seeing news reports reed says broke crying heartbroken decision justice department didnt notify family first think wasnt done properly said public announcement made department justice many officials baton rouge said havent notified advertisement governors office notified timeline decision regarding alton sterling investigation constant contact us attorneys office assured office sterling family would given advance notice said richard carbo spokesman gov john bel edwards john mclindon salamonis attorney said cant comment reads official report justice department attorney lake return call seeking comment ryan julison spokesman two attorneys representing members alton sterlings family said family hasnt notified doj decision justin bamberg attorney sterlings relatives said family wanted indictment bamberg also represents relatives walter scott unarmed black man running traffic stop charleston south carolina white police officer shot killed 2015 former officer 35yearold michael slager pleaded guilty federal civil rights charges tuesday five months jury deadlocked state murder charges tuesdays decision sterling case highest profile decision bring charges police officers deadly shooting since jeff sessions became attorney general federal investigation possible civil rights violations officers seen problematic authorities cases must meet difficult standard proof challenge complicated prosecutions past police shootings sessions said justice department committed holding individual officers accountable break law also believes much federal scrutiny police departments diminish officers effectiveness hurt morale ordered sweeping review federal consent decrees force cities agree major policing overhauls louisianas governor immediately requested federal investigation sterlings death last summer called cellphone video incident disturbing videos show sterling scuffling salamoni lake responded callers complaint sterling threatened caller gun outside convenience store two officers sterling pinned back gunfire erupted moments someone yelled hes got gun baton rouge police chief said sterling armed stores owner said sterling wasnt holding gun shooting saw officers remove one pocket afterward convicted felon sterling couldnt legally carry gun court records show sterling pleaded guilty 2011 felon possession firearm illegally carrying weapon arrested may 2009 officer confronted outside another store selling cds police said dashcam bodycam video store surveillance footage shooting none released coroners report sterlings autopsy sealed officers placed administrative leave standard procedure officer two prior use force complaints records indicate cleared cases east baton rouge district attorney recused state criminal investigation sterlings death citing professional relationship salamonis parents current former police officers baton rouge moores recusal left louisiana attorney general jeff landry decide whether office review evidence possible state charges appoint another district attorney case spokesman landry said tuesday office would comment official justice department announcement sterlings death sparked widespread protests last summer police arrested nearly 200 protesters mass arrests led federal lawsuits accusing police using excessive force violating protesters civil rights ___ gurman reported washington associated press reporter melinda deslatte baton rouge contributed report
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<p />
<p>The reunion was a year-and-a-half in the making for the brothers from Yemen, whose hopes to live in the United States seemed uncertain, even impossible, after President Donald Trump signed an executive order banning travelers from their home country and others.</p>
<p>As they re-entered the airport they had been turned back from late last month, joining family members and lawyers who had helped ensure their journey, they expressed only gratitude.</p>
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<p>“We are so happy we’re here,” Ammar Aziz, 19, said simply, speaking through an interpreter.</p>
<p>The brothers are the face of one of the first court cases challenging Trump’s ban on travel from seven predominantly Muslim countries. A judge in Washington state has put the ban on hold, and tens of thousands of visas have been reinstated. But people like the Aziz brothers, who tried to travel last weekend and had their visas canceled, have still faced obstacles. The Justice Department has been settling these cases on an individual basis, but there is no public record of how many visas were canceled or why.</p>
<p>The brothers were among the many immigrants and refugees arriving at airports nationwide while the ban is suspended. The administration is appealing, and the case could end up at the Supreme Court.</p>
<p>Tareq and Ammar Aziz, with few educational opportunities in war-torn Yemen, had first applied for visas to come to the United States in 2015 and, after months, had secured them. Their father had made a home in Michigan, and they saw a place for themselves there.</p>
<p>“This is America,” said their father, Aquel Aziz. “America is for everybody.”</p>
<p>—</p>
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<p>Aquel Aziz came to the United States in 2001 on a student visa and soon applied for a green card. Although his studies in nutrition science were cut short by visa delays after the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, he built a career managing gas stations.</p>
<p>Aziz, who had separated from his wife long before, found life in the United States freer and happier. But he had left his young sons with his parents in Sanaa. He sent money home, and spoke with his family by phone every day as the boys grew up without him.</p>
<p>It took seven years to obtain a green card. The day after he became a legal permanent resident, he booked a flight to Yemen.</p>
<p>Aziz recalled pulling up in a taxi outside a house he didn’t recognize; two boys who he at first did not realize were his sons ran alongside it. “Everything was different,” he said. After that, he visited twice a year. When he became a U.S. citizen in April 2015, Aziz quickly moved to bring his sons over.</p>
<p>The timing was fortuitous. The boys’ comfortable lives were coming to an end as Yemen’s civil war began. Rebels took over the capital and divided the country in half.</p>
<p>Before, because of the money their father had sent, Tareq and Ammar Aziz lived almost like American teenagers in the Arab world’s poorest country. Tareq drove his own car, went bowling and even learned to ice skate when a rink opened in 2013. He learned English by watching American police shows, listening to Rihanna and chatting on social media.</p>
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<p>Life became more precarious with the rebels in town, but Tareq said that for the most part, these heavily armed tribes from the northern mountains left locals alone. Then the Saudi-led airstrikes began using U.S.-supplied munitions.</p>
<p>“Yemeni people aren’t really afraid of men with guns, they are used to that,” Tareq said. “But the planes were something new.” Every night, the bombs fell, sometimes so close that the brothers couldn’t sleep.</p>
<p>One day, an especially large explosion shook the city. When Tareq got to the city’s main event hall, he came upon a scene of horror.</p>
<p>“I couldn’t believe this is real, it was like in the movies,” he said. “Some of them had no limbs, some were crying, most you couldn’t tell who they were anymore.”</p>
<p>That day – Oct. 8, 2016 – planes dropped two bombs during a funeral for a prominent politician and killed at least 100 people, one of the deadliest assaults of the conflict.</p>
<p>Even without the bombs, life was fraying. With the money from abroad, the Aziz family could afford food while others around them began to starve. But regular electricity was a thing of the past, and gas prices had soared to $300 for a five-gallon jerry can.</p>
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<p>Like many in the city, they rigged up solar panels to give them some electricity, as fuel for the generator had become too expensive and scarce. Cars disappeared from the streets, and many people invested in bicycles.</p>
<p>Tareq’s education plans also fell apart. He had been hoping to study at the private British College, but with the war, that closed. So did the Amideast office where he and his brother had been taking English lessons.</p>
<p>The streets of the city were increasingly deserted as people feared death from above. Mosque attendance declined amid fear of suicide bombers from al-Qaida who would detonate themselves during prayer times.</p>
<p>Life devolved into a waiting game as they tried to figure out how to get the visas and join their father. He would call multiple times a day, watching the news in fear. There was no longer a U.S. embassy in Sanaa, so they applied for and were granted an interview at the embassy in Djibouti, just across the Red Sea.</p>
<p>Getting there was its own challenge. The airport was closed, so they took the dangerous road overland through the warring factions to the southern port of Aden, home of the internationally recognized government and one of the few functioning airports left in the country.</p>
<p>For days they waited at the airport for space on one of the flights out, before finally getting seats. From there, they took a flight to Amman, Jordan, then Doha, Qatar, before finally landing in Djibouti.</p>
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<p>In the time it had taken them to get there, they had missed their interview at the embassy. After a few weeks of waiting in the sweaty port city, they were granted another. Djibouti is expensive, and they had little to do but pace the waterfront, watching the Yemeni fishing boats and dreaming of escape.</p>
<p>—</p>
<p>On Jan. 25, they learned that they both had visas.</p>
<p>They caught a plane to Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, and then boarded the long flight to Dulles airport.</p>
<p>It seemed as though they had finally made it. While the brothers were aboard the plane on Jan. 27, Trump signed the executive order.</p>
<p>“We were happy because we were going to meet our dad and he was waiting for us, and then we arrived in Washington Dulles Airport and there was a guy saying, ‘Yemenis, this way,’ ” Tareq Aziz said.</p>
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<p>Along with other Yemenis, Somalis and Sudanese on the flight, they were waved to the side, fingerprinted and taken to an office where a uniformed police officer said they were going back to Djibouti.</p>
<p>“He said, ‘Your visa has been canceled,’ and I was shocked. He told us there was a presidential order,” Tareq, 21, said during a recent interview in Djibouti. He and his brother sat at a cafe under whirling ceiling fans.</p>
<p>“I said, ‘Can I call our lawyer?’ and he said, ‘You can’t, it’s a presidential order, you can’t do anything.’ “</p>
<p>Instead, Tareq said, the officials told him to sign a paper – whose dense legal language he couldn’t decipher – or face being banned from the country for the next five years. He was told that once the situation was resolved between Yemen and the United States, he could reapply.</p>
<p>Escorted by police while the other passengers stared at them, the Aziz brothers were put on the next flight back to Addis Ababa, where they then spent days in the airport, talking with their father and lawyers trying to figure out what to do.</p>
<p>They refused to pay for their flight back to Ethiopia or to board the plane for Djibouti until Ethiopian authorities said it was that or face arrest. So in a few hours, they were back in a city that had hoped never to see again, surrounded by desperate countrymen. Their luggage was missing; they walked in the 80-degree heat in sweaters meant for a Michigan winter.</p>
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<p>—</p>
<p>In Flint, Michigan, Aquel Aziz had made a feast of Yemeni food for his sons. After a day-long flight, he knew they would be hungry. When they did not arrive in Detroit and he could not reach them, he began driving toward Northern Virginia. He had made it to somewhere in Ohio when he received the call: His sons had been sent back to Ethiopia, their visas canceled.</p>
<p>“I was worried all that time, not knowing,” he said. “I couldn’t talk to them, I didn’t know what was going on with them until my older son called me – 34 hours later – from Ethiopia.”</p>
<p>The drive home took him three times as long, because he had to stop regularly and break down. The food, he gave to neighbors.</p>
<p>“I didn’t eat that food, that was my kids’ food,” Aziz said. Besides, he had lost his appetite. Three days would pass before he wanted to eat again.</p>
<p>Now there will be a new feast. In Flint, he has found an apartment for his sons, with beds. They still have no idea where their luggage is. Auqel Aziz doesn’t mind. He will buy them new clothes.</p>
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<p>“Everything I didn’t do for them while I was here, I want to do,” he said. “I want to give them the things a father should. I want to give them love.”</p>
<p>—</p>
<p>Schemm reported from Djibouti.</p>
<p>—</p>
<p>Video: Families that had been affected by President Trump’s ban on travel reunited in airports across the U.S. on Sunday. (Jayne Orenstein, Dalton Bennett,Natalie Jennings / The Washington Post)</p>
<p>URL:</p>
<p><a href="http://wapo.st/2kc4mCX" type="external">http://wapo.st/2kc4mCX</a></p>
<p>Embed code:</p>
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reunion yearandahalf making brothers yemen whose hopes live united states seemed uncertain even impossible president donald trump signed executive order banning travelers home country others reentered airport turned back late last month joining family members lawyers helped ensure journey expressed gratitude advertisement happy ammar aziz 19 said simply speaking interpreter brothers face one first court cases challenging trumps ban travel seven predominantly muslim countries judge washington state put ban hold tens thousands visas reinstated people like aziz brothers tried travel last weekend visas canceled still faced obstacles justice department settling cases individual basis public record many visas canceled brothers among many immigrants refugees arriving airports nationwide ban suspended administration appealing case could end supreme court tareq ammar aziz educational opportunities wartorn yemen first applied visas come united states 2015 months secured father made home michigan saw place america said father aquel aziz america everybody advertisement aquel aziz came united states 2001 student visa soon applied green card although studies nutrition science cut short visa delays attacks sept 11 2001 built career managing gas stations aziz separated wife long found life united states freer happier left young sons parents sanaa sent money home spoke family phone every day boys grew without took seven years obtain green card day became legal permanent resident booked flight yemen aziz recalled pulling taxi outside house didnt recognize two boys first realize sons ran alongside everything different said visited twice year became us citizen april 2015 aziz quickly moved bring sons timing fortuitous boys comfortable lives coming end yemens civil war began rebels took capital divided country half money father sent tareq ammar aziz lived almost like american teenagers arab worlds poorest country tareq drove car went bowling even learned ice skate rink opened 2013 learned english watching american police shows listening rihanna chatting social media advertisement life became precarious rebels town tareq said part heavily armed tribes northern mountains left locals alone saudiled airstrikes began using ussupplied munitions yemeni people arent really afraid men guns used tareq said planes something new every night bombs fell sometimes close brothers couldnt sleep one day especially large explosion shook city tareq got citys main event hall came upon scene horror couldnt believe real like movies said limbs crying couldnt tell anymore day oct 8 2016 planes dropped two bombs funeral prominent politician killed least 100 people one deadliest assaults conflict even without bombs life fraying money abroad aziz family could afford food others around began starve regular electricity thing past gas prices soared 300 fivegallon jerry advertisement like many city rigged solar panels give electricity fuel generator become expensive scarce cars disappeared streets many people invested bicycles tareqs education plans also fell apart hoping study private british college war closed amideast office brother taking english lessons streets city increasingly deserted people feared death mosque attendance declined amid fear suicide bombers alqaida would detonate prayer times life devolved waiting game tried figure get visas join father would call multiple times day watching news fear longer us embassy sanaa applied granted interview embassy djibouti across red sea getting challenge airport closed took dangerous road overland warring factions southern port aden home internationally recognized government one functioning airports left country days waited airport space one flights finally getting seats took flight amman jordan doha qatar finally landing djibouti advertisement time taken get missed interview embassy weeks waiting sweaty port city granted another djibouti expensive little pace waterfront watching yemeni fishing boats dreaming escape jan 25 learned visas caught plane addis ababa ethiopia boarded long flight dulles airport seemed though finally made brothers aboard plane jan 27 trump signed executive order happy going meet dad waiting us arrived washington dulles airport guy saying yemenis way tareq aziz said advertisement along yemenis somalis sudanese flight waved side fingerprinted taken office uniformed police officer said going back djibouti said visa canceled shocked told us presidential order tareq 21 said recent interview djibouti brother sat cafe whirling ceiling fans said call lawyer said cant presidential order cant anything instead tareq said officials told sign paper whose dense legal language couldnt decipher face banned country next five years told situation resolved yemen united states could reapply escorted police passengers stared aziz brothers put next flight back addis ababa spent days airport talking father lawyers trying figure refused pay flight back ethiopia board plane djibouti ethiopian authorities said face arrest hours back city hoped never see surrounded desperate countrymen luggage missing walked 80degree heat sweaters meant michigan winter advertisement flint michigan aquel aziz made feast yemeni food sons daylong flight knew would hungry arrive detroit could reach began driving toward northern virginia made somewhere ohio received call sons sent back ethiopia visas canceled worried time knowing said couldnt talk didnt know going older son called 34 hours later ethiopia drive home took three times long stop regularly break food gave neighbors didnt eat food kids food aziz said besides lost appetite three days would pass wanted eat new feast flint found apartment sons beds still idea luggage auqel aziz doesnt mind buy new clothes advertisement everything didnt want said want give things father want give love schemm reported djibouti video families affected president trumps ban travel reunited airports across us sunday jayne orenstein dalton bennettnatalie jennings washington post url httpwapost2kc4mcx embed code
| 875 |
<p>JERUSALEM (AP) — Thousands of Palestinian protesters clashed with Israeli forces in east Jerusalem and the West Bank, demonstrators in the Gaza Strip burned U.S. flags and pictures of President Donald Trump, and a top Palestinian official said Vice President Mike Pence would not be welcome in the West Bank, in a show of rage Thursday over the American decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israel’s capital.</p>
<p>Israeli forces were bracing for the possibility of even stronger violence on Friday, when tens of thousands of Palestinians attend weekly prayers at Jerusalem’s Al Aqsa Mosque, the city’s most sacred Islamic site. In Gaza, the supreme leader of the Hamas militant group called on Palestinians to launch a new uprising against Israel.</p>
<p>The Palestinians were blindsided by Trump’s move to depart from decades of U.S. policy on Jerusalem and upend longstanding international assurances that the fate of the city would be determined in negotiations.</p>
<p>The Palestinians seek east Jerusalem, captured by Israel in 1967, as their capital. Israel claims the entire city, including east Jerusalem, home to sensitive Jewish, Muslim and Christian holy sites, as its undivided capital. The opposing claims lie at the heart of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and have often spilled over into deadly violence.</p>
<p>The Palestinians declared three “days of rage,” shuttering schools and businesses, and staging angry demonstrations at Damascus Gate, one of the entrances to Jerusalem’s Old City, and cities across the West Bank and Gaza.</p>
<p>“We are here. We believe in our rights and one day it (will) become Jerusalem, the capital for the Palestinian people,” declared Rania Hatem, a protester outside the Old City.</p>
<p>The Israeli military reported demonstrations in some 30 locations across the West Bank on Thursday, saying Palestinians had hurled stones and firebombs at troops. A military official, speaking on condition of anonymity under briefing guidelines, said troops were instructed to use minimal force and avoid live fire to avoid escalating tensions.</p>
<p>In the West Bank, troops fired water cannons and tear gas to disperse a crowd in Bethlehem, the biblical town of Jesus’ birth, just weeks before thousands of foreign tourists are expected to visit for Christmas celebrations. In Ramallah, the seat of the Palestinian government, protesters set tires on fire, sending thick plumes of black smoke over the city.</p>
<p>Palestinian officials said dozens of protesters were slightly wounded, most from tear gas inhalation. Spontaneous protests also took place in Gaza, with angry youths burning tires, American and Israeli flags and Trump posters.</p>
<p>A senior Palestinian official said the Palestinians would not meet with Pence during his visit to the region later this month when Pence is expected to visit Israel and make a stop in the Palestinian city of Bethlehem. “We will not receive him in the Palestinian territories,” said the official, Jibril Rajoub.</p>
<p>However, a White House official said Pence still plans to meet with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas as scheduled and said it would be “counterproductive” to cancel. The official spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss upcoming plans.</p>
<p>Israeli security officials were preparing for more unrest on Friday. In a pre-emptive move, the military said it would deploy several battalions to the West Bank, while other troops were put on alert.</p>
<p>Israeli officials said Friday prayers at the Al Aqsa Mosque, along with the expected unrest in the West Bank, would set the tone for the coming days.</p>
<p>Palestinian officials in the West Bank said they had no interest in bloody violence but warned that individual attacks were possible.</p>
<p>Israeli police were considering whether to impose age restrictions on worshippers at Friday’s prayers, but as of Thursday evening, had made no changes.</p>
<p>In Gaza, Ismail Haniyeh, the Hamas supreme leader, called on Palestinians to launch a new uprising. “We want the uprising to last and continue to let Trump and the occupation regret this decision,” he said.</p>
<p>Hamas, which seeks Israel’s destruction, killed hundreds of Israelis in suicide bombings and other attacks during the second Palestinian uprising in the early 2000s. However, the Islamic militant group, which seized control of Gaza in 2007, has been weakened by a decade-long Israeli blockade and three painful wars with Israel.</p>
<p>Nonetheless, it still has cells in the West Bank and possesses a large arsenal of rockets in its Gaza stronghold. Late Thursday, Israeli tanks and aircraft attacked two military posts in Gaza, following a series of rocket attacks, including one that landed in southern Israel. There were no reports of casualties on either side.</p>
<p>Trump’s decision had no immediate impact on daily life in Jerusalem, which already is the seat of Israel’s government.</p>
<p>While Trump insisted that the move was meant to acknowledge the current reality, and not prejudge negotiations on Jerusalem’s status, it carried deep symbolic meaning and was seen by the Palestinians as siding with Israel.</p>
<p>And even if Trump’s move cannot singlehandedly determine Jerusalem’s status, policies of the U.S., the lead mediator for over two decades of unsuccessful peace talks, carry special weight.</p>
<p>Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Trump “bound himself forever” to the history of Jerusalem and maintained other countries were already interested in following suit.</p>
<p>Abbas suggested that Trump’s move disqualified the United States from continuing as an exclusive broker. He met with his closest Arab ally, Jordan’s King Abdullah II, in Amman on Thursday, saying that he was rallying international opposition to Trump’s move, which he called an “unacceptable crime.”</p>
<p>The king could play an important role. He is one of Washington’s most dependable partners in the battle against Islamic extremism in the region, and his country is the custodian of Muslim holy sites in Jerusalem, making him an influential player.</p>
<p>Abbas said he was also speaking to countries in Europe and Africa. International opposition has been widespread, including America’s closest allies in Europe. “Fortunately, there was a positive response from all the countries in the world,” Abbas said.</p>
<p>On Thursday, the Palestinians asked the Security Council to take urgent action and demand that Trump’s decision be rescinded. The council scheduled an emergency meeting on Friday.</p>
<p>Meanwhile, anger at the U.S. rippled across the Arab world.</p>
<p>Saudi Arabia condemned Trump’s decision in a rare public rebuke by the U.S. ally. The regional powerhouse, which could help the White House push through a Middle East settlement, said it had warned against the step and “continues to express its deep regret at the U.S. administration’s decision,” calling it “unjustified and irresponsible.”</p>
<p>The Arab League, which represents most states in the Middle East and North Africa, was to meet Saturday. Next week, Turkey will host a gathering of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, which has 57 Arab and Muslim member states.</p>
<p>Despite the verbal support, Palestinian officials are concerned the Arabs will not provide the sustained backing Abbas needs. While quick to condemn Trump’s decision, Arab leaders have not threatened to reduce ties or take any other action against the U.S. or Israel.</p>
<p>There were also feelings of resignation from many in the region who said they have long given up on their leaders standing up to either Israel or the United States.</p>
<p>Preoccupied with their own tribulations, there were barely any protests in capitals like Beirut, Baghdad or Damascus.</p>
<p>“People are tired, exhausted. Personally I feel that we are doomed anyway and nothing we do makes a difference,” said Ghinwa Barakat, a 43-year-old shopper in Beirut. “Who’s going to support the Palestinians? Syria is destroyed, Iraq is destroyed. The Gulf countries are fighting each other and competing over who will normalize relations with Israel first. So, who?”</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>Associated Press writers Tia Goldenberg in Jerusalem; Fares Akram in Gaza City, Gaza Strip; Ken Thomas in Washington; Aya Batrawy in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, and Zeina Karam in Beirut contributed to this report.</p>
<p>JERUSALEM (AP) — Thousands of Palestinian protesters clashed with Israeli forces in east Jerusalem and the West Bank, demonstrators in the Gaza Strip burned U.S. flags and pictures of President Donald Trump, and a top Palestinian official said Vice President Mike Pence would not be welcome in the West Bank, in a show of rage Thursday over the American decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israel’s capital.</p>
<p>Israeli forces were bracing for the possibility of even stronger violence on Friday, when tens of thousands of Palestinians attend weekly prayers at Jerusalem’s Al Aqsa Mosque, the city’s most sacred Islamic site. In Gaza, the supreme leader of the Hamas militant group called on Palestinians to launch a new uprising against Israel.</p>
<p>The Palestinians were blindsided by Trump’s move to depart from decades of U.S. policy on Jerusalem and upend longstanding international assurances that the fate of the city would be determined in negotiations.</p>
<p>The Palestinians seek east Jerusalem, captured by Israel in 1967, as their capital. Israel claims the entire city, including east Jerusalem, home to sensitive Jewish, Muslim and Christian holy sites, as its undivided capital. The opposing claims lie at the heart of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and have often spilled over into deadly violence.</p>
<p>The Palestinians declared three “days of rage,” shuttering schools and businesses, and staging angry demonstrations at Damascus Gate, one of the entrances to Jerusalem’s Old City, and cities across the West Bank and Gaza.</p>
<p>“We are here. We believe in our rights and one day it (will) become Jerusalem, the capital for the Palestinian people,” declared Rania Hatem, a protester outside the Old City.</p>
<p>The Israeli military reported demonstrations in some 30 locations across the West Bank on Thursday, saying Palestinians had hurled stones and firebombs at troops. A military official, speaking on condition of anonymity under briefing guidelines, said troops were instructed to use minimal force and avoid live fire to avoid escalating tensions.</p>
<p>In the West Bank, troops fired water cannons and tear gas to disperse a crowd in Bethlehem, the biblical town of Jesus’ birth, just weeks before thousands of foreign tourists are expected to visit for Christmas celebrations. In Ramallah, the seat of the Palestinian government, protesters set tires on fire, sending thick plumes of black smoke over the city.</p>
<p>Palestinian officials said dozens of protesters were slightly wounded, most from tear gas inhalation. Spontaneous protests also took place in Gaza, with angry youths burning tires, American and Israeli flags and Trump posters.</p>
<p>A senior Palestinian official said the Palestinians would not meet with Pence during his visit to the region later this month when Pence is expected to visit Israel and make a stop in the Palestinian city of Bethlehem. “We will not receive him in the Palestinian territories,” said the official, Jibril Rajoub.</p>
<p>However, a White House official said Pence still plans to meet with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas as scheduled and said it would be “counterproductive” to cancel. The official spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss upcoming plans.</p>
<p>Israeli security officials were preparing for more unrest on Friday. In a pre-emptive move, the military said it would deploy several battalions to the West Bank, while other troops were put on alert.</p>
<p>Israeli officials said Friday prayers at the Al Aqsa Mosque, along with the expected unrest in the West Bank, would set the tone for the coming days.</p>
<p>Palestinian officials in the West Bank said they had no interest in bloody violence but warned that individual attacks were possible.</p>
<p>Israeli police were considering whether to impose age restrictions on worshippers at Friday’s prayers, but as of Thursday evening, had made no changes.</p>
<p>In Gaza, Ismail Haniyeh, the Hamas supreme leader, called on Palestinians to launch a new uprising. “We want the uprising to last and continue to let Trump and the occupation regret this decision,” he said.</p>
<p>Hamas, which seeks Israel’s destruction, killed hundreds of Israelis in suicide bombings and other attacks during the second Palestinian uprising in the early 2000s. However, the Islamic militant group, which seized control of Gaza in 2007, has been weakened by a decade-long Israeli blockade and three painful wars with Israel.</p>
<p>Nonetheless, it still has cells in the West Bank and possesses a large arsenal of rockets in its Gaza stronghold. Late Thursday, Israeli tanks and aircraft attacked two military posts in Gaza, following a series of rocket attacks, including one that landed in southern Israel. There were no reports of casualties on either side.</p>
<p>Trump’s decision had no immediate impact on daily life in Jerusalem, which already is the seat of Israel’s government.</p>
<p>While Trump insisted that the move was meant to acknowledge the current reality, and not prejudge negotiations on Jerusalem’s status, it carried deep symbolic meaning and was seen by the Palestinians as siding with Israel.</p>
<p>And even if Trump’s move cannot singlehandedly determine Jerusalem’s status, policies of the U.S., the lead mediator for over two decades of unsuccessful peace talks, carry special weight.</p>
<p>Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Trump “bound himself forever” to the history of Jerusalem and maintained other countries were already interested in following suit.</p>
<p>Abbas suggested that Trump’s move disqualified the United States from continuing as an exclusive broker. He met with his closest Arab ally, Jordan’s King Abdullah II, in Amman on Thursday, saying that he was rallying international opposition to Trump’s move, which he called an “unacceptable crime.”</p>
<p>The king could play an important role. He is one of Washington’s most dependable partners in the battle against Islamic extremism in the region, and his country is the custodian of Muslim holy sites in Jerusalem, making him an influential player.</p>
<p>Abbas said he was also speaking to countries in Europe and Africa. International opposition has been widespread, including America’s closest allies in Europe. “Fortunately, there was a positive response from all the countries in the world,” Abbas said.</p>
<p>On Thursday, the Palestinians asked the Security Council to take urgent action and demand that Trump’s decision be rescinded. The council scheduled an emergency meeting on Friday.</p>
<p>Meanwhile, anger at the U.S. rippled across the Arab world.</p>
<p>Saudi Arabia condemned Trump’s decision in a rare public rebuke by the U.S. ally. The regional powerhouse, which could help the White House push through a Middle East settlement, said it had warned against the step and “continues to express its deep regret at the U.S. administration’s decision,” calling it “unjustified and irresponsible.”</p>
<p>The Arab League, which represents most states in the Middle East and North Africa, was to meet Saturday. Next week, Turkey will host a gathering of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, which has 57 Arab and Muslim member states.</p>
<p>Despite the verbal support, Palestinian officials are concerned the Arabs will not provide the sustained backing Abbas needs. While quick to condemn Trump’s decision, Arab leaders have not threatened to reduce ties or take any other action against the U.S. or Israel.</p>
<p>There were also feelings of resignation from many in the region who said they have long given up on their leaders standing up to either Israel or the United States.</p>
<p>Preoccupied with their own tribulations, there were barely any protests in capitals like Beirut, Baghdad or Damascus.</p>
<p>“People are tired, exhausted. Personally I feel that we are doomed anyway and nothing we do makes a difference,” said Ghinwa Barakat, a 43-year-old shopper in Beirut. “Who’s going to support the Palestinians? Syria is destroyed, Iraq is destroyed. The Gulf countries are fighting each other and competing over who will normalize relations with Israel first. So, who?”</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>Associated Press writers Tia Goldenberg in Jerusalem; Fares Akram in Gaza City, Gaza Strip; Ken Thomas in Washington; Aya Batrawy in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, and Zeina Karam in Beirut contributed to this report.</p>
| false | 2 |
jerusalem ap thousands palestinian protesters clashed israeli forces east jerusalem west bank demonstrators gaza strip burned us flags pictures president donald trump top palestinian official said vice president mike pence would welcome west bank show rage thursday american decision recognize jerusalem israels capital israeli forces bracing possibility even stronger violence friday tens thousands palestinians attend weekly prayers jerusalems al aqsa mosque citys sacred islamic site gaza supreme leader hamas militant group called palestinians launch new uprising israel palestinians blindsided trumps move depart decades us policy jerusalem upend longstanding international assurances fate city would determined negotiations palestinians seek east jerusalem captured israel 1967 capital israel claims entire city including east jerusalem home sensitive jewish muslim christian holy sites undivided capital opposing claims lie heart israelipalestinian conflict often spilled deadly violence palestinians declared three days rage shuttering schools businesses staging angry demonstrations damascus gate one entrances jerusalems old city cities across west bank gaza believe rights one day become jerusalem capital palestinian people declared rania hatem protester outside old city israeli military reported demonstrations 30 locations across west bank thursday saying palestinians hurled stones firebombs troops military official speaking condition anonymity briefing guidelines said troops instructed use minimal force avoid live fire avoid escalating tensions west bank troops fired water cannons tear gas disperse crowd bethlehem biblical town jesus birth weeks thousands foreign tourists expected visit christmas celebrations ramallah seat palestinian government protesters set tires fire sending thick plumes black smoke city palestinian officials said dozens protesters slightly wounded tear gas inhalation spontaneous protests also took place gaza angry youths burning tires american israeli flags trump posters senior palestinian official said palestinians would meet pence visit region later month pence expected visit israel make stop palestinian city bethlehem receive palestinian territories said official jibril rajoub however white house official said pence still plans meet palestinian president mahmoud abbas scheduled said would counterproductive cancel official spoke condition anonymity discuss upcoming plans israeli security officials preparing unrest friday preemptive move military said would deploy several battalions west bank troops put alert israeli officials said friday prayers al aqsa mosque along expected unrest west bank would set tone coming days palestinian officials west bank said interest bloody violence warned individual attacks possible israeli police considering whether impose age restrictions worshippers fridays prayers thursday evening made changes gaza ismail haniyeh hamas supreme leader called palestinians launch new uprising want uprising last continue let trump occupation regret decision said hamas seeks israels destruction killed hundreds israelis suicide bombings attacks second palestinian uprising early 2000s however islamic militant group seized control gaza 2007 weakened decadelong israeli blockade three painful wars israel nonetheless still cells west bank possesses large arsenal rockets gaza stronghold late thursday israeli tanks aircraft attacked two military posts gaza following series rocket attacks including one landed southern israel reports casualties either side trumps decision immediate impact daily life jerusalem already seat israels government trump insisted move meant acknowledge current reality prejudge negotiations jerusalems status carried deep symbolic meaning seen palestinians siding israel even trumps move singlehandedly determine jerusalems status policies us lead mediator two decades unsuccessful peace talks carry special weight israeli prime minister benjamin netanyahu said trump bound forever history jerusalem maintained countries already interested following suit abbas suggested trumps move disqualified united states continuing exclusive broker met closest arab ally jordans king abdullah ii amman thursday saying rallying international opposition trumps move called unacceptable crime king could play important role one washingtons dependable partners battle islamic extremism region country custodian muslim holy sites jerusalem making influential player abbas said also speaking countries europe africa international opposition widespread including americas closest allies europe fortunately positive response countries world abbas said thursday palestinians asked security council take urgent action demand trumps decision rescinded council scheduled emergency meeting friday meanwhile anger us rippled across arab world saudi arabia condemned trumps decision rare public rebuke us ally regional powerhouse could help white house push middle east settlement said warned step continues express deep regret us administrations decision calling unjustified irresponsible arab league represents states middle east north africa meet saturday next week turkey host gathering organization islamic cooperation 57 arab muslim member states despite verbal support palestinian officials concerned arabs provide sustained backing abbas needs quick condemn trumps decision arab leaders threatened reduce ties take action us israel also feelings resignation many region said long given leaders standing either israel united states preoccupied tribulations barely protests capitals like beirut baghdad damascus people tired exhausted personally feel doomed anyway nothing makes difference said ghinwa barakat 43yearold shopper beirut whos going support palestinians syria destroyed iraq destroyed gulf countries fighting competing normalize relations israel first ___ associated press writers tia goldenberg jerusalem fares akram gaza city gaza strip ken thomas washington aya batrawy dubai united arab emirates zeina karam beirut contributed report jerusalem ap thousands palestinian protesters clashed israeli forces east jerusalem west bank demonstrators gaza strip burned us flags pictures president donald trump top palestinian official said vice president mike pence would welcome west bank show rage thursday american decision recognize jerusalem israels capital israeli forces bracing possibility even stronger violence friday tens thousands palestinians attend weekly prayers jerusalems al aqsa mosque citys sacred islamic site gaza supreme leader hamas militant group called palestinians launch new uprising israel palestinians blindsided trumps move depart decades us policy jerusalem upend longstanding international assurances fate city would determined negotiations palestinians seek east jerusalem captured israel 1967 capital israel claims entire city including east jerusalem home sensitive jewish muslim christian holy sites undivided capital opposing claims lie heart israelipalestinian conflict often spilled deadly violence palestinians declared three days rage shuttering schools businesses staging angry demonstrations damascus gate one entrances jerusalems old city cities across west bank gaza believe rights one day become jerusalem capital palestinian people declared rania hatem protester outside old city israeli military reported demonstrations 30 locations across west bank thursday saying palestinians hurled stones firebombs troops military official speaking condition anonymity briefing guidelines said troops instructed use minimal force avoid live fire avoid escalating tensions west bank troops fired water cannons tear gas disperse crowd bethlehem biblical town jesus birth weeks thousands foreign tourists expected visit christmas celebrations ramallah seat palestinian government protesters set tires fire sending thick plumes black smoke city palestinian officials said dozens protesters slightly wounded tear gas inhalation spontaneous protests also took place gaza angry youths burning tires american israeli flags trump posters senior palestinian official said palestinians would meet pence visit region later month pence expected visit israel make stop palestinian city bethlehem receive palestinian territories said official jibril rajoub however white house official said pence still plans meet palestinian president mahmoud abbas scheduled said would counterproductive cancel official spoke condition anonymity discuss upcoming plans israeli security officials preparing unrest friday preemptive move military said would deploy several battalions west bank troops put alert israeli officials said friday prayers al aqsa mosque along expected unrest west bank would set tone coming days palestinian officials west bank said interest bloody violence warned individual attacks possible israeli police considering whether impose age restrictions worshippers fridays prayers thursday evening made changes gaza ismail haniyeh hamas supreme leader called palestinians launch new uprising want uprising last continue let trump occupation regret decision said hamas seeks israels destruction killed hundreds israelis suicide bombings attacks second palestinian uprising early 2000s however islamic militant group seized control gaza 2007 weakened decadelong israeli blockade three painful wars israel nonetheless still cells west bank possesses large arsenal rockets gaza stronghold late thursday israeli tanks aircraft attacked two military posts gaza following series rocket attacks including one landed southern israel reports casualties either side trumps decision immediate impact daily life jerusalem already seat israels government trump insisted move meant acknowledge current reality prejudge negotiations jerusalems status carried deep symbolic meaning seen palestinians siding israel even trumps move singlehandedly determine jerusalems status policies us lead mediator two decades unsuccessful peace talks carry special weight israeli prime minister benjamin netanyahu said trump bound forever history jerusalem maintained countries already interested following suit abbas suggested trumps move disqualified united states continuing exclusive broker met closest arab ally jordans king abdullah ii amman thursday saying rallying international opposition trumps move called unacceptable crime king could play important role one washingtons dependable partners battle islamic extremism region country custodian muslim holy sites jerusalem making influential player abbas said also speaking countries europe africa international opposition widespread including americas closest allies europe fortunately positive response countries world abbas said thursday palestinians asked security council take urgent action demand trumps decision rescinded council scheduled emergency meeting friday meanwhile anger us rippled across arab world saudi arabia condemned trumps decision rare public rebuke us ally regional powerhouse could help white house push middle east settlement said warned step continues express deep regret us administrations decision calling unjustified irresponsible arab league represents states middle east north africa meet saturday next week turkey host gathering organization islamic cooperation 57 arab muslim member states despite verbal support palestinian officials concerned arabs provide sustained backing abbas needs quick condemn trumps decision arab leaders threatened reduce ties take action us israel also feelings resignation many region said long given leaders standing either israel united states preoccupied tribulations barely protests capitals like beirut baghdad damascus people tired exhausted personally feel doomed anyway nothing makes difference said ghinwa barakat 43yearold shopper beirut whos going support palestinians syria destroyed iraq destroyed gulf countries fighting competing normalize relations israel first ___ associated press writers tia goldenberg jerusalem fares akram gaza city gaza strip ken thomas washington aya batrawy dubai united arab emirates zeina karam beirut contributed report
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<p>LOS ANGELES (AP) — Playboy founder Hugh M. Hefner, the pipe-smoking hedonist who revved up the sexual revolution in the 1950s and built a multimedia empire of clubs, mansions, movies and television, symbolized by bow-tied women in bunny costumes, has died at age 91.</p>
<p>Hefner died of natural causes at his home surrounded by family on Wednesday night, Playboy said in a statement.</p>
<p>As much as anyone, Hefner helped slip sex out of the confines of plain brown wrappers and into mainstream conversation.</p>
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<p>In 1953, a time when states could legally ban contraceptives, when the word “pregnant” was not allowed on “I Love Lucy,” Hefner published the first issue of Playboy, featuring naked photos of Marilyn Monroe (taken years earlier) and an editorial promise of “humor, sophistication and spice.”</p>
<p>Playboy soon became forbidden fruit for teenagers and a bible for men with time and money, primed for the magazine's prescribed evenings of dimmed lights, hard drinks, soft jazz, deep thoughts and deeper desires. Within a year, circulation neared 200,000. Within five years, it had topped 1 million.</p>
<p>By the 1970s, the magazine had more than 7 million readers and had inspired such raunchier imitations as Penthouse and Hustler. Competition and the internet reduced circulation to less than 3 million by the 21st century, but Hefner and Playboy remained brand names worldwide.</p>
<p>Asked by The New York Times in 1992 of what he was proudest, Hefner responded: “That I changed attitudes toward sex. That nice people can live together now. That I decontaminated the notion of premarital sex. That gives me great satisfaction.”</p>
<p>He was a widely admired but far from universally beloved figure. Many feminist and religious leaders regarded him as nothing but a glorified pornographer who degraded and objectified women with impunity.</p>
<p>Women were warned from the first issue: “If you're somebody's sister, wife, or mother-in-law,” the magazine declared, “and picked us up by mistake, please pass us along to the man in your life and get back to Ladies Home Companion.”</p>
<p>Hefner ran Playboy from his elaborate mansions, first in Chicago and then in Los Angeles, and became the flamboyant symbol of the lifestyle he espoused. For decades he was the pipe-smoking, silk-pajama-wearing center of a constant party with celebrities and Playboy models. By his own account, Hefner had sex with more than a thousand women.</p>
<p>Hefner was host of a television show, “Playboy After Dark,” and in 1960 opened a string of clubs around the world where waitresses wore revealing costumes with bunny ears and fluffy white bunny tails. In the 21st century, he was back on television in a cable reality show – “The Girls Next Door” – with three live-in girlfriends in the Los Angeles Playboy mansion. Network television briefly embraced Hefner's empire in 2011 with the NBC drama “The Playboy Club,” which failed to lure viewers and was canceled after three episodes.</p>
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<p>Censorship was inevitable, starting in the 1950s, when Hefner successfully sued to prevent the U.S. Postal Service from denying him second-class mailing status. Playboy has been banned in China, India, Saudi Arabia and Ireland.</p>
<p>Playboy proved a scourge, and a temptation. Drew Barrymore, Farrah Fawcett and Linda Evans are among those who have posed for the magazine. Several bunnies became celebrities, too, including singer Deborah Harry and model Lauren Hutton, both of whom had fond memories of their time with Playboy.</p>
<p>Other bunnies had traumatic experiences, with several alleging they had been raped by Hefner's close friend Bill Cosby. Hefner issued a statement in late 2014 he “would never tolerate this behavior.” But two years later, former bunny Chloe Goins sued Cosby and Hefner for sexual battery, gender violence and other charges over an alleged 2008 rape.</p>
<p>One bunny turned out to be a journalist: Feminist Gloria Steinem got hired in the early 1960s and turned her brief employment into an article for Show magazine that described the clubs as pleasure havens for men only. The bunnies, Steinem wrote, tended to be poorly educated, overworked and underpaid. Steinem regarded the magazine and clubs not as erotic, but “pornographic.”</p>
<p>“I think Hefner himself wants to go down in history as a person of sophistication and glamour. But the last person I would want to go down in history as is Hugh Hefner,” Steinem later said.</p>
<p>“Women are the major beneficiaries of getting rid of the hypocritical old notions about sex,” Hefner responded. “Now some people are acting as if the sexual revolution was a male plot to get laid. One of the unintended by-products of the women's movement is the association of the erotic impulse with wanting to hurt somebody.”</p>
<p>Hefner added that he was a strong advocate of First Amendment, civil rights and reproductive rights and that the magazine contained far more than centerfolds. Playboy serialized Ray Bradbury's “Fahrenheit 451” and later published fiction by Doris Lessing and Vladimir Nabokov. Playboy also specialized in long and candid interviews, from Fidel Castro and Frank Sinatra to Marlon Brando and then-presidential candidate Jimmy Carter, who confided that he had “committed adultery” in his heart.</p>
<p>The line that people read Playboy for the prose, not the pictures, was only partly a joke.</p>
<p>Playboy's clubs also influenced the culture, giving early breaks to such entertainers as George Carlin, Rich Little, Mark Russell, Dick Gregory and Redd Foxx. The last of the clubs closed in 1988, when Hefner deemed them “passe” and “too tame for the times.”</p>
<p>By then Hefner had built a $200 million company by expanding Playboy to include international editions of the magazine, casinos, a cable network and a film production company. In 2006, he got back into the club business with his Playboy Club at the Palms Casino in Las Vegas. A new enterprise in London followed, along with fresh response from women's groups, who protested the opening with cries of “Eff off Hef!'”</p>
<p>Hefner liked to say he was untroubled by criticism, but in 1985 he suffered a mild stroke that he blamed on the book “The Killing of the Unicorn: Dorothy Stratten 1960-1980,” by filmmaker Peter Bogdanovich. Stratten was a Playmate killed by her husband, Paul Snider, who then killed himself. Bogdanovich, Stratten's boyfriend at the time, wrote that Hefner helped bring about her murder and was unable to deal with “what he and his magazine do to women.”</p>
<p>After the stroke, Hefner handed control of his empire to his feminist daughter, Christie, although he owned 70 percent of Playboy stock and continued to choose every month's Playmate and cover shot. Christie Hefner continued as CEO until 2009.</p>
<p>He also stopped using recreational drugs and tried less to always be the life of the party. He tearfully noted in a 1992 New York Times interview: “I've spent so much of my life looking for love in all the wrong places.”</p>
<p>His bunny obsession began with the figures that decorated a childhood blanket. Years later, a real-life subspecies of rabbit on the endangered species list, in the Florida Keys, would be named for him: Sylvilagus palustris hefneri.</p>
<p>Not surprisingly, Hefner's marriage life was also a bit of a show. He was a playboy before Playboy, even during his first marriage, when he enjoyed stag films, strip poker and group sex. In 1949, he married Mildred Williams, with whom he had two children. They divorced in 1958. In July 1989, Hefner married Kimberley Conrad, the 1989 Playmate of the Year, who was then 27. The couple also had two children.</p>
<p>On the eve of his marriage, Hefner was asked if he would have a bachelor party. “I've had a bachelor party for 30 years,” he said. “Why do I need one now?”</p>
<p>They separated in 1998 but she continued living next door to the Playboy mansion with their two sons. The couple divorced in 2010 and he proposed in 2011 to 24-year-old Crystal Harris, a former Playmate. Harris called off the wedding days before the ceremony, but changed her mind and they married at the end of 2012.</p>
<p>“Maybe I should be single,” he said a few months later. “But I do know that I need an ongoing romantic relationship. In other words, I am essentially a very romantic person, and all I really was looking for, quite frankly, with the notion of marriage was continuity and something to let the girl know that I really cared.”</p>
<p>He acknowledged, at age 85, that “I never really found my soulmate.”</p>
<p>Hefner was born in Chicago on April 9, 1926, to devout Methodist parents who he said never showed “love in a physical or emotional way.”</p>
<p>“At a very early age, I began questioning a lot of that religious foolishness about man's spirit and body being in conflict, with God primarily with the spirit of man and the Devil dwelling in the flesh,” Hefner said in a Playboy interview in 1974.</p>
<p>“Part of the reason that I am who I am is my Puritan roots run deep,” he told the AP in 2011. “My folks are Puritan. My folks are prohibitionists. There was no drinking in my home. No discussion of sex. And I think I saw the hurtful and hypocritical side of that from very early on.”</p>
<p>When Hefner was 9, he began publishing a neighborhood newspaper, which he sold for a penny a copy. He spent much of his time writing and drawing cartoons, and in middle school began reading Esquire, a magazine of sex and substance Hefner wanted Playboy to emulate.</p>
<p>He and Playboy co-founder Eldon Sellers launched their magazine from Hefner's kitchen in Chicago, although the first issue was undated because Hefner doubted there would be a second. The magazine was supposed to be called Stag Party, until an outdoor magazine named Stag threatened legal action.</p>
<p>Hefner recalled that he first reinvented himself in high school in Chicago at 16, when he was rejected by a girl he had a crush on. He began referring to himself as Hef instead of Hugh, learned the jitterbug and began drawing a comic book, “a kind of autobiography that put myself center stage in a life I created for myself,” he said in a 2006 interview with the AP.</p>
<p>Those comics evolved into a detailed scrapbook that Hefner would keep throughout his life. It spanned more than 2,500 volumes in 2011 – a Guinness World Record for a personal scrapbook collection.</p>
<p>“It was probably just a way of creating a world of my own to share with my friends,” Hefner said, seated amid the archives of his life during a 2011 interview. “And in retrospect, in thinking about it, it's not a whole lot different than creating the magazine.”</p>
<p>He did it again in 1960, when he began hosting the TV show, bought a fancy car, started smoking a pipe and bought the first Playboy mansion.</p>
<p>“Well, if we hadn't had the Wright brothers, there would still be airplanes,” Hefner said in 1974. “If there hadn't been an Edison, there would still be electric lights. And if there hadn't been a Hefner, we'd still have sex. But maybe we wouldn't be enjoying it as much. So the world would be a little poorer. Come to think of it, so would some of my relatives.”</p>
<p>Hefner is survived by his wife Crystal as well as his daughter, Christie; and his sons, David, Marston and Cooper.</p>
<p>Playboy released no information on any memorial plans, but Hefner owns a burial plot at a Los Angeles cemetery next to Marilyn Monroe.</p>
<p>AP National Writer Hillel Italie and Entertainment Writer Sandy Cohen contributed to this report.</p>
<p><a href="#602ff960-9f9f-49a4-8218-aee11a8e7d3e" type="external">© 2017 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.</a> Learn more about our <a href="http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/privacy" type="external">Privacy Policy</a> and <a href="http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/terms" type="external">Terms of Use</a>.</p>
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los angeles ap playboy founder hugh hefner pipesmoking hedonist revved sexual revolution 1950s built multimedia empire clubs mansions movies television symbolized bowtied women bunny costumes died age 91 hefner died natural causes home surrounded family wednesday night playboy said statement much anyone hefner helped slip sex confines plain brown wrappers mainstream conversation advertisement 1953 time states could legally ban contraceptives word pregnant allowed love lucy hefner published first issue playboy featuring naked photos marilyn monroe taken years earlier editorial promise humor sophistication spice playboy soon became forbidden fruit teenagers bible men time money primed magazines prescribed evenings dimmed lights hard drinks soft jazz deep thoughts deeper desires within year circulation neared 200000 within five years topped 1 million 1970s magazine 7 million readers inspired raunchier imitations penthouse hustler competition internet reduced circulation less 3 million 21st century hefner playboy remained brand names worldwide asked new york times 1992 proudest hefner responded changed attitudes toward sex nice people live together decontaminated notion premarital sex gives great satisfaction widely admired far universally beloved figure many feminist religious leaders regarded nothing glorified pornographer degraded objectified women impunity women warned first issue youre somebodys sister wife motherinlaw magazine declared picked us mistake please pass us along man life get back ladies home companion hefner ran playboy elaborate mansions first chicago los angeles became flamboyant symbol lifestyle espoused decades pipesmoking silkpajamawearing center constant party celebrities playboy models account hefner sex thousand women hefner host television show playboy dark 1960 opened string clubs around world waitresses wore revealing costumes bunny ears fluffy white bunny tails 21st century back television cable reality show girls next door three livein girlfriends los angeles playboy mansion network television briefly embraced hefners empire 2011 nbc drama playboy club failed lure viewers canceled three episodes advertisement censorship inevitable starting 1950s hefner successfully sued prevent us postal service denying secondclass mailing status playboy banned china india saudi arabia ireland playboy proved scourge temptation drew barrymore farrah fawcett linda evans among posed magazine several bunnies became celebrities including singer deborah harry model lauren hutton fond memories time playboy bunnies traumatic experiences several alleging raped hefners close friend bill cosby hefner issued statement late 2014 would never tolerate behavior two years later former bunny chloe goins sued cosby hefner sexual battery gender violence charges alleged 2008 rape one bunny turned journalist feminist gloria steinem got hired early 1960s turned brief employment article show magazine described clubs pleasure havens men bunnies steinem wrote tended poorly educated overworked underpaid steinem regarded magazine clubs erotic pornographic think hefner wants go history person sophistication glamour last person would want go history hugh hefner steinem later said women major beneficiaries getting rid hypocritical old notions sex hefner responded people acting sexual revolution male plot get laid one unintended byproducts womens movement association erotic impulse wanting hurt somebody hefner added strong advocate first amendment civil rights reproductive rights magazine contained far centerfolds playboy serialized ray bradburys fahrenheit 451 later published fiction doris lessing vladimir nabokov playboy also specialized long candid interviews fidel castro frank sinatra marlon brando thenpresidential candidate jimmy carter confided committed adultery heart line people read playboy prose pictures partly joke playboys clubs also influenced culture giving early breaks entertainers george carlin rich little mark russell dick gregory redd foxx last clubs closed 1988 hefner deemed passe tame times hefner built 200 million company expanding playboy include international editions magazine casinos cable network film production company 2006 got back club business playboy club palms casino las vegas new enterprise london followed along fresh response womens groups protested opening cries eff hef hefner liked say untroubled criticism 1985 suffered mild stroke blamed book killing unicorn dorothy stratten 19601980 filmmaker peter bogdanovich stratten playmate killed husband paul snider killed bogdanovich strattens boyfriend time wrote hefner helped bring murder unable deal magazine women stroke hefner handed control empire feminist daughter christie although owned 70 percent playboy stock continued choose every months playmate cover shot christie hefner continued ceo 2009 also stopped using recreational drugs tried less always life party tearfully noted 1992 new york times interview ive spent much life looking love wrong places bunny obsession began figures decorated childhood blanket years later reallife subspecies rabbit endangered species list florida keys would named sylvilagus palustris hefneri surprisingly hefners marriage life also bit show playboy playboy even first marriage enjoyed stag films strip poker group sex 1949 married mildred williams two children divorced 1958 july 1989 hefner married kimberley conrad 1989 playmate year 27 couple also two children eve marriage hefner asked would bachelor party ive bachelor party 30 years said need one separated 1998 continued living next door playboy mansion two sons couple divorced 2010 proposed 2011 24yearold crystal harris former playmate harris called wedding days ceremony changed mind married end 2012 maybe single said months later know need ongoing romantic relationship words essentially romantic person really looking quite frankly notion marriage continuity something let girl know really cared acknowledged age 85 never really found soulmate hefner born chicago april 9 1926 devout methodist parents said never showed love physical emotional way early age began questioning lot religious foolishness mans spirit body conflict god primarily spirit man devil dwelling flesh hefner said playboy interview 1974 part reason puritan roots run deep told ap 2011 folks puritan folks prohibitionists drinking home discussion sex think saw hurtful hypocritical side early hefner 9 began publishing neighborhood newspaper sold penny copy spent much time writing drawing cartoons middle school began reading esquire magazine sex substance hefner wanted playboy emulate playboy cofounder eldon sellers launched magazine hefners kitchen chicago although first issue undated hefner doubted would second magazine supposed called stag party outdoor magazine named stag threatened legal action hefner recalled first reinvented high school chicago 16 rejected girl crush began referring hef instead hugh learned jitterbug began drawing comic book kind autobiography put center stage life created said 2006 interview ap comics evolved detailed scrapbook hefner would keep throughout life spanned 2500 volumes 2011 guinness world record personal scrapbook collection probably way creating world share friends hefner said seated amid archives life 2011 interview retrospect thinking whole lot different creating magazine 1960 began hosting tv show bought fancy car started smoking pipe bought first playboy mansion well hadnt wright brothers would still airplanes hefner said 1974 hadnt edison would still electric lights hadnt hefner wed still sex maybe wouldnt enjoying much world would little poorer come think would relatives hefner survived wife crystal well daughter christie sons david marston cooper playboy released information memorial plans hefner owns burial plot los angeles cemetery next marilyn monroe ap national writer hillel italie entertainment writer sandy cohen contributed report 2017 associated press rights reserved material may published broadcast rewritten redistributed learn privacy policy terms use
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<p>Array Technologies Inc., which makes solar trackers at a 50,000-square-foot facility in Albuquerque, is bursting at the seams from rapid growth in recent years.</p>
<p>The company is building a 23,000-square-foot expansion that will be finished by December to accommodate more employees at all levels, including administrators, sales people and factory workers, President and CEO Ron Corio told the Journal.</p>
<p>An Array Technologies employee works next to solar tracker motors at the company’s 50,000-square-foot factory and warehouse at 3901 Midway Place NE in the North I-25 industrial corridor. (Dean Hanson/Albuquerque Journal)</p>
<p>Array’s workforce has grown from 35 in 2010 to 160 today. And, although Corio stopped revealing income totals after 2010, when Array reported $38 million in sales, the company does say its revenue has leaped by 336 percent since then.</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p>
<p>“We’re very bullish,” Corio told the Journal. “The utility market is doing very well, and the residential market is just on fire.”</p>
<p>It’s been the same story for most U.S. solar companies in the last few years. The industry continues to expand nationwide by double-digit clips every quarter as utilities, homeowners and commercial and institutional enterprises scramble to acquire solar photovoltaic installations.</p>
<p>Strong national growth</p>
<p>In its latest report released Sept. 12, the Washington, D.C.-based Solar Energy Industry Association said residential, commercial and utility-scale solar PV installations grew 15 percent across the country from April-June, compared with the January-March quarter. Another 832 megawatts of capacity were added nationwide, making it the industry’s second-best quarter ever.</p>
<p>The association projects a total of 4.4 gigawatts of solar PV will be installed across the country by year-end, representing a 30 percent increase from the 3.3 GW installed in 2012.</p>
<p>In fact, if concentrating solar-power installations are included, by year-end an accumulated total of 10 GW of solar generation will be installed in the U.S. – enough to power more than 1.5 million American homes, according to the association.</p>
<p>Concentrating solar installations use mirror arrays to heat liquids to create steam for running turbine generators, whereas solar PV converts sunlight directly into electricity.</p>
<p>This is Public Service Company of New Mexico’s Los Lunas Solar Energy Center. The center was built in 2011, but it was expanded in 2013, according to PNM. (Courtesy of PNM)</p>
<p>N.M. No. 5 in the U.S.</p>
<p>New Mexico mirrors national trends. Statewide, installed solar capacity reached 190 megawatts last year, up 12 percent from 2011, according to a new report released this summer by the Environment New Mexico Research and Policy Center. That made New Mexico fifth in the nation per capita for solar installations.</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p>
<p>This year, Public Service Company of New Mexico nearly will double its utility-scale solar power, adding 20 MW. And the company proposes to build another 23 MW of capacity in 2014 in a new filing with the state Public Regulation Commission. In addition, First Solar Inc. is building a 50 MW solar plant in southern New Mexico to supply El Paso Electric Co., making it the largest solar facility to date in New Mexico.</p>
<p>The growing demand for solar has generated substantial opportunities for solar-product manufacturers and system installers in New Mexico, especially for companies such as Array Technologies that serve both local and national markets.</p>
<p>Array has become one of the world’s largest makers of solar trackers, which are used to tilt and turn solar panels to follow the sun, increasing electric output from PV systems.</p>
<p>The company expects to have shipped 1.2 GW of solar-tracking systems during its current fiscal year, which ends March 31. That’s up 35 percent in FY 2012, Corio said.</p>
<p>As of September, Array had sold an accumulated total of 1.7 GW of solar trackers since 2006, equivalent to about 20 percent of the total PV capacity installed in the U.S. today.</p>
<p>‘Some huge projects’</p>
<p>Array Technologies employees work next to stacks of bushings for the company’s solar trackers. (Dean Hanson/Albuquerque Journal)</p>
<p>The company just finished supplying solar trackers for a huge photovoltaic project in Southern California. And in July, it signed a contract for solar trackers for installations in Indiana.</p>
<p>“We’re signing up some huge projects on both the East and West coasts,” Corio said.</p>
<p>In addition, the company is expanding into South America, where the solar market is growing, beginning with an office in Chile that will open by December.</p>
<p>“We just shipped solar trackers for a 1 MW project in Chile, and we’re quoting some pretty large systems there now,” Corio said. “From there, we plan to expand to other markets, such as Brazil.”</p>
<p>Albuquerque-based Unirac Inc., which makes mounting platforms for solar systems at an 80,000-square-foot factory at the Springer Industrial Park on Broadway NE near Downtown, is also opening an office in Mexico.</p>
<p>“The Latin American market is starting to open up, so we want to develop a sustainable presence there,” said Unirac President and CEO Peter Lorenz. “We just hired a country manager for Mexico, but we’re looking at all of Latin America now, and we’re investing heavily on the sales side.”</p>
<p>Unirac is also selling heavily into the Japanese and Chinese markets, where demand is growing, Lorenz said.</p>
<p>Robust U.S. demand</p>
<p>But manufacturers remain primarily focused on the U.S. market, where robust demand has offset declines in recession-strapped Europe.</p>
<p>For example, P4Q USA Inc. – a Spanish electronics manufacturer that opened a 9,000-square-foot facility in Albuquerque last year to make solar-tracking controllers and other devices – is gearing up for rapid growth in U.S. sales in 2014, said P4Q Executive Director Michael Orshan.</p>
<p>The company, which launched in 2002, sells about 100 MW annually of solar-tracking controllers worldwide, including about 20 MW in the U.S. this year. But it expects to sell five to six times that amount in the U.S. next year.</p>
<p>“We’re seeing extremely rapid progress in the U.S. market,” Orshan said. “We project between 100 and 120 MW of sales here in 2014. We’re expecting an explosive year.”</p>
<p>Apart from solar-component manufacturers, New Mexico’s PV installation companies also are having a good year.</p>
<p>Local companies say the New Mexico market remains robust, thanks in good part to the continuing decline in prices for PV systems. The cost for a fully installed system has dropped on average by about 40 percent since early 2011, according to the Solar Energy Industry Association.</p>
<p>Local business boost</p>
<p>Two of the state’s largest installers, Albuquerque-based Affordable Solar Group and Consolidated Solar Technologies, report double-digit growth this year.</p>
<p>Affordable has experienced particularly hefty sales since the spring, thanks to a new solar lease program it launched last April that allows homeowners to install solar systems for 25 years with no upfront costs, said Affordable’s general manager, Ryan Centerwall.</p>
<p>“We’ve had record sales over the last three months, with 50 percent more sales than any other three-month period during the last four years,” Centerwall said. “We attribute that principally to the lease program.”</p>
<p>Consolidated Solar, meanwhile, does not offer a lease program. But even so, the company projects 33 percent growth in residential sales this year.</p>
<p>“The business outlook is still very good,” said owner Jerry Mosher. “We’re very pleased.”</p>
<p />
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array technologies inc makes solar trackers 50000squarefoot facility albuquerque bursting seams rapid growth recent years company building 23000squarefoot expansion finished december accommodate employees levels including administrators sales people factory workers president ceo ron corio told journal array technologies employee works next solar tracker motors companys 50000squarefoot factory warehouse 3901 midway place ne north i25 industrial corridor dean hansonalbuquerque journal arrays workforce grown 35 2010 160 today although corio stopped revealing income totals 2010 array reported 38 million sales company say revenue leaped 336 percent since advertisement bullish corio told journal utility market well residential market fire story us solar companies last years industry continues expand nationwide doubledigit clips every quarter utilities homeowners commercial institutional enterprises scramble acquire solar photovoltaic installations strong national growth latest report released sept 12 washington dcbased solar energy industry association said residential commercial utilityscale solar pv installations grew 15 percent across country apriljune compared januarymarch quarter another 832 megawatts capacity added nationwide making industrys secondbest quarter ever association projects total 44 gigawatts solar pv installed across country yearend representing 30 percent increase 33 gw installed 2012 fact concentrating solarpower installations included yearend accumulated total 10 gw solar generation installed us enough power 15 million american homes according association concentrating solar installations use mirror arrays heat liquids create steam running turbine generators whereas solar pv converts sunlight directly electricity public service company new mexicos los lunas solar energy center center built 2011 expanded 2013 according pnm courtesy pnm nm 5 us new mexico mirrors national trends statewide installed solar capacity reached 190 megawatts last year 12 percent 2011 according new report released summer environment new mexico research policy center made new mexico fifth nation per capita solar installations advertisement year public service company new mexico nearly double utilityscale solar power adding 20 mw company proposes build another 23 mw capacity 2014 new filing state public regulation commission addition first solar inc building 50 mw solar plant southern new mexico supply el paso electric co making largest solar facility date new mexico growing demand solar generated substantial opportunities solarproduct manufacturers system installers new mexico especially companies array technologies serve local national markets array become one worlds largest makers solar trackers used tilt turn solar panels follow sun increasing electric output pv systems company expects shipped 12 gw solartracking systems current fiscal year ends march 31 thats 35 percent fy 2012 corio said september array sold accumulated total 17 gw solar trackers since 2006 equivalent 20 percent total pv capacity installed us today huge projects array technologies employees work next stacks bushings companys solar trackers dean hansonalbuquerque journal company finished supplying solar trackers huge photovoltaic project southern california july signed contract solar trackers installations indiana signing huge projects east west coasts corio said addition company expanding south america solar market growing beginning office chile open december shipped solar trackers 1 mw project chile quoting pretty large systems corio said plan expand markets brazil albuquerquebased unirac inc makes mounting platforms solar systems 80000squarefoot factory springer industrial park broadway ne near downtown also opening office mexico latin american market starting open want develop sustainable presence said unirac president ceo peter lorenz hired country manager mexico looking latin america investing heavily sales side unirac also selling heavily japanese chinese markets demand growing lorenz said robust us demand manufacturers remain primarily focused us market robust demand offset declines recessionstrapped europe example p4q usa inc spanish electronics manufacturer opened 9000squarefoot facility albuquerque last year make solartracking controllers devices gearing rapid growth us sales 2014 said p4q executive director michael orshan company launched 2002 sells 100 mw annually solartracking controllers worldwide including 20 mw us year expects sell five six times amount us next year seeing extremely rapid progress us market orshan said project 100 120 mw sales 2014 expecting explosive year apart solarcomponent manufacturers new mexicos pv installation companies also good year local companies say new mexico market remains robust thanks good part continuing decline prices pv systems cost fully installed system dropped average 40 percent since early 2011 according solar energy industry association local business boost two states largest installers albuquerquebased affordable solar group consolidated solar technologies report doubledigit growth year affordable experienced particularly hefty sales since spring thanks new solar lease program launched last april allows homeowners install solar systems 25 years upfront costs said affordables general manager ryan centerwall weve record sales last three months 50 percent sales threemonth period last four years centerwall said attribute principally lease program consolidated solar meanwhile offer lease program even company projects 33 percent growth residential sales year business outlook still good said owner jerry mosher pleased
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<p>Jan 22 (Reuters) - Pareteum Corp:</p>
<p>* PARETEUM AND AIRFOX EXPAND BLOCKCHAIN TECHNOLOGY PARTNERSHIP Source text for Eikon: Further company coverage:</p> Our Standards:
<a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a>
<p>MINGORA, Pakistan (Reuters) - Nobel Peace Prize winner Malala Yousafzai visited her hometown in Pakistan’s Swat Valley on Saturday for the first time since she was shot by a Taliban gunman as a teenager, two security officials and a family friend said.</p> Nobel Peace Prize laureate Malala Yousafzai pauses during an interview with Reuters at a local hotel in Islamabad, Pakistan, March 30, 2018. REUTERS/Saiyna Bashir
<p>Roads leading to the 20-year-old education activist’s home in Mingora were blocked off earlier in the day.</p>
<p>Yousafzai has been visiting Pakistan since Thursday, her first trip home since she was shot and airlifted abroad for treatment. The government and military have been providing security.</p>
<p>It had been uncertain whether Yousafzai would be able to visit Swat, parts of which spent nearly two years under the Pakistani Taliban militants’ harsh interpretation of Islamic law, due to continued concerns for her safety.</p>
<p>“I miss everything about Pakistan ... from the rivers, the mountains, to even the dirty streets and the garbage around our house, and my friends and how we used to have gossip ...to how we used to fight with our neighbors,” she told Reuters in an interview on Friday.</p>
<p>Two security officials told Reuters the trip by helicopter would likely be just for one day.</p>
<p>The Pakistani army wrested control of Swat back from the Taliban in 2009 and the area remains mostly peaceful, but the Taliban still occasionally launch attacks including one on the military a few weeks ago.</p>
<p>The Taliban claimed responsibility in 2012 for the attack on Yousafzai for her outspoken advocacy for girls’ education, which was forbidden under the militants’ rule over Swat.</p>
<p>Writing by Kay Johnson; Editing by Kim Coghill</p> Our Standards:
<a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a>
<p>MINGORA, Pakistan (Reuters) - In the Pakistani hometown of Nobel Peace Prize laureate Malala Yousafzai, reminders are frequent of the daughter of scenic northwestern Swat Valley who survived a gun attack – and so are memories of harsh rule by the Taliban.</p> Nobel Peace Prize laureate Malala Yousafzai adjusts her scarf as she speaks during an interview with Reuters at a local hotel in Islamabad, Pakistan, March 30, 2018. REUTERS/Saiyna Bashir
<p>Yousafzai flew into Swat on Saturday by helicopter during her first visit to Pakistan since the Pakistani Taliban - now on the run but still able to launch attacks - shot her in the head in 2012 over her advocacy for girls’ education and opposition to Islamist militancy.</p>
<p>Yousafzai’s return to her hometown was eagerly awaited by admirers and family friends.</p>
<p>“We’re very happy that Malala has come to Pakistan. We welcome Malala,” said Arfa Akhtar, a third grade student in a school where Yousafzai once studied. “I’m also Malala. I’m with Malala in this mission.”</p> Related Coverage
<a href="/article/us-pakistan-malala-swat/nobel-winner-malala-visits-hometown-in-pakistan-for-first-time-since-shooting-idUSKBN1H7052" type="external">Nobel winner Malala visits hometown in Pakistan for first time since shooting</a>
<p>Barkat Ali, 66, says he remembers holding Malala in his lap when she was a child in Mingora. He is proud of the 20-year-old’s struggle to promote girls’ education, just as he is of his refusal 10 years ago to turn over his son when the Taliban demanded new fighters.</p>
<p>“They were the old illiterate people who would say that our daughters will not go to schools,” Ali said, recalling two mortar shells landing in his street, often patrolled by the Taliban.</p>
<p>“Now people have become sensible. They educate their girls.”</p>
<p>The Taliban took over much of the valley starting in 2007, banning girls’ education, killing people, flogging women and hanging bodies from electric poles to enforce their harsh interpretation of Islamic law before the Pakistani army drove them out in 2009.</p>
<p>Not everyone in Swat, though, has such reverence for Yousafzai, who became the youngest Nobel laureate in history in 2014 at age 17.</p>
<p>Resident Mohammad Nisar Khan says the international celebrity and official protection given to the young woman overshadows the sacrifices made by others in Swat.</p> A helicopter carrying Nobel Peace Prize laureate Malala Yousafzai prepares to land at her hometown of Mingora in Swat Valley, Pakistan, March 31, 2018. REUTERS/Faisal Mahmood
<p>“We were the ones who stood up against the Taliban...&#160;My four uncles and two cousins were slaughtered by the Taliban in Matta. They were brutally martyred. Yet, no one has asked about me,” Khan said.</p>
<p>“Can someone show me one brave deed that Malala Yousafzai has performed ... that we have not performed&#160;at age 50?”</p>
<p>Elsewhere in parts of Pakistan, her arrival was met with outright hostility from those who accuse her of building a career abroad by painting a negative picture of her homeland.</p>
<p>In the eastern city of Lahore, a group of private schools staged a protest on Friday with teachers and their students chanting “I am not Malala”, some wearing black armbands.</p>
<p>The organizer of the protest, Kashif Mirza, said dozens of private school chains participated and teachers told students in classes “that Malala does not represent true Pakistan”.</p>
<p>“She maligned Pakistan, Islam and the Pakistani army after going abroad,” said Mirza, who leads the President of All Pakistan Private Schools Federation. He said his group condemned the gun attack on Yousafzai but said since going abroad she had been influenced by foreign powers.</p>
<p>Other private schools, however, declined to join the anti-Malala protest.</p>
<p>“No such day was observed in any of our branches, because we don’t support any event which spreads hatred,” said Tabraiz Bokhari, spokesman of Beacon House School System, with 200 affiliates across Pakistan.</p> Slideshow (3 Images)
<p>In the nine years since the army drove out the Taliban, Swat has become mostly peaceful, though there are still occasional militant attacks including one several weeks ago targeting the military.</p>
<p>Many Swat residents, including family friend Jawad Iqbal, were hopeful Malala would be able to return on this trip.</p>
<p>“The people of Swat and the whole of Pakistan are with Malala,” Iqbal said standing in front of a portrait of Yousafzai with her father, who is a teacher.</p>
<p>“God willing, we will counter the terrorism and extremism in our region with the weapon of education, with the weapon of a pen, with the weapons of teachers and with the weapons of books.”</p>
<p>Along the road where Malala was shot on her school bus, resident Amir Zeb also said he hoped Malala will visit.</p>
<p>“Malala Yousafzai is the daughter of Pakistan,” he said, adding. “We’re proud of her.”</p>
<p>Additional reporting by Mubasher Bukhari in LAHORE, Pakistan; Writing by Asif Shahzad; Editing by Peter Graff and Kim Coghill</p> Our Standards:
<a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a>
<p>(Reuters) - Fox News show host Laura Ingraham announced on her show late Friday that she is taking next week off, after almost a dozen advertisers dropped her show after the conservative pundit mocked a teenage survivor of the Florida school massacre on Twitter.</p> A combination of file photos show media personality Laura Ingraham in Washington October 14, 2017 and Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School student David Hogg, at a rally in Washington March 24, 2018. REUTERS/Mary F. Calvert, Jonathan Ernst/Files
<p>Eleven companies so far have pulled their ads after a pushback by Parkland student David Hogg, 17, who called for a boycott of her advertisers.</p>
<p>Hogg took aim at the host’s show, “Ingraham Angle”, after she taunted him on Twitter on Wednesday, accusing him of whining about being rejected by four colleges to which he had applied.</p>
<p>Hogg is a survivor of the Feb. 14 mass shooting that killed 17 people at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in the Parkland suburb of Fort Lauderdale. He and other classmates have become the faces of a new youth-led movement calling for tighter restrictions on firearms.</p>
<p>Hogg tweeted a list of a dozen companies that advertise on “The Ingraham Angle” and urged his supporters to demand that they cancel their ads.</p>
<p>On Thursday, Ingraham tweeted an apology “in the spirit of Holy Week,” saying she was sorry for any hurt or upset she had caused Hogg or any of the “brave victims” of Parkland.</p>
<p>But her apology did not stop companies from departing.</p>
<a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=TRIP.O" type="external">TripAdvisor Inc</a> 40.89 TRIP.O Nasdaq +0.28 (+0.69%) TRIP.O W.N NESN.S EXPE.O SFIX.O
<p>The companies announcing that they are cancelling their ads are: Nutrish, the pet food line created by celebrity chef Rachael Ray, travel website TripAdvisor Inc ( <a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=TRIP.O" type="external">TRIP.O</a>), online home furnishings seller Wayfair Inc ( <a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=W.N" type="external">W.N</a>), the world’s largest packaged food company, Nestle SA ( <a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=NESN.S" type="external">NESN.S</a>), online streaming service Hulu, travel website Expedia Group Inc ( <a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=EXPE.O" type="external">EXPE.O</a>) and online personal shopping service Stitch Fix ( <a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=SFIX.O" type="external">SFIX.O</a>).</p>
<p>According to CBS News, four other companies joined the list Friday: the home office supply store Office Depot, the dieting company Jenny Craig, the Atlantis, Paradise Island resort and Johnson &amp; Johnson which produces pharmaceuticals as well as consumer products such as Band-Aids, Neutrogena beauty products and Tylenol.</p>
<p>Hogg wrote on Twitter that an apology just to mollify advertisers was insufficient.</p>
<p>Ingraham’s show runs on Fox News, part of Rupert Murdoch’s Twenty-First Century Fox Inc ( <a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=FOXA.O" type="external">FOXA.O</a>). A Fox News representative was not immediately available for comment.</p>
<p>Reporting by Rich McKay in Atlanta; additional reporting by Suzannah Gonzales in Chicago, Gina Cherelus in New York, Andrew Hay; Editing by David Gregorio, Matthew Lewis, Diane Craft and Kim Coghill</p> Our Standards:
<a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a>
<p>ALBANY, N.Y. (Reuters) - New York Governor Andrew Cuomo and the state legislature agreed late on Friday on a $168 billion budget for fiscal 2019, including measures aimed at offsetting damage to taxpayers from new federal tax changes.</p> FILE PHOTO: New York Governor Andrew Cuomo speaks during an announcement at The Moynihan Train Hall in New York City, U.S., August 17, 2017. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid
<p>Cuomo outlined details of the agreement - which must be passed and signed before the new fiscal year begins on April 1 - at a press briefing following the agreement.</p>
<p>Cuomo likened the federal tax changes enacted early this year to a missile launched at New York.</p>
<p>“We’re under attack by the federal government,” he said.</p>
<p>To avoid a new federal cap on state and local tax deductions, New York will make those payments charitable contributions, similar to measures working their way through other high-tax states.</p>
<p>New York, which had faced a $4.4 billion deficit, will also create a new payroll tax to replace state income tax, Cuomo said.</p>
<p>New York lawmakers, with a base pay of $79,500, will also get a chance at their first raise since 1999 as the budget includes a legislative compensation review commission.</p>
<p>Republican State Senate Majority Leader John Flanagan said the bills avoided $1 billion in new taxes. The package also includes $18.9 billion in Medicaid spending.</p>
<p>Cuomo also agreed to boost school aid beyond earlier proposals. The budget adds $1 billion in education funding, bringing school spending to $26.7 billion altogether. It also invests $750 million in regional economic growth plans and $100 million to downtown revitalization initiatives, Cuomo said.</p>
<p>Cuomo, who has fashioned himself as a potential presidential candidate, is fending off a Democratic primary challenge in his quest for a third term from actress Cynthia Nixon, a public schools activist.</p>
<p>An extra $2 billion of revenue over four years is to come by capturing some of the sale of the nonprofit New York State Catholic Health Plan, which does business as Fidelis Care.</p>
<p>The budget also impacts New York City, allowing for the use of a new “design-build” procurement method to help renovate three major city projects - an expressway, the notorious Rikers Island correctional facility and the city’s troubled public housing authority.</p>
<p>A new fee on for-hire vehicles in Manhattan would raise $415 million annually for the state’s Metropolitan Transportation Authority, which runs the city’s decaying subway system and has been the subject of repeated squabbles between Cuomo and New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio.</p>
<p>The measures lack changes sought by government reform activists who hoped a series of corruption cases involving lawmakers and people tied to Cuomo would propel reform.</p>
<p>Reporting by James Odato in Albany; Editing by Hilary Russ and Tom Hogue</p> Our Standards:
<a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a>
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jan 22 reuters pareteum corp pareteum airfox expand blockchain technology partnership source text eikon company coverage standards thomson reuters trust principles mingora pakistan reuters nobel peace prize winner malala yousafzai visited hometown pakistans swat valley saturday first time since shot taliban gunman teenager two security officials family friend said nobel peace prize laureate malala yousafzai pauses interview reuters local hotel islamabad pakistan march 30 2018 reuterssaiyna bashir roads leading 20yearold education activists home mingora blocked earlier day yousafzai visiting pakistan since thursday first trip home since shot airlifted abroad treatment government military providing security uncertain whether yousafzai would able visit swat parts spent nearly two years pakistani taliban militants harsh interpretation islamic law due continued concerns safety miss everything pakistan rivers mountains even dirty streets garbage around house friends used gossip used fight neighbors told reuters interview friday two security officials told reuters trip helicopter would likely one day pakistani army wrested control swat back taliban 2009 area remains mostly peaceful taliban still occasionally launch attacks including one military weeks ago taliban claimed responsibility 2012 attack yousafzai outspoken advocacy girls education forbidden militants rule swat writing kay johnson editing kim coghill standards thomson reuters trust principles mingora pakistan reuters pakistani hometown nobel peace prize laureate malala yousafzai reminders frequent daughter scenic northwestern swat valley survived gun attack memories harsh rule taliban nobel peace prize laureate malala yousafzai adjusts scarf speaks interview reuters local hotel islamabad pakistan march 30 2018 reuterssaiyna bashir yousafzai flew swat saturday helicopter first visit pakistan since pakistani taliban run still able launch attacks shot head 2012 advocacy girls education opposition islamist militancy yousafzais return hometown eagerly awaited admirers family friends happy malala come pakistan welcome malala said arfa akhtar third grade student school yousafzai studied im also malala im malala mission related coverage nobel winner malala visits hometown pakistan first time since shooting barkat ali 66 says remembers holding malala lap child mingora proud 20yearolds struggle promote girls education refusal 10 years ago turn son taliban demanded new fighters old illiterate people would say daughters go schools ali said recalling two mortar shells landing street often patrolled taliban people become sensible educate girls taliban took much valley starting 2007 banning girls education killing people flogging women hanging bodies electric poles enforce harsh interpretation islamic law pakistani army drove 2009 everyone swat though reverence yousafzai became youngest nobel laureate history 2014 age 17 resident mohammad nisar khan says international celebrity official protection given young woman overshadows sacrifices made others swat helicopter carrying nobel peace prize laureate malala yousafzai prepares land hometown mingora swat valley pakistan march 31 2018 reutersfaisal mahmood ones stood taliban160my four uncles two cousins slaughtered taliban matta brutally martyred yet one asked khan said someone show one brave deed malala yousafzai performed performed160at age 50 elsewhere parts pakistan arrival met outright hostility accuse building career abroad painting negative picture homeland eastern city lahore group private schools staged protest friday teachers students chanting malala wearing black armbands organizer protest kashif mirza said dozens private school chains participated teachers told students classes malala represent true pakistan maligned pakistan islam pakistani army going abroad said mirza leads president pakistan private schools federation said group condemned gun attack yousafzai said since going abroad influenced foreign powers private schools however declined join antimalala protest day observed branches dont support event spreads hatred said tabraiz bokhari spokesman beacon house school system 200 affiliates across pakistan slideshow 3 images nine years since army drove taliban swat become mostly peaceful though still occasional militant attacks including one several weeks ago targeting military many swat residents including family friend jawad iqbal hopeful malala would able return trip people swat whole pakistan malala iqbal said standing front portrait yousafzai father teacher god willing counter terrorism extremism region weapon education weapon pen weapons teachers weapons books along road malala shot school bus resident amir zeb also said hoped malala visit malala yousafzai daughter pakistan said adding proud additional reporting mubasher bukhari lahore pakistan writing asif shahzad editing peter graff kim coghill standards thomson reuters trust principles reuters fox news show host laura ingraham announced show late friday taking next week almost dozen advertisers dropped show conservative pundit mocked teenage survivor florida school massacre twitter combination file photos show media personality laura ingraham washington october 14 2017 marjory stoneman douglas high school student david hogg rally washington march 24 2018 reutersmary f calvert jonathan ernstfiles eleven companies far pulled ads pushback parkland student david hogg 17 called boycott advertisers hogg took aim hosts show ingraham angle taunted twitter wednesday accusing whining rejected four colleges applied hogg survivor feb 14 mass shooting killed 17 people marjory stoneman douglas high school parkland suburb fort lauderdale classmates become faces new youthled movement calling tighter restrictions firearms hogg tweeted list dozen companies advertise ingraham angle urged supporters demand cancel ads thursday ingraham tweeted apology spirit holy week saying sorry hurt upset caused hogg brave victims parkland apology stop companies departing tripadvisor inc 4089 tripo nasdaq 028 069 tripo wn nesns expeo sfixo companies announcing cancelling ads nutrish pet food line created celebrity chef rachael ray travel website tripadvisor inc tripo online home furnishings seller wayfair inc wn worlds largest packaged food company nestle sa nesns online streaming service hulu travel website expedia group inc expeo online personal shopping service stitch fix sfixo according cbs news four companies joined list friday home office supply store office depot dieting company jenny craig atlantis paradise island resort johnson amp johnson produces pharmaceuticals well consumer products bandaids neutrogena beauty products tylenol hogg wrote twitter apology mollify advertisers insufficient ingrahams show runs fox news part rupert murdochs twentyfirst century fox inc foxao fox news representative immediately available comment reporting rich mckay atlanta additional reporting suzannah gonzales chicago gina cherelus new york andrew hay editing david gregorio matthew lewis diane craft kim coghill standards thomson reuters trust principles albany ny reuters new york governor andrew cuomo state legislature agreed late friday 168 billion budget fiscal 2019 including measures aimed offsetting damage taxpayers new federal tax changes file photo new york governor andrew cuomo speaks announcement moynihan train hall new york city us august 17 2017 reutersbrendan mcdermid cuomo outlined details agreement must passed signed new fiscal year begins april 1 press briefing following agreement cuomo likened federal tax changes enacted early year missile launched new york attack federal government said avoid new federal cap state local tax deductions new york make payments charitable contributions similar measures working way hightax states new york faced 44 billion deficit also create new payroll tax replace state income tax cuomo said new york lawmakers base pay 79500 also get chance first raise since 1999 budget includes legislative compensation review commission republican state senate majority leader john flanagan said bills avoided 1 billion new taxes package also includes 189 billion medicaid spending cuomo also agreed boost school aid beyond earlier proposals budget adds 1 billion education funding bringing school spending 267 billion altogether also invests 750 million regional economic growth plans 100 million downtown revitalization initiatives cuomo said cuomo fashioned potential presidential candidate fending democratic primary challenge quest third term actress cynthia nixon public schools activist extra 2 billion revenue four years come capturing sale nonprofit new york state catholic health plan business fidelis care budget also impacts new york city allowing use new designbuild procurement method help renovate three major city projects expressway notorious rikers island correctional facility citys troubled public housing authority new fee forhire vehicles manhattan would raise 415 million annually states metropolitan transportation authority runs citys decaying subway system subject repeated squabbles cuomo new york city mayor bill de blasio measures lack changes sought government reform activists hoped series corruption cases involving lawmakers people tied cuomo would propel reform reporting james odato albany editing hilary russ tom hogue standards thomson reuters trust principles
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<p>Q: Did Donald Trump tell People magazine in 1998 that if he ever ran for president, he’d do it as a Republican because “they’re the dumbest group of voters in the country” and that he “could lie and they’d still eat it up”? A:&#160;No, that’s a bogus meme.</p>
<p />
<p>The meme purports to be a quote from Trump in People magazine in 1998 saying, “If I were to run, I’d run as a Republican. They’re the dumbest group of voters in the country. They believe&#160;anything on Fox News. I could lie and they’d still eat it up. I bet my numbers would be terrific.”</p>
<p><a href="" type="internal" /></p>
<p>We were alerted to the meme by a reader, A. Douglas Thomas of Freeport, N.Y., among others, who saw it in his Facebook feed, along with a message from someone who said, “I just fact-checked this. Google Donald Trump, People magazine and 1998. This is an actual quote by Trump.”</p>
<p>We’ll save you the effort. It is not an actual quote by Trump.</p>
<p>We scoured the People magazine archives and found nothing like this quote in 1998 or any other year.</p>
<p>And a public relations representative with People told us that the magazine couldn’t find anything like that quote in its archives, either. People‘s Julie Farin said in an email: “People looked into this exhaustively when it first surfaced back in Oct.&#160;We combed through every Trump story in our archive.&#160;We couldn’t find anything remotely like this quote –and no interview at all in 1998.”</p>
<p>In 1998, Trump was cited frequently in the pages of People, but at the time, most of the stories were about Trump’s pending divorce from Marla Maples and appearances at various social and entertainment events.</p>
<p>There were several stories in the late 1990s about Trump’s flirtation with a presidential run. (This became a running theme for Trump, who <a href="http://www.cnn.com/2011/POLITICS/05/16/trump.again/" type="external">claimed he was considering a run for president</a> in 1988, 2000, 2004 and 2012. That prompted some early on to <a href="http://nypost.com/2015/05/30/stop-pretending-donald-trump-is-not-running-for-president/" type="external">dismiss</a> Trump’s claim this time around that he’d run for president.)</p>
<p>In an <a href="http://www.wsj.com/articles/SB938645589464803190" type="external">op-ed for the Wall Street Journal</a> on Sept. 30, 1999, Trump said he was mulling a run for president, and it sounded like he was considering a bid as an independent.</p>
<p>Trump, Wall Street Journal, Sept. 30, 1999: Let’s cut to the chase. Yes, I am considering a run for president. … Unlike candidates from the two major parties, my candidacy would not represent an exercise in career advancement. I am not a political pro trying to top off his resume. I am considering a run only because I am convinced the major parties have lost their way. The Republicans are captives of their right wing. The Democrats are captives of their left wing. I don’t hear anyone speaking for the working men and women in the center.</p>
<p>In the op-ed, Trump said he came to his decision after then Minnesota Gov. Jesse Ventura — who was elected as a Reform Party candidate — encouraged him to run.</p>
<p>In <a href="http://www.cnn.com/ALLPOLITICS/stories/1999/10/08/trump.transcript/" type="external">a CNN interview with Larry King</a> a couple weeks later, Trump said he was forming an exploratory committee and that the committee would look at whether Trump could win as a Reform Party candidate.</p>
<p>Trump on CNN, Oct. 8, 1999: But really, really the big thing they’re going to look in — as — is: Can you win? Can a Reform Party candidate win? Because I believe I could get the Reform Party nomination. I don’t even think it would be that tough. … I’m not looking to get more votes than any other independent candidate in history, I’d want to win. So we’ll see.</p>
<p>Trump told King that he was a registered Republican and that a Reform Party run would mean a split with a party that he was “close to.”</p>
<p>Trump on CNN, Oct. 8, 1999:&#160; I’m a registered Republican. I’m a pretty conservative guy. I’m somewhat liberal on social issues, especially health care, et cetera, but I’d be leaving another party, and I’ve been close to that party.</p>
<p>King: Why would you leave the Republican Party?</p>
<p>Trump: I think that nobody is really hitting it right. The Democrats are too far left. I mean, Bill Bradley, this is seriously left; he’s trying to come a little more center, but he’s seriously left. The Republicans are too far right. And I don’t think anybody’s hitting the chord, not the chord that I want hear, and not the chord that other people want to hear, and I’ve seen it.</p>
<p>But again, we could find nothing in the online People magazine <a href="http://search.people.com/results.html?Ntt=Donald+Trump&amp;type=ch:news;" type="external">archives</a> that suggests Trump ever was quoted as saying the quote used in the Facebook meme, either in 1998 or any other year. We also did a search in Nexis and could find no such quote from Trump in any major publication in the country.</p>
<p>Snopes.com, which also looked into this bogus meme, <a href="http://www.snopes.com/1998-trump-people-quote/" type="external">pointed out</a> that the reference to Fox News viewers is curious, given that at the time Fox News “was not exceptionally well-known (or particularly regarded as a right-leaning outlet) in 1998.”</p>
<p>We reached out to Thomas, who contacted us about the Facebook meme, to tell him it was a fake. He said it just goes to show, “Everything you read on Facebook isn’t the gospel truth written in stone by Moses. You need to check your sources.” Hear, hear!</p>
<p>That advice goes for Trump, as well. On Nov. 23, we wrote about a <a href="" type="internal">grossly inaccurate</a> graphic that Trump retweeted that claimed, among other things, that most whites are killed by blacks (which isn’t true). When <a href="http://video.foxnews.com/v/4628873335001/donald-trump-on-confronting-isis/?intcmp=hpvid1#sp=show-clips" type="external">questioned</a> about the graphic, Trump said that it wasn’t his tweet, that he merely retweeted it. Trump maintained that the graphic came from&#160; “sources that are very credible” and added, “Am I gonna check every statistic?” That, in a nutshell, is how false memes — like the one we’ve written about here — get passed around the Web.</p>
<p>As always, we encourage readers to pass along any questionable political claims they receive via chain email or in their Facebook or Twitter feeds. You can reach us by email at [email protected].</p>
<p>Correction, Sept. 29, 2016: An earlier version of this story listed an incorrect year when describing the previous years Trump considered running for president.</p>
<p>Travis, Shannon. “ <a href="http://www.cnn.com/2011/POLITICS/05/16/trump.again/" type="external">Was he ever serious? How Trump strung the country along, again</a>.” CNN. 17 May 2011.</p>
<p>Smith, Kyle. “ <a href="http://nypost.com/2015/05/30/stop-pretending-donald-trump-is-not-running-for-president/" type="external">Stop pretending — Donald Trump is not running for president</a>.” New York Post. 30 May 2015.</p>
<p>Trump, Donald. “ <a href="http://www.wsj.com/articles/SB938645589464803190" type="external">America Needs A President Like Me</a>.” Wall Street Journal. 30 Sep 1999.</p>
<p>CNN. “ <a href="http://www.cnn.com/ALLPOLITICS/stories/1999/10/08/trump.transcript/" type="external">Transcript: Donald Trump announces plans to form presidential exploratory committee</a>.” 8 Oct 1999.</p>
<p>LaCapria, Kim. “ <a href="http://www.snopes.com/1998-trump-people-quote/" type="external">Duh, Donald</a>.” Snopes.com. 16 Oct 2015.</p>
<p>Farley, Robert. “ <a href="" type="internal">Trump Retweets Bogus Crime Graphic.</a>” FactCheck.org. 23 Nov 2015.</p>
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q donald trump tell people magazine 1998 ever ran president hed republican theyre dumbest group voters country could lie theyd still eat a160no thats bogus meme meme purports quote trump people magazine 1998 saying run id run republican theyre dumbest group voters country believe160anything fox news could lie theyd still eat bet numbers would terrific alerted meme reader douglas thomas freeport ny among others saw facebook feed along message someone said factchecked google donald trump people magazine 1998 actual quote trump well save effort actual quote trump scoured people magazine archives found nothing like quote 1998 year public relations representative people told us magazine couldnt find anything like quote archives either peoples julie farin said email people looked exhaustively first surfaced back oct160we combed every trump story archive160we couldnt find anything remotely like quote interview 1998 1998 trump cited frequently pages people time stories trumps pending divorce marla maples appearances various social entertainment events several stories late 1990s trumps flirtation presidential run became running theme trump claimed considering run president 1988 2000 2004 2012 prompted early dismiss trumps claim time around hed run president oped wall street journal sept 30 1999 trump said mulling run president sounded like considering bid independent trump wall street journal sept 30 1999 lets cut chase yes considering run president unlike candidates two major parties candidacy would represent exercise career advancement political pro trying top resume considering run convinced major parties lost way republicans captives right wing democrats captives left wing dont hear anyone speaking working men women center oped trump said came decision minnesota gov jesse ventura elected reform party candidate encouraged run cnn interview larry king couple weeks later trump said forming exploratory committee committee would look whether trump could win reform party candidate trump cnn oct 8 1999 really really big thing theyre going look win reform party candidate win believe could get reform party nomination dont even think would tough im looking get votes independent candidate history id want win well see trump told king registered republican reform party run would mean split party close trump cnn oct 8 1999160 im registered republican im pretty conservative guy im somewhat liberal social issues especially health care et cetera id leaving another party ive close party king would leave republican party trump think nobody really hitting right democrats far left mean bill bradley seriously left hes trying come little center hes seriously left republicans far right dont think anybodys hitting chord chord want hear chord people want hear ive seen could find nothing online people magazine archives suggests trump ever quoted saying quote used facebook meme either 1998 year also search nexis could find quote trump major publication country snopescom also looked bogus meme pointed reference fox news viewers curious given time fox news exceptionally wellknown particularly regarded rightleaning outlet 1998 reached thomas contacted us facebook meme tell fake said goes show everything read facebook isnt gospel truth written stone moses need check sources hear hear advice goes trump well nov 23 wrote grossly inaccurate graphic trump retweeted claimed among things whites killed blacks isnt true questioned graphic trump said wasnt tweet merely retweeted trump maintained graphic came from160 sources credible added gon na check every statistic nutshell false memes like one weve written get passed around web always encourage readers pass along questionable political claims receive via chain email facebook twitter feeds reach us email editorfactcheckorg correction sept 29 2016 earlier version story listed incorrect year describing previous years trump considered running president travis shannon ever serious trump strung country along cnn 17 may 2011 smith kyle stop pretending donald trump running president new york post 30 may 2015 trump donald america needs president like wall street journal 30 sep 1999 cnn transcript donald trump announces plans form presidential exploratory committee 8 oct 1999 lacapria kim duh donald snopescom 16 oct 2015 farley robert trump retweets bogus crime graphic factcheckorg 23 nov 2015
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<p>RANCHO TEHAMA RESERVE, Calif. — Police on Wednesday called the deadly shooting rampage in California a clear case of “a madman on the loose” while defending their decision not to arrest the man for previously violating a court order prohibiting him from having guns.</p>
<p>At a tense news conference, police conceded that neighbors had repeatedly complained about Kevin Neal firing hundreds of rounds from his house among other erratic and violent behavior.</p>
<p>Tehama County Assistant Sheriff Phil Johnston said authorities responded to neighbors’ calls several times, but the 44-year-old Neal wouldn’t open the door, so they left.</p>
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<p>“He was not law enforcement friendly. He would not come to the door,” Johnston said. “You have to understand we can’t anticipate what people are going to do. We don’t have a crystal ball.”</p>
<p>On Tuesday, Neal shot and killed five people and wounded at least eight others at different locations around the rural community of Rancho Tehama Reserve. Police later shot and killed him.</p>
<p>Asked about Neal’s motive, Johnston responded: “Madman on the loose. The case is remarkably clear. We will move forward and we will start the healing process.”</p>
<p>The evidence that emerged Wednesday, however, along with residents’ statements raised questions about whether lawlessness was occasionally tolerated.</p>
<p>Neal was also known to have violent squabbles with his neighbors and his wife.</p>
<p>Police found the bullet-riddled body of Neal’s wife stuffed under the floorboards of their home. They believe her slaying was the start of the rampage.</p>
<p>“We are confident that he murdered her,” Johnson said.</p>
<p>Neal then shot two of his neighbors in an apparent act of revenge before he went looking for random victims at different locations that included the community’s elementary school. All those killed were adults but authorities have said that children were among the wounded.</p>
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<p>At the time of the attack, Neal was out of custody on bail after being charged in January with stabbing one of the neighbors he later killed in the rampage.</p>
<p>After the January assault, a judge barred Neal from having guns, according to court records.</p>
<p>The records also show that Neal was charged with illegally firing a weapon and possessing an illegal assault rifle on Jan. 31.</p>
<p>He was charged with five felonies and two misdemeanors. As part of a protective order that barred him from “owning, possessing, purchasing or attempting to purchase firearms,” Neal was ordered to stay away from the two female neighbors he had threatened.</p>
<p>The neighbor he was accused of stabbing obtained a restraining order against him in February, writing to the court that Neal fired guns to scare people in her house and alleging that he was “very unpredictable and unstable” and that he had “anger issues,” according to court documents.</p>
<p>The gunman’s sister, Sheridan Orr, said her brother had struggled with mental illness throughout his life and at times had a violent temper.</p>
<p>She said Neal had “no business” owning firearms.</p>
<p>At Wednesday’s news conference, Johnston initially said Neal “was not prohibited from owning firearms” but later acknowledged the protective order against him.</p>
<p>Records show Neal certified that he surrendered his weapons in February, but Johnston said Wednesday they had recovered two homemade assault rifles and two handguns registered to someone else.</p>
<p>Laurie Levenson, a Loyola Law School professor, said police officers don’t need to be eyewitnesses to take action when a person is suspected of violating a restraining order.</p>
<p>“You can have probable cause even if officers don’t see a gun or hear shots,” she said. “They do not have to see the suspect with the weapon if all the circumstantial evidence indicates that he is violating the orders.”</p>
<p>Levenson said officers don’t even need a warrant to search a suspect’s home if they believe the caller and the evidence they are hearing and collecting indicate the suspect is firing a gun.</p>
<p>“If an officer believes there is someone with a weapon who is not entitled to have a weapon, the law permits the officer to go in,” she said.</p>
<p>During the rampage that lasted 25 minutes, Johnston said the gunman spent about six minutes shooting into Rancho Tehama Elementary School before driving off to keep shooting elsewhere.</p>
<p>Police said surveillance video shows the shooter unsuccessfully trying to enter the school after quick-thinking staff members locked the outside doors and barricaded themselves inside when they heard gunshots.</p>
<p>Witnesses reported hearing gunshots and children screaming at the school, which has about 100 students from kindergarten through fifth grade.</p>
<p>A heroic school custodian rushed children inside, yelling “get into the classrooms” before Neal could reach them, said Corning Union Elementary School District maintenance department head Randy Morehouse.</p>
<p>“At that point he was able to get everyone inside so there was no one left on the blacktop,” Morehouse said. “He’s an absolute hero.”</p>
<p>The shooter “tried and tried and tried and tried to get into the kindergarten door,” he said.</p>
<p>Six-year-old Alejandro Hernandez was in his classroom when one of Neal’s bullets came through the window and hit him in the chest.</p>
<p>His aunt, Rosa A. Monroy, said he was at University of California, Davis, Medical Center in Sacramento awaiting surgery on his foot. It’s not clear when they will operate on the more serious wound to his upper chest and right arm, she said.</p>
<p>“We’re just hoping to hear for the best,” she tearfully told a crowd of dozens of people that gathered for a vigil to honor the victims on Wednesday night. “I just pray that we can all be strong together.”</p>
<p>The rampage ended when a patrol car rammed the stolen vehicle Neal was driving and police killed him in a shootout.</p>
<p>Dillon Elliott said he witnessed the rolling gun battle from a coffee shop and parking lot as the gunman and deputies sped by.</p>
<p>“All hell broke loose. I mean I’ve never heard gunshots like that before,” he said.</p>
<p>Elliott’s parents have lived in the sparsely populated area of rolling woodlands dotted with grazing cattle about 130 miles (209 kilometers) north of Sacramento since 1986. He moved away in 2001.</p>
<p>“There’s hardly any police presence out here,” he said. “In all the time we’ve been out here there has been almost, I would say almost zero police presence. Every so often you’ll see them if it’s super bad.”</p>
<p>He said his father, who was on the homeowners’ association board, was threatened in the late ’80s and early ’90s during a dispute with a neighbor and deputies never responded.</p>
<p>“It’s almost like they think we’re lawless out here and they just don’t care,” he said.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>Gecker reported from San Francisco. Associated Press writers Paul Elias, Janie Har and Olga Rodriguez also contributed from San Francisco.</p>
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rancho tehama reserve calif police wednesday called deadly shooting rampage california clear case madman loose defending decision arrest man previously violating court order prohibiting guns tense news conference police conceded neighbors repeatedly complained kevin neal firing hundreds rounds house among erratic violent behavior tehama county assistant sheriff phil johnston said authorities responded neighbors calls several times 44yearold neal wouldnt open door left advertisement law enforcement friendly would come door johnston said understand cant anticipate people going dont crystal ball tuesday neal shot killed five people wounded least eight others different locations around rural community rancho tehama reserve police later shot killed asked neals motive johnston responded madman loose case remarkably clear move forward start healing process evidence emerged wednesday however along residents statements raised questions whether lawlessness occasionally tolerated neal also known violent squabbles neighbors wife police found bulletriddled body neals wife stuffed floorboards home believe slaying start rampage confident murdered johnson said neal shot two neighbors apparent act revenge went looking random victims different locations included communitys elementary school killed adults authorities said children among wounded advertisement time attack neal custody bail charged january stabbing one neighbors later killed rampage january assault judge barred neal guns according court records records also show neal charged illegally firing weapon possessing illegal assault rifle jan 31 charged five felonies two misdemeanors part protective order barred owning possessing purchasing attempting purchase firearms neal ordered stay away two female neighbors threatened neighbor accused stabbing obtained restraining order february writing court neal fired guns scare people house alleging unpredictable unstable anger issues according court documents gunmans sister sheridan orr said brother struggled mental illness throughout life times violent temper said neal business owning firearms wednesdays news conference johnston initially said neal prohibited owning firearms later acknowledged protective order records show neal certified surrendered weapons february johnston said wednesday recovered two homemade assault rifles two handguns registered someone else laurie levenson loyola law school professor said police officers dont need eyewitnesses take action person suspected violating restraining order probable cause even officers dont see gun hear shots said see suspect weapon circumstantial evidence indicates violating orders levenson said officers dont even need warrant search suspects home believe caller evidence hearing collecting indicate suspect firing gun officer believes someone weapon entitled weapon law permits officer go said rampage lasted 25 minutes johnston said gunman spent six minutes shooting rancho tehama elementary school driving keep shooting elsewhere police said surveillance video shows shooter unsuccessfully trying enter school quickthinking staff members locked outside doors barricaded inside heard gunshots witnesses reported hearing gunshots children screaming school 100 students kindergarten fifth grade heroic school custodian rushed children inside yelling get classrooms neal could reach said corning union elementary school district maintenance department head randy morehouse point able get everyone inside one left blacktop morehouse said hes absolute hero shooter tried tried tried tried get kindergarten door said sixyearold alejandro hernandez classroom one neals bullets came window hit chest aunt rosa monroy said university california davis medical center sacramento awaiting surgery foot clear operate serious wound upper chest right arm said hoping hear best tearfully told crowd dozens people gathered vigil honor victims wednesday night pray strong together rampage ended patrol car rammed stolen vehicle neal driving police killed shootout dillon elliott said witnessed rolling gun battle coffee shop parking lot gunman deputies sped hell broke loose mean ive never heard gunshots like said elliotts parents lived sparsely populated area rolling woodlands dotted grazing cattle 130 miles 209 kilometers north sacramento since 1986 moved away 2001 theres hardly police presence said time weve almost would say almost zero police presence every often youll see super bad said father homeowners association board threatened late 80s early 90s dispute neighbor deputies never responded almost like think lawless dont care said ___ gecker reported san francisco associated press writers paul elias janie har olga rodriguez also contributed san francisco
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<p>FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. (AP) — Bobby Portis looked every bit as comfortable in the Bud Walton Arena media room as he ever did on the basketball court, breaking out into song, laughing and smiling all the way to the NBA.</p>
<p>Flanked by Arkansas coach Mike Anderson and surrounded by teammates, the reigning Southeastern Conference Player of the Year had reason to relax Tuesday afternoon after announcing his decision to declare for the NBA earlier in the day.</p>
<p>"It's a more sweet than bitter day," Anderson said. "Why? Because this kid, he's part of my family."</p>
<p>After agonizing for weeks about the decision, Portis made up his mind to leave the Razorbacks after his breakout sophomore season.</p>
<p>He did so as a projected first-round pick in the NBA, with the hope his emergence as one of the country's top big men is enough to propel him into the lottery.</p>
<p>Most importantly, it was a decision made on his own, though he also sought the advice of his mother, Tina Edwards, and childhood mentor and former Arkansas great Corliss Williamson.</p>
<p>And while the decision was eventually made for purely basketball reasons, the soft-spoken Portis had talked repeatedly in the past about the impact his hard-working mother had on his life.</p>
<p>He mentioned her again Tuesday, along with her 2 a.m. to 1 p.m. shift delivering bread in Little Rock to provide for Portis' three younger brothers.</p>
<p>"That's an 11-hour shift for any person; that's a tough burden on anyone," Portis said. "I just want to take that next step, not just for her, but for myself. I'm not doing this for my mom or anything. I'm doing this for Bobby Portis, just because I feel like I'm ready to take that next step."</p>
<p>Portis was the key cog in Arkansas' rebirth under Anderson the last two years, including the school's first NCAA Tournament bid since 2008.</p>
<p>The 6-foot-11 sophomore averaged 17.5 points and 8.9 rebounds this season, leading Arkansas (27-9) to its most wins since the program reached the second of back-to-back national championship game appearances in 1995. The prep All-American had averaged 12.3 points as a freshman, struggling at times to adapt to the rugged interior pay of the SEC.</p>
<p>Portis shot 53.6 percent from the field in his second season, becoming the focal point of an Arkansas team that finished second in the SEC behind Kentucky.</p>
<p>"I believe I showed kids that you don't have to go to Kentucky or Florida just to try and live your dreams," Portis said. "Coach Anderson and his staff gets it done here."</p>
<p>Anderson's admiration for Portis was clear Tuesday. One of the first players the coach recruited after being hired away from Missouri four years ago, Portis committed to the Razorbacks and Anderson early on, never wavering in his desire to follow in the footsteps of Williamson.</p>
<p>Portis told The Associated Press last month that he wanted to be "the greatest Razorback of all-time" when his career at Arkansas was finished. He didn't quite reach the level of Williamson, who led the school to the 1994 national championship, or others such as Sidney Moncrief and Todd Day. But Portis did endear himself to Arkansas fans with his humble approach, work ethic and quick smile.</p>
<p>And Anderson left little doubt about his thoughts on Portis' impact on a school desperate to once again establish itself as one of the premier college basketball programs in the country.</p>
<p>"He has done some great things here for us at the university, took us some places we haven't been in a while," Anderson said. "But I think he has just started something that is going to continue to take place."</p>
<p>FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. (AP) — Bobby Portis looked every bit as comfortable in the Bud Walton Arena media room as he ever did on the basketball court, breaking out into song, laughing and smiling all the way to the NBA.</p>
<p>Flanked by Arkansas coach Mike Anderson and surrounded by teammates, the reigning Southeastern Conference Player of the Year had reason to relax Tuesday afternoon after announcing his decision to declare for the NBA earlier in the day.</p>
<p>"It's a more sweet than bitter day," Anderson said. "Why? Because this kid, he's part of my family."</p>
<p>After agonizing for weeks about the decision, Portis made up his mind to leave the Razorbacks after his breakout sophomore season.</p>
<p>He did so as a projected first-round pick in the NBA, with the hope his emergence as one of the country's top big men is enough to propel him into the lottery.</p>
<p>Most importantly, it was a decision made on his own, though he also sought the advice of his mother, Tina Edwards, and childhood mentor and former Arkansas great Corliss Williamson.</p>
<p>And while the decision was eventually made for purely basketball reasons, the soft-spoken Portis had talked repeatedly in the past about the impact his hard-working mother had on his life.</p>
<p>He mentioned her again Tuesday, along with her 2 a.m. to 1 p.m. shift delivering bread in Little Rock to provide for Portis' three younger brothers.</p>
<p>"That's an 11-hour shift for any person; that's a tough burden on anyone," Portis said. "I just want to take that next step, not just for her, but for myself. I'm not doing this for my mom or anything. I'm doing this for Bobby Portis, just because I feel like I'm ready to take that next step."</p>
<p>Portis was the key cog in Arkansas' rebirth under Anderson the last two years, including the school's first NCAA Tournament bid since 2008.</p>
<p>The 6-foot-11 sophomore averaged 17.5 points and 8.9 rebounds this season, leading Arkansas (27-9) to its most wins since the program reached the second of back-to-back national championship game appearances in 1995. The prep All-American had averaged 12.3 points as a freshman, struggling at times to adapt to the rugged interior pay of the SEC.</p>
<p>Portis shot 53.6 percent from the field in his second season, becoming the focal point of an Arkansas team that finished second in the SEC behind Kentucky.</p>
<p>"I believe I showed kids that you don't have to go to Kentucky or Florida just to try and live your dreams," Portis said. "Coach Anderson and his staff gets it done here."</p>
<p>Anderson's admiration for Portis was clear Tuesday. One of the first players the coach recruited after being hired away from Missouri four years ago, Portis committed to the Razorbacks and Anderson early on, never wavering in his desire to follow in the footsteps of Williamson.</p>
<p>Portis told The Associated Press last month that he wanted to be "the greatest Razorback of all-time" when his career at Arkansas was finished. He didn't quite reach the level of Williamson, who led the school to the 1994 national championship, or others such as Sidney Moncrief and Todd Day. But Portis did endear himself to Arkansas fans with his humble approach, work ethic and quick smile.</p>
<p>And Anderson left little doubt about his thoughts on Portis' impact on a school desperate to once again establish itself as one of the premier college basketball programs in the country.</p>
<p>"He has done some great things here for us at the university, took us some places we haven't been in a while," Anderson said. "But I think he has just started something that is going to continue to take place."</p>
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fayetteville ark ap bobby portis looked every bit comfortable bud walton arena media room ever basketball court breaking song laughing smiling way nba flanked arkansas coach mike anderson surrounded teammates reigning southeastern conference player year reason relax tuesday afternoon announcing decision declare nba earlier day sweet bitter day anderson said kid hes part family agonizing weeks decision portis made mind leave razorbacks breakout sophomore season projected firstround pick nba hope emergence one countrys top big men enough propel lottery importantly decision made though also sought advice mother tina edwards childhood mentor former arkansas great corliss williamson decision eventually made purely basketball reasons softspoken portis talked repeatedly past impact hardworking mother life mentioned tuesday along 2 1 pm shift delivering bread little rock provide portis three younger brothers thats 11hour shift person thats tough burden anyone portis said want take next step im mom anything im bobby portis feel like im ready take next step portis key cog arkansas rebirth anderson last two years including schools first ncaa tournament bid since 2008 6foot11 sophomore averaged 175 points 89 rebounds season leading arkansas 279 wins since program reached second backtoback national championship game appearances 1995 prep allamerican averaged 123 points freshman struggling times adapt rugged interior pay sec portis shot 536 percent field second season becoming focal point arkansas team finished second sec behind kentucky believe showed kids dont go kentucky florida try live dreams portis said coach anderson staff gets done andersons admiration portis clear tuesday one first players coach recruited hired away missouri four years ago portis committed razorbacks anderson early never wavering desire follow footsteps williamson portis told associated press last month wanted greatest razorback alltime career arkansas finished didnt quite reach level williamson led school 1994 national championship others sidney moncrief todd day portis endear arkansas fans humble approach work ethic quick smile anderson left little doubt thoughts portis impact school desperate establish one premier college basketball programs country done great things us university took us places havent anderson said think started something going continue take place fayetteville ark ap bobby portis looked every bit comfortable bud walton arena media room ever basketball court breaking song laughing smiling way nba flanked arkansas coach mike anderson surrounded teammates reigning southeastern conference player year reason relax tuesday afternoon announcing decision declare nba earlier day sweet bitter day anderson said kid hes part family agonizing weeks decision portis made mind leave razorbacks breakout sophomore season projected firstround pick nba hope emergence one countrys top big men enough propel lottery importantly decision made though also sought advice mother tina edwards childhood mentor former arkansas great corliss williamson decision eventually made purely basketball reasons softspoken portis talked repeatedly past impact hardworking mother life mentioned tuesday along 2 1 pm shift delivering bread little rock provide portis three younger brothers thats 11hour shift person thats tough burden anyone portis said want take next step im mom anything im bobby portis feel like im ready take next step portis key cog arkansas rebirth anderson last two years including schools first ncaa tournament bid since 2008 6foot11 sophomore averaged 175 points 89 rebounds season leading arkansas 279 wins since program reached second backtoback national championship game appearances 1995 prep allamerican averaged 123 points freshman struggling times adapt rugged interior pay sec portis shot 536 percent field second season becoming focal point arkansas team finished second sec behind kentucky believe showed kids dont go kentucky florida try live dreams portis said coach anderson staff gets done andersons admiration portis clear tuesday one first players coach recruited hired away missouri four years ago portis committed razorbacks anderson early never wavering desire follow footsteps williamson portis told associated press last month wanted greatest razorback alltime career arkansas finished didnt quite reach level williamson led school 1994 national championship others sidney moncrief todd day portis endear arkansas fans humble approach work ethic quick smile anderson left little doubt thoughts portis impact school desperate establish one premier college basketball programs country done great things us university took us places havent anderson said think started something going continue take place
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<p>Pope Francis arrives for Mass in a golf cart at Venustiano Carranza stadium in Morelia, Mexico, Tuesday, Feb. 16, 2016. On his one-day trip to the capital of troubled Michoacan state, the Pope will also meet with youth and pay a visit the Morelia cathedral. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)</p>
<p>MORELIA, Mexico - Pope Francis arrived Tuesday in the heart of Mexico's drug-trafficking country to offer words of encouragement to priests trying to minister to a people tormented by the violence and gang warfare of the drug trade.</p>
<p>Francis' visit to Morelia, though, is also a symbolic vote of confidence for the city's archbishop, Alberto Suarez Inda. Like Francis, Suarez Inda has called for Mexican bishops to be closer to their people and not act like bureaucrats or princes. Last year Francis made him a cardinal - an unambiguous message that Francis wants "peripheral" pastors like him to hold the highest rank in the church hierarchy.</p>
<p>After taking a looping popemobile ride through town, Francis celebrated Mass for Mexican clergy and nuns in an outdoor track stadium. Later in the day he was to visit the city's baroque cathedral before meeting with young people, a fixture of papal trips that often produces some of the most memorable and spontaneous moments.</p>
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<p>Since beginning his Mexico trip Friday night, Francis has repeatedly taken to task the Mexican church leadership, many of whom have cozy ties with Mexico's political and financial elite and are loath to criticize them or speak out in favor of the poor and victims of violence.</p>
<p>On Saturday in Mexico City, he scolded what he called gossiping, career-minded and aloof clerics, and admonished them to stand by their flock and offer "prophetic courage" in facing down the drug trade. In an inscription in a seminary guestbook, he urged future priests to be pastors of God and not "clerics of the state."</p>
<p>In 2013, at what was perhaps the height of the violence in Michoacan, where Morelia is located, Suarez Inda led eight other bishops in signing an unusually outspoken letter accusing government authorities of "complicity, forced or willing," with criminal gangs. It urged priests to "do whatever is in your power" to help people in an atmosphere of kidnappings, killings and extortion and to "carry out concrete actions in favor of peace and reconciliation."</p>
<p>Suarez Inda clearly backs Francis' ideas about the role of clerics in contemporary Mexico, echoing the pope's admonition that "pastors should not be bureaucrats and we bishops should not have the mentality or attitude of princes."</p>
<p>He has called for Mexico's church leaders to put aside their comfortable lives and become pastors with the "smell of their sheep." It's a famous phrase of the pope's about the need for bishops to accompany their flock closely through life's ups and downs.</p>
<p>The pope "shakes up the conscience of priests in order that we not be mediocre, installed priests who simply seek social promotion, but rather that we truly live our calling to serve the people with great generosity," Suarez Inda told the Mexican newspaper El Universal last month.</p>
<p>Suarez Inda was also part of a group of clergy from Michoacan and neighboring Guerrero state who prepared a report on Mexico's drug violence last year that he said left Francis "very shocked and impressed."</p>
<p>During Tuesday's Mass, Francis is expected to offer words of encouragement to Mexican clergy as they try to minister to people suffering from such violence.</p>
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<p>But the day's highlight could come in his final event, a gathering of Mexican youth. Francis often speaks off the cuff when meeting with young people, and he will almost certainly touch on the drug problem.</p>
<p>Much of Michoacan is part of a region called Tierra Caliente, or the Hot Lands, known for both its blistering temperatures and brutal tactics by gangsters eager to control lucrative drug-production territory and smuggling routes.</p>
<p>By 2013, the pseudo-religious, evangelical-inspired Knights Templar cartel was widely kidnapping and extorting money and dominating the state's economic and political scene so much that local farmers took up arms against them. But the uprising by the vigilante-style "self-defense" forces brought little peace to the state, with the groups fighting among themselves even as new criminal gangs sprang up or tried to muscle their way into Michoacan, a big source of methamphetamine production.</p>
<p>"I'm excited about the pope's visit, but the reality is that people are afraid. Right now there is a festive atmosphere and a lot of police, but in the day-to-day it's not that calm. Crime has risen," said Yulisa Duran, an 18-year-old nursing student sitting with her boyfriend in Morelia's main square.</p>
<p>"I lived in a tiny town that was very gentle, and then the (cartel) came in," Duran added.</p>
<p>On Monday, Francis denounced centuries-old exploitation and exclusion of Mexico's indigenous people in the southern state of Chiapas and said the world can learn from their traditions.</p>
<p>"Some have considered your values, culture and traditions to be inferior," he said. "Others, intoxicated by power, money and market trends, have stolen your lands or contaminated them."</p>
<p>He called for a collective "Forgive me."</p>
<p>In San Cristobal de las Casas, Francis celebrated a Mass that featured readings in native Mayan languages. He also made a point of praying before the tomb of Bishop Samuel Ruiz, who ministered to Mexico's poorest and supported the controversial practice of blending their indigenous culture into Catholic rituals.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>Winfield and Orsi reported from Mexico City. Mark Stevenson in Mexico City contributed to this report.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>Nicole Winfield on Twitter: <a href="http://www.twitter.com/nwinfield" type="external">www.twitter.com/nwinfield</a></p>
<p>Peter Orsi on Twitter: <a href="http://www.twitter.com/Peter_Orsi" type="external">www.twitter.com/Peter_Orsi</a></p>
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pope francis arrives mass golf cart venustiano carranza stadium morelia mexico tuesday feb 16 2016 oneday trip capital troubled michoacan state pope also meet youth pay visit morelia cathedral ap photorebecca blackwell morelia mexico pope francis arrived tuesday heart mexicos drugtrafficking country offer words encouragement priests trying minister people tormented violence gang warfare drug trade francis visit morelia though also symbolic vote confidence citys archbishop alberto suarez inda like francis suarez inda called mexican bishops closer people act like bureaucrats princes last year francis made cardinal unambiguous message francis wants peripheral pastors like hold highest rank church hierarchy taking looping popemobile ride town francis celebrated mass mexican clergy nuns outdoor track stadium later day visit citys baroque cathedral meeting young people fixture papal trips often produces memorable spontaneous moments advertisement since beginning mexico trip friday night francis repeatedly taken task mexican church leadership many cozy ties mexicos political financial elite loath criticize speak favor poor victims violence saturday mexico city scolded called gossiping careerminded aloof clerics admonished stand flock offer prophetic courage facing drug trade inscription seminary guestbook urged future priests pastors god clerics state 2013 perhaps height violence michoacan morelia located suarez inda led eight bishops signing unusually outspoken letter accusing government authorities complicity forced willing criminal gangs urged priests whatever power help people atmosphere kidnappings killings extortion carry concrete actions favor peace reconciliation suarez inda clearly backs francis ideas role clerics contemporary mexico echoing popes admonition pastors bureaucrats bishops mentality attitude princes called mexicos church leaders put aside comfortable lives become pastors smell sheep famous phrase popes need bishops accompany flock closely lifes ups downs pope shakes conscience priests order mediocre installed priests simply seek social promotion rather truly live calling serve people great generosity suarez inda told mexican newspaper el universal last month suarez inda also part group clergy michoacan neighboring guerrero state prepared report mexicos drug violence last year said left francis shocked impressed tuesdays mass francis expected offer words encouragement mexican clergy try minister people suffering violence advertisement days highlight could come final event gathering mexican youth francis often speaks cuff meeting young people almost certainly touch drug problem much michoacan part region called tierra caliente hot lands known blistering temperatures brutal tactics gangsters eager control lucrative drugproduction territory smuggling routes 2013 pseudoreligious evangelicalinspired knights templar cartel widely kidnapping extorting money dominating states economic political scene much local farmers took arms uprising vigilantestyle selfdefense forces brought little peace state groups fighting among even new criminal gangs sprang tried muscle way michoacan big source methamphetamine production im excited popes visit reality people afraid right festive atmosphere lot police daytoday calm crime risen said yulisa duran 18yearold nursing student sitting boyfriend morelias main square lived tiny town gentle cartel came duran added monday francis denounced centuriesold exploitation exclusion mexicos indigenous people southern state chiapas said world learn traditions considered values culture traditions inferior said others intoxicated power money market trends stolen lands contaminated called collective forgive san cristobal de las casas francis celebrated mass featured readings native mayan languages also made point praying tomb bishop samuel ruiz ministered mexicos poorest supported controversial practice blending indigenous culture catholic rituals ___ winfield orsi reported mexico city mark stevenson mexico city contributed report ___ nicole winfield twitter wwwtwittercomnwinfield peter orsi twitter wwwtwittercompeter_orsi
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<p>ApexNetwork Physical Therapy has opened a new clinic at 6344 Highway 550 in Cuba, N.M. The new clinic in Cuba joins ApexNetwork’s other New Mexico locations in Bernalillo, Bloomfield and Gallup and the over 60 locations nationwide. Valerio Tonelli Enrico, PT, will be the clinic manager.</p>
<p>For additional information about the new Cuba clinic, call 575-289-0170 or email [email protected].</p>
<p>Toni &amp; Guy Hairdressing Academy is opening a new satellite academy at 1001 Golf Course NW in Rio Rancho. The new 3,600-square-foot school will offer two alternate schedules to accommodate up to 84 students. For additional information, visit www.toniguy.com.</p>
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<p>PROMOTIONS</p>
<p>Mary Clare Galarza, R.N.</p>
<p>Mary Clare Galarza, R.N., has been promoted to the position of manager of Oasis, the new medical spa recently opened by Women’s Specialists of New Mexico. Galarza joined Women’s Specialists of New Mexico in 2006 and subsequently became the lead clinician, playing a key role in developing the non-surgical cosmetic division of the company’s practice. She has been a licensed nurse since 1985 and also has 10 years’ experience in cosmetics, having achieved advanced training in facial injections and the technical cosmetic treatments including Coolsculpting, ThermiSmooth and laser treatments.</p>
<p>Delia “Eileen” Goode, R.N., has been promoted by the New Mexico Primary Care Association (NMPCA) to chief operating officer (CEO). Goode joined the NMPCA in January of 2002. She previously was the director of operations/clinical programs since 2012.</p>
<p>ETC.</p>
<p>Lea Harrison, the director of business development at Haven Behavioral Hospital of Albuquerque, has been elected to the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) New Mexico State Board. Nomination to the NAMI-New Mexico State Board is based on completed ballots by members of NAMI throughout New Mexico. The newly elected board was announced at the NAMI-New Mexico annual meeting in August. Harrison has 20 years’ experience in public relations, strategic planning, health care, marketing and brand management and joined Haven in 2012.</p>
<p>The School for Advanced Research (SAR) in Santa Fe has elected six new members to its board of directors. They are Ned Blackhawk (Western Shoshone), a professor of history and American studies at Yale University; Brian Foster, Ph.D., a provost emeritus and professor of anthropology emeritus at the University of Missouri – Columbia; Louise Lamphere, a distinguished professor of anthropology emerita at UNM and past president of the American Anthropological Association; James W. Robins, recently retired from the company he and his father founded, The Robins Group Inc., based in La Jolla, Calif.; Jerry Sabloff, Ph.D., the Christopher H. Browne Distinguished Professor of Anthropology, Emeritus at the University of Pennsylvania and an external professor and past president of the Santa Fe Institute; and Gregory A. Smith, a partner of Hobbs Straus who has represented Indian tribes and tribal organizations as an attorney and as a government affairs specialist for nearly 20 years.</p>
<p>WELCOME</p>
<p>Lisa Ereifej, M.D., has joined the Lovelace Medical Group as a board-eligible endocrinologist whose practice is located at the clinic behind the Lovelace Women’s Hospital at 101 Hospital Loop NE in Albuquerque. Ereifej has a bachelor’s degree in medicine from the Jordan University of Science and Technology; and graduated from the internal medicine residency program at UNM.</p>
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<p>Robert J. Johnston has joined the law firm of Sutin, Thayer &amp; Browne. Johnston will practice primarily in business and corporate law and has experience in the litigation field. He has a bachelor’s degree from Eastern New Mexico University; and a law degree from the University of New Mexico.</p>
<p>John Daly has joined NICOR Inc. as vice president of sales. Daly has 26 years’ experience in the lighting industry and previously was the principal of R&amp;D Lighting; and as vice president of international sales for Cree Lighting. He has a bachelor’s degree from Michigan State University.</p>
<p>David Pennington</p>
<p>David Pennington has joined Parametrix as vice president of infrastructure and environmental services for the firm’s southwest region which includes offices in Albuquerque and Salt Lake City, Utah. Pennington previously worked at WSP/Parsons Brinckerhoff for 20 years, holding the positions of New Mexico area manager and also as a project manager for major projects. He is also an experienced transportation planner with expertise in transit, urban and rural highways, municipal streets, and NEPA analysis and documentation.</p>
<p>MILESTONES</p>
<p>Summit Electric Supply is celebrating its 40th anniversary. The privately held, independent electrical distributor was founded by Victor Jury, Sr. David Meredith and Victor Jury Jr. in 1977 with a staff of five in Albuquerque. After 40 years, the company has expanded to 25 service centers in five states and employs over 600 associates. The company also operates a service center in Dubai, UAE, and has divisions devoted to marine, EP&amp;C and international sales.</p>
<p>Range Cafe in Bernalillo is celebrating their 25th anniversary. Owners Tom Fenton and Matt DiGregory opened the 56-seat establishment in 1992 and have since expanded to four locations and over 450 employees; as well as two additional restaurant concepts under the Range Cafe’s operation — Standard Diner and Freight House Kitchen + Tap.</p>
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apexnetwork physical therapy opened new clinic 6344 highway 550 cuba nm new clinic cuba joins apexnetworks new mexico locations bernalillo bloomfield gallup 60 locations nationwide valerio tonelli enrico pt clinic manager additional information new cuba clinic call 5752890170 email cubanmapexnetworkptcom toni amp guy hairdressing academy opening new satellite academy 1001 golf course nw rio rancho new 3600squarefoot school offer two alternate schedules accommodate 84 students additional information visit wwwtoniguycom advertisement promotions mary clare galarza rn mary clare galarza rn promoted position manager oasis new medical spa recently opened womens specialists new mexico galarza joined womens specialists new mexico 2006 subsequently became lead clinician playing key role developing nonsurgical cosmetic division companys practice licensed nurse since 1985 also 10 years experience cosmetics achieved advanced training facial injections technical cosmetic treatments including coolsculpting thermismooth laser treatments delia eileen goode rn promoted new mexico primary care association nmpca chief operating officer ceo goode joined nmpca january 2002 previously director operationsclinical programs since 2012 etc lea harrison director business development behavioral hospital albuquerque elected national alliance mental illness nami new mexico state board nomination naminew mexico state board based completed ballots members nami throughout new mexico newly elected board announced naminew mexico annual meeting august harrison 20 years experience public relations strategic planning health care marketing brand management joined 2012 school advanced research sar santa fe elected six new members board directors ned blackhawk western shoshone professor history american studies yale university brian foster phd provost emeritus professor anthropology emeritus university missouri columbia louise lamphere distinguished professor anthropology emerita unm past president american anthropological association james w robins recently retired company father founded robins group inc based la jolla calif jerry sabloff phd christopher h browne distinguished professor anthropology emeritus university pennsylvania external professor past president santa fe institute gregory smith partner hobbs straus represented indian tribes tribal organizations attorney government affairs specialist nearly 20 years welcome lisa ereifej md joined lovelace medical group boardeligible endocrinologist whose practice located clinic behind lovelace womens hospital 101 hospital loop ne albuquerque ereifej bachelors degree medicine jordan university science technology graduated internal medicine residency program unm advertisement robert j johnston joined law firm sutin thayer amp browne johnston practice primarily business corporate law experience litigation field bachelors degree eastern new mexico university law degree university new mexico john daly joined nicor inc vice president sales daly 26 years experience lighting industry previously principal rampd lighting vice president international sales cree lighting bachelors degree michigan state university david pennington david pennington joined parametrix vice president infrastructure environmental services firms southwest region includes offices albuquerque salt lake city utah pennington previously worked wspparsons brinckerhoff 20 years holding positions new mexico area manager also project manager major projects also experienced transportation planner expertise transit urban rural highways municipal streets nepa analysis documentation milestones summit electric supply celebrating 40th anniversary privately held independent electrical distributor founded victor jury sr david meredith victor jury jr 1977 staff five albuquerque 40 years company expanded 25 service centers five states employs 600 associates company also operates service center dubai uae divisions devoted marine epampc international sales range cafe bernalillo celebrating 25th anniversary owners tom fenton matt digregory opened 56seat establishment 1992 since expanded four locations 450 employees well two additional restaurant concepts range cafes operation standard diner freight house kitchen tap
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<p>HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — The Pennsylvania Supreme Court struck down the state's widely criticized congressional map Monday, granting a major victory to Democrats who alleged the 18 districts were unconstitutionally gerrymandered to benefit Republicans and setting off a scramble to draw a new map.</p>
<p>In the Democratic-controlled court's decision, the majority said the boundaries "clearly, plainly and palpably" violate the state's constitution and blocked the boundaries from remaining in effect for the 2018 elections with just weeks until dozens of people file paperwork to run for Congress.</p>
<p>The justices gave the Republican-controlled Legislature until Feb. 9 to pass a replacement and Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf until Feb. 15 to submit it to the court. Otherwise, the justices said they will adopt a plan in an effort to keep the May 15 primary election on track.</p>
<p>The decision comes amid a national tide of gerrymandering cases, including some that have reached the U.S. Supreme Court.</p>
<p>Democrats cheered the decision to toss out a Republican-drawn map used in three general elections going back to 2012. The map, they say, gave Republicans crucial help in securing 13 of 18 seats in a state where registered Democratic voters outnumber Republicans 5 to 4.</p>
<p>"We won the whole thing," said David Gersch of the Arnold &amp; Porter Kaye Scholer law firm in Washington, D.C., which is helping represent the group of registered Democrats who filed the lawsuit last June.</p>
<p>The defendants — top Republican lawmakers — said they would ask the U.S. Supreme Court this week to step in and put the decision on hold. The state court's decision lacks clarity, precedent and respect for the constitution and would introduce chaos into the state's congressional races, they said.</p>
<p>The Senate's top Republican lawyer, Drew Crompton, called the timeline to draw new districts "borderline unworkable," but said Republicans will do everything they can to comply.</p>
<p>The decision has immediate implications for the 2018 election, meaning that 14 sitting members of Congress and dozens more people are planning to run in districts they may no longer live in. The deadline to file paperwork to run in primaries is March 6.</p>
<p>It also has implications for GOP control of Congress, since only Texas, California and Florida send more Republicans to the U.S. House than Pennsylvania.</p>
<p>Republicans who controlled Pennsylvania's Legislature and governor's office following the 2010 census broke decades of geographical precedent when redrawing the map, producing contorted shapes, including one dubbed "Goofy kicking Donald Duck."</p>
<p>They shifted whole counties and cities into different districts in an effort to protect a Republican advantage in the congressional delegation. They succeeded, as Republicans in the delegation grew from 12 to 13, even as Pennsylvania lost a seat to account for the state's relatively slow population growth.</p>
<p>The Pennsylvania court's six-paragraph order did not lay out the rationale for striking down the 2011 congressional map or which provisions of the constitution the justices believed it violated. That rationale could follow in the coming days.</p>
<p>The court's five Democrats all agreed that the state's congressional map is unconstitutional. Four of the five Democratic justices backed the decision to throw out the map immediately, while one Democrat, Justice Max Baer, warned that chaos would ensue and argued it would be better to put a new map in place in 2020.</p>
<p>The two Republican justices dissented.</p>
<p>The March 13 special election in a vacant southwestern Pennsylvania seat is unaffected by the order, the justices said.</p>
<p>The decision came as the U.S. Supreme Court is weighing whether redistricting can be so partisan that it violates the U.S. Constitution, in cases from Maryland and Wisconsin. The court also last week put on hold a lower court order in a gerrymandering case from North Carolina that gave lawmakers there two weeks to redraw the state's congressional districts.</p>
<p>The nation's high court has never struck down an electoral map as a partisan gerrymander. However, Monday's decision in Pennsylvania could provide a new avenue to gerrymandering claims.</p>
<p>It is the first state court decision to throw out a congressional map because of partisan gerrymandering, said Michael Li, senior counsel at the Brennan Center for Justice at New York University.</p>
<p>Li said there isn't a clear federal basis for the U.S. Supreme Court to step into the case, and that the state Supreme Court should have the final say in a case under state law.</p>
<p>"That's a real long shot," Li said, "but the stakes are high and it's not surprising that (Republicans) would ask."</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>Associated Press writer Mark Sherman, in Washington, D.C., contributed to this report.</p>
<p>HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — The Pennsylvania Supreme Court struck down the state's widely criticized congressional map Monday, granting a major victory to Democrats who alleged the 18 districts were unconstitutionally gerrymandered to benefit Republicans and setting off a scramble to draw a new map.</p>
<p>In the Democratic-controlled court's decision, the majority said the boundaries "clearly, plainly and palpably" violate the state's constitution and blocked the boundaries from remaining in effect for the 2018 elections with just weeks until dozens of people file paperwork to run for Congress.</p>
<p>The justices gave the Republican-controlled Legislature until Feb. 9 to pass a replacement and Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf until Feb. 15 to submit it to the court. Otherwise, the justices said they will adopt a plan in an effort to keep the May 15 primary election on track.</p>
<p>The decision comes amid a national tide of gerrymandering cases, including some that have reached the U.S. Supreme Court.</p>
<p>Democrats cheered the decision to toss out a Republican-drawn map used in three general elections going back to 2012. The map, they say, gave Republicans crucial help in securing 13 of 18 seats in a state where registered Democratic voters outnumber Republicans 5 to 4.</p>
<p>"We won the whole thing," said David Gersch of the Arnold &amp; Porter Kaye Scholer law firm in Washington, D.C., which is helping represent the group of registered Democrats who filed the lawsuit last June.</p>
<p>The defendants — top Republican lawmakers — said they would ask the U.S. Supreme Court this week to step in and put the decision on hold. The state court's decision lacks clarity, precedent and respect for the constitution and would introduce chaos into the state's congressional races, they said.</p>
<p>The Senate's top Republican lawyer, Drew Crompton, called the timeline to draw new districts "borderline unworkable," but said Republicans will do everything they can to comply.</p>
<p>The decision has immediate implications for the 2018 election, meaning that 14 sitting members of Congress and dozens more people are planning to run in districts they may no longer live in. The deadline to file paperwork to run in primaries is March 6.</p>
<p>It also has implications for GOP control of Congress, since only Texas, California and Florida send more Republicans to the U.S. House than Pennsylvania.</p>
<p>Republicans who controlled Pennsylvania's Legislature and governor's office following the 2010 census broke decades of geographical precedent when redrawing the map, producing contorted shapes, including one dubbed "Goofy kicking Donald Duck."</p>
<p>They shifted whole counties and cities into different districts in an effort to protect a Republican advantage in the congressional delegation. They succeeded, as Republicans in the delegation grew from 12 to 13, even as Pennsylvania lost a seat to account for the state's relatively slow population growth.</p>
<p>The Pennsylvania court's six-paragraph order did not lay out the rationale for striking down the 2011 congressional map or which provisions of the constitution the justices believed it violated. That rationale could follow in the coming days.</p>
<p>The court's five Democrats all agreed that the state's congressional map is unconstitutional. Four of the five Democratic justices backed the decision to throw out the map immediately, while one Democrat, Justice Max Baer, warned that chaos would ensue and argued it would be better to put a new map in place in 2020.</p>
<p>The two Republican justices dissented.</p>
<p>The March 13 special election in a vacant southwestern Pennsylvania seat is unaffected by the order, the justices said.</p>
<p>The decision came as the U.S. Supreme Court is weighing whether redistricting can be so partisan that it violates the U.S. Constitution, in cases from Maryland and Wisconsin. The court also last week put on hold a lower court order in a gerrymandering case from North Carolina that gave lawmakers there two weeks to redraw the state's congressional districts.</p>
<p>The nation's high court has never struck down an electoral map as a partisan gerrymander. However, Monday's decision in Pennsylvania could provide a new avenue to gerrymandering claims.</p>
<p>It is the first state court decision to throw out a congressional map because of partisan gerrymandering, said Michael Li, senior counsel at the Brennan Center for Justice at New York University.</p>
<p>Li said there isn't a clear federal basis for the U.S. Supreme Court to step into the case, and that the state Supreme Court should have the final say in a case under state law.</p>
<p>"That's a real long shot," Li said, "but the stakes are high and it's not surprising that (Republicans) would ask."</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>Associated Press writer Mark Sherman, in Washington, D.C., contributed to this report.</p>
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harrisburg pa ap pennsylvania supreme court struck states widely criticized congressional map monday granting major victory democrats alleged 18 districts unconstitutionally gerrymandered benefit republicans setting scramble draw new map democraticcontrolled courts decision majority said boundaries clearly plainly palpably violate states constitution blocked boundaries remaining effect 2018 elections weeks dozens people file paperwork run congress justices gave republicancontrolled legislature feb 9 pass replacement democratic gov tom wolf feb 15 submit court otherwise justices said adopt plan effort keep may 15 primary election track decision comes amid national tide gerrymandering cases including reached us supreme court democrats cheered decision toss republicandrawn map used three general elections going back 2012 map say gave republicans crucial help securing 13 18 seats state registered democratic voters outnumber republicans 5 4 whole thing said david gersch arnold amp porter kaye scholer law firm washington dc helping represent group registered democrats filed lawsuit last june defendants top republican lawmakers said would ask us supreme court week step put decision hold state courts decision lacks clarity precedent respect constitution would introduce chaos states congressional races said senates top republican lawyer drew crompton called timeline draw new districts borderline unworkable said republicans everything comply decision immediate implications 2018 election meaning 14 sitting members congress dozens people planning run districts may longer live deadline file paperwork run primaries march 6 also implications gop control congress since texas california florida send republicans us house pennsylvania republicans controlled pennsylvanias legislature governors office following 2010 census broke decades geographical precedent redrawing map producing contorted shapes including one dubbed goofy kicking donald duck shifted whole counties cities different districts effort protect republican advantage congressional delegation succeeded republicans delegation grew 12 13 even pennsylvania lost seat account states relatively slow population growth pennsylvania courts sixparagraph order lay rationale striking 2011 congressional map provisions constitution justices believed violated rationale could follow coming days courts five democrats agreed states congressional map unconstitutional four five democratic justices backed decision throw map immediately one democrat justice max baer warned chaos would ensue argued would better put new map place 2020 two republican justices dissented march 13 special election vacant southwestern pennsylvania seat unaffected order justices said decision came us supreme court weighing whether redistricting partisan violates us constitution cases maryland wisconsin court also last week put hold lower court order gerrymandering case north carolina gave lawmakers two weeks redraw states congressional districts nations high court never struck electoral map partisan gerrymander however mondays decision pennsylvania could provide new avenue gerrymandering claims first state court decision throw congressional map partisan gerrymandering said michael li senior counsel brennan center justice new york university li said isnt clear federal basis us supreme court step case state supreme court final say case state law thats real long shot li said stakes high surprising republicans would ask ___ associated press writer mark sherman washington dc contributed report harrisburg pa ap pennsylvania supreme court struck states widely criticized congressional map monday granting major victory democrats alleged 18 districts unconstitutionally gerrymandered benefit republicans setting scramble draw new map democraticcontrolled courts decision majority said boundaries clearly plainly palpably violate states constitution blocked boundaries remaining effect 2018 elections weeks dozens people file paperwork run congress justices gave republicancontrolled legislature feb 9 pass replacement democratic gov tom wolf feb 15 submit court otherwise justices said adopt plan effort keep may 15 primary election track decision comes amid national tide gerrymandering cases including reached us supreme court democrats cheered decision toss republicandrawn map used three general elections going back 2012 map say gave republicans crucial help securing 13 18 seats state registered democratic voters outnumber republicans 5 4 whole thing said david gersch arnold amp porter kaye scholer law firm washington dc helping represent group registered democrats filed lawsuit last june defendants top republican lawmakers said would ask us supreme court week step put decision hold state courts decision lacks clarity precedent respect constitution would introduce chaos states congressional races said senates top republican lawyer drew crompton called timeline draw new districts borderline unworkable said republicans everything comply decision immediate implications 2018 election meaning 14 sitting members congress dozens people planning run districts may longer live deadline file paperwork run primaries march 6 also implications gop control congress since texas california florida send republicans us house pennsylvania republicans controlled pennsylvanias legislature governors office following 2010 census broke decades geographical precedent redrawing map producing contorted shapes including one dubbed goofy kicking donald duck shifted whole counties cities different districts effort protect republican advantage congressional delegation succeeded republicans delegation grew 12 13 even pennsylvania lost seat account states relatively slow population growth pennsylvania courts sixparagraph order lay rationale striking 2011 congressional map provisions constitution justices believed violated rationale could follow coming days courts five democrats agreed states congressional map unconstitutional four five democratic justices backed decision throw map immediately one democrat justice max baer warned chaos would ensue argued would better put new map place 2020 two republican justices dissented march 13 special election vacant southwestern pennsylvania seat unaffected order justices said decision came us supreme court weighing whether redistricting partisan violates us constitution cases maryland wisconsin court also last week put hold lower court order gerrymandering case north carolina gave lawmakers two weeks redraw states congressional districts nations high court never struck electoral map partisan gerrymander however mondays decision pennsylvania could provide new avenue gerrymandering claims first state court decision throw congressional map partisan gerrymandering said michael li senior counsel brennan center justice new york university li said isnt clear federal basis us supreme court step case state supreme court final say case state law thats real long shot li said stakes high surprising republicans would ask ___ associated press writer mark sherman washington dc contributed report
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<p>NEW YORK (AP) — Errol Spence Jr. was even more dazzling in defending his title than he was while winning it.</p>
<p>Spence battered Lamont Peterson until the fight was stopped a second into the eighth round Saturday night in the first defense of the welterweight title he won last year.</p>
<p>Spence had controlled the fight and both of Peterson’s eyes appeared swollen as doctors checked him after the seventh round. The bell rang to start the eighth, and Peterson moved toward the center of the ring before his corner told the referee to call it.</p>
<p>“I didn’t know I would dominate like that,” Spence said. “I expected to get the knockout, but this was a great performance.”</p>
<p>Spence (23-0, 20 KOs) pitched a shutout in his first attempt defending the IBF 147-pound crown he won last May when he went to Sheffield, England, and stopped Kell Brook in his hometown, breaking the champion’s orbital bone and knocking him down in the 10th round before Brook went to a knee in the 11th and the fight was stopped.</p>
<p>Spence won every round on all three scorecards in a performance that easily backed up the accolades he earned in his title-winning victory.</p>
<p>He knocked Peterson (35-4-1) down in the fifth and hurt him in many other rounds, ripping punches into his ribs to set up hard shots to the head.</p>
<p>Spence landed more punches (161) than Peterson threw (158) according to final CompuBox stats and connected with over 100 more power punches — landing 35 alone in the fifth round.</p>
<p>“I could tell Lamont was wobbling before I got him down,” Spence said. “It was just a great feeling to put on a strong performance.”</p>
<p>Spence confidently threw his jab to get warmed up in the first, and then hurt Peterson with a body shot along the ropes in the second. They traded hard shots in the third with Spence continuing to go to the body and Peterson getting him upstairs.</p>
<p>The 2012 U.S. Olympian knocked Peterson down in the fifth when a right hand set up a solid left to the head. Peterson fought back gamely later in the round, easily the best one of the fight, but his right eye was closing by the sixth, making it even harder to stop the punches that had been pummeling him.</p>
<p>“He was getting the shots on me early. He was the better man tonight,” Peterson said.</p>
<p>He wanted to keep going but trainer Barry Hunter decided otherwise.</p>
<p>“I know Lamont, he’s a tough fighter. He’s willing to die in there,” Spence said. “You saw his coach had to stop the fight because he wanted to keep fighting.”</p>
<p>Peterson, a 33-year-old former champion at 140 and 147 pounds, hoped a victory could get him into the mix for a couple more big fights to help further a boxing Hall of Fame case that he acknowledged this week isn’t strong enough.</p>
<p>But he was in against a fighter who’s already regarded as one of boxing’s best and eager to keep proving it. Spence again called for a match against Keith Thurman, who holds two welterweight titles.</p>
<p>“Since I was 15-0 I’ve been calling this guy out and he keeps making excuses,” Spence said. “Let’s get it on.”</p>
<p>In the previous match, IBF lightweight champion Robert Easter Jr. remained unbeaten by pulling out a split-decision victory over Javier Fortuna.</p>
<p>Though six inches taller than Fortuna, the 5-foot-11 Easter (21-0, 14 KOs) spent the majority of the match mixing it up inside, where he was caught frequently by Fortuna’s short punches. Fortuna was deducted a point in the second round for holding behind Easter’s head, which kept him from tying one of the cards he lost and making the fight a split draw.</p>
<p>Easter would have kept his title even with a loss, because Fortuna was about 1 ½ pounds over the lightweight limit of 135 pounds Friday and ineligible to win the belt. But the heavily booed victory probably didn’t help his goal of a unification match in his division.</p>
<p>“I want to fight the champions and unify this belt,” Easter said. “Fights like these aren’t in my game plan. I’m ready for Mikey Garcia and Jorge Linares to sign the contract.”</p>
<p>But Fortuna (33-2-1) called for another chance before Easter looks elsewhere.</p>
<p>“If he’s a man, let’s fight again at 135 pounds,” the Dominican said. “I will definitely make the weight. I didn’t give myself enough time to train.”</p>
<p>Also on the undercard, unbeaten light heavyweight Marcus Browne (21-0, 16 KOs) stopped Francy Ntetu (17-2) in the first round, and heavyweight Adam Kownacki (17-0, 14 KOs), a Poland native fighting out of Brooklyn, thrilled his crowd of fans who filled a small section of Barclays Center with a sixth-round knockout of Iago Kiladze.</p>
<p>NEW YORK (AP) — Errol Spence Jr. was even more dazzling in defending his title than he was while winning it.</p>
<p>Spence battered Lamont Peterson until the fight was stopped a second into the eighth round Saturday night in the first defense of the welterweight title he won last year.</p>
<p>Spence had controlled the fight and both of Peterson’s eyes appeared swollen as doctors checked him after the seventh round. The bell rang to start the eighth, and Peterson moved toward the center of the ring before his corner told the referee to call it.</p>
<p>“I didn’t know I would dominate like that,” Spence said. “I expected to get the knockout, but this was a great performance.”</p>
<p>Spence (23-0, 20 KOs) pitched a shutout in his first attempt defending the IBF 147-pound crown he won last May when he went to Sheffield, England, and stopped Kell Brook in his hometown, breaking the champion’s orbital bone and knocking him down in the 10th round before Brook went to a knee in the 11th and the fight was stopped.</p>
<p>Spence won every round on all three scorecards in a performance that easily backed up the accolades he earned in his title-winning victory.</p>
<p>He knocked Peterson (35-4-1) down in the fifth and hurt him in many other rounds, ripping punches into his ribs to set up hard shots to the head.</p>
<p>Spence landed more punches (161) than Peterson threw (158) according to final CompuBox stats and connected with over 100 more power punches — landing 35 alone in the fifth round.</p>
<p>“I could tell Lamont was wobbling before I got him down,” Spence said. “It was just a great feeling to put on a strong performance.”</p>
<p>Spence confidently threw his jab to get warmed up in the first, and then hurt Peterson with a body shot along the ropes in the second. They traded hard shots in the third with Spence continuing to go to the body and Peterson getting him upstairs.</p>
<p>The 2012 U.S. Olympian knocked Peterson down in the fifth when a right hand set up a solid left to the head. Peterson fought back gamely later in the round, easily the best one of the fight, but his right eye was closing by the sixth, making it even harder to stop the punches that had been pummeling him.</p>
<p>“He was getting the shots on me early. He was the better man tonight,” Peterson said.</p>
<p>He wanted to keep going but trainer Barry Hunter decided otherwise.</p>
<p>“I know Lamont, he’s a tough fighter. He’s willing to die in there,” Spence said. “You saw his coach had to stop the fight because he wanted to keep fighting.”</p>
<p>Peterson, a 33-year-old former champion at 140 and 147 pounds, hoped a victory could get him into the mix for a couple more big fights to help further a boxing Hall of Fame case that he acknowledged this week isn’t strong enough.</p>
<p>But he was in against a fighter who’s already regarded as one of boxing’s best and eager to keep proving it. Spence again called for a match against Keith Thurman, who holds two welterweight titles.</p>
<p>“Since I was 15-0 I’ve been calling this guy out and he keeps making excuses,” Spence said. “Let’s get it on.”</p>
<p>In the previous match, IBF lightweight champion Robert Easter Jr. remained unbeaten by pulling out a split-decision victory over Javier Fortuna.</p>
<p>Though six inches taller than Fortuna, the 5-foot-11 Easter (21-0, 14 KOs) spent the majority of the match mixing it up inside, where he was caught frequently by Fortuna’s short punches. Fortuna was deducted a point in the second round for holding behind Easter’s head, which kept him from tying one of the cards he lost and making the fight a split draw.</p>
<p>Easter would have kept his title even with a loss, because Fortuna was about 1 ½ pounds over the lightweight limit of 135 pounds Friday and ineligible to win the belt. But the heavily booed victory probably didn’t help his goal of a unification match in his division.</p>
<p>“I want to fight the champions and unify this belt,” Easter said. “Fights like these aren’t in my game plan. I’m ready for Mikey Garcia and Jorge Linares to sign the contract.”</p>
<p>But Fortuna (33-2-1) called for another chance before Easter looks elsewhere.</p>
<p>“If he’s a man, let’s fight again at 135 pounds,” the Dominican said. “I will definitely make the weight. I didn’t give myself enough time to train.”</p>
<p>Also on the undercard, unbeaten light heavyweight Marcus Browne (21-0, 16 KOs) stopped Francy Ntetu (17-2) in the first round, and heavyweight Adam Kownacki (17-0, 14 KOs), a Poland native fighting out of Brooklyn, thrilled his crowd of fans who filled a small section of Barclays Center with a sixth-round knockout of Iago Kiladze.</p>
| false | 2 |
new york ap errol spence jr even dazzling defending title winning spence battered lamont peterson fight stopped second eighth round saturday night first defense welterweight title last year spence controlled fight petersons eyes appeared swollen doctors checked seventh round bell rang start eighth peterson moved toward center ring corner told referee call didnt know would dominate like spence said expected get knockout great performance spence 230 20 kos pitched shutout first attempt defending ibf 147pound crown last may went sheffield england stopped kell brook hometown breaking champions orbital bone knocking 10th round brook went knee 11th fight stopped spence every round three scorecards performance easily backed accolades earned titlewinning victory knocked peterson 3541 fifth hurt many rounds ripping punches ribs set hard shots head spence landed punches 161 peterson threw 158 according final compubox stats connected 100 power punches landing 35 alone fifth round could tell lamont wobbling got spence said great feeling put strong performance spence confidently threw jab get warmed first hurt peterson body shot along ropes second traded hard shots third spence continuing go body peterson getting upstairs 2012 us olympian knocked peterson fifth right hand set solid left head peterson fought back gamely later round easily best one fight right eye closing sixth making even harder stop punches pummeling getting shots early better man tonight peterson said wanted keep going trainer barry hunter decided otherwise know lamont hes tough fighter hes willing die spence said saw coach stop fight wanted keep fighting peterson 33yearold former champion 140 147 pounds hoped victory could get mix couple big fights help boxing hall fame case acknowledged week isnt strong enough fighter whos already regarded one boxings best eager keep proving spence called match keith thurman holds two welterweight titles since 150 ive calling guy keeps making excuses spence said lets get previous match ibf lightweight champion robert easter jr remained unbeaten pulling splitdecision victory javier fortuna though six inches taller fortuna 5foot11 easter 210 14 kos spent majority match mixing inside caught frequently fortunas short punches fortuna deducted point second round holding behind easters head kept tying one cards lost making fight split draw easter would kept title even loss fortuna 1 ½ pounds lightweight limit 135 pounds friday ineligible win belt heavily booed victory probably didnt help goal unification match division want fight champions unify belt easter said fights like arent game plan im ready mikey garcia jorge linares sign contract fortuna 3321 called another chance easter looks elsewhere hes man lets fight 135 pounds dominican said definitely make weight didnt give enough time train also undercard unbeaten light heavyweight marcus browne 210 16 kos stopped francy ntetu 172 first round heavyweight adam kownacki 170 14 kos poland native fighting brooklyn thrilled crowd fans filled small section barclays center sixthround knockout iago kiladze new york ap errol spence jr even dazzling defending title winning spence battered lamont peterson fight stopped second eighth round saturday night first defense welterweight title last year spence controlled fight petersons eyes appeared swollen doctors checked seventh round bell rang start eighth peterson moved toward center ring corner told referee call didnt know would dominate like spence said expected get knockout great performance spence 230 20 kos pitched shutout first attempt defending ibf 147pound crown last may went sheffield england stopped kell brook hometown breaking champions orbital bone knocking 10th round brook went knee 11th fight stopped spence every round three scorecards performance easily backed accolades earned titlewinning victory knocked peterson 3541 fifth hurt many rounds ripping punches ribs set hard shots head spence landed punches 161 peterson threw 158 according final compubox stats connected 100 power punches landing 35 alone fifth round could tell lamont wobbling got spence said great feeling put strong performance spence confidently threw jab get warmed first hurt peterson body shot along ropes second traded hard shots third spence continuing go body peterson getting upstairs 2012 us olympian knocked peterson fifth right hand set solid left head peterson fought back gamely later round easily best one fight right eye closing sixth making even harder stop punches pummeling getting shots early better man tonight peterson said wanted keep going trainer barry hunter decided otherwise know lamont hes tough fighter hes willing die spence said saw coach stop fight wanted keep fighting peterson 33yearold former champion 140 147 pounds hoped victory could get mix couple big fights help boxing hall fame case acknowledged week isnt strong enough fighter whos already regarded one boxings best eager keep proving spence called match keith thurman holds two welterweight titles since 150 ive calling guy keeps making excuses spence said lets get previous match ibf lightweight champion robert easter jr remained unbeaten pulling splitdecision victory javier fortuna though six inches taller fortuna 5foot11 easter 210 14 kos spent majority match mixing inside caught frequently fortunas short punches fortuna deducted point second round holding behind easters head kept tying one cards lost making fight split draw easter would kept title even loss fortuna 1 ½ pounds lightweight limit 135 pounds friday ineligible win belt heavily booed victory probably didnt help goal unification match division want fight champions unify belt easter said fights like arent game plan im ready mikey garcia jorge linares sign contract fortuna 3321 called another chance easter looks elsewhere hes man lets fight 135 pounds dominican said definitely make weight didnt give enough time train also undercard unbeaten light heavyweight marcus browne 210 16 kos stopped francy ntetu 172 first round heavyweight adam kownacki 170 14 kos poland native fighting brooklyn thrilled crowd fans filled small section barclays center sixthround knockout iago kiladze
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<p>NORRISTOWN, Pa. — The jury at Bill Cosby’s sexual assault trial deliberated without reaching a verdict Monday over whether he drugged and molested a woman more than a decade ago in a case that already has helped demolish the 79-year-old comedian’s good-guy image.</p>
<p>A conviction could send Cosby to prison for the rest of his life, completing the stunning late-life downfall of one of the most beloved stars in show business.</p>
<p>Jurors got the case around 5:30 p.m. and met for about four hours before knocking off late Monday night, with deliberations set to resume in the morning.</p>
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<p>The fast-moving case went to the jury of seven men and five women on Day 6 of the trial after closing arguments gave differing portrayals of what happened between Cosby and Andrea Constand at his suburban Philadelphia estate.</p>
<p>Defense attorney Brian McMonagle told the jury that Cosby and Constand were lovers who had enjoyed secret “romantic interludes,” insisting the 2004 encounter was consensual. McMonagle said that while the comedian had been unfaithful to his wife, he didn’t commit a crime.</p>
<p>Prosecutors countered by saying “fancy lawyering” can’t save Cosby from his own words — namely, his admission about groping Constand after giving her pills he knew could put her to sleep.</p>
<p>“Drugging somebody and putting them in a position where you can do what you want with them is not romantic. It’s criminal,” District Attorney Kevin Steele said.</p>
<p>Before asking to go back to their hotel Monday night, jurors wanted to see a portion of Cosby’s decade-old testimony from a civil suit filed against him by Constand.</p>
<p>They told the judge they wanted the “full context” of Cosby’s testimony about the pills he gave to Constand, which he had described to her as “friends.”</p>
<p>“I have three friends for you to make you relax,” Cosby said he told Constand, according to a deposition transcript reread to the jury Monday night.</p>
<p>After the prosecution took five days to outline its side, the defense case consisted of just one witness, a detective, and six minutes of testimony earlier in the day. Cosby did not take the stand, ending days of suspense over whether the jury would hear directly from him.</p>
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<p>Legal experts said testifying would have been a risky move that could have opened the TV star to withering cross-examination about some of the 60 or so other women who have accused him of drugging or molesting them.</p>
<p>He is charged with three counts of aggravated indecent assault, each one punishable by up to 10 years behind bars.</p>
<p>The black comedian once known as America’s Dad for his portrayal of kindly Dr. Cliff Huxtable on “The Cosby Show” suggested recently that race could have played a role in the case against him. The jury included two black members.</p>
<p>McMonagle, in his closing argument, tried to sow doubt about Constand’s story, saying it had evolved during her interviews with police. He also pointed out that Constand telephoned Cosby dozens of times after the alleged assault. Constand told the jury she was merely returning his calls about the women’s basketball squad at Temple University, where she was director of team operations and he was a member of the board of trustees.</p>
<p>“This isn’t talking to a trustee. This is talking to a lover,” McMonagle said of one call that lasted 49 minutes. “Why are we running from the truth of this case — this relationship? Why?”</p>
<p>Cosby’s wife of 53 years, Camille, was in the courtroom for the first time in the trial. She was stoic during the defense argument but left when it was the prosecution’s turn. She sat in the front row, across the aisle from Constand, who didn’t react to McMonagle’s two-hour closing but smiled at the end of it.</p>
<p>Constand, 44, testified last week that Cosby gave her three blue pills and then penetrated her with his fingers against her will as she lay paralyzed and half-conscious. She denied they had a romantic relationship and said she had rebuffed previous advances from him.</p>
<p>She sued Cosby after prosecutors in 2005 declined to press charges. Cosby testified over a decade ago as part of that lawsuit, eventually settling with her for an undisclosed sum. His deposition was sealed for years until a judge released parts in 2015 at the request of The Associated Press, prompting a new set of prosecutors to take a fresh look at the case and charge him.</p>
<p>McMonagle told the jury that Cosby’s freedom is at stake now, not just his finances. “This is not a civil case about money, money, money. We’re talking about all the man’s tomorrows,” he said.</p>
<p>In the prosecution’s closing argument, Steele said that Cosby’s lurid statements from 2005 helped corroborate Constand’s allegations. Steele also reminded jurors about a telephone conversation in which Cosby apologized to Constand’s mother and described himself as a “sick man.”</p>
<p>“This is where all the fancy lawyering can’t get you around your own words,” Steele said.</p>
<p>In his 2005 deposition, Cosby said he obtained several prescriptions for quaaludes in the 1970s and offered the now-banned sedatives to women he wanted to have sex with.</p>
<p>He also said he gave Constand three half-tablets of the cold and allergy medicine Benadryl before the “petting” began. Prosecutors have suggested he drugged her with something stronger — perhaps quaaludes.</p>
<p>The deposition seemed to be of keen interest to the jury, which asked to review more than a dozen additional excerpts when they resume deliberations Tuesday morning.</p>
<p>The Associated Press does not typically identify people who say they are victims of sexual assault unless they grant permission, which Constand has done.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>For more on Cosby, including trial updates, historical photos, videos and an audio series exploring the case, visit: <a href="http://www.apnews.com/tag/CosbyonTrial" type="external">http://www.apnews.com/tag/CosbyonTrial</a></p>
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norristown pa jury bill cosbys sexual assault trial deliberated without reaching verdict monday whether drugged molested woman decade ago case already helped demolish 79yearold comedians goodguy image conviction could send cosby prison rest life completing stunning latelife downfall one beloved stars show business jurors got case around 530 pm met four hours knocking late monday night deliberations set resume morning advertisement fastmoving case went jury seven men five women day 6 trial closing arguments gave differing portrayals happened cosby andrea constand suburban philadelphia estate defense attorney brian mcmonagle told jury cosby constand lovers enjoyed secret romantic interludes insisting 2004 encounter consensual mcmonagle said comedian unfaithful wife didnt commit crime prosecutors countered saying fancy lawyering cant save cosby words namely admission groping constand giving pills knew could put sleep drugging somebody putting position want romantic criminal district attorney kevin steele said asking go back hotel monday night jurors wanted see portion cosbys decadeold testimony civil suit filed constand told judge wanted full context cosbys testimony pills gave constand described friends three friends make relax cosby said told constand according deposition transcript reread jury monday night prosecution took five days outline side defense case consisted one witness detective six minutes testimony earlier day cosby take stand ending days suspense whether jury would hear directly advertisement legal experts said testifying would risky move could opened tv star withering crossexamination 60 women accused drugging molesting charged three counts aggravated indecent assault one punishable 10 years behind bars black comedian known americas dad portrayal kindly dr cliff huxtable cosby show suggested recently race could played role case jury included two black members mcmonagle closing argument tried sow doubt constands story saying evolved interviews police also pointed constand telephoned cosby dozens times alleged assault constand told jury merely returning calls womens basketball squad temple university director team operations member board trustees isnt talking trustee talking lover mcmonagle said one call lasted 49 minutes running truth case relationship cosbys wife 53 years camille courtroom first time trial stoic defense argument left prosecutions turn sat front row across aisle constand didnt react mcmonagles twohour closing smiled end constand 44 testified last week cosby gave three blue pills penetrated fingers lay paralyzed halfconscious denied romantic relationship said rebuffed previous advances sued cosby prosecutors 2005 declined press charges cosby testified decade ago part lawsuit eventually settling undisclosed sum deposition sealed years judge released parts 2015 request associated press prompting new set prosecutors take fresh look case charge mcmonagle told jury cosbys freedom stake finances civil case money money money talking mans tomorrows said prosecutions closing argument steele said cosbys lurid statements 2005 helped corroborate constands allegations steele also reminded jurors telephone conversation cosby apologized constands mother described sick man fancy lawyering cant get around words steele said 2005 deposition cosby said obtained several prescriptions quaaludes 1970s offered nowbanned sedatives women wanted sex also said gave constand three halftablets cold allergy medicine benadryl petting began prosecutors suggested drugged something stronger perhaps quaaludes deposition seemed keen interest jury asked review dozen additional excerpts resume deliberations tuesday morning associated press typically identify people say victims sexual assault unless grant permission constand done ___ cosby including trial updates historical photos videos audio series exploring case visit httpwwwapnewscomtagcosbyontrial
| 533 |
<p>Jan 19 (Reuters) - Integral Diagnostics Ltd:</p>
<p>* ‍HY PROFIT FROM ORDINARY ACTIVITIES AFTER TAX ATTRIBUTABLE TO OWNERS OF INTEGRAL DOWN 4.74% TO $8.3 MILLION</p>
<p>* HY REVENUES FROM ORDINARY ACTIVITIES UP 5.65 PERCENT TO $93.6 MILLION</p>
<p>* 1H18 DIVIDEND OF 4 CENTS PER SHARE FULLY FRANKED HAS BEEN DECLARED‍​</p>
<p>* CAPITAL EXPENDITURE FOR THE FULL YEAR IS FORECAST AT $17 M‍LN​ Source text for Eikon: [ID:nASX4bkGpL[ Further company coverage:</p> Our Standards:
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<p>WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump has asked his trade advisers to look at rejoining the Trans Pacific Partnership, a multinational trade pact he withdrew the United States from last year, White House spokeswoman Lindsay Walters said.</p>
<p>Republican senators met with Trump on Thursday and he told them that he has asked United States Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer and White House economic advisor Larry Kudlow to re-open negotiations.</p>
<p>“The president has consistently said he would be open to a substantially better deal, including in his speech in Davos earlier this year,” Walters said.</p> Related Coverage
<a href="/article/us-usa-trade-tpp-japan/japans-aso-says-he-would-welcome-u-s-taking-fresh-look-at-tpp-idUSKBN1HK016" type="external">Japan's Aso says he would welcome U.S. taking fresh look at TPP</a>
<p>The TPP had aimed to cut trade barriers in some of the fastest-growing economies of the Asia-Pacific region and to counter China’s rising economic and diplomatic clout. Trump pulled the U.S. out of the pact in early 2017, citing concerns about jobs.</p>
<p>Even prior to Trump’s official withdrawal, U.S. participation in the pact was dead due to opposition in the U.S. Congress. The United States entered the TPP negotiations in 2008 and took until late 2016 for the then-Obama administration to abandon its attempt to push the pact through Congress.</p>
<p>“It is good news that today the president directed Larry Kudlow and Ambassador Lighthizer to negotiate U.S. entry into TPP,” Senator Ben Sasse, a pro-trade Republican, said in a statement after the meeting between Trump and the senators.</p>
<p>At his Senate confirmation hearing for the post of Trump’s next secretary of state, CIA Director Mike Pompeo was asked about reports that Trump planned to re-engage on TPP and replied: “That news was news to me.”</p>
<p>However, Pompeo said he had supported TPP as a member of Congress and added: “There is an economic component to what China is trying to do. We need to be engaged. There is a diplomatic component to the economic activity as well. We need to be deeply engaged there, and I’m confident this administration will do that.”</p>
<p>Since the U.S. withdrew from the TPP talks, the other 11 countries have forged ahead with their own agreement, and in the process eliminated chapters on investment, government procurement and intellectual property that were key planks of Washington’s demands.</p>
<p>The pact includes Mexico and Canada which are renegotiating the terms of the North American Free Trade Agreement with the United States.</p> FILE PHOTO: U.S. President Donald Trump holds up the executive order on withdrawal from the Trans Pacific Partnership after signing it in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington January 23, 2017. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque
<p>When asked to comment on Thursday’s comments on the TPP, a Canadian government official said there had not been any formal outreach so it was not possible to speculate on what a new pact would look like.</p>
<p>Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe will meet Trump next week. Japan, a close U.S. ally, signed up for the 11-country trade pact.</p>
<p>During his election campaign in 2016, Trump was frequently skeptical of the value of multilateral trade pacts, arguing instead that bilateral deals could offer better terms.</p>
<p>But Trump is struggling to get support from other countries for his recent threat to impose import tariffs on China and the U.S. farm lobby is arguing that retaliation by China would hit American agricultural exports.</p>
<p>Reporting by David Chance, Patricia Zengerle and David Brunnstrom in Washington and David Ljunggren in Ottawa; editing by Susan Thomas and Phil Berlowitz</p> Our Standards:
<a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a>
<p>MANILA (Reuters) - Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has threatened to arrest an International Criminal Court (ICC) prosecutor if she conducts activities in his country, arguing it was no longer an ICC member so the court had no right to do any investigating.</p> Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte gestures as he delivers a speech during the 121st founding anniversary of the Philippine Army (PA) at Taguig city, Metro Manila, Philippines March 20, 2018. REUTERS/Romeo Ranoco
<p>Hitting out at what he said was an international effort to paint him as a “ruthless and heartless violator of human rights”, Duterte withdrew the Philippines from the ICC’s Rome Statute a month ago and promised to continue his crackdown on drugs, in which thousands have been killed.</p>
<p>ICC prosecutor Fatou Bensouda in February announced the start of a preliminary examination into a complaint by a Philippine lawyer which accuses Duterte and top officials of crimes against humanity, and of killing criminals as a policy.</p>
<p>Duterte has cited numerous reasons why he believes the ICC has no jurisdiction over him, and on Friday suggested that any doubts about that should have been dispelled by his withdrawal.</p>
<p>“What is your authority now? If we are not members of the treaty, why are you ... in this country?,” told reporters, in comments aimed at Bensouda.</p>
<p>“You cannot exercise any proceedings here without basis. That is illegal and I will arrest you.”</p>
<p>It is not clear whether Bensouda or the ICC has carried out any activities in the Philippines related to the complaint against Duterte.</p>
<p>The office of the prosecutor in The Hague and the Philippine foreign ministry did not immediately respond to requests for comment.</p>
<p>Police have since July 2016 killed more than 4,000 people they say are drug dealers who resisted arrest. Activists say many of those were executions, which police deny.</p>
<p>Duterte has told security forces not to cooperate with any foreign investigators and last month said he would convince other ICC members to withdraw.</p>
<p>Duterte had earlier vowed to face the ICC and critics say pulling out is futile, because the ICC has jurisdiction to investigate alleged crimes committed in the period from when the Philippines joined in 2011 to when its withdrawal takes effect in March 2019.</p>
<p>Under the Rome Statute, the ICC can step in and exercise jurisdiction if states are unable or unwilling to investigate suspected crimes.</p>
<p>But the mercurial former mayor and his legal aides argue that technically, the Philippines never actually joined the ICC, because it was not announced in the country’s official gazette.</p>
<p>“If there is no publication, it is as if there is no law at all,” Duterte said on Friday.</p>
<p>Reporting by Martin Petty and Neil Jerome Morales; Editing by Robert Birsel</p> Our Standards:
<a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a>
<p>WASHINGTON/UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - President Donald Trump and his national security aides on Thursday discussed U.S. options on Syria, where he has threatened missile strikes in response to a suspected poison gas attack, as a Russian envoy voiced fears of wider conflict between Washington and Moscow.</p>
<p>Worries about a confrontation between Russia, Syria’s big ally, and the West have been running high since Trump said on Wednesday that missiles “will be coming” in response to the attack in the Syrian town of Douma on April 7, and lambasted Moscow for standing by Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.</p>
<p>Trump tempered those remarks on Thursday and even as he consulted allies such and Britain and France, who could join in any U.S.-led strikes on Syria, there were signs of efforts to prevent the crisis from spiraling out of control.</p>
<p>“Never said when an attack on Syria would take place. Could be very soon or not so soon at all!” Trump wrote on Twitter, raising the prospect that an attack might not be as imminent as he seemed to suggest the day before.</p>
<p>Trump met his national security team on the situation in Syria later in the day and “no final decision has been made,” the White House said in a statement.</p>
<p>“We are continuing to assess intelligence and are engaged in conversations with our partners and allies,” it said.</p> Related Coverage
<a href="/article/us-mideast-crisis-syria-allies-factbox/factbox-assads-foreign-backers-in-syrias-war-idUSKBN1HJ2DE" type="external">Factbox: Assad's foreign backers in Syria's war</a>
<p>That did not necessarily signal, however, that Trump was cooling to the idea of military action, especially given the high stakes in Syria. U.S. officials noted that Washington was still assessing intelligence and coordinating allies.</p>
<p>For graphic on overview of chemical warfare click: <a href="" type="internal">here</a></p>
<p>Trump spoke to British Prime Minister Theresa May on Thursday and the two leaders talked about the “need for a joint response to Syria’s use of chemical weapons,” the White House said.</p>
<p>May’s office said they agreed on the need to deter Assad’s government from further such attacks.</p>
<p>Trump was also due to speak with French President Emmanuel Macron, who said France had proof the Syrian government carried out the attack near Damascus, which aid groups have said killed dozens of people, and will decide whether to strike back when all the necessary information has been gathered.</p>
<p>“We have proof that last week ... chemical weapons were used, at least with chlorine, and that they were used by the regime of Bashar al-Assad,” Macron said, without offering details of any evidence.</p>
<p>Two U.S. officials familiar with an investigation of samples from Douma and the symptoms of victims said initial indications that a mix of weaponized chlorine gas and sarin were used in the attack appeared to be correct. But U.S. intelligence agencies have not completed their assessment or reached a final conclusion, the officials said.</p>
<p>Russia, Syria and its other main backer, Iran, have said reports of the Douma attack were fabricated by rebels and rescue workers and have accused the United States of seeking to use it as a pretext to attack the Syrian government.</p>
<p>Russia said it deployed military police in Douma on Thursday after the town was taken over by government forces.</p>
<p>“They are the guarantors of law and order in the town,” RIA news agency quoted Russia’s defense ministry as saying.</p>
<p>There were signs of a global effort to head off a direct confrontation between Russia and the West. The Kremlin said a crisis communications link with the United States, created to avoid an accidental clash over Syria, was in use.</p> FEARS OF WAR
<p>Vassily Nebenzia, Moscow’s ambassador to the United Nations, said he “cannot exclude” war between the United States and Russia and urged Washington and its allies to refrain from military action against Syria.</p>
<p>“The immediate priority is to avert the danger of war,” he told reporters. “We hope there will be no point of no return,” the envoy said.</p>
<p>A team of experts from the global chemical weapons watchdog, the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, was traveling to Syria and will start its investigations on Saturday, the Netherlands-based agency said.</p>
<p>It was not clear whether Trump and U.S. allies would wait for the results of the investigation before deciding on a strike.</p> U.S. President Donald Trump speaks during a meeting with governors and members of Congress at the White House in Washington, U.S., April 12, 2018. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque
<p>U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis told Congress he believed there was a chemical attack in Syria, but added a short while later that the United States had not made any decision to launch military action. He also suggested he was examining ways to prevent any strikes from triggering a broader conflict.</p>
<p>“I don’t want to talk about a specific attack that is not yet in the offing ... This would be pre-decisional,” Mattis told the House of Representatives Armed Services Committee.</p>
<p>Moscow is estimated to have dozens of aircraft at its Hmeymim air base in Syria including fighters and bombers, as well as 10 to 15 warships and support vessels in the Mediterranean.</p>
<p>The Syrian government and Russian forces in Syria possess truck-mounted surface-to-air missile and anti-aircraft artillery weapons systems.</p>
<p>Nervous world stock markets showed signs of recovery after Trump’s signal that military strikes might not be imminent.</p>
<p>Britain’s May won backing from her senior ministers to take unspecified action with the United States and France to deter further use of chemical weapons by Syria.</p> Slideshow (3 Images)
<p>May had recalled the ministers from their Easter holiday for the meeting to discuss Britain’s response to what she has cast as a barbaric attack that cannot go unchallenged.</p>
<p>Russian ships had left the Tartus naval base in Syria, Interfax news agency quoted a Russian lawmaker as saying. Vladimir Shamanov, who chairs the defense committee of the lower house, said the vessels had departed the base for their own safety, which was “normal practice” when there were threats of attack.</p>
<p>Any U.S. strike would probably involve the Navy, given the risk to aircraft from Russian and Syrian air defenses. A U.S. guided-missile destroyer, the USS Donald Cook, is in the Mediterranean. Last year, the United States carried out strikes from two Navy destroyers against a Syrian air base after another deadly toxic gas attack on a rebel-controlled area.</p>
<p>Reporting by Jeff Mason in Washington and Michelle Nichols at the United Nations; Additional reporting by Angus McDowall in Beirut, William James, Guy Faulconbridge and David Milliken in London, Andrew Osborn, Maria Kiselyova and Jack Stubbs in Moscow, John Irish in Paris, Graham Fahy in Dublin and John Walcott, Phil Stewart, Matt Spetalnick and Idrees Ali in Washington; Writing by Alistair Bell and Matt Spetalnick; Editing by Will Dunham and Peter Cooney</p> Our Standards:
<a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a>
<p>OKLAHOMA CITY (Reuters) - Oklahoma’s largest teachers union on Thursday called off a nearly two-week walkout that shut public schools statewide, saying it had secured historic gains in education funding after school budgets were devastated by a decade of cuts.</p>
<p>The move came after the Republican-dominated legislature passed its first major tax hikes in a quarter century that raised about $450 million in revenue for education. Republican leaders said they had no plans to go as high as the $600 million being sought by educators.</p>
<p>“We absolutely have a victory for teachers,” Alicia Priest, president of the Oklahoma Education Association, told a news conference.</p>
<p>“Our members are saying they want to go back to the classroom,” said Priest, whose union has about 40,000 members.</p>
<p>Some major districts have said they will resume classes on Monday.</p>
<p>The strike was part of a wave of actions by teachers in states that have some of the lowest per-student spending in the country. A West Virginia strike ended last month with a pay raise for teachers, and educators in Arizona protested before classes on Wednesday, without skipping work, to seek enhanced education funding.</p>
<p>The Oklahoma walkout began on April 2 and affected about 500,000 of the state’s 700,000 public school students.</p> Protester march during a strike by Oklahoma educators demanding more school funding near the Oklahoma state Capitol in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, U.S., April 9, 2018. Picture taken on April 9, 2018. REUTERS/Heide Brandes
<p>Opinion surveys showed it had garnered wide support among Oklahoma voters, many of whom had seen firsthand how students at struggling schools had to share outdated and tattered textbooks and sometimes go to a four-day school week to help save districts money.</p>
<p>Oklahoma teachers, who were seeking a $10,000 annual wage hike over three years, will see an average annual pay raise of about $6,100 from the increased funding, lawmakers said.</p>
<p>In May 2017, their annual mean wage was $41,880, among the lowest in the country, compared with neighboring states such as Texas at $57,830 and Kansas at $50,470, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.</p> A protester holds up a sign during a strike by Oklahoma educators demanding more school funding near the Oklahoma state Capitol in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, U.S., April 9, 2018. Picture taken on April 9, 2018. REUTERS/Heide Brandes
<p>School districts for the most part supported the teacher walk-out. But they began to run out of wiggle room to make up for lost time when the labor action threatened to extend the school year, piling pressure on teachers to return.</p>
<p>Low wages have created an exodus of educators, causing a teacher shortage in Oklahoma. As a result, school districts had to cut curricula and deploy nearly 2,000 emergency-certified instructors as a stop-gap measure.</p>
<p>Reporting by Heide Brandes in Oklahoma City and Lenzy Krehbiel-Burton in Tulsa; Writing by Jon Herskovitz; Editing by Bill Tarrant and Sandra Maler</p> Our Standards:
<a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a>
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jan 19 reuters integral diagnostics ltd hy profit ordinary activities tax attributable owners integral 474 83 million hy revenues ordinary activities 565 percent 936 million 1h18 dividend 4 cents per share fully franked declared capital expenditure full year forecast 17 mln source text eikon idnasx4bkgpl company coverage standards thomson reuters trust principles washington reuters us president donald trump asked trade advisers look rejoining trans pacific partnership multinational trade pact withdrew united states last year white house spokeswoman lindsay walters said republican senators met trump thursday told asked united states trade representative robert lighthizer white house economic advisor larry kudlow reopen negotiations president consistently said would open substantially better deal including speech davos earlier year walters said related coverage japans aso says would welcome us taking fresh look tpp tpp aimed cut trade barriers fastestgrowing economies asiapacific region counter chinas rising economic diplomatic clout trump pulled us pact early 2017 citing concerns jobs even prior trumps official withdrawal us participation pact dead due opposition us congress united states entered tpp negotiations 2008 took late 2016 thenobama administration abandon attempt push pact congress good news today president directed larry kudlow ambassador lighthizer negotiate us entry tpp senator ben sasse protrade republican said statement meeting trump senators senate confirmation hearing post trumps next secretary state cia director mike pompeo asked reports trump planned reengage tpp replied news news however pompeo said supported tpp member congress added economic component china trying need engaged diplomatic component economic activity well need deeply engaged im confident administration since us withdrew tpp talks 11 countries forged ahead agreement process eliminated chapters investment government procurement intellectual property key planks washingtons demands pact includes mexico canada renegotiating terms north american free trade agreement united states file photo us president donald trump holds executive order withdrawal trans pacific partnership signing oval office white house washington january 23 2017 reuterskevin lamarque asked comment thursdays comments tpp canadian government official said formal outreach possible speculate new pact would look like japanese prime minister shinzo abe meet trump next week japan close us ally signed 11country trade pact election campaign 2016 trump frequently skeptical value multilateral trade pacts arguing instead bilateral deals could offer better terms trump struggling get support countries recent threat impose import tariffs china us farm lobby arguing retaliation china would hit american agricultural exports reporting david chance patricia zengerle david brunnstrom washington david ljunggren ottawa editing susan thomas phil berlowitz standards thomson reuters trust principles manila reuters philippine president rodrigo duterte threatened arrest international criminal court icc prosecutor conducts activities country arguing longer icc member court right investigating philippine president rodrigo duterte gestures delivers speech 121st founding anniversary philippine army pa taguig city metro manila philippines march 20 2018 reutersromeo ranoco hitting said international effort paint ruthless heartless violator human rights duterte withdrew philippines iccs rome statute month ago promised continue crackdown drugs thousands killed icc prosecutor fatou bensouda february announced start preliminary examination complaint philippine lawyer accuses duterte top officials crimes humanity killing criminals policy duterte cited numerous reasons believes icc jurisdiction friday suggested doubts dispelled withdrawal authority members treaty country told reporters comments aimed bensouda exercise proceedings without basis illegal arrest clear whether bensouda icc carried activities philippines related complaint duterte office prosecutor hague philippine foreign ministry immediately respond requests comment police since july 2016 killed 4000 people say drug dealers resisted arrest activists say many executions police deny duterte told security forces cooperate foreign investigators last month said would convince icc members withdraw duterte earlier vowed face icc critics say pulling futile icc jurisdiction investigate alleged crimes committed period philippines joined 2011 withdrawal takes effect march 2019 rome statute icc step exercise jurisdiction states unable unwilling investigate suspected crimes mercurial former mayor legal aides argue technically philippines never actually joined icc announced countrys official gazette publication law duterte said friday reporting martin petty neil jerome morales editing robert birsel standards thomson reuters trust principles washingtonunited nations reuters president donald trump national security aides thursday discussed us options syria threatened missile strikes response suspected poison gas attack russian envoy voiced fears wider conflict washington moscow worries confrontation russia syrias big ally west running high since trump said wednesday missiles coming response attack syrian town douma april 7 lambasted moscow standing syrian president bashar alassad trump tempered remarks thursday even consulted allies britain france could join usled strikes syria signs efforts prevent crisis spiraling control never said attack syria would take place could soon soon trump wrote twitter raising prospect attack might imminent seemed suggest day trump met national security team situation syria later day final decision made white house said statement continuing assess intelligence engaged conversations partners allies said related coverage factbox assads foreign backers syrias war necessarily signal however trump cooling idea military action especially given high stakes syria us officials noted washington still assessing intelligence coordinating allies graphic overview chemical warfare click trump spoke british prime minister theresa may thursday two leaders talked need joint response syrias use chemical weapons white house said mays office said agreed need deter assads government attacks trump also due speak french president emmanuel macron said france proof syrian government carried attack near damascus aid groups said killed dozens people decide whether strike back necessary information gathered proof last week chemical weapons used least chlorine used regime bashar alassad macron said without offering details evidence two us officials familiar investigation samples douma symptoms victims said initial indications mix weaponized chlorine gas sarin used attack appeared correct us intelligence agencies completed assessment reached final conclusion officials said russia syria main backer iran said reports douma attack fabricated rebels rescue workers accused united states seeking use pretext attack syrian government russia said deployed military police douma thursday town taken government forces guarantors law order town ria news agency quoted russias defense ministry saying signs global effort head direct confrontation russia west kremlin said crisis communications link united states created avoid accidental clash syria use fears war vassily nebenzia moscows ambassador united nations said exclude war united states russia urged washington allies refrain military action syria immediate priority avert danger war told reporters hope point return envoy said team experts global chemical weapons watchdog organisation prohibition chemical weapons traveling syria start investigations saturday netherlandsbased agency said clear whether trump us allies would wait results investigation deciding strike us president donald trump speaks meeting governors members congress white house washington us april 12 2018 reuterskevin lamarque us defense secretary jim mattis told congress believed chemical attack syria added short later united states made decision launch military action also suggested examining ways prevent strikes triggering broader conflict dont want talk specific attack yet offing would predecisional mattis told house representatives armed services committee moscow estimated dozens aircraft hmeymim air base syria including fighters bombers well 10 15 warships support vessels mediterranean syrian government russian forces syria possess truckmounted surfacetoair missile antiaircraft artillery weapons systems nervous world stock markets showed signs recovery trumps signal military strikes might imminent britains may backing senior ministers take unspecified action united states france deter use chemical weapons syria slideshow 3 images may recalled ministers easter holiday meeting discuss britains response cast barbaric attack go unchallenged russian ships left tartus naval base syria interfax news agency quoted russian lawmaker saying vladimir shamanov chairs defense committee lower house said vessels departed base safety normal practice threats attack us strike would probably involve navy given risk aircraft russian syrian air defenses us guidedmissile destroyer uss donald cook mediterranean last year united states carried strikes two navy destroyers syrian air base another deadly toxic gas attack rebelcontrolled area reporting jeff mason washington michelle nichols united nations additional reporting angus mcdowall beirut william james guy faulconbridge david milliken london andrew osborn maria kiselyova jack stubbs moscow john irish paris graham fahy dublin john walcott phil stewart matt spetalnick idrees ali washington writing alistair bell matt spetalnick editing dunham peter cooney standards thomson reuters trust principles oklahoma city reuters oklahomas largest teachers union thursday called nearly twoweek walkout shut public schools statewide saying secured historic gains education funding school budgets devastated decade cuts move came republicandominated legislature passed first major tax hikes quarter century raised 450 million revenue education republican leaders said plans go high 600 million sought educators absolutely victory teachers alicia priest president oklahoma education association told news conference members saying want go back classroom said priest whose union 40000 members major districts said resume classes monday strike part wave actions teachers states lowest perstudent spending country west virginia strike ended last month pay raise teachers educators arizona protested classes wednesday without skipping work seek enhanced education funding oklahoma walkout began april 2 affected 500000 states 700000 public school students protester march strike oklahoma educators demanding school funding near oklahoma state capitol oklahoma city oklahoma us april 9 2018 picture taken april 9 2018 reutersheide brandes opinion surveys showed garnered wide support among oklahoma voters many seen firsthand students struggling schools share outdated tattered textbooks sometimes go fourday school week help save districts money oklahoma teachers seeking 10000 annual wage hike three years see average annual pay raise 6100 increased funding lawmakers said may 2017 annual mean wage 41880 among lowest country compared neighboring states texas 57830 kansas 50470 according us bureau labor statistics protester holds sign strike oklahoma educators demanding school funding near oklahoma state capitol oklahoma city oklahoma us april 9 2018 picture taken april 9 2018 reutersheide brandes school districts part supported teacher walkout began run wiggle room make lost time labor action threatened extend school year piling pressure teachers return low wages created exodus educators causing teacher shortage oklahoma result school districts cut curricula deploy nearly 2000 emergencycertified instructors stopgap measure reporting heide brandes oklahoma city lenzy krehbielburton tulsa writing jon herskovitz editing bill tarrant sandra maler standards thomson reuters trust principles
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<p>Silver City’s historic downtown relies on tourists who visit shops, galleries and restaurants. Many residents are concerned that a proposal by Holloman Air Force Base to expand the airspace for F-16 jet training near the town will lead to noise and hurt the local economy. (Angela Kocherga/Journal)</p>
<p>SILVER CITY – Rebecca Margolis and her husband Dale chose to retire in this tiny town near the Gila National Forest for the fresh air and quiet beauty.</p>
<p>Now they’re among residents who worry that a proposal to adjust the airspace used by Holloman Air Force Base for F-16 pilot training will mean supersonic jets flying overhead.</p>
<p>“We moved here from San Diego, a highly militarized town, and we really thought living on the edge of the vast Gila Wilderness was protection from all that,” Rebecca Margolis said.</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p>
<p>The proposal for “Special Use Airspace Optimization at Holloman AFB” is part of the Air Force’s larger effort to examine “legacy” airspace to ensure it meets modern day training needs, including the newest F-16 fighter jets.</p>
<p>“They can see out further. They have weapons systems that reach out further than the airplanes we had in the past,” said Alan Shafer, lead airspace analyst at Air Force headquarters.</p>
<p>The process has started with Holloman because of its importance to the Air Force, he said.</p>
<p>“Holloman Air Force Base is a critical node in the production of fighter pilots,” Shafer said.</p>
<p>COURTESY of HOLLOMAN AIR FORCE BASE A pair of F-16 aircraft are seen in flight over Arizona in this file photo.</p>
<p>The proposal to extend flights deeper into the Gila National Forest and closer to Silver City has led to a loud outcry in the quiet community.</p>
<p>“I’m a former veteran, and they can find other places. They don’t need to come into this pristine area,” said Ted Presler, a Silver City resident who runs a theater group.</p>
<p>The proposal to adjust the air space requires an environmental impact analysis that includes public comment from those living in the region. That “scoping period” ended Sept. 25.</p>
<p>‘Terrible job’</p>
<p>“They’ve done a really terrible job, in my opinion, of providing adequate information to the public to really understand what they’re really proposing,” said Allyson Siwik, executive director of the Gila Conservation Coalition. “What about all of the wildlife in the Gila? We’ve got 3.1 million acres of forest and within that we have two wilderness areas.”</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p>
<p>Holloman Air Force Base held open house public meetings in Truth or Consequences, Las Cruces and Carlsbad, the site of a second proposal to expand airspace, but did not schedule one in Silver City.</p>
<p>State Sen. Howie Morales, D-Silver City, in a letter to Holloman Air Force Base, said he is concerned that Silver City – “the most populated area in the Gila which would be most affected by the addition of thousands of F-16 flights” – was not selected as a site for a public meeting on the proposed expansion of air space.</p>
<p>“The economy of Silver City and the surrounding areas is heavily dependent on people visiting the Gila from all over the world,” he wrote.</p>
<p>“The goal here is to reach as many people as possible,” said Robin Divine, an environmental scientist with the Air Force Civil Engineer Center.</p>
<p>Divine said open house meetings were scheduled in locations to allow the most people to participate.</p>
<p>The Gila National Forest is requesting that Holloman Air Force Base consider the impact of noise and threat of wildfires as the Air Force proposes extending airspace for training F-16 pilots deeper into the forest. (Angela Kocherga/Albuquerque Journal)</p>
<p>“We already have a good handle based on the comments we have received,” Divine said. “We take in that input. We look at those areas of concerns that the public is bringing forward.”</p>
<p>Public session</p>
<p>Holloman has scheduled an informational meeting for the Grant County Board of Commissioners on Nov. 14 at the request of the New Mexico congressional delegation, Shafer said.</p>
<p>The public will not have an opportunity to speak, but residents can still use the website set up to accept comments electronically or send comments by mail during the environmental impact analysis period, which continues through next spring and will be followed by hearings.</p>
<p>“Even though the official comment period is over, we’re still going to review comments that are submitted to us because we want to know what’s important to the people out there across New Mexico,” Shafer said.</p>
<p>Gila National Forest personnel are among those weighing in on the proposal during the official comment period. A letter signed by forest manager Adam Mendoca asks Holloman to consider the need to protect wilderness characteristics, including “outstanding opportunities for solitude.”</p>
<p>“It’s very important when you go out and have your wilderness experience that you don’t have that encroachment from the noise,” said Marta Call, Gila National Forest public affairs officer.</p>
<p>Holloman and Fort Bliss aircraft currently fly over the western edge of the forest. The letter requests that the Air Force maintain a minimum altitude of 2,000 feet over the entire Gila and limit training flights during the week from March to December, the peak season for outdoor recreation.</p>
<p>Silver City residents said they are concerned that expanding the air space will not only affect the environment, but also the local economy.</p>
<p>“We’ve been able over the last 20 years to diversify our economy and bring in retirees, expand our tourism and outdoor recreation industry,” Siwik said, “so this will have huge impacts on real estate, on the people who want to retire here, on outdoor recreation.”</p>
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silver citys historic downtown relies tourists visit shops galleries restaurants many residents concerned proposal holloman air force base expand airspace f16 jet training near town lead noise hurt local economy angela kochergajournal silver city rebecca margolis husband dale chose retire tiny town near gila national forest fresh air quiet beauty theyre among residents worry proposal adjust airspace used holloman air force base f16 pilot training mean supersonic jets flying overhead moved san diego highly militarized town really thought living edge vast gila wilderness protection rebecca margolis said advertisement proposal special use airspace optimization holloman afb part air forces larger effort examine legacy airspace ensure meets modern day training needs including newest f16 fighter jets see weapons systems reach airplanes past said alan shafer lead airspace analyst air force headquarters process started holloman importance air force said holloman air force base critical node production fighter pilots shafer said courtesy holloman air force base pair f16 aircraft seen flight arizona file photo proposal extend flights deeper gila national forest closer silver city led loud outcry quiet community im former veteran find places dont need come pristine area said ted presler silver city resident runs theater group proposal adjust air space requires environmental impact analysis includes public comment living region scoping period ended sept 25 terrible job theyve done really terrible job opinion providing adequate information public really understand theyre really proposing said allyson siwik executive director gila conservation coalition wildlife gila weve got 31 million acres forest within two wilderness areas advertisement holloman air force base held open house public meetings truth consequences las cruces carlsbad site second proposal expand airspace schedule one silver city state sen howie morales dsilver city letter holloman air force base said concerned silver city populated area gila would affected addition thousands f16 flights selected site public meeting proposed expansion air space economy silver city surrounding areas heavily dependent people visiting gila world wrote goal reach many people possible said robin divine environmental scientist air force civil engineer center divine said open house meetings scheduled locations allow people participate gila national forest requesting holloman air force base consider impact noise threat wildfires air force proposes extending airspace training f16 pilots deeper forest angela kochergaalbuquerque journal already good handle based comments received divine said take input look areas concerns public bringing forward public session holloman scheduled informational meeting grant county board commissioners nov 14 request new mexico congressional delegation shafer said public opportunity speak residents still use website set accept comments electronically send comments mail environmental impact analysis period continues next spring followed hearings even though official comment period still going review comments submitted us want know whats important people across new mexico shafer said gila national forest personnel among weighing proposal official comment period letter signed forest manager adam mendoca asks holloman consider need protect wilderness characteristics including outstanding opportunities solitude important go wilderness experience dont encroachment noise said marta call gila national forest public affairs officer holloman fort bliss aircraft currently fly western edge forest letter requests air force maintain minimum altitude 2000 feet entire gila limit training flights week march december peak season outdoor recreation silver city residents said concerned expanding air space affect environment also local economy weve able last 20 years diversify economy bring retirees expand tourism outdoor recreation industry siwik said huge impacts real estate people want retire outdoor recreation
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<p>Jan 18 (Reuters) - BRAINCOOL AB (PUBL):</p>
<p>* GETS SEK 12 MILLION FROM EU‍​ Source text for Eikon: Further company coverage: (Gdynia Newsroom)</p> Our Standards:
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<p>WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump hurled a new set of insults on James Comey on Sunday, challenging accusations the former FBI director makes in a tell-all book that is due for release this week, and insisting that he never pressed Comey to be loyal to him.</p> FILE PHOTO: U.S. President Donald Trump announces military strikes on Syria while delivering a statement from the White House in Washington, U.S., April 13, 2018. REUTERS/Yuri Gripas
<p>“Slippery James Comey, a man who always ends up badly and out of whack (he is not smart!), will go down as the WORST FBI Director in history, by far!” Trump wrote in one of five Twitter posts aimed directly at the fired FBI chief.</p>
<p>The renewed attacks by Trump came as ABC News was set to air an interview with Comey at 10 p.m. EDT on Sunday (0200 GMT Monday) in which he discusses his book, “A Higher Loyalty.”</p>
<p>Trump fired Comey last May, setting off a firestorm, as the Federal Bureau of Investigation was probing possible connections between Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign and Russia’s meddling in the American elections.</p> FILE PHOTO: Former FBI Director James Comey testifies before a Senate Intelligence Committee hearing on Russia's alleged interference in the 2016 U.S. presidential election on Capitol Hill in Washington, U.S., June 8, 2017. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst/File Photo
<p>Russia has denied interfering in the election and Trump has denied any collusion or improper activity.</p>
<p>Reuters and other news outlets have obtained copies of Comey’s book before its formal release this week. In it, Comey wrote that Trump, in a private meeting, pressed the then-FBI director for his loyalty.</p>
<p>The FBI has long tried to operate as an independent law enforcement agency.</p>
<p>“I never asked Comey for Personal Loyalty. I hardly even knew this guy. Just another of his many lies. His “memos” are self serving and FAKE!” Trump said on Twitter.</p>
<p>U.S. House of Representatives Speaker Paul Ryan, interviewed on NBC’s “Meet the Press,” expressed qualified support for Comey. Ryan, asked whether Comey was a man of integrity, said, “As far as I know” but added that he did not know him well.</p>
<p>Asked about Trump’s use of the words last week “slime ball” to describe Comey, Ryan said, “I don’t use words like that.”</p>
<p>Reporting by Richard Cowan; Editing by Lisa Shumaker</p> Our Standards:
<a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a>
<p>(Reuters) - Starbucks Chief Executive Kevin Johnson apologized late on Saturday for the arrests of two black men at a Philadelphia coffee shop last week, which sparked accusations of racial profiling.</p>
<p>Promising to make everything right, Johnson promised a thorough investigation of the incident caught on video by a patron Thursday and shared widely online.</p>
<p>The men were accused of trespassing but have said they were waiting for a friend before ordering.</p>
<p>“The video shot by customers is very hard to watch and the actions in it are not representative of our Starbucks mission and values,” Johnson said in a statement.</p>
<p>He added, “The basis for the call to the Philadelphia police department was wrong.”</p>
<p>Philadelphia’s police commissioner on Saturday defended the arrest, saying his officers had to act after Starbucks employees told them the pair were trespassing.</p>
<p>Video of Thursday’s incident showed other patrons telling officers the pair were doing nothing wrong and appeared to have been targeted merely because of their race.</p>
<p>Police Commissioner Richard Ross said he knew the incident had prompted a lot of concern, but said his officers “did absolutely nothing wrong.”</p>
<p>In a video statement, Ross said store employees called 911 to report a disturbance and trespassing.</p>
<p>When officers arrived, Ross said, staff told them the two men had wanted to use the restroom but were informed it was only for paying customers. The pair repeatedly refused to leave when politely asked to do so by the employees and officers, he said.</p> FILE PHOTO - Kevin Johnson delivers remarks at the Starbucks 2016 Investor Day in Manhattan, New York, U.S., December 7, 2016. REUTERS/Andrew Kelly
<p>“If you think about it logically, that if a business calls and they say that someone is here that I no longer wish to be in my business, they (the officers) now have a legal obligation to carry out their duties. And they did just that,” Ross said.</p>
<p>“They were professional in all their dealings with these gentlemen, and instead they got the opposite back.”</p>
<p>Ross said that as an African-American man he was acutely aware of implicit bias. “We are committed to fair and unbiased policing and anything less than that will not be tolerated in this department,” he said.</p>
<p>The two men were released, Ross said, after officers learned Starbucks was “no longer interested” in prosecuting them.</p>
<a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=SBUX.O" type="external">Starbucks Corp</a> 59.24 SBUX.O Nasdaq -0.19 (-0.32%) SBUX.O
<p>In a post on Twitter earlier on Saturday, Starbucks Corp ( <a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=SBUX.O" type="external">SBUX.O</a>) said it was sorry for what took place.</p>
<p>Johnson added his apology, saying the company would review its policies and “further train our partners to better know when police assistance is warranted.”</p>
<p>Melissa DePino, an author who posted video of the arrest, said staff called police because the two men had not ordered anything while waiting for a friend. She said white customers were “wondering why it’s never happened to us when we do the same thing.”</p>
<p>Police departments across the United States have come under criticism for repeated instances of killing unarmed black men in recent years, which activists blame on racial biases in the criminal justice system.</p>
<p>Reporting by Jonathan Allen in New York; Additional reporting by Rich McKay in Atlanta; Editing by David Gregorio and Clarence Fernandez</p> Our Standards:
<a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a>
<p>LONDON/DAMASCUS (Reuters) - Western powers have no plans for further missile strikes on Syria but will assess their options if Damascus uses chemical weapons again, Britain’s foreign minister said on Sunday as debate raged over the legality and effectiveness of the raids.</p>
<p>U.S., French and British missile attacks struck at the heart of Syria’s chemical weapons program on Saturday in retaliation for a suspected poison gas attack a week ago, and the three countries insisted they were not aimed at toppling President Bashar al-Assad or intervening in a seven-year civil war.</p>
<p>The bombings, hailed by U.S. President Donald Trump as a success but denounced by Damascus and its allies as an act of aggression, marked the biggest intervention by Western countries against Assad and his ally Russia, whose foreign minister Sergei Lavrov called them “unacceptable and lawless”.</p>
<p>In Damascus, Syria’s deputy foreign minister Faisal Mekdad met inspectors from the global chemical weapons watchdog OPCW for about three hours in the presence of Russian officers and a senior Syrian security official.</p>
<p>The inspectors were due to try to visit the site of the suspected gas attack. Moscow condemned the Western states for refusing to wait for their findings before attacking.</p>
<p>As he left the hotel where the meeting took place, Mekdad declined to comment to reporters waiting outside.</p> Related Coverage
<a href="/article/us-mideast-crisis-syria-talks/u-s-haley-rules-out-one-on-one-talks-with-syrias-assad-idUSKBN1HM0N9" type="external">U.S.' Haley rules out one-on-one talks with Syria's Assad</a>
<a href="/article/us-mideast-crisis-syria-trump/trump-defends-use-of-mission-accomplished-phrase-for-syria-strike-idUSKBN1HM0GZ" type="external">Trump defends use of 'mission accomplished' phrase for Syria strike</a>
<a href="/article/us-mideast-crisis-syria-assad-russia/syrias-assad-tells-russian-lawmakers-western-strikes-were-act-of-aggression-idUSKBN1HM083" type="external">Syria's Assad tells Russian lawmakers Western strikes were act of aggression</a>
<p>British Foreign Secretary (Minister) Boris Johnson defended Prime Minister Theresa May’s decision to take part in the attack, saying it was to deter further use of chemical weapons.</p>
<p>“This is not about regime change … This is not about trying to turn the tide of the conflict in Syria,” he told the BBC.</p>
<p>“There is no proposal on the table at the moment for further attacks because so far thank heavens the Assad regime have not been so foolish as to launch another chemical weapons attack.”</p>
<p>“If and when such a thing were to happen, then clearly with allies we would study what the options were,” he said, echoing U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, Nikki Haley, who told an emergency Security Council meeting that Trump told her that if Syria uses poisonous gas again, “The United States is locked and loaded.”</p>
<p>Asked if this meant Assad could carry on using barrel bombs and other means in the war provided he did not use chemical weapons, Johnson said that was the “unhappy” consequence.</p>
<p>Assad was determined “to butcher his way” to an overwhelming victory and only the Russians could pressure him to come to the negotiating table in Geneva, Johnson said.</p>
<p>British opposition leader Jeremy Corbyn said that the legal basis used to support the British role was debatable, adding that he would only support action backed by the UN Security Council.</p>
<p>“I say to the foreign secretary, I say to the prime minister, where is the legal basis for this?” Corbyn said in an interview with the BBC.</p>
<p>The Western countries blame Assad’s government for a suspected poison gas attack in Douma on April 7 that killed up to 75 people. Russia, whose ties with the West have sunk to levels of the Cold War-era, denies any gas attack in Douma and said Britain staged it to whip up anti-Russian hysteria.</p> “RESILIENCE”
<p>In Damascus, Assad told a group of visiting Russian lawmakers that the Western missile strikes were an act of aggression, Russian news agencies reported.</p>
<p>Syria released video of the wreckage of a bombed-out research lab, but also of Assad arriving at work as usual, with the caption “Morning of resilience” and there were no immediate reports of casualties.</p>
<p>The Russian agencies quoted the lawmakers as saying Assad was in a “good mood”, had praised the Soviet-era air defense systems Syria used to repel the Western attacks and had accepted an invitation to visit Russia at an unspecified time.</p>
<p>Russian Foreign Ministry official Vladimir Ermakov struck a apparently conciliatory tone on Sunday, saying Washington would want to maintain a dialogue with Moscow about strategic stability after the raids, Russian media reported.</p>
<p>“In the U.S. administration there are specific people who it is possible to talk with,” said Ermakov, head of the ministry’s department for non-proliferation and arms control.</p>
<p>President Trump had said “Mission accomplished” on Twitter on Saturday following the strikes, although U.S. Lieutenant General Kenneth McKenzie at the Pentagon acknowledged elements of the program remain and he could not guarantee that Syria would be unable to conduct a chemical attack in the future.</p> Britain's Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson attends the BBC's Marr Show in London, April 15, 2018. Jeff Overs/BBC handout via REUTERS
<p>Russian and Iranian military help over the past three years has allowed Assad to crush the rebel threat to topple him.</p>
<p>The United States, Britain and France have all participated in the Syrian conflict for years, arming rebels, bombing Islamic State fighters and deploying troops to fight the militants. But they have refrained from targeting Assad’s government, apart from a volley of U.S. missiles last year.</p> RED LINE BREACHED?
<p>The strikes suggest Trump may have reset America’s red line for military intervention in Syria over the use of chemical weapons.</p>
<p>In Washington, a senior administration official said that “while the available information is much greater on the chlorine use, we do have significant information that also points to sarin use” in the attack.</p>
<p>Sarin had previously appeared to be the threshold for intervention. Chlorine, in contrast, has been used more widely in Syria’s conflict without past U.S. reprisals, and the chemical is far easier to find and weaponize, experts say.</p> Slideshow (9 Images)
<p>Washington described the strike targets as a center near Damascus for the research, development, production and testing of chemical and biological weapons; a chemical weapons storage site near the city of Homs; and another site near Homs that stored chemical weapons equipment and housed a command post.</p>
<p>Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei called the attack a crime and the Western leaders criminals, while U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres urged all Security Council members to use restraint, but said charges of chemical weapons use demand investigation.</p>
<p>Meanwhile, Pope Francis called on world leaders to renew efforts to bring peace to Syria, saying he was deeply troubled by their failure to agree on a joint plan to end the bloodshed.</p>
<p>GRAPHIC - Details of air strikes on Syria ( <a href="https://tmsnrt.rs/2EKgAMN" type="external">tmsnrt.rs/2EKgAMN</a>)</p>
<p>Reporting by Elizabeth Piper and Tom Perry; Additional reporting by Phil Stewart, Jeff Mason, Steve Holland, Idrees Ali, Yara Bayoumy, Matt Spetalnick and Joel Schectman in Washington; Michelle Nichols in New York; Samia Nakhoul, Tom Perry, Laila Bassam, Ellen Francis and Angus McDowall in Beirut; Kinda Makieh in Barzeh; Michael Holden and Guy Faulconbridge in London; and Jean-Baptiste Vey, Geert de Clercq and Matthias Blamont in Paris; Andrey Ostroukh and Jack Stubbs in Moscow; Alison Bevege in Sydney,; Writing by William Maclean; Editing by Adrian Croft and Alexander Smith</p> Our Standards:
<a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a>
<p>WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, Nikki Haley, said Sunday that the United States will not have any one-on-one talks with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.</p> FILE PHOTO: United States Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley speaks during the United Nations Security Council meeting on Syria at the U.N. headquarters in New York, U.S., April 13, 2018. REUTERS/Eduardo Munoz
<p>In an interview with CBS’ “Face the Nation,” Haley said Syria had so far refused to take part in multilateral negotiations as part of a political process facilitated by the United Nations, adding that Russia should “deliver” Syria to the negotiating table.</p>
<p>But she said Syria was not “worthy” of direct talks with Washington: “We are not going to have any one-on-one talks with Assad.”</p>
<p>Reporting by Susan Cornwell; Editing by Nick Zieminski</p> Our Standards:
<a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a>
| false | 2 |
jan 18 reuters braincool ab publ gets sek 12 million eu source text eikon company coverage gdynia newsroom standards thomson reuters trust principles washington reuters us president donald trump hurled new set insults james comey sunday challenging accusations former fbi director makes tellall book due release week insisting never pressed comey loyal file photo us president donald trump announces military strikes syria delivering statement white house washington us april 13 2018 reutersyuri gripas slippery james comey man always ends badly whack smart go worst fbi director history far trump wrote one five twitter posts aimed directly fired fbi chief renewed attacks trump came abc news set air interview comey 10 pm edt sunday 0200 gmt monday discusses book higher loyalty trump fired comey last may setting firestorm federal bureau investigation probing possible connections trumps 2016 presidential campaign russias meddling american elections file photo former fbi director james comey testifies senate intelligence committee hearing russias alleged interference 2016 us presidential election capitol hill washington us june 8 2017 reutersjonathan ernstfile photo russia denied interfering election trump denied collusion improper activity reuters news outlets obtained copies comeys book formal release week comey wrote trump private meeting pressed thenfbi director loyalty fbi long tried operate independent law enforcement agency never asked comey personal loyalty hardly even knew guy another many lies memos self serving fake trump said twitter us house representatives speaker paul ryan interviewed nbcs meet press expressed qualified support comey ryan asked whether comey man integrity said far know added know well asked trumps use words last week slime ball describe comey ryan said dont use words like reporting richard cowan editing lisa shumaker standards thomson reuters trust principles reuters starbucks chief executive kevin johnson apologized late saturday arrests two black men philadelphia coffee shop last week sparked accusations racial profiling promising make everything right johnson promised thorough investigation incident caught video patron thursday shared widely online men accused trespassing said waiting friend ordering video shot customers hard watch actions representative starbucks mission values johnson said statement added basis call philadelphia police department wrong philadelphias police commissioner saturday defended arrest saying officers act starbucks employees told pair trespassing video thursdays incident showed patrons telling officers pair nothing wrong appeared targeted merely race police commissioner richard ross said knew incident prompted lot concern said officers absolutely nothing wrong video statement ross said store employees called 911 report disturbance trespassing officers arrived ross said staff told two men wanted use restroom informed paying customers pair repeatedly refused leave politely asked employees officers said file photo kevin johnson delivers remarks starbucks 2016 investor day manhattan new york us december 7 2016 reutersandrew kelly think logically business calls say someone longer wish business officers legal obligation carry duties ross said professional dealings gentlemen instead got opposite back ross said africanamerican man acutely aware implicit bias committed fair unbiased policing anything less tolerated department said two men released ross said officers learned starbucks longer interested prosecuting starbucks corp 5924 sbuxo nasdaq 019 032 sbuxo post twitter earlier saturday starbucks corp sbuxo said sorry took place johnson added apology saying company would review policies train partners better know police assistance warranted melissa depino author posted video arrest said staff called police two men ordered anything waiting friend said white customers wondering never happened us thing police departments across united states come criticism repeated instances killing unarmed black men recent years activists blame racial biases criminal justice system reporting jonathan allen new york additional reporting rich mckay atlanta editing david gregorio clarence fernandez standards thomson reuters trust principles londondamascus reuters western powers plans missile strikes syria assess options damascus uses chemical weapons britains foreign minister said sunday debate raged legality effectiveness raids us french british missile attacks struck heart syrias chemical weapons program saturday retaliation suspected poison gas attack week ago three countries insisted aimed toppling president bashar alassad intervening sevenyear civil war bombings hailed us president donald trump success denounced damascus allies act aggression marked biggest intervention western countries assad ally russia whose foreign minister sergei lavrov called unacceptable lawless damascus syrias deputy foreign minister faisal mekdad met inspectors global chemical weapons watchdog opcw three hours presence russian officers senior syrian security official inspectors due try visit site suspected gas attack moscow condemned western states refusing wait findings attacking left hotel meeting took place mekdad declined comment reporters waiting outside related coverage us haley rules oneonone talks syrias assad trump defends use mission accomplished phrase syria strike syrias assad tells russian lawmakers western strikes act aggression british foreign secretary minister boris johnson defended prime minister theresa mays decision take part attack saying deter use chemical weapons regime change trying turn tide conflict syria told bbc proposal table moment attacks far thank heavens assad regime foolish launch another chemical weapons attack thing happen clearly allies would study options said echoing us ambassador united nations nikki haley told emergency security council meeting trump told syria uses poisonous gas united states locked loaded asked meant assad could carry using barrel bombs means war provided use chemical weapons johnson said unhappy consequence assad determined butcher way overwhelming victory russians could pressure come negotiating table geneva johnson said british opposition leader jeremy corbyn said legal basis used support british role debatable adding would support action backed un security council say foreign secretary say prime minister legal basis corbyn said interview bbc western countries blame assads government suspected poison gas attack douma april 7 killed 75 people russia whose ties west sunk levels cold warera denies gas attack douma said britain staged whip antirussian hysteria resilience damascus assad told group visiting russian lawmakers western missile strikes act aggression russian news agencies reported syria released video wreckage bombedout research lab also assad arriving work usual caption morning resilience immediate reports casualties russian agencies quoted lawmakers saying assad good mood praised sovietera air defense systems syria used repel western attacks accepted invitation visit russia unspecified time russian foreign ministry official vladimir ermakov struck apparently conciliatory tone sunday saying washington would want maintain dialogue moscow strategic stability raids russian media reported us administration specific people possible talk said ermakov head ministrys department nonproliferation arms control president trump said mission accomplished twitter saturday following strikes although us lieutenant general kenneth mckenzie pentagon acknowledged elements program remain could guarantee syria would unable conduct chemical attack future britains foreign secretary boris johnson attends bbcs marr show london april 15 2018 jeff oversbbc handout via reuters russian iranian military help past three years allowed assad crush rebel threat topple united states britain france participated syrian conflict years arming rebels bombing islamic state fighters deploying troops fight militants refrained targeting assads government apart volley us missiles last year red line breached strikes suggest trump may reset americas red line military intervention syria use chemical weapons washington senior administration official said available information much greater chlorine use significant information also points sarin use attack sarin previously appeared threshold intervention chlorine contrast used widely syrias conflict without past us reprisals chemical far easier find weaponize experts say slideshow 9 images washington described strike targets center near damascus research development production testing chemical biological weapons chemical weapons storage site near city homs another site near homs stored chemical weapons equipment housed command post iranian supreme leader ayatollah ali khamenei called attack crime western leaders criminals un secretarygeneral antonio guterres urged security council members use restraint said charges chemical weapons use demand investigation meanwhile pope francis called world leaders renew efforts bring peace syria saying deeply troubled failure agree joint plan end bloodshed graphic details air strikes syria tmsnrtrs2ekgamn reporting elizabeth piper tom perry additional reporting phil stewart jeff mason steve holland idrees ali yara bayoumy matt spetalnick joel schectman washington michelle nichols new york samia nakhoul tom perry laila bassam ellen francis angus mcdowall beirut kinda makieh barzeh michael holden guy faulconbridge london jeanbaptiste vey geert de clercq matthias blamont paris andrey ostroukh jack stubbs moscow alison bevege sydney writing william maclean editing adrian croft alexander smith standards thomson reuters trust principles washington reuters us ambassador united nations nikki haley said sunday united states oneonone talks syrian president bashar alassad file photo united states ambassador united nations nikki haley speaks united nations security council meeting syria un headquarters new york us april 13 2018 reuterseduardo munoz interview cbs face nation haley said syria far refused take part multilateral negotiations part political process facilitated united nations adding russia deliver syria negotiating table said syria worthy direct talks washington going oneonone talks assad reporting susan cornwell editing nick zieminski standards thomson reuters trust principles
| 1,418 |
<p>MILAN (AP) — Donatella Versace is embracing her own inner Versace. After coming off a triumphant outing at the Golden Globes, she helped launch Milan Fashion Week menswear previews for next winter on Saturday on a high note.</p>
<p>Versace dressed three women for last Sunday’s awards show: Angelina Jolie, Saoirse Ronan, winner for best actress in a comedy, and star of the evening Oprah Winfrey, who wore a shape-hugging number to deliver her celebrated lifetime achievement award speech.</p>
<p>Versace has been riding a wave of appreciation since her September tribute show to her slain brother, fashion house founder Gianni Versace, reunited supermodels from the 1990s while highlighting some of the new generation’s top talent.</p>
<p>“It is appreciation for Gianni, but maybe also a little for me,” she said backstage before her show in Milan.</p>
<p>Here are some highlights from the first day of Milan Fashion Week, which also included fall-winter menswear shows by Emporio Armani, newcomer Isabel Benenato, Marni and Dolce &amp; Gabbana:</p>
<p>____</p>
<p>VERSACE GOES HOME</p>
<p>This is about as homey as it gets in the take-it-or-leave it ethos of Versace.</p>
<p>Donatella Versace is urging aficionados to “to embrace your inner Versace” with winter menswear looks that take cues from the brand’s home collection.</p>
<p>During her Milan Fashion Week show, pillow plaids became suit jackets worn over archival prints in seafoam green, hot pink and yellow. The effect was punk.</p>
<p>Crushed velvet upholstery prints in deep hues of golden, purple and red were cut into wild mid-length coats worn over a silken print shirt and a neckerchief. Burned umber puffer jackets recalled a comforter.</p>
<p>“These are very Versace elements, refreshed in a street key,” Versace said.</p>
<p>The designer punctuated the show with 11 looks for women to demonstrate, she said, “that our two souls communicate with one another.” They included tassel accents on a low-back mini-dress.</p>
<p>Versace wasn’t afraid to take things down a notch with camel overcoats. A women’s version included colorful side panels that matched a headscarf and leggings.</p>
<p>Men’s trousers were kept short to show off Versace’s new tennis shoe, which features the form of a chain molded into the sole and the words “Love is blind.”</p>
<p>____</p>
<p>DOLCE &amp; GABBANA’S KING OF ANGELS</p>
<p>It was a bling call at Dolce &amp; Gabbana.</p>
<p>The designing duo of Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana constructed a Baroque Sicilian church façade as the background for their “King of Angels” collection. The show opened with a tableau of young stars in formalwear, including elaborately embroidered military-style jackets and floral suits, walking beneath a pair of cherubs.</p>
<p>The colorful knitwear that featured cherubic putti in oval frames looked inspired by church ceilings, and angelic visages also graced motorcycle jackets.</p>
<p>Dolce &amp; Gabbana, as usual, offered a range of looks — with suits styled formally, layered with furry jackets and coming pajama-inspired with robe overcoats. The designers employed light-heartedness and humor with heart-shaped backpacks, as well as one that looked like a golden puppet peeking over the wearer’s shoulder.</p>
<p>The designers also emblazoned slogans such as “Time of Change” and “Love is Love” across beanies, waistbands and backsides. Nothing on the runway made the slogans’ meanings explicit, although both could be interpreted as calls for new attitudes.</p>
<p>Colombian singer Maluma closed out the show in a glittering silver suit to match his stage presence.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>UNEXPECTED DOLCE&amp;GABBANA</p>
<p>Dancers busted a move in Dolce&amp;Gabbana active-wear at an exclusive late-night “unexpected show” for a smaller fashion crowd. While activewear has long been part of the designers’ repertoire, they are putting new emphasis on the hot category.</p>
<p>Their Millennial models showed off the collection, ranging from baseball shirts emblazoned with “King of My Life,” to soft bear-head hoodies, eliciting cheers and cat-calls from admiring on-lookers.</p>
<p>____</p>
<p>EMPORIO ARMANI’S</p>
<p>Arching zippers, tufts of fur and smooth velvet gave zest to Emporio Armani’s youthful tailoring for next winter and fall.</p>
<p>While silhouettes mostly were relaxed, the palette was dark, albeit geared toward the fun end of deep with black, navy and slate giving way to mauve, other blues and shades tinged with purple.</p>
<p>Floral patterns and hypnotic repeating graphics complemented the flowing silhouette of open jackets and easy trousers. Swirls of color also burst forth on alpaca knitwear in soothing blues and icy greens.</p>
<p>Designer Giorgio Armani has forsworn using real animal fur in all his lines, winning praise from animal rights activists. The fur accents on the boots and detachable dyed collars therefore were surely faux. A series of furry black coats were rendered from curly-haired sheepskin, according to the press release, and there were only pony-effect goatskin jackets.</p>
<p>Zippers were deployed with frivolity across knitwear, inviting the playful to detach, or along sleeves, giving a cape-like feel when opened. Trousers were tapered, most elaborately so with a button cuff. Pants were mostly relaxed for daytime leisure and evening events, but tight for the sleek business suits worn tieless.</p>
<p>Velvet worked for day or evening, as casual wear in bomber jackets or elegant suits. Gloves were the accessories of the choice, but the 83-year-old Armani is not abiding the smartphone-driven trend of returning to the fingerless gloves of the 1980s. All of the designer’s gloves were perfectly winter-proof.</p>
<p>____</p>
<p>MOSCHINO GOES UNDERCOVER</p>
<p>Only Jeremy Scott would send the fashion crowd running around Milan with a videocassette tape in their bags. That was the invitation to the evening Moschino show.</p>
<p>Scott’s collection challenged the gender conventions by being up front about sexual predilections. The suggestion is that the videotape contained something X-rated, if anyone could find a VCR to play it.</p>
<p>The mixed men’s and woman’s collection started with some deconstructed pinstripe suits, held suggestively together by suspenders or garters, but quickly devolved into an S&amp;M, role play exploration, complete with a chauffeur in a silken white cape shirt followed by a madam in a black latex body suit. The music climaxes.</p>
<p>Beyond the runway props and edgy fashion statements, Scott also included pretty sheer dresses and skirts, as well as suits that suggest nothing more than business. That is if you leave home the leather props.</p>
<p>But even then, Scott pushed the envelope. Turn your head and look at the back of the suit, and there might be a trailing evening dress, or a panel made from a beaded women’s dress: A cross-dresser’s coming out fashion statement.</p>
<p>His final look: a Siamese twin tuxedo jacket joining androgynous models at the tails.</p>
<p>-----</p>
<p>NO FUR</p>
<p>Animal rights activists made their presence known during Milan Fashion Week, with several dozen attempting to block access to the Marni preview.</p>
<p>The show went on, running late as the fashion world is wont with or without protests. One fur-wearing fashionista endured a shower of verbal abuse as he ducked into the show at the last minute, but no violence was reported.</p>
<p>Animal rights activists have claimed victories recently, with Armani and Gucci being among the latest to commit to not using animal furs in future collections. Brands like Marni, which was born out of a family fur business, have a tougher line to tread.</p>
<p>Still, the runway show by Francesco Risso, in his second year, included only one obvious animal skin reference, and that was a shearling coat.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>MARNI’S TRAVEL JOURNAL</p>
<p>Entering the Marni showroom is to enter designer Francesco Risso’s world, immediately.</p>
<p>Rather than conventional seating, he offered objects to sit upon. A child’s stuffed giraffe. A hose-less vacuum cleaner. Stacks of disused videocassettes. Sacks of flour, whole wheat.</p>
<p>These are the details that fill Risso’s travel journal. And the traveler’s wardrobe embrace a naive, awe-struck sense of the world, with oversized jackets and trousers hand-painted with arm chairs, monkeys or musical instruments. Suits, puffer coats, nylon jumpsuits and anoraks round out the collection. Overcoats, in salmon pink, or blue, look slept in. Blankets do the same tricks. Men, spanning generations, not just youthful, wear talisman around their necks: a string of found trinkets, or a plasticized bear.</p>
<p>The rule, Risso said back stage, “is that there are no rules.”</p>
<p>____</p>
<p>ISABEL BENENATO’S ZEN</p>
<p>Isabel Benenato held her hands to her mouth in disbelief after her Milan runway debut. Her two young daughters, one clutching two stuffed rabbits, ran to hug her.</p>
<p>Benenato, 38, has nurtured her nine-year-old brand in the Tuscan city of Lucca, far from the Milan fashion epicenter -- and won the notice of the Italian Fashion Chamber, which invited her to Milan Fashion Week.</p>
<p>The brand’s philosophy revolves around natural materials, she said backstage.</p>
<p>The preview menswear and womenswear collection was inspired by planets, and was fittingly elemental. The looks were layered, say, a jacket over a tunic and trousers, all loose, well-proportioned and easy to wear. Or a crisp, long white shirt over trousers. A long dress wraps and drapes.</p>
<p>“There is this sense of being wrapped. Of silence. Of relaxing,” Benenato said.</p>
<p>MILAN (AP) — Donatella Versace is embracing her own inner Versace. After coming off a triumphant outing at the Golden Globes, she helped launch Milan Fashion Week menswear previews for next winter on Saturday on a high note.</p>
<p>Versace dressed three women for last Sunday’s awards show: Angelina Jolie, Saoirse Ronan, winner for best actress in a comedy, and star of the evening Oprah Winfrey, who wore a shape-hugging number to deliver her celebrated lifetime achievement award speech.</p>
<p>Versace has been riding a wave of appreciation since her September tribute show to her slain brother, fashion house founder Gianni Versace, reunited supermodels from the 1990s while highlighting some of the new generation’s top talent.</p>
<p>“It is appreciation for Gianni, but maybe also a little for me,” she said backstage before her show in Milan.</p>
<p>Here are some highlights from the first day of Milan Fashion Week, which also included fall-winter menswear shows by Emporio Armani, newcomer Isabel Benenato, Marni and Dolce &amp; Gabbana:</p>
<p>____</p>
<p>VERSACE GOES HOME</p>
<p>This is about as homey as it gets in the take-it-or-leave it ethos of Versace.</p>
<p>Donatella Versace is urging aficionados to “to embrace your inner Versace” with winter menswear looks that take cues from the brand’s home collection.</p>
<p>During her Milan Fashion Week show, pillow plaids became suit jackets worn over archival prints in seafoam green, hot pink and yellow. The effect was punk.</p>
<p>Crushed velvet upholstery prints in deep hues of golden, purple and red were cut into wild mid-length coats worn over a silken print shirt and a neckerchief. Burned umber puffer jackets recalled a comforter.</p>
<p>“These are very Versace elements, refreshed in a street key,” Versace said.</p>
<p>The designer punctuated the show with 11 looks for women to demonstrate, she said, “that our two souls communicate with one another.” They included tassel accents on a low-back mini-dress.</p>
<p>Versace wasn’t afraid to take things down a notch with camel overcoats. A women’s version included colorful side panels that matched a headscarf and leggings.</p>
<p>Men’s trousers were kept short to show off Versace’s new tennis shoe, which features the form of a chain molded into the sole and the words “Love is blind.”</p>
<p>____</p>
<p>DOLCE &amp; GABBANA’S KING OF ANGELS</p>
<p>It was a bling call at Dolce &amp; Gabbana.</p>
<p>The designing duo of Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana constructed a Baroque Sicilian church façade as the background for their “King of Angels” collection. The show opened with a tableau of young stars in formalwear, including elaborately embroidered military-style jackets and floral suits, walking beneath a pair of cherubs.</p>
<p>The colorful knitwear that featured cherubic putti in oval frames looked inspired by church ceilings, and angelic visages also graced motorcycle jackets.</p>
<p>Dolce &amp; Gabbana, as usual, offered a range of looks — with suits styled formally, layered with furry jackets and coming pajama-inspired with robe overcoats. The designers employed light-heartedness and humor with heart-shaped backpacks, as well as one that looked like a golden puppet peeking over the wearer’s shoulder.</p>
<p>The designers also emblazoned slogans such as “Time of Change” and “Love is Love” across beanies, waistbands and backsides. Nothing on the runway made the slogans’ meanings explicit, although both could be interpreted as calls for new attitudes.</p>
<p>Colombian singer Maluma closed out the show in a glittering silver suit to match his stage presence.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>UNEXPECTED DOLCE&amp;GABBANA</p>
<p>Dancers busted a move in Dolce&amp;Gabbana active-wear at an exclusive late-night “unexpected show” for a smaller fashion crowd. While activewear has long been part of the designers’ repertoire, they are putting new emphasis on the hot category.</p>
<p>Their Millennial models showed off the collection, ranging from baseball shirts emblazoned with “King of My Life,” to soft bear-head hoodies, eliciting cheers and cat-calls from admiring on-lookers.</p>
<p>____</p>
<p>EMPORIO ARMANI’S</p>
<p>Arching zippers, tufts of fur and smooth velvet gave zest to Emporio Armani’s youthful tailoring for next winter and fall.</p>
<p>While silhouettes mostly were relaxed, the palette was dark, albeit geared toward the fun end of deep with black, navy and slate giving way to mauve, other blues and shades tinged with purple.</p>
<p>Floral patterns and hypnotic repeating graphics complemented the flowing silhouette of open jackets and easy trousers. Swirls of color also burst forth on alpaca knitwear in soothing blues and icy greens.</p>
<p>Designer Giorgio Armani has forsworn using real animal fur in all his lines, winning praise from animal rights activists. The fur accents on the boots and detachable dyed collars therefore were surely faux. A series of furry black coats were rendered from curly-haired sheepskin, according to the press release, and there were only pony-effect goatskin jackets.</p>
<p>Zippers were deployed with frivolity across knitwear, inviting the playful to detach, or along sleeves, giving a cape-like feel when opened. Trousers were tapered, most elaborately so with a button cuff. Pants were mostly relaxed for daytime leisure and evening events, but tight for the sleek business suits worn tieless.</p>
<p>Velvet worked for day or evening, as casual wear in bomber jackets or elegant suits. Gloves were the accessories of the choice, but the 83-year-old Armani is not abiding the smartphone-driven trend of returning to the fingerless gloves of the 1980s. All of the designer’s gloves were perfectly winter-proof.</p>
<p>____</p>
<p>MOSCHINO GOES UNDERCOVER</p>
<p>Only Jeremy Scott would send the fashion crowd running around Milan with a videocassette tape in their bags. That was the invitation to the evening Moschino show.</p>
<p>Scott’s collection challenged the gender conventions by being up front about sexual predilections. The suggestion is that the videotape contained something X-rated, if anyone could find a VCR to play it.</p>
<p>The mixed men’s and woman’s collection started with some deconstructed pinstripe suits, held suggestively together by suspenders or garters, but quickly devolved into an S&amp;M, role play exploration, complete with a chauffeur in a silken white cape shirt followed by a madam in a black latex body suit. The music climaxes.</p>
<p>Beyond the runway props and edgy fashion statements, Scott also included pretty sheer dresses and skirts, as well as suits that suggest nothing more than business. That is if you leave home the leather props.</p>
<p>But even then, Scott pushed the envelope. Turn your head and look at the back of the suit, and there might be a trailing evening dress, or a panel made from a beaded women’s dress: A cross-dresser’s coming out fashion statement.</p>
<p>His final look: a Siamese twin tuxedo jacket joining androgynous models at the tails.</p>
<p>-----</p>
<p>NO FUR</p>
<p>Animal rights activists made their presence known during Milan Fashion Week, with several dozen attempting to block access to the Marni preview.</p>
<p>The show went on, running late as the fashion world is wont with or without protests. One fur-wearing fashionista endured a shower of verbal abuse as he ducked into the show at the last minute, but no violence was reported.</p>
<p>Animal rights activists have claimed victories recently, with Armani and Gucci being among the latest to commit to not using animal furs in future collections. Brands like Marni, which was born out of a family fur business, have a tougher line to tread.</p>
<p>Still, the runway show by Francesco Risso, in his second year, included only one obvious animal skin reference, and that was a shearling coat.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>MARNI’S TRAVEL JOURNAL</p>
<p>Entering the Marni showroom is to enter designer Francesco Risso’s world, immediately.</p>
<p>Rather than conventional seating, he offered objects to sit upon. A child’s stuffed giraffe. A hose-less vacuum cleaner. Stacks of disused videocassettes. Sacks of flour, whole wheat.</p>
<p>These are the details that fill Risso’s travel journal. And the traveler’s wardrobe embrace a naive, awe-struck sense of the world, with oversized jackets and trousers hand-painted with arm chairs, monkeys or musical instruments. Suits, puffer coats, nylon jumpsuits and anoraks round out the collection. Overcoats, in salmon pink, or blue, look slept in. Blankets do the same tricks. Men, spanning generations, not just youthful, wear talisman around their necks: a string of found trinkets, or a plasticized bear.</p>
<p>The rule, Risso said back stage, “is that there are no rules.”</p>
<p>____</p>
<p>ISABEL BENENATO’S ZEN</p>
<p>Isabel Benenato held her hands to her mouth in disbelief after her Milan runway debut. Her two young daughters, one clutching two stuffed rabbits, ran to hug her.</p>
<p>Benenato, 38, has nurtured her nine-year-old brand in the Tuscan city of Lucca, far from the Milan fashion epicenter -- and won the notice of the Italian Fashion Chamber, which invited her to Milan Fashion Week.</p>
<p>The brand’s philosophy revolves around natural materials, she said backstage.</p>
<p>The preview menswear and womenswear collection was inspired by planets, and was fittingly elemental. The looks were layered, say, a jacket over a tunic and trousers, all loose, well-proportioned and easy to wear. Or a crisp, long white shirt over trousers. A long dress wraps and drapes.</p>
<p>“There is this sense of being wrapped. Of silence. Of relaxing,” Benenato said.</p>
| false | 2 |
milan ap donatella versace embracing inner versace coming triumphant outing golden globes helped launch milan fashion week menswear previews next winter saturday high note versace dressed three women last sundays awards show angelina jolie saoirse ronan winner best actress comedy star evening oprah winfrey wore shapehugging number deliver celebrated lifetime achievement award speech versace riding wave appreciation since september tribute show slain brother fashion house founder gianni versace reunited supermodels 1990s highlighting new generations top talent appreciation gianni maybe also little said backstage show milan highlights first day milan fashion week also included fallwinter menswear shows emporio armani newcomer isabel benenato marni dolce amp gabbana ____ versace goes home homey gets takeitorleave ethos versace donatella versace urging aficionados embrace inner versace winter menswear looks take cues brands home collection milan fashion week show pillow plaids became suit jackets worn archival prints seafoam green hot pink yellow effect punk crushed velvet upholstery prints deep hues golden purple red cut wild midlength coats worn silken print shirt neckerchief burned umber puffer jackets recalled comforter versace elements refreshed street key versace said designer punctuated show 11 looks women demonstrate said two souls communicate one another included tassel accents lowback minidress versace wasnt afraid take things notch camel overcoats womens version included colorful side panels matched headscarf leggings mens trousers kept short show versaces new tennis shoe features form chain molded sole words love blind ____ dolce amp gabbanas king angels bling call dolce amp gabbana designing duo domenico dolce stefano gabbana constructed baroque sicilian church façade background king angels collection show opened tableau young stars formalwear including elaborately embroidered militarystyle jackets floral suits walking beneath pair cherubs colorful knitwear featured cherubic putti oval frames looked inspired church ceilings angelic visages also graced motorcycle jackets dolce amp gabbana usual offered range looks suits styled formally layered furry jackets coming pajamainspired robe overcoats designers employed lightheartedness humor heartshaped backpacks well one looked like golden puppet peeking wearers shoulder designers also emblazoned slogans time change love love across beanies waistbands backsides nothing runway made slogans meanings explicit although could interpreted calls new attitudes colombian singer maluma closed show glittering silver suit match stage presence ___ unexpected dolceampgabbana dancers busted move dolceampgabbana activewear exclusive latenight unexpected show smaller fashion crowd activewear long part designers repertoire putting new emphasis hot category millennial models showed collection ranging baseball shirts emblazoned king life soft bearhead hoodies eliciting cheers catcalls admiring onlookers ____ emporio armanis arching zippers tufts fur smooth velvet gave zest emporio armanis youthful tailoring next winter fall silhouettes mostly relaxed palette dark albeit geared toward fun end deep black navy slate giving way mauve blues shades tinged purple floral patterns hypnotic repeating graphics complemented flowing silhouette open jackets easy trousers swirls color also burst forth alpaca knitwear soothing blues icy greens designer giorgio armani forsworn using real animal fur lines winning praise animal rights activists fur accents boots detachable dyed collars therefore surely faux series furry black coats rendered curlyhaired sheepskin according press release ponyeffect goatskin jackets zippers deployed frivolity across knitwear inviting playful detach along sleeves giving capelike feel opened trousers tapered elaborately button cuff pants mostly relaxed daytime leisure evening events tight sleek business suits worn tieless velvet worked day evening casual wear bomber jackets elegant suits gloves accessories choice 83yearold armani abiding smartphonedriven trend returning fingerless gloves 1980s designers gloves perfectly winterproof ____ moschino goes undercover jeremy scott would send fashion crowd running around milan videocassette tape bags invitation evening moschino show scotts collection challenged gender conventions front sexual predilections suggestion videotape contained something xrated anyone could find vcr play mixed mens womans collection started deconstructed pinstripe suits held suggestively together suspenders garters quickly devolved sampm role play exploration complete chauffeur silken white cape shirt followed madam black latex body suit music climaxes beyond runway props edgy fashion statements scott also included pretty sheer dresses skirts well suits suggest nothing business leave home leather props even scott pushed envelope turn head look back suit might trailing evening dress panel made beaded womens dress crossdressers coming fashion statement final look siamese twin tuxedo jacket joining androgynous models tails fur animal rights activists made presence known milan fashion week several dozen attempting block access marni preview show went running late fashion world wont without protests one furwearing fashionista endured shower verbal abuse ducked show last minute violence reported animal rights activists claimed victories recently armani gucci among latest commit using animal furs future collections brands like marni born family fur business tougher line tread still runway show francesco risso second year included one obvious animal skin reference shearling coat ___ marnis travel journal entering marni showroom enter designer francesco rissos world immediately rather conventional seating offered objects sit upon childs stuffed giraffe hoseless vacuum cleaner stacks disused videocassettes sacks flour whole wheat details fill rissos travel journal travelers wardrobe embrace naive awestruck sense world oversized jackets trousers handpainted arm chairs monkeys musical instruments suits puffer coats nylon jumpsuits anoraks round collection overcoats salmon pink blue look slept blankets tricks men spanning generations youthful wear talisman around necks string found trinkets plasticized bear rule risso said back stage rules ____ isabel benenatos zen isabel benenato held hands mouth disbelief milan runway debut two young daughters one clutching two stuffed rabbits ran hug benenato 38 nurtured nineyearold brand tuscan city lucca far milan fashion epicenter notice italian fashion chamber invited milan fashion week brands philosophy revolves around natural materials said backstage preview menswear womenswear collection inspired planets fittingly elemental looks layered say jacket tunic trousers loose wellproportioned easy wear crisp long white shirt trousers long dress wraps drapes sense wrapped silence relaxing benenato said milan ap donatella versace embracing inner versace coming triumphant outing golden globes helped launch milan fashion week menswear previews next winter saturday high note versace dressed three women last sundays awards show angelina jolie saoirse ronan winner best actress comedy star evening oprah winfrey wore shapehugging number deliver celebrated lifetime achievement award speech versace riding wave appreciation since september tribute show slain brother fashion house founder gianni versace reunited supermodels 1990s highlighting new generations top talent appreciation gianni maybe also little said backstage show milan highlights first day milan fashion week also included fallwinter menswear shows emporio armani newcomer isabel benenato marni dolce amp gabbana ____ versace goes home homey gets takeitorleave ethos versace donatella versace urging aficionados embrace inner versace winter menswear looks take cues brands home collection milan fashion week show pillow plaids became suit jackets worn archival prints seafoam green hot pink yellow effect punk crushed velvet upholstery prints deep hues golden purple red cut wild midlength coats worn silken print shirt neckerchief burned umber puffer jackets recalled comforter versace elements refreshed street key versace said designer punctuated show 11 looks women demonstrate said two souls communicate one another included tassel accents lowback minidress versace wasnt afraid take things notch camel overcoats womens version included colorful side panels matched headscarf leggings mens trousers kept short show versaces new tennis shoe features form chain molded sole words love blind ____ dolce amp gabbanas king angels bling call dolce amp gabbana designing duo domenico dolce stefano gabbana constructed baroque sicilian church façade background king angels collection show opened tableau young stars formalwear including elaborately embroidered militarystyle jackets floral suits walking beneath pair cherubs colorful knitwear featured cherubic putti oval frames looked inspired church ceilings angelic visages also graced motorcycle jackets dolce amp gabbana usual offered range looks suits styled formally layered furry jackets coming pajamainspired robe overcoats designers employed lightheartedness humor heartshaped backpacks well one looked like golden puppet peeking wearers shoulder designers also emblazoned slogans time change love love across beanies waistbands backsides nothing runway made slogans meanings explicit although could interpreted calls new attitudes colombian singer maluma closed show glittering silver suit match stage presence ___ unexpected dolceampgabbana dancers busted move dolceampgabbana activewear exclusive latenight unexpected show smaller fashion crowd activewear long part designers repertoire putting new emphasis hot category millennial models showed collection ranging baseball shirts emblazoned king life soft bearhead hoodies eliciting cheers catcalls admiring onlookers ____ emporio armanis arching zippers tufts fur smooth velvet gave zest emporio armanis youthful tailoring next winter fall silhouettes mostly relaxed palette dark albeit geared toward fun end deep black navy slate giving way mauve blues shades tinged purple floral patterns hypnotic repeating graphics complemented flowing silhouette open jackets easy trousers swirls color also burst forth alpaca knitwear soothing blues icy greens designer giorgio armani forsworn using real animal fur lines winning praise animal rights activists fur accents boots detachable dyed collars therefore surely faux series furry black coats rendered curlyhaired sheepskin according press release ponyeffect goatskin jackets zippers deployed frivolity across knitwear inviting playful detach along sleeves giving capelike feel opened trousers tapered elaborately button cuff pants mostly relaxed daytime leisure evening events tight sleek business suits worn tieless velvet worked day evening casual wear bomber jackets elegant suits gloves accessories choice 83yearold armani abiding smartphonedriven trend returning fingerless gloves 1980s designers gloves perfectly winterproof ____ moschino goes undercover jeremy scott would send fashion crowd running around milan videocassette tape bags invitation evening moschino show scotts collection challenged gender conventions front sexual predilections suggestion videotape contained something xrated anyone could find vcr play mixed mens womans collection started deconstructed pinstripe suits held suggestively together suspenders garters quickly devolved sampm role play exploration complete chauffeur silken white cape shirt followed madam black latex body suit music climaxes beyond runway props edgy fashion statements scott also included pretty sheer dresses skirts well suits suggest nothing business leave home leather props even scott pushed envelope turn head look back suit might trailing evening dress panel made beaded womens dress crossdressers coming fashion statement final look siamese twin tuxedo jacket joining androgynous models tails fur animal rights activists made presence known milan fashion week several dozen attempting block access marni preview show went running late fashion world wont without protests one furwearing fashionista endured shower verbal abuse ducked show last minute violence reported animal rights activists claimed victories recently armani gucci among latest commit using animal furs future collections brands like marni born family fur business tougher line tread still runway show francesco risso second year included one obvious animal skin reference shearling coat ___ marnis travel journal entering marni showroom enter designer francesco rissos world immediately rather conventional seating offered objects sit upon childs stuffed giraffe hoseless vacuum cleaner stacks disused videocassettes sacks flour whole wheat details fill rissos travel journal travelers wardrobe embrace naive awestruck sense world oversized jackets trousers handpainted arm chairs monkeys musical instruments suits puffer coats nylon jumpsuits anoraks round collection overcoats salmon pink blue look slept blankets tricks men spanning generations youthful wear talisman around necks string found trinkets plasticized bear rule risso said back stage rules ____ isabel benenatos zen isabel benenato held hands mouth disbelief milan runway debut two young daughters one clutching two stuffed rabbits ran hug benenato 38 nurtured nineyearold brand tuscan city lucca far milan fashion epicenter notice italian fashion chamber invited milan fashion week brands philosophy revolves around natural materials said backstage preview menswear womenswear collection inspired planets fittingly elemental looks layered say jacket tunic trousers loose wellproportioned easy wear crisp long white shirt trousers long dress wraps drapes sense wrapped silence relaxing benenato said
| 1,870 |
<p>CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — With Dwight Howard struggling with his shot and a tough back-to-back looming, the Charlotte Hornets needed a bit of variety on offense against the Utah Jazz.</p>
<p>Kemba Walker scored 22 points and Frank Kaminsky added 16 to lead the Hornets to their fourth victory in six games, 99-88 on Friday night. Six players scored in double figures.</p>
<p>“We had a post-up game, we had a pick-and-roll game, we had a catch-and-shoot game,” said Hornets associate head coach Stephen Silas. “Nic (Batum) got going early, and we’ve been talking a lot.”</p>
<p>Marvin Williams scored 15 and Michael Kidd-Gilchrist 12 for Charlotte, which won despite an off night for Howard, who scored just two first-half points. Howard finished with eight points on 2-of-9 shooting. He also went 4 for 10 from the foul line and led the team with 13 rebounds.</p>
<p>Charlotte will go for a season sweep of the Thunder at home on Saturday. The Hornets won at Oklahoma City 116-103 on Dec. 11.</p>
<p>Jeremy Lamb’s basket with 5:20 left gave Charlotte an 87-85 lead, part of a 14-3 run to end the game.</p>
<p>“I think our defense was really good in the fourth quarter,” said Howard, who last was held in single digits Dec. 31 (four points at Los Angeles Clippers). “Marvin hit some big 3s, got a big cut to the basket and we got a good win. We needed it, especially after last game.”</p>
<p>Batum and Jeremy Lamb added 11 points apiece for Charlotte, which lost to Dallas 115-111 on Wednesday to start a three-game homestand.</p>
<p>Donovan Mitchell scored 35 points for Utah, which has lost 14 of 19. Rodney Hood added 15 and fellow reserve Royce O’Neale 11 for the Jazz, who had been 10-3 when holding opponents to 100 points or fewer.</p>
<p>Mitchell, a rookie who scored a career-best 41 in a win last Friday against New Orleans, had 22 points at halftime on 7-of-12 shooting. Charlotte limited him to 3-of-8 shooting the rest of the way.</p>
<p>“We’ve tried to not put a ceiling on him one way or the other,” Jazz coach Quin Snyder said of Mitchell. “Just focus on day-to-day what he’s doing. From that standpoint, he continues to get better. He struggled late in a playmaking position, so he’s figuring things out.”</p>
<p>TIP-INS</p>
<p>Jazz: Forward Thabo Sefolosha left the game with a knee injury in the second period. ... Rudy Gobert missed his 13th consecutive game (knee). . Utah had won seven of the past 10 matchups with Charlotte.</p>
<p>Hornets: Charlotte has had five different leading scorers in its past 11 games. ... Walker opened 4 for 4 on 3-pointers before missing his last two.</p>
<p>CLIFFORD RETURNS</p>
<p>Hornets coach Steve Clifford will rejoin the team for practice on Tuesday. Clifford, who left the team Dec. 6 because of health reasons, will coach the Hornets Wednesday against Washington. He spoke with his team on Friday.</p>
<p>“It’s great news,” Batum said. “I called him right away and talked to him. It’s good to know he’s coming back, and it’s good to know he’s getting better. He’s been out a few weeks, and it could be scary (to be sick), but the most important thing right now is his health.”</p>
<p>ROAD WOES CONTINUE</p>
<p>Utah finished an Eastern road swing 1-4, and the loss to Charlotte Friday was the only one by double digits.</p>
<p>“That’s always there,” Snyder said of his team’s energy level late. “You have to figure it out. I thought we fought through it. Defensively we didn’t have a ton of life, but I thought our bench gave us a big lift when (Hood and O’Neale) came in.”</p>
<p>UP NEXT</p>
<p>Jazz: Host Pacers on Monday night.</p>
<p>Hornets: Host Thunder on Saturday.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>More AP NBA: www.apnews.com/tags/NBAbasketball</p>
<p>CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — With Dwight Howard struggling with his shot and a tough back-to-back looming, the Charlotte Hornets needed a bit of variety on offense against the Utah Jazz.</p>
<p>Kemba Walker scored 22 points and Frank Kaminsky added 16 to lead the Hornets to their fourth victory in six games, 99-88 on Friday night. Six players scored in double figures.</p>
<p>“We had a post-up game, we had a pick-and-roll game, we had a catch-and-shoot game,” said Hornets associate head coach Stephen Silas. “Nic (Batum) got going early, and we’ve been talking a lot.”</p>
<p>Marvin Williams scored 15 and Michael Kidd-Gilchrist 12 for Charlotte, which won despite an off night for Howard, who scored just two first-half points. Howard finished with eight points on 2-of-9 shooting. He also went 4 for 10 from the foul line and led the team with 13 rebounds.</p>
<p>Charlotte will go for a season sweep of the Thunder at home on Saturday. The Hornets won at Oklahoma City 116-103 on Dec. 11.</p>
<p>Jeremy Lamb’s basket with 5:20 left gave Charlotte an 87-85 lead, part of a 14-3 run to end the game.</p>
<p>“I think our defense was really good in the fourth quarter,” said Howard, who last was held in single digits Dec. 31 (four points at Los Angeles Clippers). “Marvin hit some big 3s, got a big cut to the basket and we got a good win. We needed it, especially after last game.”</p>
<p>Batum and Jeremy Lamb added 11 points apiece for Charlotte, which lost to Dallas 115-111 on Wednesday to start a three-game homestand.</p>
<p>Donovan Mitchell scored 35 points for Utah, which has lost 14 of 19. Rodney Hood added 15 and fellow reserve Royce O’Neale 11 for the Jazz, who had been 10-3 when holding opponents to 100 points or fewer.</p>
<p>Mitchell, a rookie who scored a career-best 41 in a win last Friday against New Orleans, had 22 points at halftime on 7-of-12 shooting. Charlotte limited him to 3-of-8 shooting the rest of the way.</p>
<p>“We’ve tried to not put a ceiling on him one way or the other,” Jazz coach Quin Snyder said of Mitchell. “Just focus on day-to-day what he’s doing. From that standpoint, he continues to get better. He struggled late in a playmaking position, so he’s figuring things out.”</p>
<p>TIP-INS</p>
<p>Jazz: Forward Thabo Sefolosha left the game with a knee injury in the second period. ... Rudy Gobert missed his 13th consecutive game (knee). . Utah had won seven of the past 10 matchups with Charlotte.</p>
<p>Hornets: Charlotte has had five different leading scorers in its past 11 games. ... Walker opened 4 for 4 on 3-pointers before missing his last two.</p>
<p>CLIFFORD RETURNS</p>
<p>Hornets coach Steve Clifford will rejoin the team for practice on Tuesday. Clifford, who left the team Dec. 6 because of health reasons, will coach the Hornets Wednesday against Washington. He spoke with his team on Friday.</p>
<p>“It’s great news,” Batum said. “I called him right away and talked to him. It’s good to know he’s coming back, and it’s good to know he’s getting better. He’s been out a few weeks, and it could be scary (to be sick), but the most important thing right now is his health.”</p>
<p>ROAD WOES CONTINUE</p>
<p>Utah finished an Eastern road swing 1-4, and the loss to Charlotte Friday was the only one by double digits.</p>
<p>“That’s always there,” Snyder said of his team’s energy level late. “You have to figure it out. I thought we fought through it. Defensively we didn’t have a ton of life, but I thought our bench gave us a big lift when (Hood and O’Neale) came in.”</p>
<p>UP NEXT</p>
<p>Jazz: Host Pacers on Monday night.</p>
<p>Hornets: Host Thunder on Saturday.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>More AP NBA: www.apnews.com/tags/NBAbasketball</p>
| false | 2 |
charlotte nc ap dwight howard struggling shot tough backtoback looming charlotte hornets needed bit variety offense utah jazz kemba walker scored 22 points frank kaminsky added 16 lead hornets fourth victory six games 9988 friday night six players scored double figures postup game pickandroll game catchandshoot game said hornets associate head coach stephen silas nic batum got going early weve talking lot marvin williams scored 15 michael kiddgilchrist 12 charlotte despite night howard scored two firsthalf points howard finished eight points 2of9 shooting also went 4 10 foul line led team 13 rebounds charlotte go season sweep thunder home saturday hornets oklahoma city 116103 dec 11 jeremy lambs basket 520 left gave charlotte 8785 lead part 143 run end game think defense really good fourth quarter said howard last held single digits dec 31 four points los angeles clippers marvin hit big 3s got big cut basket got good win needed especially last game batum jeremy lamb added 11 points apiece charlotte lost dallas 115111 wednesday start threegame homestand donovan mitchell scored 35 points utah lost 14 19 rodney hood added 15 fellow reserve royce oneale 11 jazz 103 holding opponents 100 points fewer mitchell rookie scored careerbest 41 win last friday new orleans 22 points halftime 7of12 shooting charlotte limited 3of8 shooting rest way weve tried put ceiling one way jazz coach quin snyder said mitchell focus daytoday hes standpoint continues get better struggled late playmaking position hes figuring things tipins jazz forward thabo sefolosha left game knee injury second period rudy gobert missed 13th consecutive game knee utah seven past 10 matchups charlotte hornets charlotte five different leading scorers past 11 games walker opened 4 4 3pointers missing last two clifford returns hornets coach steve clifford rejoin team practice tuesday clifford left team dec 6 health reasons coach hornets wednesday washington spoke team friday great news batum said called right away talked good know hes coming back good know hes getting better hes weeks could scary sick important thing right health road woes continue utah finished eastern road swing 14 loss charlotte friday one double digits thats always snyder said teams energy level late figure thought fought defensively didnt ton life thought bench gave us big lift hood oneale came next jazz host pacers monday night hornets host thunder saturday ___ ap nba wwwapnewscomtagsnbabasketball charlotte nc ap dwight howard struggling shot tough backtoback looming charlotte hornets needed bit variety offense utah jazz kemba walker scored 22 points frank kaminsky added 16 lead hornets fourth victory six games 9988 friday night six players scored double figures postup game pickandroll game catchandshoot game said hornets associate head coach stephen silas nic batum got going early weve talking lot marvin williams scored 15 michael kiddgilchrist 12 charlotte despite night howard scored two firsthalf points howard finished eight points 2of9 shooting also went 4 10 foul line led team 13 rebounds charlotte go season sweep thunder home saturday hornets oklahoma city 116103 dec 11 jeremy lambs basket 520 left gave charlotte 8785 lead part 143 run end game think defense really good fourth quarter said howard last held single digits dec 31 four points los angeles clippers marvin hit big 3s got big cut basket got good win needed especially last game batum jeremy lamb added 11 points apiece charlotte lost dallas 115111 wednesday start threegame homestand donovan mitchell scored 35 points utah lost 14 19 rodney hood added 15 fellow reserve royce oneale 11 jazz 103 holding opponents 100 points fewer mitchell rookie scored careerbest 41 win last friday new orleans 22 points halftime 7of12 shooting charlotte limited 3of8 shooting rest way weve tried put ceiling one way jazz coach quin snyder said mitchell focus daytoday hes standpoint continues get better struggled late playmaking position hes figuring things tipins jazz forward thabo sefolosha left game knee injury second period rudy gobert missed 13th consecutive game knee utah seven past 10 matchups charlotte hornets charlotte five different leading scorers past 11 games walker opened 4 4 3pointers missing last two clifford returns hornets coach steve clifford rejoin team practice tuesday clifford left team dec 6 health reasons coach hornets wednesday washington spoke team friday great news batum said called right away talked good know hes coming back good know hes getting better hes weeks could scary sick important thing right health road woes continue utah finished eastern road swing 14 loss charlotte friday one double digits thats always snyder said teams energy level late figure thought fought defensively didnt ton life thought bench gave us big lift hood oneale came next jazz host pacers monday night hornets host thunder saturday ___ ap nba wwwapnewscomtagsnbabasketball
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<p>WASHINGTON — A judge on Tuesday threw out a lawsuit aimed at preventing the United States from targeting anti-American cleric Anwar al-Awlaki for death, but questioned whether a president or his aides can unilaterally order a U.S. citizen assassinated for terrorist activity.</p>
<p>U.S. District Judge John Bates said in an 83-page opinion that he does not have the authority to review the president’s military decisions and al-Awlaki’s father does not have the legal right to sue to stop the United States from killing his son. But Bates also said the “unique and extraordinary case” raised vital considerations of national security and for military and foreign affairs.</p>
<p>Among the “stark and perplexing questions” Bates said the case raises is why courts have authority to approve surveillance of Americans overseas but not their killing. And he questioned whether the president or his advisers can order the assassination of a U.S. citizen without “any form of judicial process whatsoever, based on the mere assertion that he is a dangerous member of a terrorist organization.”</p>
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<p>“The serious issues regarding the merits of the alleged authorization of the targeted killing of a U.S. citizen overseas must await another day or another nonjudicial forum,” wrote Bates, an appointee of President George W. Bush and an Army veteran.</p>
<p>Al-Awlaki, believed to be hiding in Yemen, has urged Muslims to kill Americans. He also has been linked to last year’s shooting at Fort Hood, Texas, and the attempted bombing of a U.S.-bound flight last Christmas.</p>
<p>Obama administration officials have confirmed to The Associated Press that al-Awlaki is on a capture or kill list, although the Obama administration declined to confirm or deny that in court proceedings.</p>
<p>The cleric’s father, Nasser al-Awlaki of Yemen, represented by the American Civil Liberties Union and the Center for Constitutional Rights, argued that international law and the Constitution prevented the administration from unilaterally targeting his son for death unless he presents a specific imminent threat to life or physical safety and there are no other means to stop him. The suit against President Barack Obama, Defense Secretary Robert Gates and CIA Director Leon Panetta, also tried to force the government to disclose standards for determining whether U.S. citizens like his son, born in New Mexico in 1971 and raised in the United States, can be targeted for death.</p>
<p>“If the court’s ruling is correct, the government has unreviewable authority to carry out the targeted killing of any American, anywhere, whom the president decides is a threat to the nation,” said ACLU deputy legal director Jameel Jaffer. “It really would be difficult to conceive of a proposition more inconsistent with the Constitution. Every other presidential power is subject to checks and balances.”</p>
<p>Administration officials argued the court has no legal authority to review the president as he makes military decisions to protect Americans against terrorist attacks. Bates agreed, although somewhat reluctantly.</p>
<p>“To be sure, this court recognizes the somewhat unsettling nature of its conclusion — that there are circumstances in which the executive’s unilateral decision to kill a U.S. citizen overseas is constitutionally committed to the political branches and judicially unreviewable,” Bates wrote. “But this case squarely presents such a circumstance.”</p>
<p>Bates also said he must dismiss the case because Anwar al-Awlaki did not bring the suit himself. The judge was not swayed by the father’s argument that the cleric could not sue because it would force him to come out of hiding in risk of his life. Bates said al-Awlaki could peacefully present himself under protection of international law and even suggested in a footnote that the cleric could possibly participate via videoconferencing while still in hiding.</p>
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<p>Bates also said there’s no evidence al-Awlaki wants his father to sue to protect his constitutional rights — the two are not in contact because of the safety risk. On the contrary, Bates said, al-Awlaki has publicly denounced the U.S. legal system and said Muslims are not bound by Western law.</p>
<p>The Obama administration also said the case should be thrown out because it could disclose state secrets. But Bates agreed with the administration that he didn’t need to consider that argument because the case should be thrown out on other grounds.</p>
<p>Assistant Attorney General Tony West applauded the ruling and said he was pleased the court didn’t take up the state secrets claim.</p>
<p>“People need to remember that this really was an unprecedented case in which the plaintiffs were asking a court to review military decisions for the benefit of a leader of a foreign terrorist organization,” West said. “And as we said when we filed this case, if Anwar al-Awlaki wants to access our court systems he ought to surrender to the authorities and be held accountable for his actions.”</p>
<p>Plaintiffs attorneys said they were considering whether to appeal.</p>
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<p>Monday, 08 November 2010 06:20</p>
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<p>CAIRO — A U.S.-born Islamic cleric linked to attacks by al-Qaida in Yemen on U.S. targets called for Muslims around the world to kill Americans in a new video posted on extremist websites Monday.</p>
<p>Anwar al-Awlaki, 39, is one of the most prominent English-language radical clerics and his sermons advocating jihad, or holy war, against the United States have influenced militants involved in several attacks or attempted attacks on U.S. soil. Yemeni officials say he may have blessed the recent mail bomb plot, though he may not have taken an active part in it.</p>
<p>Al-Awlaki has in past messages encouraged Muslims to murder American soldiers and justified the killings of American civilians by accusing the United States of intentionally killing a million Muslim civilians in Iraq, Afghanistan and elsewhere. But this message appeared stronger, arguing that no justification was needed.</p>
<p>In his 23-minute message delivered in Arabic, al-Awlaki said because all Americans are the enemy, clerics don’t need to issue any special fatwas or religious rulings allowing them to be killed. He was dressed in a traditional Yemeni garb — a white robe, turban and a sheathed dagger tucked into his waistband — and wore round spectacles while sitting behind a desk.</p>
<p>“Don’t consult with anybody in killing the Americans,” he said. “Fighting the devil doesn’t require consultation or prayers seeking divine guidance. They are the party of the devils,” he added. It is “either us or them.”</p>
<p>Al-Awlaki, who was born in New Mexico to Yemeni parents, has used his website and English-language sermons to encourage Muslims around the world to kill U.S. troops in Iraq and has been tied by U.S. intelligence to the 9/11 hijackers and to Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab who tried to blow up an airliner over Detroit on Christmas last year with explosives hidden in his underwear.</p>
<p>He was also in contact with Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan, the Army psychiatrist accused of killing 13 people in November at the Fort Hood, Texas military base.</p>
<p>U.S. investigators say since he returned to Yemen in 2006, al-Awlaki has moved beyond just inspiring militants to becoming an active operative in al-Qaida’s affiliate there.</p>
<p>On Friday, Al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula, the terror group’s offshoot in Yemen claimed responsibility for sending bombs through the mail in packages addressed to the U.S. The bombs were found at airports in England and Dubai, United Arab Emirates before they exploded.</p>
<p>Short excerpts from the al-Awlaki video posted Monday were released on Oct. 23, two weeks before the mail bombs were uncovered. But this was the first full posting of the video.</p>
<p>Al-Awlaki also attacked rulers in the Arab world, particularly Yemen, describing them as corrupt and he called on religious scholars to declare them “non-Muslims” for betraying the Muslim people.</p>
<p>“Kings, emirs, and presidents are now not qualified to lead the nation, or even a flock of sheep,” he said. “If the leaders are corrupt, the scholars have the responsibility to lead the nation.”</p>
<p>He added that these leaders would have to be removed for the Muslim people to move forward.</p>
<p>The only way Muslims can protect themselves from the threat of the infidels is by supporting the “mujahedeen,” he said, referring to al-Qaida fighters.</p>
<p>“If we support the mujahedeen, we will win it all and if we let them down, we will lose it all,” he said.</p>
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<p>Yemeni authorities have charged Anwar al-Awlaki, the New Mexico-born radical cleric who is the alleged spiritual mentor to al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula, with incitement to violence against foreigners, according to the U.K.’s Telegraph.</p>
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<p>Awlaki was charged in absentia by a court in Yemen’s capital, Sana’a, at the start of a case against a local man who fatally shot a French oil manager and wounded a British security guard, the Telegraph said.</p>
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<p>The man, 19-year-old Hisham Assem, is accused of being in contact with al-Awlaki through the cleric’s cousin, Osman al-Awlaki, and has allegedly told investigators he was inspired by videotaped sermons calling for the killing of foreign “occupiers,” the paper reported.</p>
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<p>Meanwhile, the Telegraph also reported today that YouTube has begun removing al-Qaida videos by al-Awlaki from its website after the British government lodged a complaint about the videos with the U.S. White House.</p>
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<p>A number of clips by al-Awlaki, believed to be the mastermind of last week’s cargo bomb plot and who has been implicated in a number of recent attempted terror attacks on the United States, were removed from the YouTube site Tuesday night, according to the Telegraph.</p>
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<p>But scores more, including incendiary calls to wage war on non-Muslims, remain, the Telegraph said.</p>
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<p>It was Yemen’s first formal legal action against al-Awlaki, who is believed to be living in a mountainous region of that country, being sheltered by family members and tribal religious leaders who deny he is a terrorist, The Washington Times reported on Tuesday.</p>
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<p>Yemen is under heavy international pressure to crack down after two mail bombs originating in Yemen were intercepted in Dubai and Britain last week, The Times said.</p>
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<p>8:40am 10/21/10 — Report: Al-Awlaki Lunched at Pentagon Months After 9-11 Attacks: New Mexico-born cleric tied to terror attacks once was part of outreach to Muslims.</p>
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<p>Anwar al-Awlaki, the Yemeni-American cleric who was born in Las Cruces and is the first U.S. citizen to be on the CIA’s kill-or-capture list for his suspected role in recent terror attacks, was a luncheon guest of military brass at the Pentagon just months after the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks, Fox News was first to report on Wednesday.</p>
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<p>According to documents obtained by Fox News, al-Awlaki was invited to the Pentagon as part of the military’s outreach to the Muslim community in the aftermath of the 2001 attacks.</p>
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<p>A current Defense Department employee told investigators looking into the November 2009 Fort Hood shootings that she helped arrange the luncheon after she heard al-Awlaki speak in Alexandria, Va., Fox News said.</p>
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<p>The employee “attended this talk and while she arrived late she recalls being impressed by this imam. He condemned Al Qaeda and the terrorist attacks. During his talke he was ‘harassed’ by members of the audience and suffered it well,” one of the documents read.</p>
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<p>“At that period of time, the secretary of the Army … was eager to have a presentation from a moderate Muslim,” and Awlaki “was considered to be an ‘up and coming’ member of the Islamic community,” the documents said.</p>
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<p>Al-Awlaki was interviewed at least four times by the FBI in the first week after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks because of his ties to three of the airline hijackers, but was cleared of any involvement in the plot, Fox News said.</p>
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<p>The cleric is now believed to be in hiding in Yemen after he was linked to accused Fort Hood shooter Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan, with whom he exchanged e-mails prior to the attack.</p>
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<p>In addition to being linked to Hasan, al-Awlaki allegedly helped train Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, who is charged with trying to blow up a Detroit-bound airliner on Christmas Day, and is said to have inspired would-be Times Square bomber Faisal Shahzad, NBC News reported.</p>
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<p>Pentagon officials told NBC News on Wednesday that al-Awlaki was invited to the Pentagon as part of an outreach program to convince influential Muslims that the war in Afghanistan was aimed at al-Qaida, not at Muslims.</p>
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<p>7:30am 9/16/10 — White House Weighs Criminal Charges for Al-Awlaki: Radical cleric who was born in Las Cruces is already on CIA kill-or-capture list.</p>
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<p>Is this a case of hanging the suspect, then giving him a fair trial?</p>
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<p>No, according to a report this week from The Associated Press, the Obama administration is considering filing the first criminal charges against radical cleric Anwar al-Awlaki, who is a U.S. citizen born in Las Cruces 36 years ago, in case the CIA fails to kill him and he is captured alive in Yemen.</p>
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<p>The decision would be part of the White House’s strategy of fighting terrorism both in court and on the battlefield, the AP reported.</p>
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<p>Umar Farouk Adbulmutallab, the Nigerian man accused in the failed Christmas Day bombing of a Detroit-bound U.S. airliner, indicated in federal court this week that he may plead guilty to some charges, raising the possibility that his cooperation could lay the foundation for charges against al-Awlaki, who is suspected of having a hand in planning the attack, according to the AP.</p>
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<p>Government officials hope that Abdulmutallab, who already has told the FBI that al-Awlaki was involved in the airline bombing plan, would plead guilty and testify against the radical cleric, but the suspected bomber fired his attorney Monday and has yet to enter any kind of plea deal, the AP said.</p>
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<p>Critics say, however, that criminally charging al-Awlaki with direct involvement in a terrorist act could require the U.S. to reveal evidence gleaned from foreign wiretaps or confidential informants, according to the report.</p>
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<p>Another option would be to charge al-Awlaki with supporting terrorism, but that charge carries only a 15-year prison sentence, leaving the administration open to questions about how the president could authorize the CIA to essentially impose the death penalty for such a crime, the AP said.</p>
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<p>If the Justice Department decides to charge al-Awlaki, it’s likely he would not be indicted, which would automatically give him the right to an attorney, but rather be the subject of an FBI criminal complaint.</p>
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<p>Al-Awlaki is said to be hiding in a mountainous region of Yemen, sheltered by his family and religious leaders who say he has no ties to terrorism, and in any case, Yemeni officials have said they will not turn him over to U.S. authorities, the AP reported.</p>
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<p>5:45am 8/5/10 — N.M.-Born Imam Called ‘Bin Laden’s Heir Apparent’ in CNN Profile: Civil rights groups sue U.S. government to remove radical cleric from death list.</p>
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<p>There’s a video profile of Anwar al-Awlaki titled “U.S. Born Cleric’s Ominous Goodbye” that aired this week on CNN. While there’s not much about his time in New Mexico — he was born in Las Cruces but moved on with his family soon afterward — it’s an interesting look at the man CNN calls “the heir apparent to Osama bin Laden.”</p>
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<p>Meanwhile, ABC News also reported this week that the ACLU and the Center for Constitutional Rights are suing Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner over the U.S. government’s decision to place Awlaki on a hit list and freeze his U.S. assets.</p>
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<p>Awlaki, a U.S. citizen (by virtue of his Las Cruces birth), has been linked to the Fort Hood shootings, the attempted Christmas Day bombing on Northwest 253 over Detroit and the failed car bombing of Times Square, and in July was placed on the Treasury Department’s list of “Specially Designated Global Terrorists,” ABC News reported.</p>
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<p>Last month Awlaki’s father, Nasser al-Awlaki (who was studying at New Mexico State University when his son was born), asked the civil rights groups to challenge his son’s placement on a list of U.S. citizens who can be assassinated by U.S. forces and intelligence services for his links to terrorism, according to ABC News.</p>
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<p>7:10am 7/15/10 — N.M.-Born Imam Calls for Killing Muhammad Cartoonists: Radical cleric launches English-language online magazine to recruit U.S. terrorists.</p>
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<p>Anwar al-Awlaki, the Las Cruces-born radical Muslim cleric who has been linked to a number of recent terror attacks on the United States, has called for the death of Seattle cartoonist Molly Norris, who spearheaded the “Everybody Draw Muhammed Day” as an online spoof in response to media censorship, the New York Daily News reported this week.</p>
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<p>In his new English-language online magazine called “Inspire,” Awlaki singled out Norris as a “prime target” for execution, saying her “proper abode is hellfire,” also calling for the execution of eight other cartoonists, authors and journalists who are Swedish, Dutch and British citizens for their “blasphemous caricatures” of the Prophet Muhammad, the Daily News said.</p>
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<p>“The medicine prescribed by the Messenger of Allah is the execution of those involved,” wrote the 39-year-old Awlaki, who is believed to be in hiding in Yemen.</p>
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<p>David Gomez, the FBI’s assistant special agent in charge of counterterrorism in Seattle, said Norris and others named by Awlaki were warned of the “very serious threat,” according to the Daily News.</p>
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<p>Awlaki’s latest rant first appeared late last month, then on Sunday, in the online magazine posted on the Internet by al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula, a Yemeni branch of the terrorist organization, the Daily News said.</p>
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<p>“Inspire” includes articles such as how to “make a bomb in the kitchen of your mom” and is seen as a bid to recruit Americans to launch terrorist attacks in the United States, Reuters news service reported this week.</p>
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<p>The English-language magazine also includes messages from Osama bin Laden and his deputy Ayman al-Zawahiri, as well as step-by-step graphics for making the homemade bomb with ordinary kitchen materials and an article on how to send and receive encrypted messages, Reuters said.</p>
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<p>“This is an unfortunately well-done magazine that is proof positive that al-Qaida and its affiliates have launched a direct appeal for Americans to launch small-scale attacks here at home,” said Rep. Pete Hoekstra, the top Republican on the U.S. House Intelligence Committee. “The magazine is a virtual how-to guide for becoming a terrorist.”</p>
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<p>“America cannot and will not win,” Awlaki said in the magazine. “The tables have turned and there is no rolling back of the worldwide jihad movement … On the eve of 9-11 it was Afghanistan alone. Today it is Afghanistan, Pakistan, Iraq, Somalia, North Africa, the Arabian Peninsula, and the list is growing.”</p>
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<p>5:45 5/11/10 — N.M.-Born Imam Linked to Yet Another Terror Try: N.Y. Times profiles cleric’s journey from condemning terror to preaching jihad.</p>
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<p>“Jihad is becoming as American as apple pie and as British as afternoon tea,” Anwar al-Awlaki, the radical Muslim cleric who was born in Las Cruces 39 years ago, said in a recent statement, according to a lengthy New York Times profile that appeared over the weekend.</p>
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<p>Awlaki told reporters in the weeks following the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks that he condemned the mass murders and he talked of building bridges between Americans and Muslims worldwide, The Times said.</p>
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<p>Now, he is a fugitive in Yemen, a U.S. citizen who has been marked for death by American authorities after undergoing an apparent transformation from peacemaker to a recruiter for al-Qaida, according to earlier reports.</p>
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<p>According to The Times, Awlaki’s “mix of scripture and vitriol has helped lure young Muslims into a dozen plots.”</p>
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<p>He was an electronic pen-pal to accused Fort Hood killer Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan and had a role in prompting the young Nigerian Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab to make his failed bombing of an airliner over Detroit on Christmas Day.</p>
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<p>Now, according to The Times, he has been linked to the latest in a string of terrorist attempts on the United States, serving as an inspiration to Faisal Shahzad, the U.S. citizen from Pakistan, who is charged in an attempted bombing in Times Square.</p>
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<p>Shahzad has told investigators that Awlaki’s online lectures urging jihad as a religious duty had inspired him to act, The Times said.</p>
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<p>6:55am 4/7/10 — U.S. Puts N.M.-Born Imam on Death List: Radical cleric hiding in Yemen may be first U.S. citizen ever targeted for killing.</p>
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<p>The Obama administration has taken the extraordinary step of authorizing the targeted killing of a U.S. citizen — the New Mexico-born radical Muslim cleric Anwar al-Awlaki, who is believed to have shifted from encouraging attacks on the United States to directly participating in them, intelligence and counterintelligence officials told The New York Times on Tuesday.</p>
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<p>Awlaki, who was born in Las Cruces while his father studied at New Mexico State University, spent years as an imam in the United States before going into hiding in his family’s native Yemen, The Times said.</p>
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<p>He has been linked to both Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan, the Army psychiatrist accused of killing 13 people at Fort Hood, Texas, last November, as well as to Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, the Nigerian man accused of trying to blow up an airliner over Detroit on Dec. 25, the paper reported.</p>
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<p>Counterterrorism officials told The Times that Awlaki is an operative of Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula and that they believe he has become a recruiter for the terrorist network.</p>
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<p>A former senior legal official in the George W. Bush administration told The Times that he did not know of any American who was approved for targeted killing under the former president.</p>
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<p>But Dennis C. Blair, Obama’s director of national intelligence, told a House hearing in February that such a step was possible, although he did not name Awlaki as a target at the time, the paper reported.</p>
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<p>“The danger Awlaki poses to this country is no longer confined to words,” an American official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, told The Times. “He’s gotten involved in plots.”</p>
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<p>Rep. Jane Harman, D-Calif., chairwoman of a House subcommittee on homeland security, said at a panel discussion in Washington on Tuesday, called Awlaki “probably the person, the terrorist, who would be terrorist No. 1 in terms of threat against us,” The Times reported.</p>
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<p>9:50am 1/6/10 — N.M.-Born Imam Called ‘Bin Laden of the Internet’: Dead or alive, U.S.-Yemeni cleric may be a bigger deal than anybody thought.</p>
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<p>Anwar al-Awlaki, the U.S.- (actually Las Cruces-) born radical Islamist who has been linked to accused Fort Hood shooter Maj. Malik Nidal Hasan and now the Christmas Day would-be airplane bomber Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, has been called “the Bin Laden of the Internet” and his stature has risen significantly in the world of Jihad against America, according to the Middle East Media Research Institute (MEMRI).</p>
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<p>Al-Arabiya TV director-general Abdul Rahman Al-Rashed, one of the most esteemed voices in the Arab media, made the Bin Laden comparison last month in a Saudi daily, going on to warn that there was a need “to wage war against extremist Web sites in general, which have become larger camps than the first camp (Bin Laden’s) that gave its name to the ‘Al Qaeda’ organization,” MEMRI’s Steven Salinsky wrote.</p>
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<p>Awlaki shut down his own influential Web site after praising the Army psychiatrist who is accused of killing 13 people at Fort Hood in November as a “hero,” but has more than 2,000 clips of his lectures, sermons and other jihadist videos circulating on the Internet, calling Muslims to Holy War, supporting suicide terrorist attacks and encouraging viewers to kill American soldiers, Salinsky wrote.</p>
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<p>Awlaki’s hate speech CDs are on sale at bookstores in London where he lived briefly after fleeing the United States, and The Mirror of London reports that DVDs of Awlaki’s speeches were being sold next to the London mosque attended by the accused Northwest Airlines Flight 253 bomber, according to a posting on associatedcontent.com.</p>
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<p>An article just posted today by the online Asia Times notes that while U.S. authorities seem focused on al-Qaida’s tactics, the shadowy organization has adopted a bold new strategy to raise its profile throughout the world, and central to that strategy is the rise of Awlaki, who may or may not have been killed in a recent raid on militants in Yemen.</p>
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<p>“Of prime importance to al-Qaida is Awlaki’s extensive understanding of U.S. politics, culture and mores earned by a highly intelligent, highly educated, keenly articulate man,” Asia Times’ David Moon writes of Awlaki.</p>
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<p>Awlaki overshadows al-Qaida’s previously favored spokesman to the western world, the Muslim convert Adam Gadahn, and is a more effective “translator of jihad” than Osama bin Laden himself, according to the Asia Times.</p>
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<p>If Awlaki survived the Dec. 24 air strike on the al-Qaida hideout in Yemen’s Shabwah region, he may be on the move to Somalia or Pakistan, Asia Times said.</p>
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<p>All he needs to carry on with jihad is “a laptop, a video camera, Internet access and a prayer rug,” Moon wrote.</p>
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<p>6:00am 12/31/09 — More on N.M.-Born Imam from the LA Times: It’s not just right-wing media connecting the Anwar al-Awlaki dots.</p>
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<p>U.S. counter-terrorism agencies are investigating whether a New Mexico-born Islamic cleric who has become a key figure in Yemen’s al-Qaida affiliate played a role in the attempted Christmas Day bombing over Detroit, the Los Angeles Times is reporting.</p>
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<p>Intercepts and other information point to connections between 23-year-old Nigerian terrorism suspect Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab and Anwar al-Awlaki, who was born in Las Cruces in 1971 and spent most of his life in the United States before fleeing to London to escape growing FBI scrutiny, then moved to Yemen about five years ago, the Times said.</p>
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<p>Awlaki also communicated with U.S. Army Major Malik Nidal Hasan, who is accused of killing 13 people at Fort Hood in November, the Times reported.</p>
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<p>Following last week’s failed airplane bombing attempt, Abdulmutallab told the FBI that he met with Awlaki and senior al-Qaida members during an extended trip to Yemen this year and that the cleric was involved in some elements of planning or preparing the attack and providing religious justification for it, officials told the Times.</p>
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<p>8:05am 12/30/09 — Official: N.M.-Born Imam ‘Blessed’ Undie Bomber: Still unknown whether radical cleric survived last week’s bombing in Yemen.</p>
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<p>Anwar al-Awlaki, who may or may not have survived an air strike in Yemen that killed at least 30 suspected militants, reportedly blessed Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, the Nigerian national who hid explosive powder in his underwear aboard a Northwest Airlines flight from Amsterdam to Detroit on Christmas Day, a U.S. intelligence source told The Washington Times.</p>
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<p>Awlaki, who was born in 1971 in Las Cruces while his father was studying at New Mexico State University, allegedly took part in indoctrinating the 23-year-old would-be plane bomber as well as helping to radicalize Maj. Malik Nidal Hasan, the Army psychiatrist accused of killing 13 people at Fort Hood in early November, the Times said.</p>
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<p>“It was Awlaki who indoctrinated (Abdulmutallab),” the unnamed official told the Times. “He was told, ‘You are going to be the tip of the spear of the Muslim nation.'”</p>
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<p>Meanwhile, a senior U.S. official told Fox News this week that Awlaki, who has now been linked to two violent plots recently, has “gone operational,” and is becoming an increasingly significant figure in terror networks on the Arabian peninsula.</p>
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<p>Awlaki, whose death was first reported in the wake of last week’s raids by Yemeni forces but is now unconfirmed, had previously been devoted to “propaganda and spiritual guidance” but became “operational” some time within the past year, the official told Fox News.</p>
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<p>So far no evidence has surfaced that the would-be Northwest Airlines bomber, Abdulmutallab exchanged e-mails or talked one-on-one with Awlaki, but evidence collected so far shows that the Nigerian was a “big fan” of Awlaki and followed his blog and Web site, the senior U.S. official said.</p>
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<p>Sources told Fox News that Abdulmutallab traveled to Yemen before the failed bomb attempt and may have been “vetted for the mission” and supplied with the explosive material while there.</p>
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<p>Here’s more on New Mexico’s gift to global jihad, who also was mentioned in the 9/11 Commission’s final report as having counseled two of the 19 hijackers who attacked on Sept. 11, 2001, and may have counseled a third, from the Weekly Standard’s blog.</p>
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<p>5:45am 12/24/09 — N.M.-Born Radical Imam Believed Killed in Raid: Accused Fort Hood shooter allegedly sought guidance from elusive cleric.</p>
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<p>Yemeni forces killed at least 30 suspected militants in an air strike early today, and the radical Muslim cleric who has been linked to accused Fort Hood shooter Maj. Nidal Hasan is believed to have died in the raid, a security official told Reuters news service.</p>
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<p>Anwar al-Awlaki, a radical Yemeni-American preacher who was born in New Mexico, exchanged e-mails with Hasan, who has been charged with killing 13 people at the Fort Hood Army post on Nov. 5, but in a recent interview with al-Jazeera denied inciting the Army psychiatrist, according to a report on CBS News.</p>
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<p>A Yemeni government official told The Washington Post that the apparent target of the early Thursday raid was Awlaki’s house, but it was unknown whether Awlaki was present at the meeting, or if he was, whether he died or escaped.</p>
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<p>A close relative of Awlaki reached at the family home in the Yemeni capital, Sanaa, told The Post that relatives don’t believe Awlaki was still living in Shabwa, the site of the attack.</p>
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<p>“We have not had any confirmation yet,” a man with an American accent who identified himself as Awlaki’s brother told The Washington Post. “I don’t believe it’s true.”</p>
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<p>In an interview published on al-Jazeera’s Web site, Awlaki said Hasan asked for guidance about killing American military personnel in his very first e-mail, ABC News reported this week.</p>
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<p>Awlaki claims that Hasan initiated the e-mail correspondence with a message on Dec. 17, 2008. “He was asking about killing U.S. soldiers and officers,” says Awlaki. “His question was is it legitimate [under Islamic law].”</p>
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<p>5:45am 12/2/09 — Feds in Denver Reviewing Case of N.M.-Born Cleric: Arrest warrant withdrawn in 2002 for radical cleric later linked to Ft. Hood shooter.</p>
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<p>Federal prosecutors in Denver on Tuesday began reviewing their 2002 investigative case file on radical Muslim cleric Anwar al-Awlaki, who was born in New Mexico and is believed to be in hiding in Yemen, the Denver Post is reporting.</p>
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<p>Al-Awlaki could be a key figure in the case against Army Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan, accused of killing 13 people and wound dozens of others in a shooting rampage at Fort Hood, Texas, in November.</p>
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<p>Numerous e-mail exchanges between Hasan and al-Awlaki were found on Hasan’s computer following the shootings, and al-Awlaki has posted comments on the Internet praising Hasan’s actions, according to the Post.</p>
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<p>An arrest warrant was issued in 2002 by the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Denver for al-Awlaki on charges of making a false statement and passport fraud, but those charges were withdrawn before the cleric could be arrested, the Post reported on Tuesday.</p>
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<p>When al-Awlaki passed through JFK airport in New York City in October 2002, he was briefly detained but was released when authorities there saw that the federal warrant out of Colorado had been withdrawn, according to a report on ABC News.</p>
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<p>A spokesman for U.S. Attorney David Gaouette told the Post on Tuesday that he would not discuss the 2002 case because the “matter is still under review.”</p>
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<p>ABC News reported that the arrest warrant was sought because al-Awlaki attended Colorado State University on a foreign-student visa, claiming he was born in Yemen, when he actually was born in New Mexico.</p>
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<p>As we’ve earlier reported, al-Awlaki was born in Las Cruces in 1971 while his father was attending New Mexico State University.</p>
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<p>7:30am 11/11/09 — Radical Imam Linked to Suspected Ft. Hood Shooter Was Born in N.M.: Father of cleric who urged killing U.S. troops a ‘distinguished’ alumnus at NMSU.</p>
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<p>Yemeni-American imam Anwar Al-Awlaki (also known as Anwar al-Aulaqi), a suspected electronic pen pal of accused Fort Hood shooter, Army Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan, was born in New Mexico.</p>
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<p>Here’s Olivier Uyttebrouck’s story on the New Mexico link from this morning’s Albuquerque Journal:</p>
<p>Shooter E-Mailed N.M.-Born Cleric</p>
<p>By Olivier Uyttebrouck</p>
<p>Journal Staff Writer</p>
<p>In mid-2006, Awlaki was briefly detained in Yemen at the request of U.S. officials who alleged that he worked with al-Queda networks in the Persian Gulf, The Washington Post reported.</p>
<p>Anwar al-Awlaki was the spiritual leader in 2001 and 2002 of the Dar al-Hijrah mosque in Falls Church, Va., where Hasan worshipped before he was transferred to Fort Hood.</p>
<p>New Mexico State University recognized Nasser Al-Aulaqi, then president of Sana’a University in Yemen, as a Distinguished International Alumnus in 2002. Nasser Al-Aulaqi received a bachelor’s degree in 1969 and a master’s degree in 1971, both in agricultural economics, NMSU reported in a 2002 alumni publication.</p>
<p>The Washington Post in 2008 identified Awlaki’s father as Nasser Al-Aulaqi, whom it described as a former Yemeni government minister.</p>
<p>U.S. officials say Hasan acted alone, but the FBI has begun an internal review into its handling of the e-mails.</p>
<p>Intelligence agencies intercepted 10 to 20 e-mail messages last year between Awlaki and Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan, who is accused of a shooting rampage Thursday that left 13 dead and 29 injured.</p>
<p>The cleric, Anwar al-Awlaki, also earned a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering at Colorado State University in Fort Collins, Colo., where he became a mosque leader in the early 1990s.</p>
<p>The Army psychiatrist accused in the shooting deaths of 13 people at Fort Hood, Texas, communicated last year with a Yemeni-American cleric who was born in Las Cruces in 1971 while his father attended college there.</p>
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<p>&#160;The radical Muslim cleric, who is suspected of communicating with Hasan and later called the Army psychiatrist a hero for killing 13 people and wounding 30 at Fort Hood last Thursday, is believed to be hiding in a mountainous region of Yemen after being released from jail in that country nine months ago on a promise he would refrain from all violent activity, according to the anti-terror Web site The Jawa Report.</p>
<p>&#160;</p>
<p>Al-Awlaki (or al-Aulaqi) was the leader of mosques in San Diego and Falls Church, Va., which counted three of the 9-11 hijackers as their members, but was cleared of any involvement in the terrorist attack and was allowed to leave the country in 2002, according to The 9/11 Commission Report.</p>
<p>&#160;</p>
<p>Well before his name resurfaced for his possible connection to the suspected Fort Hood shooter, U.S. officials began acknowledging in early 2008 that the cleric worked with al-Qaida networks in the Persian Gulf after leaving the United States, the Washington Post’s Susan Schmidt reported at the time.</p>
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<p>“There is good reason to believe Anwar Aulaqi has been involved in very serious terrorist activities since leaving the United States, including plotting attacks against America and its allies,” a U.S. counterterrorism official told the Post on condition of anonymity.</p>
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<p>According to the Post article, al-Aulaqi was born in New Mexico in 1971 while his father studied for a college degree.</p>
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<p>(The Wikipedia article says Anwar al-Awlaki was born either in New Mexico or in Aden, but most accounts of his life say he is a U.S.-born citizen.)</p>
<p>&#160;</p>
<p>He spent part of his childhood in Yemen and returned to the U.S. in 1991 to study engineering at Colorado State University, and after graduating, became a mosque leader, first in Fort Collins, Colo., and then in San Diego.</p>
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<p>But where in New Mexico?</p>
<p>&#160;</p>
<p>A little Internet sleuthing found that Aulaqi’s father, Nasser Al-Aulaqi, was named a distinguished international alumnus at New Mexico State University, according to NMSU’s Fall 2002 alumni newsletter.</p>
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<p>The elder al-Aulaqi, who at one time headed Yemen’s largest public university and was that nation’s minister of agriculture, earned a bachelor’s in agricultural economics from NMSU in 1969 and a master’s in 1971, going on for his doctorate in agricultural economics at the University of Nebraska, the newsletter said.</p>
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<p>From 1975 to 1977, al-Aulaqi was a researcher and faculty member at the University of Minnesota, before returning to Yemen in 1978.</p>
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<p>“My son is not a terrorist,” the elder al-Aulaqi told the Washington Post in 2008. “He never advocated violence against anybody.”</p>
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washington judge tuesday threw lawsuit aimed preventing united states targeting antiamerican cleric anwar alawlaki death questioned whether president aides unilaterally order us citizen assassinated terrorist activity us district judge john bates said 83page opinion authority review presidents military decisions alawlakis father legal right sue stop united states killing son bates also said unique extraordinary case raised vital considerations national security military foreign affairs among stark perplexing questions bates said case raises courts authority approve surveillance americans overseas killing questioned whether president advisers order assassination us citizen without form judicial process whatsoever based mere assertion dangerous member terrorist organization advertisement serious issues regarding merits alleged authorization targeted killing us citizen overseas must await another day another nonjudicial forum wrote bates appointee president george w bush army veteran alawlaki believed hiding yemen urged muslims kill americans also linked last years shooting fort hood texas attempted bombing usbound flight last christmas obama administration officials confirmed associated press alawlaki capture kill list although obama administration declined confirm deny court proceedings clerics father nasser alawlaki yemen represented american civil liberties union center constitutional rights argued international law constitution prevented administration unilaterally targeting son death unless presents specific imminent threat life physical safety means stop suit president barack obama defense secretary robert gates cia director leon panetta also tried force government disclose standards determining whether us citizens like son born new mexico 1971 raised united states targeted death courts ruling correct government unreviewable authority carry targeted killing american anywhere president decides threat nation said aclu deputy legal director jameel jaffer really would difficult conceive proposition inconsistent constitution every presidential power subject checks balances administration officials argued court legal authority review president makes military decisions protect americans terrorist attacks bates agreed although somewhat reluctantly sure court recognizes somewhat unsettling nature conclusion circumstances executives unilateral decision kill us citizen overseas constitutionally committed political branches judicially unreviewable bates wrote case squarely presents circumstance bates also said must dismiss case anwar alawlaki bring suit judge swayed fathers argument cleric could sue would force come hiding risk life bates said alawlaki could peacefully present protection international law even suggested footnote cleric could possibly participate via videoconferencing still hiding advertisement bates also said theres evidence alawlaki wants father sue protect constitutional rights two contact safety risk contrary bates said alawlaki publicly denounced us legal system said muslims bound western law obama administration also said case thrown could disclose state secrets bates agreed administration didnt need consider argument case thrown grounds assistant attorney general tony west applauded ruling said pleased court didnt take state secrets claim people need remember really unprecedented case plaintiffs asking court review military decisions benefit leader foreign terrorist organization west said said filed case anwar alawlaki wants access court systems ought surrender authorities held accountable actions plaintiffs attorneys said considering whether appeal 160 160 monday 08 november 2010 0620 160 160 cairo usborn islamic cleric linked attacks alqaida yemen us targets called muslims around world kill americans new video posted extremist websites monday anwar alawlaki 39 one prominent englishlanguage radical clerics sermons advocating jihad holy war united states influenced militants involved several attacks attempted attacks us soil yemeni officials say may blessed recent mail bomb plot though may taken active part alawlaki past messages encouraged muslims murder american soldiers justified killings american civilians accusing united states intentionally killing million muslim civilians iraq afghanistan elsewhere message appeared stronger arguing justification needed 23minute message delivered arabic alawlaki said americans enemy clerics dont need issue special fatwas religious rulings allowing killed dressed traditional yemeni garb white robe turban sheathed dagger tucked waistband wore round spectacles sitting behind desk dont consult anybody killing americans said fighting devil doesnt require consultation prayers seeking divine guidance party devils added either us alawlaki born new mexico yemeni parents used website englishlanguage sermons encourage muslims around world kill us troops iraq tied us intelligence 911 hijackers umar farouk abdulmutallab tried blow airliner detroit christmas last year explosives hidden underwear also contact maj nidal malik hasan army psychiatrist accused killing 13 people november fort hood texas military base us investigators say since returned yemen 2006 alawlaki moved beyond inspiring militants becoming active operative alqaidas affiliate friday alqaida arabian peninsula terror groups offshoot yemen claimed responsibility sending bombs mail packages addressed us bombs found airports england dubai united arab emirates exploded short excerpts alawlaki video posted monday released oct 23 two weeks mail bombs uncovered first full posting video alawlaki also attacked rulers arab world particularly yemen describing corrupt called religious scholars declare nonmuslims betraying muslim people kings emirs presidents qualified lead nation even flock sheep said leaders corrupt scholars responsibility lead nation added leaders would removed muslim people move forward way muslims protect threat infidels supporting mujahedeen said referring alqaida fighters support mujahedeen win let lose said 160 160 160 160 160 wednesday 03 november 2010 0620 160 yemeni authorities charged anwar alawlaki new mexicoborn radical cleric alleged spiritual mentor alqaida arabian peninsula incitement violence foreigners according uks telegraph 160 awlaki charged absentia court yemens capital sanaa start case local man fatally shot french oil manager wounded british security guard telegraph said 160 man 19yearold hisham assem accused contact alawlaki clerics cousin osman alawlaki allegedly told investigators inspired videotaped sermons calling killing foreign occupiers paper reported 160 meanwhile telegraph also reported today youtube begun removing alqaida videos alawlaki website british government lodged complaint videos us white house 160 number clips alawlaki believed mastermind last weeks cargo bomb plot implicated number recent attempted terror attacks united states removed youtube site tuesday night according telegraph 160 scores including incendiary calls wage war nonmuslims remain telegraph said 160 yemens first formal legal action alawlaki believed living mountainous region country sheltered family members tribal religious leaders deny terrorist washington times reported tuesday 160 yemen heavy international pressure crack two mail bombs originating yemen intercepted dubai britain last week times said 160 160 160 160 160 840am 102110 report alawlaki lunched pentagon months 911 attacks new mexicoborn cleric tied terror attacks part outreach muslims 160 anwar alawlaki yemeniamerican cleric born las cruces first us citizen cias killorcapture list suspected role recent terror attacks luncheon guest military brass pentagon months sept 11 2001 terror attacks fox news first report wednesday 160 according documents obtained fox news alawlaki invited pentagon part militarys outreach muslim community aftermath 2001 attacks 160 current defense department employee told investigators looking november 2009 fort hood shootings helped arrange luncheon heard alawlaki speak alexandria va fox news said 160 employee attended talk arrived late recalls impressed imam condemned al qaeda terrorist attacks talke harassed members audience suffered well one documents read 160 period time secretary army eager presentation moderate muslim awlaki considered coming member islamic community documents said 160 alawlaki interviewed least four times fbi first week sept 11 2001 attacks ties three airline hijackers cleared involvement plot fox news said 160 cleric believed hiding yemen linked accused fort hood shooter maj nidal malik hasan exchanged emails prior attack 160 addition linked hasan alawlaki allegedly helped train umar farouk abdulmutallab charged trying blow detroitbound airliner christmas day said inspired wouldbe times square bomber faisal shahzad nbc news reported 160 pentagon officials told nbc news wednesday alawlaki invited pentagon part outreach program convince influential muslims war afghanistan aimed alqaida muslims 160 160 160 160 730am 91610 white house weighs criminal charges alawlaki radical cleric born las cruces already cia killorcapture list 160 case hanging suspect giving fair trial 160 according report week associated press obama administration considering filing first criminal charges radical cleric anwar alawlaki us citizen born las cruces 36 years ago case cia fails kill captured alive yemen 160 decision would part white houses strategy fighting terrorism court battlefield ap reported 160 umar farouk adbulmutallab nigerian man accused failed christmas day bombing detroitbound us airliner indicated federal court week may plead guilty charges raising possibility cooperation could lay foundation charges alawlaki suspected hand planning attack according ap 160 government officials hope abdulmutallab already told fbi alawlaki involved airline bombing plan would plead guilty testify radical cleric suspected bomber fired attorney monday yet enter kind plea deal ap said 160 critics say however criminally charging alawlaki direct involvement terrorist act could require us reveal evidence gleaned foreign wiretaps confidential informants according report 160 another option would charge alawlaki supporting terrorism charge carries 15year prison sentence leaving administration open questions president could authorize cia essentially impose death penalty crime ap said 160 justice department decides charge alawlaki likely would indicted would automatically give right attorney rather subject fbi criminal complaint 160 alawlaki said hiding mountainous region yemen sheltered family religious leaders say ties terrorism case yemeni officials said turn us authorities ap reported 160 160 160 160 545am 8510 nmborn imam called bin ladens heir apparent cnn profile civil rights groups sue us government remove radical cleric death list 160 theres video profile anwar alawlaki titled us born clerics ominous goodbye aired week cnn theres much time new mexico born las cruces moved family soon afterward interesting look man cnn calls heir apparent osama bin laden 160 meanwhile abc news also reported week aclu center constitutional rights suing treasury secretary timothy geithner us governments decision place awlaki hit list freeze us assets 160 awlaki us citizen virtue las cruces birth linked fort hood shootings attempted christmas day bombing northwest 253 detroit failed car bombing times square july placed treasury departments list specially designated global terrorists abc news reported 160 last month awlakis father nasser alawlaki studying new mexico state university son born asked civil rights groups challenge sons placement list us citizens assassinated us forces intelligence services links terrorism according abc news 160 160 160 160 710am 71510 nmborn imam calls killing muhammad cartoonists radical cleric launches englishlanguage online magazine recruit us terrorists 160 anwar alawlaki las crucesborn radical muslim cleric linked number recent terror attacks united states called death seattle cartoonist molly norris spearheaded everybody draw muhammed day online spoof response media censorship new york daily news reported week 160 new englishlanguage online magazine called inspire awlaki singled norris prime target execution saying proper abode hellfire also calling execution eight cartoonists authors journalists swedish dutch british citizens blasphemous caricatures prophet muhammad daily news said 160 medicine prescribed messenger allah execution involved wrote 39yearold awlaki believed hiding yemen 160 david gomez fbis assistant special agent charge counterterrorism seattle said norris others named awlaki warned serious threat according daily news 160 awlakis latest rant first appeared late last month sunday online magazine posted internet alqaida arabian peninsula yemeni branch terrorist organization daily news said 160 inspire includes articles make bomb kitchen mom seen bid recruit americans launch terrorist attacks united states reuters news service reported week 160 englishlanguage magazine also includes messages osama bin laden deputy ayman alzawahiri well stepbystep graphics making homemade bomb ordinary kitchen materials article send receive encrypted messages reuters said 160 unfortunately welldone magazine proof positive alqaida affiliates launched direct appeal americans launch smallscale attacks home said rep pete hoekstra top republican us house intelligence committee magazine virtual howto guide becoming terrorist 160 america win awlaki said magazine tables turned rolling back worldwide jihad movement eve 911 afghanistan alone today afghanistan pakistan iraq somalia north africa arabian peninsula list growing 160 160 160 160 545 51110 nmborn imam linked yet another terror try ny times profiles clerics journey condemning terror preaching jihad 160 jihad becoming american apple pie british afternoon tea anwar alawlaki radical muslim cleric born las cruces 39 years ago said recent statement according lengthy new york times profile appeared weekend 160 awlaki told reporters weeks following sept 11 2001 terrorist attacks condemned mass murders talked building bridges americans muslims worldwide times said 160 fugitive yemen us citizen marked death american authorities undergoing apparent transformation peacemaker recruiter alqaida according earlier reports 160 according times awlakis mix scripture vitriol helped lure young muslims dozen plots 160 electronic penpal accused fort hood killer maj nidal malik hasan role prompting young nigerian umar farouk abdulmutallab make failed bombing airliner detroit christmas day 160 according times linked latest string terrorist attempts united states serving inspiration faisal shahzad us citizen pakistan charged attempted bombing times square 160 shahzad told investigators awlakis online lectures urging jihad religious duty inspired act times said 160 160 160 160 655am 4710 us puts nmborn imam death list radical cleric hiding yemen may first us citizen ever targeted killing 160 obama administration taken extraordinary step authorizing targeted killing us citizen new mexicoborn radical muslim cleric anwar alawlaki believed shifted encouraging attacks united states directly participating intelligence counterintelligence officials told new york times tuesday 160 awlaki born las cruces father studied new mexico state university spent years imam united states going hiding familys native yemen times said 160 linked maj nidal malik hasan army psychiatrist accused killing 13 people fort hood texas last november well umar farouk abdulmutallab nigerian man accused trying blow airliner detroit dec 25 paper reported 160 counterterrorism officials told times awlaki operative al qaeda arabian peninsula believe become recruiter terrorist network 160 former senior legal official george w bush administration told times know american approved targeted killing former president 160 dennis c blair obamas director national intelligence told house hearing february step possible although name awlaki target time paper reported 160 danger awlaki poses country longer confined words american official spoke condition anonymity told times hes gotten involved plots 160 rep jane harman dcalif chairwoman house subcommittee homeland security said panel discussion washington tuesday called awlaki probably person terrorist would terrorist 1 terms threat us times reported 160 160 160 160 950am 1610 nmborn imam called bin laden internet dead alive usyemeni cleric may bigger deal anybody thought 160 anwar alawlaki us actually las cruces born radical islamist linked accused fort hood shooter maj malik nidal hasan christmas day wouldbe airplane bomber umar farouk abdulmutallab called bin laden internet stature risen significantly world jihad america according middle east media research institute memri 160 alarabiya tv directorgeneral abdul rahman alrashed one esteemed voices arab media made bin laden comparison last month saudi daily going warn need wage war extremist web sites general become larger camps first camp bin ladens gave name al qaeda organization memris steven salinsky wrote 160 awlaki shut influential web site praising army psychiatrist accused killing 13 people fort hood november hero 2000 clips lectures sermons jihadist videos circulating internet calling muslims holy war supporting suicide terrorist attacks encouraging viewers kill american soldiers salinsky wrote 160 awlakis hate speech cds sale bookstores london lived briefly fleeing united states mirror london reports dvds awlakis speeches sold next london mosque attended accused northwest airlines flight 253 bomber according posting associatedcontentcom 160 article posted today online asia times notes us authorities seem focused alqaidas tactics shadowy organization adopted bold new strategy raise profile throughout world central strategy rise awlaki may may killed recent raid militants yemen 160 prime importance alqaida awlakis extensive understanding us politics culture mores earned highly intelligent highly educated keenly articulate man asia times david moon writes awlaki 160 awlaki overshadows alqaidas previously favored spokesman western world muslim convert adam gadahn effective translator jihad osama bin laden according asia times 160 awlaki survived dec 24 air strike alqaida hideout yemens shabwah region may move somalia pakistan asia times said 160 needs carry jihad laptop video camera internet access prayer rug moon wrote 160 160 160 160 160 160 160 600am 123109 nmborn imam la times rightwing media connecting anwar alawlaki dots 160 us counterterrorism agencies investigating whether new mexicoborn islamic cleric become key figure yemens alqaida affiliate played role attempted christmas day bombing detroit los angeles times reporting 160 intercepts information point connections 23yearold nigerian terrorism suspect umar farouk abdulmutallab anwar alawlaki born las cruces 1971 spent life united states fleeing london escape growing fbi scrutiny moved yemen five years ago times said 160 awlaki also communicated us army major malik nidal hasan accused killing 13 people fort hood november times reported 160 following last weeks failed airplane bombing attempt abdulmutallab told fbi met awlaki senior alqaida members extended trip yemen year cleric involved elements planning preparing attack providing religious justification officials told times 160 160 160 160 805am 123009 official nmborn imam blessed undie bomber still unknown whether radical cleric survived last weeks bombing yemen 160 anwar alawlaki may may survived air strike yemen killed least 30 suspected militants reportedly blessed umar farouk abdulmutallab nigerian national hid explosive powder underwear aboard northwest airlines flight amsterdam detroit christmas day us intelligence source told washington times 160 awlaki born 1971 las cruces father studying new mexico state university allegedly took part indoctrinating 23yearold wouldbe plane bomber well helping radicalize maj malik nidal hasan army psychiatrist accused killing 13 people fort hood early november times said 160 anwar alawlaki 160 anwar alawlaki awlaki indoctrinated abdulmutallab unnamed official told times told going tip spear muslim nation 160 meanwhile senior us official told fox news week awlaki linked two violent plots recently gone operational becoming increasingly significant figure terror networks arabian peninsula 160 awlaki whose death first reported wake last weeks raids yemeni forces unconfirmed previously devoted propaganda spiritual guidance became operational time within past year official told fox news 160 far evidence surfaced wouldbe northwest airlines bomber abdulmutallab exchanged emails talked oneonone awlaki evidence collected far shows nigerian big fan awlaki followed blog web site senior us official said 160 sources told fox news abdulmutallab traveled yemen failed bomb attempt may vetted mission supplied explosive material 160 heres new mexicos gift global jihad also mentioned 911 commissions final report counseled two 19 hijackers attacked sept 11 2001 may counseled third weekly standards blog 160 160 160 160 545am 122409 nmborn radical imam believed killed raid accused fort hood shooter allegedly sought guidance elusive cleric 160 yemeni forces killed least 30 suspected militants air strike early today radical muslim cleric linked accused fort hood shooter maj nidal hasan believed died raid security official told reuters news service 160 anwar alawlaki radical yemeniamerican preacher born new mexico exchanged emails hasan charged killing 13 people fort hood army post nov 5 recent interview aljazeera denied inciting army psychiatrist according report cbs news 160 yemeni government official told washington post apparent target early thursday raid awlakis house unknown whether awlaki present meeting whether died escaped 160 close relative awlaki reached family home yemeni capital sanaa told post relatives dont believe awlaki still living shabwa site attack 160 confirmation yet man american accent identified awlakis brother told washington post dont believe true 160 interview published aljazeeras web site awlaki said hasan asked guidance killing american military personnel first email abc news reported week share 160 awlaki claims hasan initiated email correspondence message dec 17 2008 asking killing us soldiers officers says awlaki question legitimate islamic law 160 160 160 160 545am 12209 feds denver reviewing case nmborn cleric arrest warrant withdrawn 2002 radical cleric later linked ft hood shooter 160 federal prosecutors denver tuesday began reviewing 2002 investigative case file radical muslim cleric anwar alawlaki born new mexico believed hiding yemen denver post reporting 160 alawlaki could key figure case army maj nidal malik hasan accused killing 13 people wound dozens others shooting rampage fort hood texas november 160 numerous email exchanges hasan alawlaki found hasans computer following shootings alawlaki posted comments internet praising hasans actions according post 160 arrest warrant issued 2002 us attorneys office denver alawlaki charges making false statement passport fraud charges withdrawn cleric could arrested post reported tuesday 160 alawlaki passed jfk airport new york city october 2002 briefly detained released authorities saw federal warrant colorado withdrawn according report abc news 160 spokesman us attorney david gaouette told post tuesday would discuss 2002 case matter still review 160 abc news reported arrest warrant sought alawlaki attended colorado state university foreignstudent visa claiming born yemen actually born new mexico 160 weve earlier reported alawlaki born las cruces 1971 father attending new mexico state university 160 160 160 160 730am 111109 radical imam linked suspected ft hood shooter born nm father cleric urged killing us troops distinguished alumnus nmsu 160 yemeniamerican imam anwar alawlaki also known anwar alaulaqi suspected electronic pen pal accused fort hood shooter army maj nidal malik hasan born new mexico 160 heres olivier uyttebroucks story new mexico link mornings albuquerque journal shooter emailed nmborn cleric olivier uyttebrouck journal staff writer mid2006 awlaki briefly detained yemen request us officials alleged worked alqueda networks persian gulf washington post reported anwar alawlaki spiritual leader 2001 2002 dar alhijrah mosque falls church va hasan worshipped transferred fort hood new mexico state university recognized nasser alaulaqi president sanaa university yemen distinguished international alumnus 2002 nasser alaulaqi received bachelors degree 1969 masters degree 1971 agricultural economics nmsu reported 2002 alumni publication washington post 2008 identified awlakis father nasser alaulaqi described former yemeni government minister us officials say hasan acted alone fbi begun internal review handling emails intelligence agencies intercepted 10 20 email messages last year awlaki maj nidal malik hasan accused shooting rampage thursday left 13 dead 29 injured cleric anwar alawlaki also earned bachelors degree civil engineering colorado state university fort collins colo became mosque leader early 1990s army psychiatrist accused shooting deaths 13 people fort hood texas communicated last year yemeniamerican cleric born las cruces 1971 father attended college 160 160 160 160 160the radical muslim cleric suspected communicating hasan later called army psychiatrist hero killing 13 people wounding 30 fort hood last thursday believed hiding mountainous region yemen released jail country nine months ago promise would refrain violent activity according antiterror web site jawa report 160 alawlaki alaulaqi leader mosques san diego falls church va counted three 911 hijackers members cleared involvement terrorist attack allowed leave country 2002 according 911 commission report 160 well name resurfaced possible connection suspected fort hood shooter us officials began acknowledging early 2008 cleric worked alqaida networks persian gulf leaving united states washington posts susan schmidt reported time 160 good reason believe anwar aulaqi involved serious terrorist activities since leaving united states including plotting attacks america allies us counterterrorism official told post condition anonymity 160 according post article alaulaqi born new mexico 1971 father studied college degree 160 wikipedia article says anwar alawlaki born either new mexico aden accounts life say usborn citizen 160 spent part childhood yemen returned us 1991 study engineering colorado state university graduating became mosque leader first fort collins colo san diego 160 new mexico 160 little internet sleuthing found aulaqis father nasser alaulaqi named distinguished international alumnus new mexico state university according nmsus fall 2002 alumni newsletter 160 elder alaulaqi one time headed yemens largest public university nations minister agriculture earned bachelors agricultural economics nmsu 1969 masters 1971 going doctorate agricultural economics university nebraska newsletter said 160 1975 1977 alaulaqi researcher faculty member university minnesota returning yemen 1978 160 son terrorist elder alaulaqi told washington post 2008 never advocated violence anybody 160 160 160 160
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<a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a>
<p>TOKYO (Reuters) - Asian stocks began the new quarter on Monday with modest gains following a strong performance by global equities last week, while the dollar held steady ahead of key economic indicators.</p> FILE PHOTO: A man looks at an electronic stock quotation board outside a brokerage in Tokyo, Japan February 9, 2018. REUTERS/Toru Hanai/File Photo
<p>MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan rose 0.15 percent.</p>
<p>South Korea’s KOSPI was flat and Japan’s Nikkei advanced 0.5 percent. Shanghai was up 0.3 percent.</p>
<p>Wall Street surged last Thursday as technology stocks rebounded, ending a tumultuous first quarter on a high note.</p>
<p>Many major financial centers were closed for the Good Friday Easter holiday. Markets in Australia, Hong Kong, Britain and Germany remained shut on Monday while the U.S. market will resume trading.</p>
<p>MSCI’s world equity index ended up 1.2 percent last week. But it lost about 1.5 percent in the first quarter, pushed away from record highs as tensions over global trade escalated, turmoil in the White House deepened and market-leading technology firms wobbled on fears of regulation and other issues.</p>
<p>“We expect strong and broad-based growth to continue globally,” wrote strategists at Barclays.</p>
<p>But they warned that there were looming risks: “Trade protectionism, U.S. economic policy uncertainty, concerns about higher cross-market volatility and risk premium in core rates markets call for a more tactical approach to risk assets.”</p>
<p>While last month’s fears of an all-out global trade war have abated somewhat, tensions between the United States and China over tit-for-tat tariffs kept investors on edge.</p>
<p>China on Monday imposed tariffs on U.S. products including frozen pork, wine and certain fruits and nuts in response to U.S. duties on imports of aluminum and steel.</p>
<p>In currencies, the dollar was steady at 106.350 yen, while the euro was almost unchanged at $1.2317.</p>
<p>The greenback had gained about 0.6 percent against a basket of six major currencies last week helped by a combination of factors including perceived progress on North Korea issues.</p>
<p>The dollar index still lost more than 2 percent last quarter, marking its fifth straight quarter of declines.</p>
<p>“A list of important indicators will be released this week, which could help steady market sentiment even though U.S.-China trade concerns and other geopolitical risks continue to linger in the background,” said Koji Fukaya, president at FPG Securities in Tokyo.</p>
<p>U.S. data due this week include Monday’s Institute for Supply Management (ISM) manufacturing index, Wednesday’s ISM non-manufacturing index and the non-farm payrolls report on Friday.</p>
<p>Crude oil prices extended gains, lifted by a drop in U.S. drilling activity as well as by expectations that the United States could re-introduce sanctions against Iran. [O/R]</p>
<p>U.S. drillers cut seven oil rigs in the week to March 29, bringing the total count down to 797. It was the first time in three weeks that the rig-count fell.</p>
<p>U.S. crude futures rose 0.3 percent to $65.14 a barrel and Brent advanced 0.5 percent to $69.67 a barrel.</p>
<p>“Investors took their cue from falling U.S drilling counts,” Wang Xiao, head of crude oil research with Guotai Junan Futures said.</p>
<p>“But increasing trade friction between China and U.S. is likely to rock global markets and tarnish bullish sentiment in crude oil markets.”</p>
<p>Reporting by Shinichi Saoshiro; additional reporting by Henning Gloystein in Singapore; Editing by Shri Navaratnam &amp; Sam Holmes</p> Our Standards:
<a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a>
<p>(Reuters) - Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba Group Holding Ltd said on Monday it would buy the remaining shares of Ele.me, a major platform in China’s food delivery market, as it competes with Tencent Holdings Ltd services for offline consumers.</p> Drivers of the food delivery service Ele.me prepare to start their morning shift after an internal security check in Beijing, China, September 21, 2017. REUTERS/Thomas Peter
<p>Alibaba and affiliate Ant Small &amp; Micro Financial Services Group Co Ltd currently own approximately 43 percent of Ele.me, and the latest deal will value the startup a $9.5 billion, said Alibaba in a statement.</p>
<p>Ele.me, which roughly translates as “Hungry?”, is part of a fast-growing and competitive e-commerce market in China driven by consumers eager to use smartphones to make purchases from groceries to cinema tickets.</p>
<p>In August Ele.me bought major rival Baidu deliveries from Baidu Inc. For Alibaba, the latest acquisition enlarges the e-commerce firm’s food delivery empire, which also includes delivery platform Koubei, as it competes with Meituan Dianping, backed by Tencent Holdings Ltd.</p> FILE PHOTO: A sign of Alibaba Group is seen during the fourth World Internet Conference in Wuzhen, Zhejiang province, China, December 3, 2017. REUTERS/Aly Song/File Photo
<p>Alibaba and Meituan are both investing heavily in offline services, including deliveries, mobile payments and unstaffed stores, to tap a wider demographic as China’s online commerce market shows signs of slowing.</p>
<p>Ele.me will continue to operate under its own brand following the acquisition, said Alibaba, but will combine some functionalities with Koubei.</p>
<p>As part of the deal Alibaba will install Alibaba Vice President Wang Lei as chief executive at Ele.me, while the current chief executive and founder of Ele.me will become chairman and serve as a special advisor to Alibaba on new retail strategies.</p>
<p>Reporting by Cate Cadell in BEIJING and Ismail Shakil in BENGALURU; Editing by Sunil Nair</p> Our Standards:
<a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a>
<p>TOKYO (Reuters) - Japanese business sentiment worsened for the first time in two years in the three months to March, a closely watched central bank survey showed on Monday, as rising raw materials and labor costs weigh on an otherwise steady economic recovery.</p> A maintenance worker is seen atop of an airplane of Japan Airlines (JAL) at a hangar of Haneda airport in Tokyo, Japan, April 2, 2018. REUTERS/Issei Kato
<p>A strong yen and simmering fears of a trade war, triggered by U.S. President Donald Trump’s move to impose tariffs on Chinese goods, could further undermine corporate morale if threats of retaliation escalate, analysts say.</p>
<p>But few analysts expect the economic recovery to falter as business confidence remains at a decade-high level and companies plan to increase capital expenditure.</p>
<p>“Yen gains since late January have eroded manufacturers’ sentiment but solid global economic fundamentals helped offset the pain. Overall, you can say that business confidence held firm,” said Yuichiro Nagai, an economist at Barclays Securities.</p>
<p>“Fears of a global trade war have had a limited impact on business sentiment so far. But depending on development of U.S. trade policy, protectionism could weigh on the outlook.”</p>
<p>An index measuring big manufacturers’ confidence fell by 2 points to plus 24 in March, the Bank of Japan’s quarterly “tankan” survey showed, roughly matching a median market forecast of plus 25.</p>
<p>Non-manufacturers’ sentiment worsened by 2 points to plus 23 against a median forecast of plus 24, deteriorating for the first time in six quarters.</p>
<p>Both big manufacturers and non-manufacturers forecast business conditions would sour three months ahead, the tankan showed, reflecting looming uncertainty over the fallout from Trump’s trade policy and a strong yen.</p>
<p>“This should not be taken as turning point for Japan’s economy although sentiment deteriorated slightly,” said Takeshi Minami, chief economist at Norinchukin Research Institute. “Concerns are high over possible retaliation against U.S. tariffs, but the global economy remains in a gradual recovery which is good for Japan’s value-added exports.”</p>
<p>About 70 percent of companies replied to the survey by March 12, after Trump unveiled steep tariffs on steel and aluminum imports but before his announcement of anti-China tariffs.</p>
<p>Big manufacturers expect the dollar to move around 109.66 yen on average during the year that began in April, much weaker than the current levels around 106 yen.</p>
<p>If the yen’s gains continue, manufacturers may be forced to cut their optimistic profit forecasts - a worry for Prime Minister Shinzo Abe who is pursuing growth with reflationist policies.</p> LABOR SHORTAGES
<p>Labor shortages also weighed on sentiment, as economic recovery and a dwindling working-age population push the jobless rate to a near 25-year low.</p>
<p>A tankan index measuring capacity constraints showed that companies saw the job market at its tightest since 1991.</p>
<p>“Labor shortages are having a negative impact particularly on labor-intensive service-sector firms,” said Satoshi Osanai, senior economist at Daiwa Institute of Research.</p> FILE PHOTO: A Japan Yen note is seen in this illustration photo taken June 1, 2017. REUTERS/Thomas White/Illustration/File Photo
<p>He said rising wages could stoke a “virtuous growth cycle” of consumer spending, rising prices and increased investment if companies could pass on their higher costs to generate profit. “The key to making this happen is whether consumers are willing to spend their increased earnings, but so far there’s little sign of that happening.”</p>
<p>Slow wage growth and companies’ reluctance to raise prices have kept inflation well below the Bank of Japan’s elusive 2 percent target.</p>
<p>However, the tankan showed more companies were able to pass higher costs on to consumers, a hopeful sign for the central bank.</p>
<p>A tankan index measuring how big manufacturers saw output price moves stood at plus 4, the highest level since 2008, and showing price pressures continue to rise.</p>
<p>Some firms in the construction, restaurant and hotel industries complained that labor shortages were taking a toll on their businesses, a BOJ official briefing reporters on the data said.</p>
<p>Firms in the basic materials business such as those selling steel, nonferrous metals and textiles saw sentiment hurt by rising cost of raw materials, the official said.</p>
<p>The index measuring steelmakers’ sentiment fell 9 points, the biggest drop among big manufacturers, while confidence also slumped among producers of nonferrous metals and metal products.</p>
<p>Still, big firms plan to raise their capital spending by 2.3 percent in the current financial year from April, versus the median estimate for a 0.6 percent gain, the tankan showed.</p>
<p>The tankan’s sentiment indexes are derived by subtracting the number of respondents who say conditions are poor from those who say they are good. A positive reading means optimists outnumber pessimists.</p>
<p>Reporting by Leika Kihara and Tetsushi Kajimoto; Editing by Sam Holmes and Eric Meijer</p> Our Standards:
<a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a>
<p>LONDON (Reuters) - Oil rose towards $70 a barrel on Monday, lifted by a drop in drilling activity in the United States and concerns that Washington could reintroduce sanctions against Iran.</p> FILE PHOTO: Crude oil storage tanks are seen from above at the Cushing oil hub, in Cushing, Oklahoma, March 24, 2016. REUTERS/Nick Oxford/File Photo
<p>U.S. drillers cut seven oil rigs in the week to March 29, bringing the total down to 797, the first decline in three weeks. The rig count is closely watched as an indicator of future U.S. oil output.</p>
<p>Brent crude, the international benchmark, rose 58 cents to $69.92 a barrel at 0850 GMT. It was still below its 2018 high of $71.28 reached on Jan. 25. U.S. crude added 38 cents to $65.32.</p>
<p>Trading volume was lower than normal as many countries were still on Easter holiday.</p>
<p>“The market is set for a re-test of the highs of 2018,” said Olivier Jakob, oil analyst at Petromatrix.</p>
<p>“The Iranian factor is going to be a very significant input for the next four weeks. It is going to be an underlying support for the whole month.”</p>
<p>U.S. President Donald Trump has threatened to pull out of a 2015 international nuclear deal with Tehran under which Iranian oil exports have risen. He has given the European signatories a May 12 deadline to “fix the terrible flaws” of the deal.</p>
<p>Oil has risen from a multi-year low near $27 in January 2016, helped by production cuts led by the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and Russia, which started in 2017 and is due to run until the end of 2018.</p>
<p>The revival in prices has helped to support a surge in U.S. drilling, which has boosted U.S. production to a record 10.43 million barrels per day (bpd), taking it past top exporter Saudi Arabia.</p>
<p>Russian oil output rose in March despite the output deal, to 10.97 million bpd from 10.95 million bpd in February, Russian Energy Ministry data showed, putting Russia ahead of the United States as the world’s biggest crude producer.</p>
<p>Also potentially weighing on markets were rising trade tensions between the United States and China.</p>
<p>China increased tariffs by up to 25 percent on 128 U.S. products from Monday, escalating a spat between the world’s biggest economies in response to U.S. duties on imports of aluminum and steel.</p>
<p>“Investors took their cue from falling U.S drilling counts,” said Wang Xiao of Guotai Junan Futures. “But increasing trade friction between China and the U.S. is likely to rock global markets and tarnish bullish sentiment in crude oil markets.”</p>
<p>Additional reporting by Meng Meng in BEIJING and Henning Gloystein in SINGAPORE; Editing by Susan Fenton</p> Our Standards:
<a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a>
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thomson reuters trust principles tokyo reuters asian stocks began new quarter monday modest gains following strong performance global equities last week dollar held steady ahead key economic indicators file photo man looks electronic stock quotation board outside brokerage tokyo japan february 9 2018 reuterstoru hanaifile photo mscis broadest index asiapacific shares outside japan rose 015 percent south koreas kospi flat japans nikkei advanced 05 percent shanghai 03 percent wall street surged last thursday technology stocks rebounded ending tumultuous first quarter high note many major financial centers closed good friday easter holiday markets australia hong kong britain germany remained shut monday us market resume trading mscis world equity index ended 12 percent last week lost 15 percent first quarter pushed away record highs tensions global trade escalated turmoil white house deepened marketleading technology firms wobbled fears regulation issues expect strong broadbased growth continue globally wrote strategists barclays warned looming risks trade protectionism us economic policy uncertainty concerns higher crossmarket volatility risk premium core rates markets call tactical approach risk assets last months fears allout global trade war abated somewhat tensions united states china titfortat tariffs kept investors edge china monday imposed tariffs us products including frozen pork wine certain fruits nuts response us duties imports aluminum steel currencies dollar steady 106350 yen euro almost unchanged 12317 greenback gained 06 percent basket six major currencies last week helped combination factors including perceived progress north korea issues dollar index still lost 2 percent last quarter marking fifth straight quarter declines list important indicators released week could help steady market sentiment even though uschina trade concerns geopolitical risks continue linger background said koji fukaya president fpg securities tokyo us data due week include mondays institute supply management ism manufacturing index wednesdays ism nonmanufacturing index nonfarm payrolls report friday crude oil prices extended gains lifted drop us drilling activity well expectations united states could reintroduce sanctions iran us drillers cut seven oil rigs week march 29 bringing total count 797 first time three weeks rigcount fell us crude futures rose 03 percent 6514 barrel brent advanced 05 percent 6967 barrel investors took cue falling us drilling counts wang xiao head crude oil research guotai junan futures said increasing trade friction china us likely rock global markets tarnish bullish sentiment crude oil markets reporting shinichi saoshiro additional reporting henning gloystein singapore editing shri navaratnam amp sam holmes standards thomson reuters trust principles reuters chinese ecommerce giant alibaba group holding ltd said monday would buy remaining shares eleme major platform chinas food delivery market competes tencent holdings ltd services offline consumers drivers food delivery service eleme prepare start morning shift internal security check beijing china september 21 2017 reutersthomas peter alibaba affiliate ant small amp micro financial services group co ltd currently approximately 43 percent eleme latest deal value startup 95 billion said alibaba statement eleme roughly translates hungry part fastgrowing competitive ecommerce market china driven consumers eager use smartphones make purchases groceries cinema tickets august eleme bought major rival baidu deliveries baidu inc alibaba latest acquisition enlarges ecommerce firms food delivery empire also includes delivery platform koubei competes meituan dianping backed tencent holdings ltd file photo sign alibaba group seen fourth world internet conference wuzhen zhejiang province china december 3 2017 reutersaly songfile photo alibaba meituan investing heavily offline services including deliveries mobile payments unstaffed stores tap wider demographic chinas online commerce market shows signs slowing eleme continue operate brand following acquisition said alibaba combine functionalities koubei part deal alibaba install alibaba vice president wang lei chief executive eleme current chief executive founder eleme become chairman serve special advisor alibaba new retail strategies reporting cate cadell beijing ismail shakil bengaluru editing sunil nair standards thomson reuters trust principles tokyo reuters japanese business sentiment worsened first time two years three months march closely watched central bank survey showed monday rising raw materials labor costs weigh otherwise steady economic recovery maintenance worker seen atop airplane japan airlines jal hangar haneda airport tokyo japan april 2 2018 reutersissei kato strong yen simmering fears trade war triggered us president donald trumps move impose tariffs chinese goods could undermine corporate morale threats retaliation escalate analysts say analysts expect economic recovery falter business confidence remains decadehigh level companies plan increase capital expenditure yen gains since late january eroded manufacturers sentiment solid global economic fundamentals helped offset pain overall say business confidence held firm said yuichiro nagai economist barclays securities fears global trade war limited impact business sentiment far depending development us trade policy protectionism could weigh outlook index measuring big manufacturers confidence fell 2 points plus 24 march bank japans quarterly tankan survey showed roughly matching median market forecast plus 25 nonmanufacturers sentiment worsened 2 points plus 23 median forecast plus 24 deteriorating first time six quarters big manufacturers nonmanufacturers forecast business conditions would sour three months ahead tankan showed reflecting looming uncertainty fallout trumps trade policy strong yen taken turning point japans economy although sentiment deteriorated slightly said takeshi minami chief economist norinchukin research institute concerns high possible retaliation us tariffs global economy remains gradual recovery good japans valueadded exports 70 percent companies replied survey march 12 trump unveiled steep tariffs steel aluminum imports announcement antichina tariffs big manufacturers expect dollar move around 10966 yen average year began april much weaker current levels around 106 yen yens gains continue manufacturers may forced cut optimistic profit forecasts worry prime minister shinzo abe pursuing growth reflationist policies labor shortages labor shortages also weighed sentiment economic recovery dwindling workingage population push jobless rate near 25year low tankan index measuring capacity constraints showed companies saw job market tightest since 1991 labor shortages negative impact particularly laborintensive servicesector firms said satoshi osanai senior economist daiwa institute research file photo japan yen note seen illustration photo taken june 1 2017 reutersthomas whiteillustrationfile photo said rising wages could stoke virtuous growth cycle consumer spending rising prices increased investment companies could pass higher costs generate profit key making happen whether consumers willing spend increased earnings far theres little sign happening slow wage growth companies reluctance raise prices kept inflation well bank japans elusive 2 percent target however tankan showed companies able pass higher costs consumers hopeful sign central bank tankan index measuring big manufacturers saw output price moves stood plus 4 highest level since 2008 showing price pressures continue rise firms construction restaurant hotel industries complained labor shortages taking toll businesses boj official briefing reporters data said firms basic materials business selling steel nonferrous metals textiles saw sentiment hurt rising cost raw materials official said index measuring steelmakers sentiment fell 9 points biggest drop among big manufacturers confidence also slumped among producers nonferrous metals metal products still big firms plan raise capital spending 23 percent current financial year april versus median estimate 06 percent gain tankan showed tankans sentiment indexes derived subtracting number respondents say conditions poor say good positive reading means optimists outnumber pessimists reporting leika kihara tetsushi kajimoto editing sam holmes eric meijer standards thomson reuters trust principles london reuters oil rose towards 70 barrel monday lifted drop drilling activity united states concerns washington could reintroduce sanctions iran file photo crude oil storage tanks seen cushing oil hub cushing oklahoma march 24 2016 reutersnick oxfordfile photo us drillers cut seven oil rigs week march 29 bringing total 797 first decline three weeks rig count closely watched indicator future us oil output brent crude international benchmark rose 58 cents 6992 barrel 0850 gmt still 2018 high 7128 reached jan 25 us crude added 38 cents 6532 trading volume lower normal many countries still easter holiday market set retest highs 2018 said olivier jakob oil analyst petromatrix iranian factor going significant input next four weeks going underlying support whole month us president donald trump threatened pull 2015 international nuclear deal tehran iranian oil exports risen given european signatories may 12 deadline fix terrible flaws deal oil risen multiyear low near 27 january 2016 helped production cuts led organization petroleum exporting countries opec russia started 2017 due run end 2018 revival prices helped support surge us drilling boosted us production record 1043 million barrels per day bpd taking past top exporter saudi arabia russian oil output rose march despite output deal 1097 million bpd 1095 million bpd february russian energy ministry data showed putting russia ahead united states worlds biggest crude producer also potentially weighing markets rising trade tensions united states china china increased tariffs 25 percent 128 us products monday escalating spat worlds biggest economies response us duties imports aluminum steel investors took cue falling us drilling counts said wang xiao guotai junan futures increasing trade friction china us likely rock global markets tarnish bullish sentiment crude oil markets additional reporting meng meng beijing henning gloystein singapore editing susan fenton standards thomson reuters trust principles
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<p>Courtesy of the decadent diabeticFresh berries top this Chocolate Silk Tart.</p>
<p>&#160;</p>
<p>There is no need to save up all your love for one day a year. You can and should shower your loved one with flowers and treats throughout the year.</p>
<p>That is true for people you love who have diabetes. We need the support of our nearest and dearest all the time. And even with diabetes, love can be expressed in chocolate.</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p>
<p>For the most part, dark chocolate with 70 percent or better cocoa is reasonably low enough in carbohydrates to have a small amount. Perhaps not chocolate every day, but far more often than you might expect.</p>
<p>Dark unsweetened cocoa powder is surprisingly low in carbohydrates. A little goes a long way in creating diabetes-compatible chocolate confections that will be appreciated by your loved ones with diabetes, and will surprise you with how scrumptious they are.</p>
<p>You don’t have to have diabetes to enjoy these recipes.</p>
<p>Chef Ward Alper retired to Albuquerque after being a professional chef in Boston and New York City. He blogs as “The Decadent Diabetic: Taking Back My Life and Table,” thedecadentdiabetic.com.</p>
<p>CHOCOLATE SILK TART</p>
<p>8 servings</p>
<p>Net carbohydrates: 11 grams per slice</p>
<p>CRUST:</p>
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<p>Pam Spray for the pan</p>
<p>2/3 cup all purpose flour</p>
<p>½ cup toasted nuts (either almonds, walnuts or pecans)</p>
<p>¼ cup granulated sugar substitute</p>
<p>1 pinch salt</p>
<p>¼ teaspoon cinnamon</p>
<p>1/8 tablespoon ground ginger</p>
<p>½ teaspoon baking powder</p>
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<p>4 tablespoons butter</p>
<p>1 large egg</p>
<p>FILLING:</p>
<p>1 package cream cheese (reduced fat is fine but NOT fat free)</p>
<p>2/3 cup granulated sugar substitute</p>
<p>3 large eggs</p>
<p>1 tablespoon instant espresso or coffee</p>
<p>2 tablespoons sour cream or heavy cream</p>
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<p>1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract</p>
<p>3 tablespoons Hershey’s Special Dark cocoa powder</p>
<p>Preheat oven to 350 degrees and prepare a 9- to 10-inch removable bottom fluted tart pan.</p>
<p>To make crust, in a food processor with a steel blade, pulse all of the dry ingredients until very well combined and the nuts disappear into the mixture. Add cold butter and pulse until butter is well distributed in the flour mixture. Add the egg and pulse until mixture forms a ball on the blades. Remove the dough and pat into a disc about 5 to 6 inches. Wrap disc in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least ½ hour but overnight will also work.</p>
<p>Roll out the crust on floured surface to about a 14-inch circle. Fit sections of the crust into tart pan. This dough is fragile and will break. Not to worry, just piece it together with your fingers. Refrigerate for 15-20 minutes before filling.</p>
<p>To make the filling, beat cream cheese in the bowl of a food processor or electric mixer until smooth. Add granulated sugar substitute and beat until incorporated. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add the coffee, vanilla and sour cream. Beat until well mixed. Add the cocoa powder and mix well. Allow to sit for 20 minutes so some of the air from the beating is released (this will help keep the filling from cracking).</p>
<p>Pour into the crust and bake for 25-30 minutes. Transfer to a rack and cool. Refrigerate for 2-3 hours. Decorate with lightly sweetened fresh berries.</p>
<p>&#160;</p>
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<p>&#160;</p>
<p>CHOCOLATE CAKE SIMPLE AND SWEET</p>
<p>Serves 8</p>
<p>Net carbohydrates: 14 grams per slice (including frosting)</p>
<p>2/3 cup flour</p>
<p>½ cup toasted almonds, cooled</p>
<p>Courtesy of the decadent diabeticReplacing part of the flour with ground nuts cuts the carbohydrates in this Chocolate Cake Simple and Sweet.</p>
<p>1 teaspoon cinnamon</p>
<p>1 tablespoon baking powder</p>
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<p>1 teaspoon baking soda (½ into dry mix, ½ into wet mix)</p>
<p>3 tablespoons Hershey’s Special Dark cocoa powder</p>
<p>Pinch of salt</p>
<p>6 tablespoons butter at room temperature</p>
<p>¼ cup vegetable oil</p>
<p>1 cup granulated sugar substitute</p>
<p>3 large eggs at room temperature</p>
<p>1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract</p>
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<p>2 tablespoons sour cream (low fat is fine but NOT fat free)</p>
<p>1 teaspoon cider vinegar</p>
<p>Preheat oven to 350 degrees.</p>
<p>In a food processor, combine nuts, salt and 1/3 cup flour. Pulse until the nuts are totally pulverized. Add 1/3 cup more flour, and cocoa powder. Pulse until combined. Add ½ teaspoon baking soda and powder and pulse until combined. (I often do this much a day ahead.)</p>
<p>Using a stand mixer, cream butter and granulated sugar substitute until light and fluffy, add the oil and beat until well combined. Scrape down the sides of the bowl. Add vanilla.</p>
<p>Add remaining ½ teaspoon baking soda to sour cream and stir.</p>
<p>Alternately add the dry ingredients and the eggs and sour cream mixture. Start with the dry. Mix only until just incorporated, otherwise you wind up with bread.</p>
<p>Pour batter into a well-sprayed 8-inch round spring form pan.</p>
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<p>Bake for 26-28 minutes until a tester comes out dry from the center of the cake. Allow to cool. Remove side from the spring form pan and frost as below.</p>
<p>FROSTING</p>
<p>Covers one 8-inch cake generously</p>
<p>Net carbohydrates: 16 per cake or 2.5 per slice</p>
<p>8 ounces cream cheese (can use low fat but NOT fat free)</p>
<p>½ cup granulated sugar substitute</p>
<p>½ teaspoon vanilla extract</p>
<p>2 tablespoons unsweetened dark cocoa powder (recommended Hershey’s Special Dark)</p>
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<p>Beat the cream cheese and sugar substitute until smooth. Add remaining ingredients and beat until smooth. Frost the cake when it is still slightly warm.</p>
<p>To keep the serving plate clean, turn cake out onto two pieces of parchment or waxed paper each big enough to cover ½ of the cake. Frost and remove paper before chilling.</p>
<p>DOUBLE CHOCOLATE RICOTTA CRÈME</p>
<p>Serves 4</p>
<p>Carbohydrates: 12 grams</p>
<p>¾ cup granulated sugar substitute</p>
<p>1 vanilla bean or 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract</p>
<p>30-ounce container ricotta cheese</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p>
<p>2 tablespoons unsweetened Hershey’s Special Dark cocoa powder</p>
<p>Double Chocolate Ricotta Crème requires a food processor to obtain the silky texture.</p>
<p>1 tablespoon coffee-flavored liquor, bourbon or brandy (you can substitute grated orange zest or a tablespoon of strong dark coffee)</p>
<p>2 squares Perugina bittersweet chocolate</p>
<p>Toasted, sliced almonds for topping (optional)</p>
<p>Lightly sweetened raspberries or strawberries (3-5 per plating) (optional)</p>
<p>Make this in a food processor or it will be grainy. It will still taste good but the texture will be off.</p>
<p>Place granulated sugar substitute in the bowl of a food processor. Cut vanilla bean open and scrape seeds into the granulated sugar substitute. Run the processor to make vanilla sugar. (If using vanilla extract you can skip this step.)</p>
<p>Add the cocoa powder. Process 30 seconds or so. Add the ricotta cheese and process for two minutes. Scrape down the sides and process for 1-2 minutes more. Add the liquor or coffee or zest and process until blended.</p>
<p>As an extra treat to the palate and the tongue, finely chop (almost pulverize) the squares of chocolate and fold into the crème. Spoon the mixture into martini or wine glasses. Cover and refrigerate 2-4 hours or more.</p>
<p>Top with very lightly sweetened raspberries or strawberries soaked in 1 tablespoon of Trop 50.</p>
<p />
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courtesy decadent diabeticfresh berries top chocolate silk tart 160 need save love one day year shower loved one flowers treats throughout year true people love diabetes need support nearest dearest time even diabetes love expressed chocolate advertisement part dark chocolate 70 percent better cocoa reasonably low enough carbohydrates small amount perhaps chocolate every day far often might expect dark unsweetened cocoa powder surprisingly low carbohydrates little goes long way creating diabetescompatible chocolate confections appreciated loved ones diabetes surprise scrumptious dont diabetes enjoy recipes chef ward alper retired albuquerque professional chef boston new york city blogs decadent diabetic taking back life table thedecadentdiabeticcom chocolate silk tart 8 servings net carbohydrates 11 grams per slice crust advertisement pam spray pan 23 cup purpose flour ½ cup toasted nuts either almonds walnuts pecans ¼ cup granulated sugar substitute 1 pinch salt ¼ teaspoon cinnamon 18 tablespoon ground ginger ½ teaspoon baking powder advertisement 4 tablespoons butter 1 large egg filling 1 package cream cheese reduced fat fine fat free 23 cup granulated sugar substitute 3 large eggs 1 tablespoon instant espresso coffee 2 tablespoons sour cream heavy cream advertisement 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract 3 tablespoons hersheys special dark cocoa powder preheat oven 350 degrees prepare 9 10inch removable bottom fluted tart pan make crust food processor steel blade pulse dry ingredients well combined nuts disappear mixture add cold butter pulse butter well distributed flour mixture add egg pulse mixture forms ball blades remove dough pat disc 5 6 inches wrap disc plastic wrap refrigerate least ½ hour overnight also work roll crust floured surface 14inch circle fit sections crust tart pan dough fragile break worry piece together fingers refrigerate 1520 minutes filling make filling beat cream cheese bowl food processor electric mixer smooth add granulated sugar substitute beat incorporated add eggs one time beating well addition add coffee vanilla sour cream beat well mixed add cocoa powder mix well allow sit 20 minutes air beating released help keep filling cracking pour crust bake 2530 minutes transfer rack cool refrigerate 23 hours decorate lightly sweetened fresh berries 160 advertisement 160 chocolate cake simple sweet serves 8 net carbohydrates 14 grams per slice including frosting 23 cup flour ½ cup toasted almonds cooled courtesy decadent diabeticreplacing part flour ground nuts cuts carbohydrates chocolate cake simple sweet 1 teaspoon cinnamon 1 tablespoon baking powder advertisement 1 teaspoon baking soda ½ dry mix ½ wet mix 3 tablespoons hersheys special dark cocoa powder pinch salt 6 tablespoons butter room temperature ¼ cup vegetable oil 1 cup granulated sugar substitute 3 large eggs room temperature 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract advertisement 2 tablespoons sour cream low fat fine fat free 1 teaspoon cider vinegar preheat oven 350 degrees food processor combine nuts salt 13 cup flour pulse nuts totally pulverized add 13 cup flour cocoa powder pulse combined add ½ teaspoon baking soda powder pulse combined often much day ahead using stand mixer cream butter granulated sugar substitute light fluffy add oil beat well combined scrape sides bowl add vanilla add remaining ½ teaspoon baking soda sour cream stir alternately add dry ingredients eggs sour cream mixture start dry mix incorporated otherwise wind bread pour batter wellsprayed 8inch round spring form pan advertisement bake 2628 minutes tester comes dry center cake allow cool remove side spring form pan frost frosting covers one 8inch cake generously net carbohydrates 16 per cake 25 per slice 8 ounces cream cheese use low fat fat free ½ cup granulated sugar substitute ½ teaspoon vanilla extract 2 tablespoons unsweetened dark cocoa powder recommended hersheys special dark advertisement beat cream cheese sugar substitute smooth add remaining ingredients beat smooth frost cake still slightly warm keep serving plate clean turn cake onto two pieces parchment waxed paper big enough cover ½ cake frost remove paper chilling double chocolate ricotta crÈme serves 4 carbohydrates 12 grams ¾ cup granulated sugar substitute 1 vanilla bean 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract 30ounce container ricotta cheese advertisement 2 tablespoons unsweetened hersheys special dark cocoa powder double chocolate ricotta crème requires food processor obtain silky texture 1 tablespoon coffeeflavored liquor bourbon brandy substitute grated orange zest tablespoon strong dark coffee 2 squares perugina bittersweet chocolate toasted sliced almonds topping optional lightly sweetened raspberries strawberries 35 per plating optional make food processor grainy still taste good texture place granulated sugar substitute bowl food processor cut vanilla bean open scrape seeds granulated sugar substitute run processor make vanilla sugar using vanilla extract skip step add cocoa powder process 30 seconds add ricotta cheese process two minutes scrape sides process 12 minutes add liquor coffee zest process blended extra treat palate tongue finely chop almost pulverize squares chocolate fold crème spoon mixture martini wine glasses cover refrigerate 24 hours top lightly sweetened raspberries strawberries soaked 1 tablespoon trop 50
| 797 |
<p>BAGHDAD (Reuters) - The United States supports holding Iraqi parliamentary elections on May 12 as planned by Iraq’s government, the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad said on Thursday, criticizing calls to postpone the vote.</p>
<p>“Postponing the elections would set a dangerous precedent, undermining the constitution and damaging Iraq’s long-term democratic development,” the embassy said in a statement.</p>
<p>The statement was published as Iraqi lawmakers were debating whether to hold the vote as planned or postpone it in order to allow hundreds of thousands of displaced people to return home to cast their ballots.</p>
<p>The session will resume on Saturday, according to parliamentary Speaker Salim al-Jabouri, when MPs may vote on the election date.</p>
<p>Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi, who is seeking re-election, is pushing for the vote to be held on May 12.</p>
<p>Abadi’s popularity among Iraq’s majority Shi’ite Arab community has risen after he successfully led a three-year fight against Islamic State militants, supported by a U.S.-led coalition.</p>
<p>Washington also showed understanding for Abadi’s move to dislodge Kurdish fighters from the oil rich northern region of Kirkuk in October, even though the Kurds are traditional allies of the United States.</p>
<p>“The United States is providing assistance that will help ensure that all Iraqi voices are heard and counted, including the approximately 2.6 million Iraqis who remain displaced from their homes in the liberated areas”, taken from Islamic State, the U.S. embassy statement said.</p>
<p>The role of prime minister is reserved for the Shi’ite Arabs under a power-sharing system set up after the 2003 U.S-led invasion that toppled Saddam Hussein, a Sunni Arab.</p>
<p>The largely ceremonial office of president is reserved for a Kurdish member of parliament, while the speaker of parliament is drawn from among Sunni Arab MPs.</p>
<p>Reporting by Maher Chmaytelli; Editing by Catherine Evans</p> Our Standards:
<a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a>
<p>WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump on Twitter praised Western air strikes against the Syrian government on Saturday as “perfectly executed”, and added “Mission Accomplished”.</p>
<p>“A perfectly executed strike last night. Thank you to France and the United Kingdom for their wisdom and the power of their fine Military. Could not have had a better result. Mission Accomplished!” Trump said in a Twitter post.</p>
<p>Trump’s message echoed the words of a banner that hung behind former President George W. Bush when he gave a speech in 2003 from the USS Abraham Lincoln, during the Iraq War.</p>
<p>That visual dogged Bush’s presidency as the war dragged out, with worsening American casualties, for the remainder of his two terms in office.</p> U.S. President Donald Trump makes a statement about Syria at the White House in Washington, U.S., April 13, 2018. REUTERS/Yuri Gripas
<p>(This version of the story refiles to fix typographical error in paragraph 3).</p>
<p>Reporting by Doina Chiacu; Joel Schectman editing by Jason Neely and David Gregorio</p> Our Standards:
<a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a>
<p>MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russia’s defense ministry said on Saturday that the majority of missiles fired during the overnight attack on Syria by U.S., British and French forces were intercepted by Syrian government air defense systems, TASS news agency reported.</p> Anti-aircraft fire is seen over Damascus, Syria early April 14, 2018. REUTERS/Feras Makdesi
<p>Russia, an ally of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, has responded angrily to the strikes, while Syrian state media called them a “flagrant violation of international law.”</p>
<p>More than 100 missiles were fired from ships and manned aircraft, and the allies struck three of Syria’s main chemical weapons facilities, U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis and Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman General Joseph Dunford said.</p>
<p>According to Interfax news agency, Russia’s defense ministry also said that Syria intercepted the U.S. and allied attacks using Soviet-produced hardware, including the Buk missile system.</p>
<p>Reporting by Polina Ivanova; writing by Mike Collett-White</p> Our Standards:
<a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a>
<p>MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russia on Saturday called for an emergency meeting of the United Nations Security Council as Moscow said it would consider supplying S-300 missile systems to Syria following U.S.-led strikes.</p> Russian President Vladimir Putin speaks during a ceremony to receive credentials from foreign ambassadors at the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia April 11, 2018. Sergei Ilnitsky/Pool via REUTERS
<p>“Russia convenes an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council to discuss aggressive actions of the U.S. and its allies,” President Vladimir Putin said in a statement published on the Kremlin website.</p>
<p>“The current escalation of the situation around Syria has a devastating impact on the whole system of international relations,” he added.</p>
<p>U.S., British and French forces pounded Syria with more than 100 missiles early on Saturday in response to a poison gas attack that killed dozens of people last week, in the biggest intervention by Western powers against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.</p>
<p>Putin said the U.S. actions in Syria made the humanitarian catastrophe worse and caused pain for civilians.</p>
<p>“Russia in the most serious way condemns the attack on Syria where Russian military servicemen help the legitimate government to fight terrorism,” Putin said.</p> MISSILES FOR SYRIA
<p>Moscow may consider supplying S-300 surface to-air missile systems to Syria and “other countries”, Colonel-General Sergei Rudskoi told a televised briefing on Saturday.</p>
<p>Russia had “refused” supplying those missiles to Syria a few years ago, he added, “taking into account the pressing request of some of our Western partners”.</p>
<p>Following the U.S.-led strikes, however, “we consider it possible to return to examination of this issue not only in regard to Syria but to other countries as well,” Rudskoi said.</p>
<p>Syria’s air defence system, which mostly consists of systems made in the Soviet Union, has intercepted 71 of the missiles fired on Saturday by the U.S., British and French forces, he added.</p>
<p>“In the past year and a half Russia has fully restored Syria’s air defence system and continues to further upgrade it,” Rudskoi said.</p>
<p>Reporting by Andrey Ostroukh; Editing by Clelia Oziel</p> Our Standards:
<a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a>
<p>DAMASCUS (Reuters) - Damascus residents were woken before dawn on Saturday by a series of explosions resounding across the city, very loud even for people used to the sound of heavy bombardment.</p> The destroyed Scientific Research Centre is seen in Damascus, Syria April 14, 2018. REUTERS/Omar Sanadiki
<p>Ten hours after the missiles hit, smoke was still rising from the remains of a research facility in Damascus’s Barzeh district that Western countries say was part of a covert Syrian government chemical weapons program.</p>
<p>The United States, Britain and France attacked sites across Syria in response to a suspected poison gas attack a week ago, but the Syrian government, backed by Russia, denies using - or possessing - any such weapons.</p> Syrian firefighters are seen inside the destroyed Scientific Research Centre in Damascus, Syria April 14, 2018. REUTERS/Omar Sanadiki
<p>The blasts left the Syrian Scientific Research Centre compound, standing hard against the steep, dry hills that hem in northeastern Damascus, little more than a ruin.</p>
<p>The center is not far from eastern Ghouta, the area of towns and farmland that was the biggest stronghold of rebels fighting President Bashar al-Assad. The last group of them surrendered hours after the suspected chemical weapons attack that prompted Saturday’s air strikes, at the end of a government offensive on the region that had lasted seven weeks.</p>
<p>Standing near the rubble, Saeid Saeid, head of the center’s polymers department, said that the buildings had been used to research and make medicine components that could not be imported, including ones for cancer treatment and anti-venom.</p> Slideshow (3 Images)
<p>U.S. Marine General Joseph Dunford, chairman of the joint chiefs of staff, said in Washington that it had been a center for research, development, production and testing of chemical and biological weapons.</p>
<p>Pentagon spokesman Lieutenant General Kenneth McKenzie said that 76 missiles had been fired at the facility and “successfully destroyed three buildings&#160;in metropolitan Damascus, one of the most heavily defended aerospace areas in the world”.</p> Strikes 'crippled' Syria's chemical weapons program: Pentagon
<p>The smell of fire and smoke wafted across the remains of five destroyed buildings during a media tour arranged by the government. Only the compound’s gateways and one heavily damaged building survived.</p>
<p>Other buildings were mostly flattened, some with a corner still upright, the slabs of concrete that had once been roofs or floors hanging at odd angles.</p>
<p>A bus parked nearby was little more than a skeleton, its windows blown out. Palm trees looked ragged, as if they had lost some of their fronds.</p>
<p>Amid the rubble on the edge of the compound were the scattered remains of its contents: charred books, laboratory masks and gloves, files, tables, cardboard packets marked with the names of medicines, chairs and wind-blown sheets of paper.</p>
<p>Scraps of green and white lab coats hung from the branches of trees, blown there by the blast or later on by the wind.</p>
<p>Reporting By Kinda Makieh, writing by Angus McDowall; Editing by Kevin Liffey</p> Our Standards:
<a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a>
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baghdad reuters united states supports holding iraqi parliamentary elections may 12 planned iraqs government us embassy baghdad said thursday criticizing calls postpone vote postponing elections would set dangerous precedent undermining constitution damaging iraqs longterm democratic development embassy said statement statement published iraqi lawmakers debating whether hold vote planned postpone order allow hundreds thousands displaced people return home cast ballots session resume saturday according parliamentary speaker salim aljabouri mps may vote election date prime minister haider alabadi seeking reelection pushing vote held may 12 abadis popularity among iraqs majority shiite arab community risen successfully led threeyear fight islamic state militants supported usled coalition washington also showed understanding abadis move dislodge kurdish fighters oil rich northern region kirkuk october even though kurds traditional allies united states united states providing assistance help ensure iraqi voices heard counted including approximately 26 million iraqis remain displaced homes liberated areas taken islamic state us embassy statement said role prime minister reserved shiite arabs powersharing system set 2003 usled invasion toppled saddam hussein sunni arab largely ceremonial office president reserved kurdish member parliament speaker parliament drawn among sunni arab mps reporting maher chmaytelli editing catherine evans standards thomson reuters trust principles washington reuters us president donald trump twitter praised western air strikes syrian government saturday perfectly executed added mission accomplished perfectly executed strike last night thank france united kingdom wisdom power fine military could better result mission accomplished trump said twitter post trumps message echoed words banner hung behind former president george w bush gave speech 2003 uss abraham lincoln iraq war visual dogged bushs presidency war dragged worsening american casualties remainder two terms office us president donald trump makes statement syria white house washington us april 13 2018 reutersyuri gripas version story refiles fix typographical error paragraph 3 reporting doina chiacu joel schectman editing jason neely david gregorio standards thomson reuters trust principles moscow reuters russias defense ministry said saturday majority missiles fired overnight attack syria us british french forces intercepted syrian government air defense systems tass news agency reported antiaircraft fire seen damascus syria early april 14 2018 reutersferas makdesi russia ally syrian president bashar alassad responded angrily strikes syrian state media called flagrant violation international law 100 missiles fired ships manned aircraft allies struck three syrias main chemical weapons facilities us defense secretary jim mattis joint chiefs staff chairman general joseph dunford said according interfax news agency russias defense ministry also said syria intercepted us allied attacks using sovietproduced hardware including buk missile system reporting polina ivanova writing mike collettwhite standards thomson reuters trust principles moscow reuters russia saturday called emergency meeting united nations security council moscow said would consider supplying s300 missile systems syria following usled strikes russian president vladimir putin speaks ceremony receive credentials foreign ambassadors kremlin moscow russia april 11 2018 sergei ilnitskypool via reuters russia convenes emergency meeting un security council discuss aggressive actions us allies president vladimir putin said statement published kremlin website current escalation situation around syria devastating impact whole system international relations added us british french forces pounded syria 100 missiles early saturday response poison gas attack killed dozens people last week biggest intervention western powers syrian president bashar alassad putin said us actions syria made humanitarian catastrophe worse caused pain civilians russia serious way condemns attack syria russian military servicemen help legitimate government fight terrorism putin said missiles syria moscow may consider supplying s300 surface toair missile systems syria countries colonelgeneral sergei rudskoi told televised briefing saturday russia refused supplying missiles syria years ago added taking account pressing request western partners following usled strikes however consider possible return examination issue regard syria countries well rudskoi said syrias air defence system mostly consists systems made soviet union intercepted 71 missiles fired saturday us british french forces added past year half russia fully restored syrias air defence system continues upgrade rudskoi said reporting andrey ostroukh editing clelia oziel standards thomson reuters trust principles damascus reuters damascus residents woken dawn saturday series explosions resounding across city loud even people used sound heavy bombardment destroyed scientific research centre seen damascus syria april 14 2018 reutersomar sanadiki ten hours missiles hit smoke still rising remains research facility damascuss barzeh district western countries say part covert syrian government chemical weapons program united states britain france attacked sites across syria response suspected poison gas attack week ago syrian government backed russia denies using possessing weapons syrian firefighters seen inside destroyed scientific research centre damascus syria april 14 2018 reutersomar sanadiki blasts left syrian scientific research centre compound standing hard steep dry hills hem northeastern damascus little ruin center far eastern ghouta area towns farmland biggest stronghold rebels fighting president bashar alassad last group surrendered hours suspected chemical weapons attack prompted saturdays air strikes end government offensive region lasted seven weeks standing near rubble saeid saeid head centers polymers department said buildings used research make medicine components could imported including ones cancer treatment antivenom slideshow 3 images us marine general joseph dunford chairman joint chiefs staff said washington center research development production testing chemical biological weapons pentagon spokesman lieutenant general kenneth mckenzie said 76 missiles fired facility successfully destroyed three buildings160in metropolitan damascus one heavily defended aerospace areas world strikes crippled syrias chemical weapons program pentagon smell fire smoke wafted across remains five destroyed buildings media tour arranged government compounds gateways one heavily damaged building survived buildings mostly flattened corner still upright slabs concrete roofs floors hanging odd angles bus parked nearby little skeleton windows blown palm trees looked ragged lost fronds amid rubble edge compound scattered remains contents charred books laboratory masks gloves files tables cardboard packets marked names medicines chairs windblown sheets paper scraps green white lab coats hung branches trees blown blast later wind reporting kinda makieh writing angus mcdowall editing kevin liffey standards thomson reuters trust principles
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<p>(Reuters) - Elliott Management Corp said on Friday NXP Semiconductors NV is worth much more than its previous assessment of $135 per share and Qualcomm Inc’s $110 offer to buy the chipmaker.</p> FILE PHOTO: A man works on a tent for NXP Semiconductors in preparation for the 2015 International Consumer Electronics Show (CES) at Las Vegas Convention Center in Las Vegas, Nevada, U.S. on January 4, 2015. REUTERS/Steve Marcus/File Photo
<p>“The current $110 offer is not even in the right zipcode and a credible offer from Qualcomm requires a price in excess of our estimate of NXP’s intrinsic standalone fair value of $135 per share,” the activist hedge fund said.</p>
<p>Elliott, which owns about 6.6 percent in NXP, had said in December NXP was worth about 23 percent more than Qualcomm’s offer.</p>
<p>Elliott had then retained financial adviser UBS Investment Bank to conduct an analysis on NXP and share the report with other shareholders.</p>
<p>According to UBS’s analysis, synergies from the deal could create between $19 and $48 of value per NXP share.</p>
<p>NXP shareholders would be at a disadvantage if a transaction occurred and these synergies were not appropriately and fairly shared, Elliott said.</p>
<p>In August, Elliott hinted that it was pushing for a higher price tag in NXP’s pending $38-billion sale to Qualcomm.</p>
<p>Reporting by Aishwarya Venugopal in Bengaluru; Editing by Arun Koyyur</p> Our Standards:
<a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a>
<p>MUMBAI (Reuters) - India’s central bank barred banks on Friday from having any links to virtual currency dealers, slashing the prices of bitcoin and other crypto-currencies on local exchanges.</p> Giant electronic billboards display adverts for crypto currency investment companies as commuters arrive at Canary Wharf tube station in London, Britain April 6, 2018. REUTERS/Simon Walker
<p>Pakistan’s central bank said in a separate statement late on Friday that crypto-currencies were not legal in the country.</p>
<p>The State Bank of Pakistan told banks and other financial services providers to refuse customers seeking crypto-currency transactions.</p>
<p>It noted that those using crypto-currencies to transfer funds outside Pakistan could be prosecuted.</p>
<p>India’s government and the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) have previously cautioned the public over crypto-currencies, with New Delhi vowing earlier this year to eliminate the use of digital currency, which it considers illegal.</p>
<p>The RBI said on Thursday that entities under its regulation may not deal in any virtual currency.</p>
<p>The price of bitcoin plummeted to a low of 350,000 rupees ($5,392) versus its international market price of $6,617, following the RBI announcement, crypto-currency exchange Coinome said.</p>
<p>Bitcoin was trading before the announcement at a 5 percent premium to the overseas price, said Vishal Gupta, co-founder of the Block Chain and Cryptocurrency Committee, an industry body, noting it is now trading at a significant discount.</p>
<p>“This seems to be a very aggressive move,” said technology law expert Namita Viswanath, a principal associate at IndusLaw.</p>
<p>“Instead of the RBI taking a holistic approach and seeing how to curb potential misuse, it seems to be a rather broad-stroke approach of completely prohibiting this altogether.”</p>
<p>Late on Friday the RBI issued a more detailed circular stating any regulated entities that already provide virtual currency dealing services will have to cut all ties within three months.</p>
<p>The Indian government has previously likened crypto-currency investments to “Ponzi schemes” that offer unusually high returns to early investors.</p>
<p>It has set up a panel to investigate crypto-currencies and plans to appoint a regulator to oversee unregulated exchanges.</p>
<p>Thursday’s announcement raised concerns about the exit options for investors who currently hold crypto-currencies.</p>
<p>The Block Chain and Cryptocurrency Committee’s Gupta estimated that at least 4 to 5 million people in India hold some kind of crypto-currency and that 60 percent of them entered the market between October and December, when prices were at a peak.</p>
<p>“Most of these people are already sitting on capital losses,” he said. “Now the asset has become dead. You can’t transact with it. If you transact with it, your bank accounts are going to be shut.”</p>
<p>($1 = 64.9100 Indian rupees)</p>
<p>Reporting by Abhirup Roy and Devidutta Tripathy; Additional reporting by Rajendra Jadhav; Editing by Euan Rocha and Eric Meijer</p> Our Standards:
<a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a>
<p>BRUSSELS (Reuters) - Facebook ( <a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=FB.O" type="external">FB.O</a>) has confirmed that the data of 2.7 million EU citizens were among those improperly used by political consultancy Cambridge Analytica, the EU executive said on Friday.</p>
<p>The European Commission said it received a letter from the social media giant late on Thursday and that it would press for more details, piling pressure on the firm that has lost more than $100 billion in market value in the last 10 days.</p>
<a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=FB.O" type="external">Facebook Inc</a> 157.2 FB.O Nasdaq -2.14 (-1.34%) FB.O Related Coverage
<a href="/article/us-facebook-italy-probe/italy-antitrust-opens-probe-into-facebooks-collection-use-of-data-idUSKCN1HD1SA" type="external">Italy Antitrust opens probe into Facebook's collection, use of data</a>
<p>“Facebook confirmed to us that the data of overall up to 2.7 million Europeans or people in the EU to be more precise may have been improperly shared with Cambridge Analytica,” a Commission spokesman said.</p>
<p>“The letter also explains the steps Facebook has taken in response since.”</p>
<p>Reporting by Alissa de Carbonnel @AdeCar; Editing by Robert-Jan Bartunek</p> Our Standards:
<a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a>
<p>SHANGHAI/SINGAPORE (Reuters) - When China closed its local cryptocurrency exchanges late last year, an underground ecosystem of bitcoin “mules” and peer-to-peer platforms sprung up to allow bitcoin trading to thrive, away from regulators’ watchful eyes.</p> A woman using her mobile phone is reflected on an electric board showing exchange rates of various cryptocurrencies at Bithumb cryptocurrencies exchange in Seoul, South Korea, January 11, 2018. REUTERS/Kim Hong-Ji
<p>Li, a Canada-based Chinese banker in his 20s, is one of these underground traders. He buys cryptocurrencies in other markets and sells them at a premium to investors in China, who cannot otherwise get them.</p>
<p>At the height of the frenzied demand for bitcoins in January, when prices of the digital currency were hovering close to $20,000 after a 20-fold jump during 2017, Li and other traders were able to sell bitcoins in China for 30 to 40 percent more than they cost elsewhere.</p>
<p>But in a matter of months, the premium for bitcoins in China has fallen to around 7 percent or less as a flood of bitcoin mules, who physically carry cash across borders for the trades, has swamped the arbitrage business. Cryptocurrency funds and individual computer-assisted traders have also piled into the market.</p>
<p>The boom has eaten away the spreads and shown how fast the galloping cryptocurrency markets can change course.</p>
<p>“The market’s kind of taken a downturn; there is less general appetite in this space,” said John DeCleene, an assistant fund manager running the fintech and cryptocurrency investments at Overseas Chinese Investment Management.</p>
<p>“It is too many players entering this market, but also less of the hype we saw in December-January, when people were paying a 30 percent premium because they expected 10 times gains overnight.”</p>
<p>DeCleene launched a $5 million Singapore-based global fund in November to invest in cryptocurrencies, blockchain-related equities and some exploratory arbitrage trading. He said it has generated a 58 percent return so far.</p> BITCOIN MULES
<p>Bitcoin arbitrage thrived last year as the cryptocurrency grew more volatile and some governments stepped in with rules to curtail trading.</p>
<p>The simplest geographical arbitrage involved buying bitcoin in unregulated markets such as Thailand, or ones that have legalised bitcoin trading such as Japan, and selling them in banned markets such as South Korea, China or India.</p>
<p>A second form occurred between exchanges, when nimble-footed traders bought cryptocurrencies cheaply on lesser-known exchanges and sold them for a profit on more liquid and widely used platforms.</p>
<p>There were huge price differences to exploit.</p>
<p>In early January, when the price of bitcoin was $17,600 on Bitstamp, the Luxembourg-based digital currency exchange, it was being quoted at 25 million won ($23,630) in South Korea, implying a 34 percent “kimchi premium”.</p>
<p>As China’s ban expanded from an initial prohibition on issuing new cryptocurrency to a shutdown of exchanges, premiums rose and traders quickly found new ways of doing business.</p>
<p>At first, it was limited to closed groups on the popular messaging platform WeChat and meetings at bars, where potential bitcoin buyers could meet sellers.</p>
<p>Then peer-to-peer platforms such as CoinCola, websites belonging to former Chinese exchanges Huobi and OKCoin, and even the retail platform Taobao became hubs for “over-the-counter” (OTC) cryptocurrency trading, conducted outside of formal exchanges and far more difficult for regulators to police.</p>
<p>“The big Chinese traders are all using CoinCola or going direct to each other through other OTC platforms,” like WeChat or AliPay, said Christian Grewell, a professor of business and interactive media arts at NYU in Shanghai who has lectured extensively on cryptocurrencies and blockchain technology.</p>
<p>AliPay is China’s leading online payment platform.</p>
<p>Another option, bank transfers between buyers and sellers, is “almost untraceable”, Grewell added, as it is difficult to prove that a transfer is related to a cryptocurrency transaction.</p>
<p>A trader in her 20s in Shanghai said she buys bitcoins in the United States to sell over the counter in China. On each trip to the U.S., she illegally carries $30,000 to $40,000 in cash, she added.</p>
<p>“Selling and buying bitcoins on those OTC websites is the same as shopping on Taobao,” said the trader.</p> BIG COMPETITION
<p>Hedge funds that can execute arbitrage trades quickly and at a fraction of the cost are squeezing individual traders, said Ramani Ramachandran, the chief executive of digital exchange Zenprivex.</p>
<p>Peter Kim of KIT Trading, part of Vulpes Investment Management, manages a $10 million cryptocurrency arbitrage operation.</p>
<p>“In the beginning, when there is 30 percent arbitrage, obviously you can travel to Thailand, buy bitcoins, send them to China, Japan, Korea and sell them. That’s easy,” said Kim, who was formerly an options arbitrage trader.</p>
<p>“But that opportunity is not going to last very long. And even though it is not as blatantly there, there are still many ways to profit from it, especially for someone like me who is used to making 3 basis points on a trade,” he added.</p>
<p>The arbitrage funds operate much like retail traders, buying and selling cryptocurrencies simultaneously on two different platforms, but on a much larger scale. That allows them to profit from smaller spreads.</p>
<p>Some retail traders, including Li, have turned to lesser-known cryptocurrencies such as Tether, which bills itself as being pegged to the U.S. dollar.</p>
<p>Tether is popular with Chinese seeking to move their cash discreetly overseas, as it is not volatile. That demand means it trades at a 2.5 percent to 3.5 percent premium in China, although the number was as high as 10 percent in January.</p>
<p>Li said his arbitrage activity nets him about $18,000 a month on a trading volume of about half a million dollars.</p>
<p>Although that is a tidy sum, it is far less than what frantic traders made late last year.</p>
<p>“The easy arbitrage is going to be much less prevalent now than it used to be,” Kim said.</p>
<p>Reporting and writing by Vidya Ranganathan; Additional reporting by Cynthia Kim in SEOUL; Editing by Gerry Doyle</p> Our Standards:
<a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a>
<p>MEXICO CITY/SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Chinese ride-hailing company Didi Chuxing has publicly launched in Mexico with a website advertising its service to drivers and passengers, setting the stage for a potentially expensive showdown with rival Uber.</p> FILE PHOTO: The logo of Didi Chuxing is seen at its headquarters in Beijing, China, May 18, 2016. REUTERS/Kim Kyung-Hoon/File Photo
<p>A spokesman for Didi Chuxing Technology Co told Reuters that the company will launch first in Toluca, an urban hub located around 60 kilometers (37 miles) from the country’s capital. Didi has an operations hub in the trendy Juarez neighborhood in Mexico City.</p>
<p>Didi settled on Toluca, the capital of the central state of Mexico, because it is a “robust regional commercial and cultural” center, said the spokesman, who declined to be named. Its priority will be to learn from local communities about their transportation needs, the spokesman said.</p>
<p>The app will go live later this month, according to a source familiar with the plans.</p>
<p>The Didi spokesman declined to comment on the timeline. Didi’s Mexico website says the company will begin operations “very soon,” without providing a date.</p>
<p>Meanwhile, Didi is working to quickly recruit drivers with the promise of higher earnings than competitors are offering. The new Didi website says the company will take no cut of fares until June 17, and is offering bonuses to drivers who recruit other drivers and passengers, a common tactic for ride-hailing companies vying to gain market share.</p>
<p>After mid-June, Didi is planning to take a 20 percent cut of fares, below the 25 percent commission on rides in Mexico charged by its biggest rival, Uber Technologies Inc [UBER.UL].</p>
<p>Late last year, Didi started laying plans for Mexico, Reuters reported, in what will be the company’s first launch outside Asia. Mexico’s clogged streets, underdeveloped public transit system and growing base of smartphone users make the country ripe for app-based ride services.</p> UBER RIVALRY
<p>In Mexico, Didi will for the first time put its own service up against Uber, its chief international rival.</p> FILE PHOTO: An Uber driver checks the route on a mobile phone inside his car in Mexico City, Mexico February 6, 2018. Picture taken on February 6, 2018. REUTERS/Carlos Jasso/File Photo
<p>Uber is the ride-hailing leader in Mexico, where it has seven million users in more than three dozen cities. Uber held 87 percent of the market in Mexico in August, its highest share in Latin America, according to Dalia Research, a Berlin-based consumer research firm.</p>
<p>A spokesman for Uber declined to comment.</p>
<p>Didi says it aims to attract drivers and passengers by promoting a safe service. The company has created a security button on its app that will connect drivers and passengers with police and other emergency contacts if they find themselves in danger, its website said. The company is also staffing a safety task force to respond to issues around-the-clock.</p>
<p>Didi will start off with a car service, although two sources said the company was also considering other modes of transportation such as scooters, motorcycles and bike-sharing.</p>
<p>While Mexico City and certain Mexican states have taken a strict approach to ride-hailing rules, the state of Mexico offers a friendly regulatory landscape, said Carlos Martinez, head of the Center for Citizens and Consumers.</p>
<p>“One of the principal reasons (to launch in Toluca) is the regulation in the state of Mexico, which is more or less lax, and the other is that Toluca has lots of economic activity,” he said.</p>
<p>A new train between Toluca and Mexico City set to open soon will also provide opportunities for Didi to shuttle commuters from their homes to the station, Martinez said.</p>
<p>Reporting by Julia Love and Heather Somerville; editing by Jason Neely and Rosalba O'Brien</p> Our Standards:
<a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a>
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reuters elliott management corp said friday nxp semiconductors nv worth much previous assessment 135 per share qualcomm incs 110 offer buy chipmaker file photo man works tent nxp semiconductors preparation 2015 international consumer electronics show ces las vegas convention center las vegas nevada us january 4 2015 reuterssteve marcusfile photo current 110 offer even right zipcode credible offer qualcomm requires price excess estimate nxps intrinsic standalone fair value 135 per share activist hedge fund said elliott owns 66 percent nxp said december nxp worth 23 percent qualcomms offer elliott retained financial adviser ubs investment bank conduct analysis nxp share report shareholders according ubss analysis synergies deal could create 19 48 value per nxp share nxp shareholders would disadvantage transaction occurred synergies appropriately fairly shared elliott said august elliott hinted pushing higher price tag nxps pending 38billion sale qualcomm reporting aishwarya venugopal bengaluru editing arun koyyur standards thomson reuters trust principles mumbai reuters indias central bank barred banks friday links virtual currency dealers slashing prices bitcoin cryptocurrencies local exchanges giant electronic billboards display adverts crypto currency investment companies commuters arrive canary wharf tube station london britain april 6 2018 reuterssimon walker pakistans central bank said separate statement late friday cryptocurrencies legal country state bank pakistan told banks financial services providers refuse customers seeking cryptocurrency transactions noted using cryptocurrencies transfer funds outside pakistan could prosecuted indias government reserve bank india rbi previously cautioned public cryptocurrencies new delhi vowing earlier year eliminate use digital currency considers illegal rbi said thursday entities regulation may deal virtual currency price bitcoin plummeted low 350000 rupees 5392 versus international market price 6617 following rbi announcement cryptocurrency exchange coinome said bitcoin trading announcement 5 percent premium overseas price said vishal gupta cofounder block chain cryptocurrency committee industry body noting trading significant discount seems aggressive move said technology law expert namita viswanath principal associate induslaw instead rbi taking holistic approach seeing curb potential misuse seems rather broadstroke approach completely prohibiting altogether late friday rbi issued detailed circular stating regulated entities already provide virtual currency dealing services cut ties within three months indian government previously likened cryptocurrency investments ponzi schemes offer unusually high returns early investors set panel investigate cryptocurrencies plans appoint regulator oversee unregulated exchanges thursdays announcement raised concerns exit options investors currently hold cryptocurrencies block chain cryptocurrency committees gupta estimated least 4 5 million people india hold kind cryptocurrency 60 percent entered market october december prices peak people already sitting capital losses said asset become dead cant transact transact bank accounts going shut 1 649100 indian rupees reporting abhirup roy devidutta tripathy additional reporting rajendra jadhav editing euan rocha eric meijer standards thomson reuters trust principles brussels reuters facebook fbo confirmed data 27 million eu citizens among improperly used political consultancy cambridge analytica eu executive said friday european commission said received letter social media giant late thursday would press details piling pressure firm lost 100 billion market value last 10 days facebook inc 1572 fbo nasdaq 214 134 fbo related coverage italy antitrust opens probe facebooks collection use data facebook confirmed us data overall 27 million europeans people eu precise may improperly shared cambridge analytica commission spokesman said letter also explains steps facebook taken response since reporting alissa de carbonnel adecar editing robertjan bartunek standards thomson reuters trust principles shanghaisingapore reuters china closed local cryptocurrency exchanges late last year underground ecosystem bitcoin mules peertopeer platforms sprung allow bitcoin trading thrive away regulators watchful eyes woman using mobile phone reflected electric board showing exchange rates various cryptocurrencies bithumb cryptocurrencies exchange seoul south korea january 11 2018 reuterskim hongji li canadabased chinese banker 20s one underground traders buys cryptocurrencies markets sells premium investors china otherwise get height frenzied demand bitcoins january prices digital currency hovering close 20000 20fold jump 2017 li traders able sell bitcoins china 30 40 percent cost elsewhere matter months premium bitcoins china fallen around 7 percent less flood bitcoin mules physically carry cash across borders trades swamped arbitrage business cryptocurrency funds individual computerassisted traders also piled market boom eaten away spreads shown fast galloping cryptocurrency markets change course markets kind taken downturn less general appetite space said john decleene assistant fund manager running fintech cryptocurrency investments overseas chinese investment management many players entering market also less hype saw decemberjanuary people paying 30 percent premium expected 10 times gains overnight decleene launched 5 million singaporebased global fund november invest cryptocurrencies blockchainrelated equities exploratory arbitrage trading said generated 58 percent return far bitcoin mules bitcoin arbitrage thrived last year cryptocurrency grew volatile governments stepped rules curtail trading simplest geographical arbitrage involved buying bitcoin unregulated markets thailand ones legalised bitcoin trading japan selling banned markets south korea china india second form occurred exchanges nimblefooted traders bought cryptocurrencies cheaply lesserknown exchanges sold profit liquid widely used platforms huge price differences exploit early january price bitcoin 17600 bitstamp luxembourgbased digital currency exchange quoted 25 million 23630 south korea implying 34 percent kimchi premium chinas ban expanded initial prohibition issuing new cryptocurrency shutdown exchanges premiums rose traders quickly found new ways business first limited closed groups popular messaging platform wechat meetings bars potential bitcoin buyers could meet sellers peertopeer platforms coincola websites belonging former chinese exchanges huobi okcoin even retail platform taobao became hubs overthecounter otc cryptocurrency trading conducted outside formal exchanges far difficult regulators police big chinese traders using coincola going direct otc platforms like wechat alipay said christian grewell professor business interactive media arts nyu shanghai lectured extensively cryptocurrencies blockchain technology alipay chinas leading online payment platform another option bank transfers buyers sellers almost untraceable grewell added difficult prove transfer related cryptocurrency transaction trader 20s shanghai said buys bitcoins united states sell counter china trip us illegally carries 30000 40000 cash added selling buying bitcoins otc websites shopping taobao said trader big competition hedge funds execute arbitrage trades quickly fraction cost squeezing individual traders said ramani ramachandran chief executive digital exchange zenprivex peter kim kit trading part vulpes investment management manages 10 million cryptocurrency arbitrage operation beginning 30 percent arbitrage obviously travel thailand buy bitcoins send china japan korea sell thats easy said kim formerly options arbitrage trader opportunity going last long even though blatantly still many ways profit especially someone like used making 3 basis points trade added arbitrage funds operate much like retail traders buying selling cryptocurrencies simultaneously two different platforms much larger scale allows profit smaller spreads retail traders including li turned lesserknown cryptocurrencies tether bills pegged us dollar tether popular chinese seeking move cash discreetly overseas volatile demand means trades 25 percent 35 percent premium china although number high 10 percent january li said arbitrage activity nets 18000 month trading volume half million dollars although tidy sum far less frantic traders made late last year easy arbitrage going much less prevalent used kim said reporting writing vidya ranganathan additional reporting cynthia kim seoul editing gerry doyle standards thomson reuters trust principles mexico citysan francisco reuters chinese ridehailing company didi chuxing publicly launched mexico website advertising service drivers passengers setting stage potentially expensive showdown rival uber file photo logo didi chuxing seen headquarters beijing china may 18 2016 reuterskim kyunghoonfile photo spokesman didi chuxing technology co told reuters company launch first toluca urban hub located around 60 kilometers 37 miles countrys capital didi operations hub trendy juarez neighborhood mexico city didi settled toluca capital central state mexico robust regional commercial cultural center said spokesman declined named priority learn local communities transportation needs spokesman said app go live later month according source familiar plans didi spokesman declined comment timeline didis mexico website says company begin operations soon without providing date meanwhile didi working quickly recruit drivers promise higher earnings competitors offering new didi website says company take cut fares june 17 offering bonuses drivers recruit drivers passengers common tactic ridehailing companies vying gain market share midjune didi planning take 20 percent cut fares 25 percent commission rides mexico charged biggest rival uber technologies inc uberul late last year didi started laying plans mexico reuters reported companys first launch outside asia mexicos clogged streets underdeveloped public transit system growing base smartphone users make country ripe appbased ride services uber rivalry mexico didi first time put service uber chief international rival file photo uber driver checks route mobile phone inside car mexico city mexico february 6 2018 picture taken february 6 2018 reuterscarlos jassofile photo uber ridehailing leader mexico seven million users three dozen cities uber held 87 percent market mexico august highest share latin america according dalia research berlinbased consumer research firm spokesman uber declined comment didi says aims attract drivers passengers promoting safe service company created security button app connect drivers passengers police emergency contacts find danger website said company also staffing safety task force respond issues aroundtheclock didi start car service although two sources said company also considering modes transportation scooters motorcycles bikesharing mexico city certain mexican states taken strict approach ridehailing rules state mexico offers friendly regulatory landscape said carlos martinez head center citizens consumers one principal reasons launch toluca regulation state mexico less lax toluca lots economic activity said new train toluca mexico city set open soon also provide opportunities didi shuttle commuters homes station martinez said reporting julia love heather somerville editing jason neely rosalba obrien standards thomson reuters trust principles
| 1,527 |
<p>SHATI REFUGEE CAMP, Gaza Strip (AP) — Mahmoud al-Qouqa can't imagine life without the three sacks of flour, cooking oil and other staples he receives from the United Nations every three months.</p>
<p>Living with 25 relatives in a crowded home in this teeming Gaza Strip slum, the meager rations provided by UNRWA, the U.N. agency for Palestinian refugee families, are the last thing keeping his family afloat in the territory hard hit by years of poverty and conflict. But that could be in danger as the U.S., UNRWA's biggest donor, threatens to curtail funding.</p>
<p>"It will be like a disaster and no one can predict what the reaction will be," al-Qouqa said.</p>
<p>Across the Middle East, millions of people who depend on UNRWA are bracing for the worst. The expected cut could also add instability to struggling host countries already coping with spillover from other regional crises.</p>
<p>UNRWA was established in the wake of the 1948 Mideast war surrounding Israel's creation. An estimated 700,000 Palestinians fled or were forced from their homes in the fighting.</p>
<p>In the absence of a solution for these refugees, the U.N. General Assembly has repeatedly renewed UNRWA's mandate, the original refugee camps have turned into concrete slums and more than 5 million refugees and their descendants now rely on the agency for services including education, health care and food. The largest populations are in Gaza, the West Bank, Jordan and Lebanon.</p>
<p>Seen by the Palestinians and most of the international community as providing a valuable safety net, UNRWA is viewed far differently by Israel.</p>
<p>Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu accuses the agency of perpetuating the conflict by helping promote an unrealistic dream that these people have the "right of return" to long-lost properties in what is now Israel.</p>
<p>"UNRWA is part of the problem, not part of the solution," he told foreign journalists last week. Noting that the Palestinians are the only group served by a specific refugee agency, he said UNRWA should be abolished and its responsibilities taken over by the main U.N. refugee agency.</p>
<p>Some in Israel have even tougher criticism, accusing UNRWA of teaching hatred of Israel in its classrooms and tolerating or assisting Hamas militants in Gaza.</p>
<p>Blaming the Palestinians for lack of progress in Mideast peace efforts, President Donald Trump has threatened to cut American assistance to the Palestinians. UNRWA would be the first to be affected.</p>
<p>The U.S. provides about $355 million a year to UNRWA, roughly one-third of its budget.</p>
<p>U.S. officials in Washington said this week the administration is preparing to withhold tens of millions of dollars from the year's first contribution, cutting a planned $125 million installment by half or perhaps entirely. The decision could come as early as Tuesday.</p>
<p>Matthias Schmale, UNRWA's director in Gaza, said Washington has not informed the agency of any changes. However, "we are worried because of the statements ... in the media and the fact that the money hasn't arrived yet," he said.</p>
<p>Schmale dismissed the Israeli criticisms, saying that individuals who spread incitement or aid militants are isolated cases and promptly punished. And he said Netanyahu's criticism should be directed at the U.N. General Assembly, which sets UNRWA's mandate, not the agency itself.</p>
<p>Any cut in U.S. aid could ripple across the region with potentially unintended consequences.</p>
<p>Gaza may be the most challenging of all of UNRWA's operating areas. Two-thirds of Gaza's 2 million people qualify for services, and its role is amplified given the poor state of the economy, which has been hit hard by three wars with Israel and a Israeli-Egyptian blockade since the Hamas militant group seized power over a decade ago. Unemployment is 43 percent and the poverty rate is 38 percent, according to the official Palestinian statistics office.</p>
<p>"Nowhere else are we the biggest service provider for the population of the entire territory," Schmale said. He said UNRWA provides food assistance to 1 million Gazans, calling it "an expression of collective shame for the international community."</p>
<p>With more than 12,500 teachers, nurses and other staff, UNRWA is Gaza's largest non-governmental employer. It is also involved in postwar reconstruction projects.</p>
<p>The dire situation in Gaza is evident inside al-Qouqa's home, which is so cramped the family has made sleeping spaces with wood boards and fabric. Two male family members are unemployed. Two others are Hamas civil servants and get paid only intermittently by the cash-strapped movement.</p>
<p>At 72, al-Qouqa is worried about his grandchildren. "If UNRWA provides them with bread, they can remain patient. But if it was cut, what will they become? They will become thieves, criminals and a burden on society," he said. Many believe Hamas, which administers schools and social services in Gaza, will step in to fill the void.</p>
<p>Jordan, a crucial ally in the U.S.-led battle against Islamic militants, is home to the largest number of Palestinian refugees and their descendants — with nearly 2.2 million people eligible for UNRWA services. This has turned the U.N. agency into a major contributor to social welfare services in the country, which also hosts hundreds of thousands of Syrians displaced by war.</p>
<p>U.S. aid cuts could heighten the threat of instability in Jordan, which is grappling with a worsening economy hurt by the spillover from conflict in neighboring Syria and Iraq. More than one-third of Jordan's young people are without jobs, turning them into potential targets for recruitment by extremists.</p>
<p>Most of the Palestinians eligible for UNRWA services in Jordan hold Jordanian citizenship, and some argue that this has ended their refugee status. But most maintain that UNRWA services are vital to propping up an important ally.</p>
<p>UNRWA's services are also vital in Lebanon, where Palestinians are prohibited from working in skilled professions and owning property.</p>
<p>Lebanon is the least-welcoming Arab country to Palestinian refugees, because it does not want Palestinians to settle and because it does not want the refugees to upset the country's delicate sectarian balance. Camps in several cities are ringed by concrete barriers and Lebanese security forces use checkpoints to control who enters and leaves. A recent census found 175,000 Palestinian refugees or their descendants living in the country.</p>
<p>The civil war in Syria has made many Palestinians refugees twice over. Some 32,000 Palestinians who were living in Syria fled to Lebanon, according to UNRWA. In Syria, Palestinians enjoyed the right to own property and to work in all professions. They are not entitled to the same in Lebanon.</p>
<p>Balkees Hameed, 33, arrived in 2013 with her husband, two children and in-laws from Damascus, where their apartment was damaged by rocket fire. The family depends on UNRWA assistance to rent a one-bedroom apartment in a ramshackle building in Bourj al-Barajneh, a Beirut camp. Her husband wipes tables at a restaurant outside the camp. Hameed, like all Palestinians, was painfully aware of the rumors coming out of Washington.</p>
<p>"We are already defeated and now they want to oppress us some more?" she asked.</p>
<p>While more than 5 million Syrian refugees worldwide are entitled to assistance from the U.N.'s general refugee relief agency, Palestinians are barred from it under the logic that UNRWA serves them. But UNRWA in Lebanon is chronically underfunded, and the wave of Palestinians arriving from Syria has strained its finances even further.</p>
<p>"What UNRWA provides is not even a quarter of what a Palestinian refugee needs," said Ramy Mansour, 34, who fled to Lebanon from the Yarmouk refugee camp in Damascus in 2013. "Take everything and return us to our homes. We don't want any assistance or anything, just return us to our country."</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>Associated Press writers Karin Laub in Amman and Philip Issa in Beirut contributed reporting.</p>
<p>SHATI REFUGEE CAMP, Gaza Strip (AP) — Mahmoud al-Qouqa can't imagine life without the three sacks of flour, cooking oil and other staples he receives from the United Nations every three months.</p>
<p>Living with 25 relatives in a crowded home in this teeming Gaza Strip slum, the meager rations provided by UNRWA, the U.N. agency for Palestinian refugee families, are the last thing keeping his family afloat in the territory hard hit by years of poverty and conflict. But that could be in danger as the U.S., UNRWA's biggest donor, threatens to curtail funding.</p>
<p>"It will be like a disaster and no one can predict what the reaction will be," al-Qouqa said.</p>
<p>Across the Middle East, millions of people who depend on UNRWA are bracing for the worst. The expected cut could also add instability to struggling host countries already coping with spillover from other regional crises.</p>
<p>UNRWA was established in the wake of the 1948 Mideast war surrounding Israel's creation. An estimated 700,000 Palestinians fled or were forced from their homes in the fighting.</p>
<p>In the absence of a solution for these refugees, the U.N. General Assembly has repeatedly renewed UNRWA's mandate, the original refugee camps have turned into concrete slums and more than 5 million refugees and their descendants now rely on the agency for services including education, health care and food. The largest populations are in Gaza, the West Bank, Jordan and Lebanon.</p>
<p>Seen by the Palestinians and most of the international community as providing a valuable safety net, UNRWA is viewed far differently by Israel.</p>
<p>Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu accuses the agency of perpetuating the conflict by helping promote an unrealistic dream that these people have the "right of return" to long-lost properties in what is now Israel.</p>
<p>"UNRWA is part of the problem, not part of the solution," he told foreign journalists last week. Noting that the Palestinians are the only group served by a specific refugee agency, he said UNRWA should be abolished and its responsibilities taken over by the main U.N. refugee agency.</p>
<p>Some in Israel have even tougher criticism, accusing UNRWA of teaching hatred of Israel in its classrooms and tolerating or assisting Hamas militants in Gaza.</p>
<p>Blaming the Palestinians for lack of progress in Mideast peace efforts, President Donald Trump has threatened to cut American assistance to the Palestinians. UNRWA would be the first to be affected.</p>
<p>The U.S. provides about $355 million a year to UNRWA, roughly one-third of its budget.</p>
<p>U.S. officials in Washington said this week the administration is preparing to withhold tens of millions of dollars from the year's first contribution, cutting a planned $125 million installment by half or perhaps entirely. The decision could come as early as Tuesday.</p>
<p>Matthias Schmale, UNRWA's director in Gaza, said Washington has not informed the agency of any changes. However, "we are worried because of the statements ... in the media and the fact that the money hasn't arrived yet," he said.</p>
<p>Schmale dismissed the Israeli criticisms, saying that individuals who spread incitement or aid militants are isolated cases and promptly punished. And he said Netanyahu's criticism should be directed at the U.N. General Assembly, which sets UNRWA's mandate, not the agency itself.</p>
<p>Any cut in U.S. aid could ripple across the region with potentially unintended consequences.</p>
<p>Gaza may be the most challenging of all of UNRWA's operating areas. Two-thirds of Gaza's 2 million people qualify for services, and its role is amplified given the poor state of the economy, which has been hit hard by three wars with Israel and a Israeli-Egyptian blockade since the Hamas militant group seized power over a decade ago. Unemployment is 43 percent and the poverty rate is 38 percent, according to the official Palestinian statistics office.</p>
<p>"Nowhere else are we the biggest service provider for the population of the entire territory," Schmale said. He said UNRWA provides food assistance to 1 million Gazans, calling it "an expression of collective shame for the international community."</p>
<p>With more than 12,500 teachers, nurses and other staff, UNRWA is Gaza's largest non-governmental employer. It is also involved in postwar reconstruction projects.</p>
<p>The dire situation in Gaza is evident inside al-Qouqa's home, which is so cramped the family has made sleeping spaces with wood boards and fabric. Two male family members are unemployed. Two others are Hamas civil servants and get paid only intermittently by the cash-strapped movement.</p>
<p>At 72, al-Qouqa is worried about his grandchildren. "If UNRWA provides them with bread, they can remain patient. But if it was cut, what will they become? They will become thieves, criminals and a burden on society," he said. Many believe Hamas, which administers schools and social services in Gaza, will step in to fill the void.</p>
<p>Jordan, a crucial ally in the U.S.-led battle against Islamic militants, is home to the largest number of Palestinian refugees and their descendants — with nearly 2.2 million people eligible for UNRWA services. This has turned the U.N. agency into a major contributor to social welfare services in the country, which also hosts hundreds of thousands of Syrians displaced by war.</p>
<p>U.S. aid cuts could heighten the threat of instability in Jordan, which is grappling with a worsening economy hurt by the spillover from conflict in neighboring Syria and Iraq. More than one-third of Jordan's young people are without jobs, turning them into potential targets for recruitment by extremists.</p>
<p>Most of the Palestinians eligible for UNRWA services in Jordan hold Jordanian citizenship, and some argue that this has ended their refugee status. But most maintain that UNRWA services are vital to propping up an important ally.</p>
<p>UNRWA's services are also vital in Lebanon, where Palestinians are prohibited from working in skilled professions and owning property.</p>
<p>Lebanon is the least-welcoming Arab country to Palestinian refugees, because it does not want Palestinians to settle and because it does not want the refugees to upset the country's delicate sectarian balance. Camps in several cities are ringed by concrete barriers and Lebanese security forces use checkpoints to control who enters and leaves. A recent census found 175,000 Palestinian refugees or their descendants living in the country.</p>
<p>The civil war in Syria has made many Palestinians refugees twice over. Some 32,000 Palestinians who were living in Syria fled to Lebanon, according to UNRWA. In Syria, Palestinians enjoyed the right to own property and to work in all professions. They are not entitled to the same in Lebanon.</p>
<p>Balkees Hameed, 33, arrived in 2013 with her husband, two children and in-laws from Damascus, where their apartment was damaged by rocket fire. The family depends on UNRWA assistance to rent a one-bedroom apartment in a ramshackle building in Bourj al-Barajneh, a Beirut camp. Her husband wipes tables at a restaurant outside the camp. Hameed, like all Palestinians, was painfully aware of the rumors coming out of Washington.</p>
<p>"We are already defeated and now they want to oppress us some more?" she asked.</p>
<p>While more than 5 million Syrian refugees worldwide are entitled to assistance from the U.N.'s general refugee relief agency, Palestinians are barred from it under the logic that UNRWA serves them. But UNRWA in Lebanon is chronically underfunded, and the wave of Palestinians arriving from Syria has strained its finances even further.</p>
<p>"What UNRWA provides is not even a quarter of what a Palestinian refugee needs," said Ramy Mansour, 34, who fled to Lebanon from the Yarmouk refugee camp in Damascus in 2013. "Take everything and return us to our homes. We don't want any assistance or anything, just return us to our country."</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>Associated Press writers Karin Laub in Amman and Philip Issa in Beirut contributed reporting.</p>
| false | 2 |
shati refugee camp gaza strip ap mahmoud alqouqa cant imagine life without three sacks flour cooking oil staples receives united nations every three months living 25 relatives crowded home teeming gaza strip slum meager rations provided unrwa un agency palestinian refugee families last thing keeping family afloat territory hard hit years poverty conflict could danger us unrwas biggest donor threatens curtail funding like disaster one predict reaction alqouqa said across middle east millions people depend unrwa bracing worst expected cut could also add instability struggling host countries already coping spillover regional crises unrwa established wake 1948 mideast war surrounding israels creation estimated 700000 palestinians fled forced homes fighting absence solution refugees un general assembly repeatedly renewed unrwas mandate original refugee camps turned concrete slums 5 million refugees descendants rely agency services including education health care food largest populations gaza west bank jordan lebanon seen palestinians international community providing valuable safety net unrwa viewed far differently israel prime minister benjamin netanyahu accuses agency perpetuating conflict helping promote unrealistic dream people right return longlost properties israel unrwa part problem part solution told foreign journalists last week noting palestinians group served specific refugee agency said unrwa abolished responsibilities taken main un refugee agency israel even tougher criticism accusing unrwa teaching hatred israel classrooms tolerating assisting hamas militants gaza blaming palestinians lack progress mideast peace efforts president donald trump threatened cut american assistance palestinians unrwa would first affected us provides 355 million year unrwa roughly onethird budget us officials washington said week administration preparing withhold tens millions dollars years first contribution cutting planned 125 million installment half perhaps entirely decision could come early tuesday matthias schmale unrwas director gaza said washington informed agency changes however worried statements media fact money hasnt arrived yet said schmale dismissed israeli criticisms saying individuals spread incitement aid militants isolated cases promptly punished said netanyahus criticism directed un general assembly sets unrwas mandate agency cut us aid could ripple across region potentially unintended consequences gaza may challenging unrwas operating areas twothirds gazas 2 million people qualify services role amplified given poor state economy hit hard three wars israel israeliegyptian blockade since hamas militant group seized power decade ago unemployment 43 percent poverty rate 38 percent according official palestinian statistics office nowhere else biggest service provider population entire territory schmale said said unrwa provides food assistance 1 million gazans calling expression collective shame international community 12500 teachers nurses staff unrwa gazas largest nongovernmental employer also involved postwar reconstruction projects dire situation gaza evident inside alqouqas home cramped family made sleeping spaces wood boards fabric two male family members unemployed two others hamas civil servants get paid intermittently cashstrapped movement 72 alqouqa worried grandchildren unrwa provides bread remain patient cut become become thieves criminals burden society said many believe hamas administers schools social services gaza step fill void jordan crucial ally usled battle islamic militants home largest number palestinian refugees descendants nearly 22 million people eligible unrwa services turned un agency major contributor social welfare services country also hosts hundreds thousands syrians displaced war us aid cuts could heighten threat instability jordan grappling worsening economy hurt spillover conflict neighboring syria iraq onethird jordans young people without jobs turning potential targets recruitment extremists palestinians eligible unrwa services jordan hold jordanian citizenship argue ended refugee status maintain unrwa services vital propping important ally unrwas services also vital lebanon palestinians prohibited working skilled professions owning property lebanon leastwelcoming arab country palestinian refugees want palestinians settle want refugees upset countrys delicate sectarian balance camps several cities ringed concrete barriers lebanese security forces use checkpoints control enters leaves recent census found 175000 palestinian refugees descendants living country civil war syria made many palestinians refugees twice 32000 palestinians living syria fled lebanon according unrwa syria palestinians enjoyed right property work professions entitled lebanon balkees hameed 33 arrived 2013 husband two children inlaws damascus apartment damaged rocket fire family depends unrwa assistance rent onebedroom apartment ramshackle building bourj albarajneh beirut camp husband wipes tables restaurant outside camp hameed like palestinians painfully aware rumors coming washington already defeated want oppress us asked 5 million syrian refugees worldwide entitled assistance uns general refugee relief agency palestinians barred logic unrwa serves unrwa lebanon chronically underfunded wave palestinians arriving syria strained finances even unrwa provides even quarter palestinian refugee needs said ramy mansour 34 fled lebanon yarmouk refugee camp damascus 2013 take everything return us homes dont want assistance anything return us country ___ associated press writers karin laub amman philip issa beirut contributed reporting shati refugee camp gaza strip ap mahmoud alqouqa cant imagine life without three sacks flour cooking oil staples receives united nations every three months living 25 relatives crowded home teeming gaza strip slum meager rations provided unrwa un agency palestinian refugee families last thing keeping family afloat territory hard hit years poverty conflict could danger us unrwas biggest donor threatens curtail funding like disaster one predict reaction alqouqa said across middle east millions people depend unrwa bracing worst expected cut could also add instability struggling host countries already coping spillover regional crises unrwa established wake 1948 mideast war surrounding israels creation estimated 700000 palestinians fled forced homes fighting absence solution refugees un general assembly repeatedly renewed unrwas mandate original refugee camps turned concrete slums 5 million refugees descendants rely agency services including education health care food largest populations gaza west bank jordan lebanon seen palestinians international community providing valuable safety net unrwa viewed far differently israel prime minister benjamin netanyahu accuses agency perpetuating conflict helping promote unrealistic dream people right return longlost properties israel unrwa part problem part solution told foreign journalists last week noting palestinians group served specific refugee agency said unrwa abolished responsibilities taken main un refugee agency israel even tougher criticism accusing unrwa teaching hatred israel classrooms tolerating assisting hamas militants gaza blaming palestinians lack progress mideast peace efforts president donald trump threatened cut american assistance palestinians unrwa would first affected us provides 355 million year unrwa roughly onethird budget us officials washington said week administration preparing withhold tens millions dollars years first contribution cutting planned 125 million installment half perhaps entirely decision could come early tuesday matthias schmale unrwas director gaza said washington informed agency changes however worried statements media fact money hasnt arrived yet said schmale dismissed israeli criticisms saying individuals spread incitement aid militants isolated cases promptly punished said netanyahus criticism directed un general assembly sets unrwas mandate agency cut us aid could ripple across region potentially unintended consequences gaza may challenging unrwas operating areas twothirds gazas 2 million people qualify services role amplified given poor state economy hit hard three wars israel israeliegyptian blockade since hamas militant group seized power decade ago unemployment 43 percent poverty rate 38 percent according official palestinian statistics office nowhere else biggest service provider population entire territory schmale said said unrwa provides food assistance 1 million gazans calling expression collective shame international community 12500 teachers nurses staff unrwa gazas largest nongovernmental employer also involved postwar reconstruction projects dire situation gaza evident inside alqouqas home cramped family made sleeping spaces wood boards fabric two male family members unemployed two others hamas civil servants get paid intermittently cashstrapped movement 72 alqouqa worried grandchildren unrwa provides bread remain patient cut become become thieves criminals burden society said many believe hamas administers schools social services gaza step fill void jordan crucial ally usled battle islamic militants home largest number palestinian refugees descendants nearly 22 million people eligible unrwa services turned un agency major contributor social welfare services country also hosts hundreds thousands syrians displaced war us aid cuts could heighten threat instability jordan grappling worsening economy hurt spillover conflict neighboring syria iraq onethird jordans young people without jobs turning potential targets recruitment extremists palestinians eligible unrwa services jordan hold jordanian citizenship argue ended refugee status maintain unrwa services vital propping important ally unrwas services also vital lebanon palestinians prohibited working skilled professions owning property lebanon leastwelcoming arab country palestinian refugees want palestinians settle want refugees upset countrys delicate sectarian balance camps several cities ringed concrete barriers lebanese security forces use checkpoints control enters leaves recent census found 175000 palestinian refugees descendants living country civil war syria made many palestinians refugees twice 32000 palestinians living syria fled lebanon according unrwa syria palestinians enjoyed right property work professions entitled lebanon balkees hameed 33 arrived 2013 husband two children inlaws damascus apartment damaged rocket fire family depends unrwa assistance rent onebedroom apartment ramshackle building bourj albarajneh beirut camp husband wipes tables restaurant outside camp hameed like palestinians painfully aware rumors coming washington already defeated want oppress us asked 5 million syrian refugees worldwide entitled assistance uns general refugee relief agency palestinians barred logic unrwa serves unrwa lebanon chronically underfunded wave palestinians arriving syria strained finances even unrwa provides even quarter palestinian refugee needs said ramy mansour 34 fled lebanon yarmouk refugee camp damascus 2013 take everything return us homes dont want assistance anything return us country ___ associated press writers karin laub amman philip issa beirut contributed reporting
| 1,486 |
<p>WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump, traveling Asia, is claiming a “phenomenal” economic performance at home, “if I do say so myself.”</p>
<p>He does, indeed, say so himself, over and over. But what do those numbers say?</p>
<p>In short, they point to an unquestionably solid record during Trump’s first year in office, though one that builds on steady economic progress under his predecessor. Meanwhile, he also made comments on the U.S.-Japan auto trade that seem less grounded in reality.</p>
<p>A look at his recent claims on both subjects in remarks Monday to business leaders in Tokyo:</p>
<p>TRUMP: “Numbers are phenomenal over the last — since November 8th, Election Day. Our unemployment is at a 17-year low. We’ve gotten almost 2 million more people in the workforce in just that short period of time. I’ve reduced regulations terrifically, frankly, if I do say so myself.” — remarks to business leaders in Tokyo, Monday.</p>
<p>TRUMP tweet Saturday: “Unemployment is down to 4.1%, lowest in 17 years. 1.5 million new jobs created since I took office. Highest stock Market ever, up $5.4 trill.”</p>
<p>THE FACTS: His numbers are close to the mark. Trump can rightfully brag about the U.S. economy, but it’s not quite as exceptional as he says, and he can’t yet legitimately claim that his record on job creation is vastly superior to Barack Obama’s. Many of the economic figures he cites are advancing a recovery from the Great Recession that dates back to the middle of 2009.</p>
<p>The unemployment rate did slip to 4.1 percent in October. But that was in part because many Americans gave up searching for work — one of the criticisms Trump made of Obama’s record during the 2016 campaign.</p>
<p>Trump also takes credit for helping create on average 168,500 jobs a month, but Obama in 2016 averaged about 187,000 jobs a month. Of course, hiring should slow as the unemployment rate declines because fewer people are searching for work.</p>
<p>As for the stock market, the Dow Jones Industrial Average returned to its previous peak in March 2013 and has been setting records ever since. The promise of corporate tax cuts by Trump has helped the stock market, but many of the gains rest on the foundations of an economic recovery in which corporate profits climbed.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>TRUMP:</p>
<p>— “Right now, our trade with Japan is not fair and it’s not open, but I know it will be, soon. We want free and reciprocal trade, but right now our trade with Japan is not free and it’s not reciprocal.”</p>
<p>—“Many millions of cars are sold by Japan into the United States, whereas virtually no cars go from the United States into Japan.”</p>
<p>THE FACTS: When Trump calls for reciprocity in Japan-U.S. trade, he might want to be careful what he wishes for.</p>
<p>With autos, for example, Japan places no tariff on fully assembled vehicles that are imported. But the U.S. has a 2.5 percent tariff on most imported vehicles — 25 percent on pickup trucks. That imbalance — or lack of reciprocity — favors the U.S.</p>
<p>It’s true U.S. vehicle sales in Japan pale in comparison with Japanese sales in the U.S. Detroit has long complained about regulations that stop U.S. carmakers from opening dealerships or selling cars in Japan. But there are other reasons for the disparity in the auto trade, as well. For example, Japan uses right-hand-drive vehicles; the U.S. mainly makes left-hand-drive vehicles in its domestic industry.</p>
<p>And Trump’s point about Japanese vehicles pouring into the U.S. is somewhat off the mark. Made-in-Japan vehicles are a distinct minority of the vehicles sold in the U.S. by Japanese automakers.</p>
<p>More than half the vehicles sold in the U.S. by Japanese manufacturers are built in the U.S., says the Japan Automobile Manufacturers Association. Three-quarters of them are built in North America.</p>
<p>Japanese automakers have 24 U.S. factories, which built nearly 4 million vehicles in 2016.</p>
<p>Trump needled Japanese executives at the meeting: “Try building your cars in the United States instead of shipping them over. Is that possible to ask?”</p>
<p>But he’s well aware of Japanese auto investment in the U.S. In the next breath, he rattled off a series of such investments by Toyota, Mazda and others.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>Krisher reported from Detroit. Associated Press writer Cal Woodward contributed to this report.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>Find AP Fact Checks at <a href="" type="internal">https://apnews.com/tag/APFactCheck</a></p>
<p>WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump, traveling Asia, is claiming a “phenomenal” economic performance at home, “if I do say so myself.”</p>
<p>He does, indeed, say so himself, over and over. But what do those numbers say?</p>
<p>In short, they point to an unquestionably solid record during Trump’s first year in office, though one that builds on steady economic progress under his predecessor. Meanwhile, he also made comments on the U.S.-Japan auto trade that seem less grounded in reality.</p>
<p>A look at his recent claims on both subjects in remarks Monday to business leaders in Tokyo:</p>
<p>TRUMP: “Numbers are phenomenal over the last — since November 8th, Election Day. Our unemployment is at a 17-year low. We’ve gotten almost 2 million more people in the workforce in just that short period of time. I’ve reduced regulations terrifically, frankly, if I do say so myself.” — remarks to business leaders in Tokyo, Monday.</p>
<p>TRUMP tweet Saturday: “Unemployment is down to 4.1%, lowest in 17 years. 1.5 million new jobs created since I took office. Highest stock Market ever, up $5.4 trill.”</p>
<p>THE FACTS: His numbers are close to the mark. Trump can rightfully brag about the U.S. economy, but it’s not quite as exceptional as he says, and he can’t yet legitimately claim that his record on job creation is vastly superior to Barack Obama’s. Many of the economic figures he cites are advancing a recovery from the Great Recession that dates back to the middle of 2009.</p>
<p>The unemployment rate did slip to 4.1 percent in October. But that was in part because many Americans gave up searching for work — one of the criticisms Trump made of Obama’s record during the 2016 campaign.</p>
<p>Trump also takes credit for helping create on average 168,500 jobs a month, but Obama in 2016 averaged about 187,000 jobs a month. Of course, hiring should slow as the unemployment rate declines because fewer people are searching for work.</p>
<p>As for the stock market, the Dow Jones Industrial Average returned to its previous peak in March 2013 and has been setting records ever since. The promise of corporate tax cuts by Trump has helped the stock market, but many of the gains rest on the foundations of an economic recovery in which corporate profits climbed.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>TRUMP:</p>
<p>— “Right now, our trade with Japan is not fair and it’s not open, but I know it will be, soon. We want free and reciprocal trade, but right now our trade with Japan is not free and it’s not reciprocal.”</p>
<p>—“Many millions of cars are sold by Japan into the United States, whereas virtually no cars go from the United States into Japan.”</p>
<p>THE FACTS: When Trump calls for reciprocity in Japan-U.S. trade, he might want to be careful what he wishes for.</p>
<p>With autos, for example, Japan places no tariff on fully assembled vehicles that are imported. But the U.S. has a 2.5 percent tariff on most imported vehicles — 25 percent on pickup trucks. That imbalance — or lack of reciprocity — favors the U.S.</p>
<p>It’s true U.S. vehicle sales in Japan pale in comparison with Japanese sales in the U.S. Detroit has long complained about regulations that stop U.S. carmakers from opening dealerships or selling cars in Japan. But there are other reasons for the disparity in the auto trade, as well. For example, Japan uses right-hand-drive vehicles; the U.S. mainly makes left-hand-drive vehicles in its domestic industry.</p>
<p>And Trump’s point about Japanese vehicles pouring into the U.S. is somewhat off the mark. Made-in-Japan vehicles are a distinct minority of the vehicles sold in the U.S. by Japanese automakers.</p>
<p>More than half the vehicles sold in the U.S. by Japanese manufacturers are built in the U.S., says the Japan Automobile Manufacturers Association. Three-quarters of them are built in North America.</p>
<p>Japanese automakers have 24 U.S. factories, which built nearly 4 million vehicles in 2016.</p>
<p>Trump needled Japanese executives at the meeting: “Try building your cars in the United States instead of shipping them over. Is that possible to ask?”</p>
<p>But he’s well aware of Japanese auto investment in the U.S. In the next breath, he rattled off a series of such investments by Toyota, Mazda and others.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>Krisher reported from Detroit. Associated Press writer Cal Woodward contributed to this report.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>Find AP Fact Checks at <a href="" type="internal">https://apnews.com/tag/APFactCheck</a></p>
| false | 2 |
washington ap president donald trump traveling asia claiming phenomenal economic performance home say indeed say numbers say short point unquestionably solid record trumps first year office though one builds steady economic progress predecessor meanwhile also made comments usjapan auto trade seem less grounded reality look recent claims subjects remarks monday business leaders tokyo trump numbers phenomenal last since november 8th election day unemployment 17year low weve gotten almost 2 million people workforce short period time ive reduced regulations terrifically frankly say remarks business leaders tokyo monday trump tweet saturday unemployment 41 lowest 17 years 15 million new jobs created since took office highest stock market ever 54 trill facts numbers close mark trump rightfully brag us economy quite exceptional says cant yet legitimately claim record job creation vastly superior barack obamas many economic figures cites advancing recovery great recession dates back middle 2009 unemployment rate slip 41 percent october part many americans gave searching work one criticisms trump made obamas record 2016 campaign trump also takes credit helping create average 168500 jobs month obama 2016 averaged 187000 jobs month course hiring slow unemployment rate declines fewer people searching work stock market dow jones industrial average returned previous peak march 2013 setting records ever since promise corporate tax cuts trump helped stock market many gains rest foundations economic recovery corporate profits climbed ___ trump right trade japan fair open know soon want free reciprocal trade right trade japan free reciprocal many millions cars sold japan united states whereas virtually cars go united states japan facts trump calls reciprocity japanus trade might want careful wishes autos example japan places tariff fully assembled vehicles imported us 25 percent tariff imported vehicles 25 percent pickup trucks imbalance lack reciprocity favors us true us vehicle sales japan pale comparison japanese sales us detroit long complained regulations stop us carmakers opening dealerships selling cars japan reasons disparity auto trade well example japan uses righthanddrive vehicles us mainly makes lefthanddrive vehicles domestic industry trumps point japanese vehicles pouring us somewhat mark madeinjapan vehicles distinct minority vehicles sold us japanese automakers half vehicles sold us japanese manufacturers built us says japan automobile manufacturers association threequarters built north america japanese automakers 24 us factories built nearly 4 million vehicles 2016 trump needled japanese executives meeting try building cars united states instead shipping possible ask hes well aware japanese auto investment us next breath rattled series investments toyota mazda others ___ krisher reported detroit associated press writer cal woodward contributed report ___ find ap fact checks httpsapnewscomtagapfactcheck washington ap president donald trump traveling asia claiming phenomenal economic performance home say indeed say numbers say short point unquestionably solid record trumps first year office though one builds steady economic progress predecessor meanwhile also made comments usjapan auto trade seem less grounded reality look recent claims subjects remarks monday business leaders tokyo trump numbers phenomenal last since november 8th election day unemployment 17year low weve gotten almost 2 million people workforce short period time ive reduced regulations terrifically frankly say remarks business leaders tokyo monday trump tweet saturday unemployment 41 lowest 17 years 15 million new jobs created since took office highest stock market ever 54 trill facts numbers close mark trump rightfully brag us economy quite exceptional says cant yet legitimately claim record job creation vastly superior barack obamas many economic figures cites advancing recovery great recession dates back middle 2009 unemployment rate slip 41 percent october part many americans gave searching work one criticisms trump made obamas record 2016 campaign trump also takes credit helping create average 168500 jobs month obama 2016 averaged 187000 jobs month course hiring slow unemployment rate declines fewer people searching work stock market dow jones industrial average returned previous peak march 2013 setting records ever since promise corporate tax cuts trump helped stock market many gains rest foundations economic recovery corporate profits climbed ___ trump right trade japan fair open know soon want free reciprocal trade right trade japan free reciprocal many millions cars sold japan united states whereas virtually cars go united states japan facts trump calls reciprocity japanus trade might want careful wishes autos example japan places tariff fully assembled vehicles imported us 25 percent tariff imported vehicles 25 percent pickup trucks imbalance lack reciprocity favors us true us vehicle sales japan pale comparison japanese sales us detroit long complained regulations stop us carmakers opening dealerships selling cars japan reasons disparity auto trade well example japan uses righthanddrive vehicles us mainly makes lefthanddrive vehicles domestic industry trumps point japanese vehicles pouring us somewhat mark madeinjapan vehicles distinct minority vehicles sold us japanese automakers half vehicles sold us japanese manufacturers built us says japan automobile manufacturers association threequarters built north america japanese automakers 24 us factories built nearly 4 million vehicles 2016 trump needled japanese executives meeting try building cars united states instead shipping possible ask hes well aware japanese auto investment us next breath rattled series investments toyota mazda others ___ krisher reported detroit associated press writer cal woodward contributed report ___ find ap fact checks httpsapnewscomtagapfactcheck
| 834 |
<p>Norfolk Southern Corp:</p>
<p>* NORFOLK SOUTHERN BOARD INCREASES QUARTERLY DIVIDEND 18 PERCENT</p>
<p>* NORFOLK SOUTHERN CORP - BOARD APPROVED AN 18 PERCENT INCREASE IN ITS QUARTERLY DIVIDEND ON COMPANY’S COMMON STOCK, FROM 61 TO 72 CENTS PER SHARE Source text for Eikon: Further company coverage:</p> Our Standards:
<a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a>
<p>NEW YORK (Reuters) - Wall Street tumbled on Friday with more than 1,000 points knocked off the Dow in two days as investors, increasingly nervous about a potential U.S. trade war with China, shied away from risk ahead of the weekend and sought shelter from further losses.</p>
<p>In a volatile session, the S&amp;P 500 came within a hair of its 200-day moving average, a key technical level. The benchmark index also nudged closer to its February low, which marked a correction, ending 9.9 percent lower than its Jan. 26 record.</p>
<p>“There is concern what the trade war could look like. Investors want to manage their risk. If it escalates rapidly, it could be a major headwind for the market,” said Peter Kenny, senior market strategist at Global Markets Advisory Group, in New York.</p>
<p>President Donald Trump’s plans for tariffs on up to $60 billion in Chinese goods moved the world’s two largest economies closer to a trade war as China declared plans to levy duties on up to $3 billion of U.S. imports including fruit and wine even as it urged the United States to “pull back from the brink.”</p>
<p>The Dow Jones Industrial Average <a href="/finance/markets/index?symbol=.DJI" type="external">.DJI</a> fell 424.69 points, or 1.77 percent, to 23,533.2, the S&amp;P 500 <a href="/finance/markets/index?symbol=.SPX" type="external">.SPX</a> lost 55.43 points, or 2.10 percent, to 2,588.26 after hitting an intraday low that was barely above its 200-day moving average of 2585.22.</p>
<p>The Nasdaq Composite <a href="/finance/markets/index?symbol=.IXIC" type="external">.IXIC</a> dropped 174.01 points, or 2.43 percent, to 6,992.67.</p>
<p>For the week, the Dow was down 5.67 percent, the S&amp;P 500 was down 5.95 percent and the Nasdaq was down 6.54 percent, marking their biggest weekly percentage falls since January 2016.</p>
<p>The Dow was down 11.6 percent since its Jan. 26 high, and hit its lowest close since confirming a correction in February.</p> FILE PHOTO: Traders work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange, (NYSE) in New York, U.S., March 22, 2018. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid
<p>The Cboe Volatility Index .VIX, the most widely followed barometer of expected near-term volatility in the S&amp;P 500, finished up 1.53 points at 24.87, its highest close since Feb. 13.</p>
<p>The S&amp;P’s financial sector .SPSY was the S&amp;P’s biggest percentage loser, at 3 percent, after a volatile session in which it was whip-sawed by volatile Treasury yields.</p>
<a href="/finance/markets/index?symbol=.DJI" type="external">Dow Jones &amp; Company Inc</a> 23533.2 .DJI Dow Jones Indexes -424.69 (-1.77%) .DJI .SPX .IXIC FB.O AMZN.O
<p>Bloomberg News cited China’s ambassador to the United States saying that the country is “looking at all options” in response to tariffs, which could include scaling back purchases of U.S. Treasuries.</p>
<p>Nasdaq was weighed down by declines in momentum stocks such as Facebook ( <a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=FB.O" type="external">FB.O</a>), Amazon.com ( <a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=AMZN.O" type="external">AMZN.O</a>), Microsoft ( <a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=MSFT.O" type="external">MSFT.O</a>) and Google’s parent Alphabet ( <a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=GOOGL.O" type="external">GOOGL.O</a>).</p>
<p>The semiconductor sector took a fall after Micron Technology’s ( <a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=MU.O" type="external">MU.O</a>) quarterly report stoked fears about falling NAND prices. The Philadelphia Semiconductor index .SOX slumped 3.3 percent.</p>
<p>Declining issues outnumbered advancing ones on the NYSE by a 3.96-to-1 ratio; on Nasdaq, a 3.72-to-1 ratio favored decliners.</p>
<p>The S&amp;P 500 posted two new 52-week highs and 42 new lows; the Nasdaq Composite recorded 23 new highs and 93 new lows.</p>
<p>Volume on U.S. exchanges was 8.11 billion shares, above the 7.3 billion average for the last 20 trading days.</p>
<p>Additional reporting by Caroline Valetkevitch, Saqib Iqbal Ahmed and April Joyner in New York and Sruthi Shankar in Bengaluru Editing by Nick Zieminski and James Dalgleish</p> Our Standards:
<a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a>
<p>WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States on Friday charged and sanctioned nine Iranians and an Iranian company for attempting to hack into hundreds of universities worldwide, dozens of companies and parts of the U.S. government, including its main energy regulator, on behalf of Tehran’s government.</p>
<p>The cyber attacks, beginning in at least 2013, pilfered more than 31 terabytes of academic data and intellectual property from 144 U.S. universities and 176 universities in 21 other countries, the U.S. Department of Justice said, describing the campaign as one of the largest state-sponsored hacks ever prosecuted.</p>
<p>The U.S. Treasury Department said that it was placing sanctions on the nine people and the Mabna Institute, a company U.S. prosecutors characterized as designed to help Iranian research organizations steal information.</p>
<p>U.S. Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein said the nine Iranians were considered fugitives who may face extradition in more than 100 countries if they travel outside of Iran.</p>
<p>Authorities “will aggressively investigate and prosecute hostile actors who attempt to profit from America’s ideas by infiltrating our computer systems and stealing intellectual property,” Rosenstein said at a news conference.</p>
<p>He said the case “will disrupt the defendants’ hacking operations and deter similar crimes.”</p>
<p>The hackers were not accused of being directly employed by Iran’s government. They were instead charged with criminal conduct waged primarily through the Mabna Institute on behalf of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, the elite military force assigned to defend Iran’s Shi’ite theocracy from internal and external threats.</p>
<p>There was no immediate response to the charges and sanctions in Iran’s state-run media.</p>
<p>The targeting of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, or FERC, was especially concerning, U.S. Attorney Geoffrey Berman said, because it oversees the interstate regulation of energy in the United States and holds details of some of the country’s “most sensitive infrastructure.”</p>
<p>Hackers targeted email accounts of more than 100,000 professors worldwide, half located in the United States, and compromised about 8,000 of them, prosecutors said. Hackers also targeted the U.S. Labor Department, the United Nations and the computer systems of the U.S. states Hawaii and Indiana, prosecutors said.</p>
<p>Friday’s actions are part of an effort by senior cyber security officials at the White House and across the U.S. government to blame foreign countries for malicious hacks.</p>
<p>They were announced a day after U.S. President Donald Trump named John Bolton, a former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations who is deeply skeptical of the 2015 international nuclear accord with Iran, as his new national security adviser. Trump himself has repeatedly cast doubt on the nuclear deal, in which the U.S. and other world powers eased sanctions in exchange for Tehran putting limits on its nuclear program.</p> INTERNET FIRMS ALERTED
<p>The Department of Justice on Friday privately warned major internet infrastructure companies to expect attacks from Iran, an executive at one company who received the alert said. The officials said the most likely retaliation would be denial of service attacks on websites, which are not destructive but disrupt commerce and communication.</p> U.S. Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein speaks at a news conference with other law enforcement officials at the Justice Department to announce nine Iranians charged with conducting massive cyber theft campaign, in Washington, U.S., March 23, 2018. REUTERS/Yuri Gripas
<p>Britain’s National Cyber Security Centre said on Twitter that the Mabna Institute was “almost certainly responsible for cyber attacks targeting universities around the world.”</p>
<p>The sanctions and charges were the fourth time in the past few months that the Trump administration has blamed a foreign government for major cyber attacks, a practice that was relatively rare under the Obama administration.</p>
<p>Last week, the administration accused the Russian government of cyber attacks stretching back at least two years that targeted the U.S. power grid. Washington imposed new sanctions on 19 Russians and five groups, including Moscow’s intelligence services, for meddling in the 2016 U.S. election and other cyber attacks.</p>
<p>Friday’s indictment in U.S. District Court in New York said the Iranian hackers did extensive background research of university professors before sending them “spearphishing” emails tailored to their academic interests and scholarly published articles.</p> Slideshow (6 Images)
<p>The emails purported to be from professors at another university and indicated the sender had read an article written by them, prosecutors said.</p>
<p>The emails would then direct recipients to click on links to related articles that would direct victims to a malicious internet domain that appeared similar to the victim’s actual university portal, where they would be prompted to enter their login credentials.</p>
<p>Once accounts were compromised, the hackers would steal reams of academic data and intellectual property related to science and technology, engineering, social sciences and medicine, the indictment said.</p>
<p>Stolen data was obtained to benefit Iran’s Revolutionary Guard and sold within Iran through the websites Megapaper and Gigapaper to universities in Iran, prosecutors said.</p> ‘PASSWORD SPRAYING’
<p>Hackers targeted and compromised employee email accounts for 36 U.S.-based companies and 11 companies in countries including Germany, Italy and Britain, prosecutors said. Victim companies in the United states included two media and entertainment companies, one law firm, 11 technology firms, and two bank and investment firms, among others.</p>
<p>Unlike the precise targeting of professors, companies fell victim to a broad technique known as “password spraying” that involves finding lists of company email accounts online and then attempting to hack into them by using common default passwords. Once inside, the hackers would steal entire email mailboxes.</p>
<p>The Treasury Department also placed sanctions on another Iranian, Behzad Mesri. Sometimes known as “Skote Vahshat,” Mesri was charged in 2017 with hacking cable TV network HBO to leak unaired episodes of the fantasy drama Game of Thrones. Mesri is still at large, officials said.</p>
<p>The Obama administration in 2016 indicted seven Iranians for distributed-denial-of-service attacks on dozens of U.S. banks and for trying to shut down a New York dam. Those hackers were also accused of working on behalf of Iran’s government.</p>
<p>None of the Iranians indicted in 2016 have been arrested or extradited, a Justice Department spokesman said.</p>
<p>Reporting by Dustin Volz and Joseph Menn; additional reporting by Lisa Lambert, Timothy Gardner and Susan Heavey; editing by Grant McCool</p> Our Standards:
<a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a>
<p>(Reuters) - Dropbox Inc’s shares closed at $28.42, up more than 35 percent in their first day of trading on Friday, as investors rushed to buy into the biggest technology initial public offering in more than a year even as the wider sector languished.</p>
<p>The stock opened at $29 on the Nasdaq and soared as much as 50 percent to a high of $31.60 in early trading. At the stock’s opening price, Dropbox had a market valuation of $12.67 billion, well above the $10 billion valuation it had in its last private funding round.</p>
<p>Its IPO priced at $21 per share late on Thursday, $1 above the projected range of $18 to $20, and was several times oversubscribed.</p>
<p>The solid first-day pop came despite weakness in the wider U.S. stock market. The S&amp;P 500 slid 1.8 percent while Nasdaq dropped 2.4 percent, adding to losses of more than 2 percent each on Thursday.</p>
<p>The S&amp;P tech index was down 2.73 percent.</p>
<p>Dropbox’s much-awaited debut ended a long dry spell in the U.S. IPO market for big tech names.</p>
<p>The last so-called tech unicorn to hit the market was Snap Inc last March, and the Snapchat owner is now trading roughly 4 percent below its $17 IPO price.</p>
<p>“In the case of Dropbox, investors get a chance to get exposure to a next-generation tech company, which is a proven business model,” said Tom Taulli, InvestorPlace.com analyst.</p> Dropbox Inc. co-founder Drew Houston speaks in front of co-founder Arash Ferdowsi celebrate as Dropbox (DBX) is listed for the company's initial public offering (IPO) at the Nasdaq Market Site in New York, U.S., March 23, 2018. REUTERS/Lucas Jackson
<p>The pop in Dropbox’s price may bode well for Spotify, valued at roughly $19 billion in the private market. The music streaming service has filed for a direct listing and will start trading on the New York Stock Exchange on April 3.</p>
<p>“Dropbox is going public at the right time. It has an attractive story to justify its need for financing and the market dynamics are good,” said Josh Lerner, professor of investment banking at Harvard Business School.</p> Slideshow (9 Images)
<p>“But at the same time, the environment is also competitive”.</p>
<p>The San Francisco-based company, which started as a free service to share and store photos, music and other large files, competes with Alphabet Inc’s Google, Microsoft Corp and Amazon.com Inc as well as Box Inc.</p>
<p>It has yet to turn a profit, which is common for startups that invest heavily in growth. As a public company Dropbox will be under pressure to quickly trim its losses.</p>
<p>The 11-year old company reported revenue of $1.11 billion in 2017, up from $844.8 million a year earlier. Its net loss nearly halved from $210.2 million in 2016.</p>
<p>“The strong performance of the Dropbox IPO may open the door for more technology unicorns to IPO throughout the rest of 2018,” said Sohail Prasad, co-founder and co-chief executive of Equidate, a platform for trading of shares in private technology firms.</p>
<p>“If investors had bought Dropbox stock within the last six months, they’d be up over 75 percent.”</p>
<p>Reporting by Sweta Singh in Bengaluru and Salvador Rodriguez in San Francisco; Additional reporting by Nikhil Subba and Diptendu Lahiri; Editing by Dan Burns and Meredith Mazzilli</p> Our Standards:
<a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a>
<p>LONDON (Reuters) - GlaxoSmithKline ( <a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=GSK.L" type="external">GSK.L</a>) has quit the race to buy Pfizer’s ( <a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=PFE.N" type="external">PFE.N</a>) consumer healthcare business, endangering an auction the U.S. drugmaker hoped would bring in as much as $20 billion.</p>
<p>It was not immediately clear whether there were other offers for the business, which includes Advil painkillers and Centrum vitamins, following this week’s deadline for binding bids.</p>
<p>GlaxoSmithKline (GSK), which announced its withdrawal on Friday, was seen as the frontrunner to buy the assets after Reckitt Benckiser ( <a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=RB.L" type="external">RB.L</a>) left the race late on Wednesday. Johnson &amp; Johnson ( <a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=JNJ.N" type="external">JNJ.N</a>) stepped away from the auction in January.</p>
<p>A source familiar with the matter said GSK declined to make a final bid for the assets in the end.</p>
<p>“While we will continue to review opportunities that may accelerate our strategy, they must meet our criteria for returns and not compromise our priorities for capital allocation,” GSK Chief Executive Emma Walmsley said in a statement.</p>
<p>GSK shares rose nearly 4 percent, as investors’ concerns about a potential dividend cut eased.</p>
<p>Pfizer said on Friday it continued to evaluate potential alternatives for the business, which include a spin-off, sale or other transaction, as well as retaining it.</p>
<p>“We have not yet made a decision, but continue to expect to make one in 2018,” a spokesman said.</p>
<p>Sources familiar with the matter said on Thursday it was possible there were other bids. On Friday, a source said that if not, Pfizer could try to tap private equity funds.</p>
<p>Pfizer is the world’s fifth-largest player in consumer health with 2.5 percent of a market bolstered by aging populations and growing interest in health and wellness.</p>
<p>The business, which also includes Chapstick lip balm and Caltrate supplements, is seen as attractive but has come to market at a bad time. GSK and Reckitt are under shareholder pressure to exercise financial discipline, while other potential suitors, such as Bayer ( <a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=BAYGn.DE" type="external">BAYGn.DE</a>) and Sanofi ( <a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=SASY.PA" type="external">SASY.PA</a>) are busy with other projects.</p> FILE PHOTO: The Pfizer logo is seen at their world headquarters in New York, U.S., April 28, 2014. REUTERS/Andrew Kelly/File Photo
<p>What is more, the global consumer health market has slowed, from 4-6 percent like-for-like sales growth to 0-3 percent growth, Morgan Stanley analysts said in December. Major players in the over-the-counter market have been grappling with pricing pressure stoked by online players such as Amazon ( <a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=AMZN.O" type="external">AMZN.O</a>) and private label competitors.</p>
<p>Pfizer’s hope of fetching around $20 billion translated to a multiple of about 20 times the unit’s core earnings, according to Bernstein analysts, in line with past deals in the sector during faster growing times.</p>
<p>Differences in price expectations also hobbled German drugmaker Merck KGaA’s ( <a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=MRCG.DE" type="external">MRCG.DE</a>) attempts to sell its consumer products unit, where a price tag of up to 4 billion euros ($5 billion) deterred initial suitors such as Nestle ( <a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=NESN.S" type="external">NESN.S</a>), Perrigo ( <a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=PRGO.N" type="external">PRGO.N</a>) and a private-equity consortium.</p>
<a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=GSK.L" type="external">GlaxoSmithKline PLC</a> 1315.6 GSK.L London Stock Exchange +41.80 (+3.28%) GSK.L PFE.N RB.L JNJ.N BAYGn.DE
<p>Reckitt’s early interest in the Merck assets also waned as the Pfizer auction gained momentum.</p> SPLIT OPINION
<p>Buying the Pfizer business would have been the boldest move to date for Walmsley, who took over at GSK last April. But the wisdom of a deal split opinion among investors, with some worried about the risk to the company’s dividend.</p>
<p>Acquiring additional consumer health assets at a reasonable price could have been a fairly safe way to boost earnings, since scale is key in over-the-counter remedies, but it could have distracted from fixing GSK’s core pharma division.</p>
<p>That is a particular headache for Walmsley - a consumer products veteran who worked for 17 years at L’Oreal ( <a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=OREP.PA" type="external">OREP.PA</a>) - since she has her work cut out to persuade the market she is the right person to lead Britain’s top pharmaceuticals company.</p>
<p>Last month, in a bid to reassure investors, she spelt out that her first priority was improving performance in prescription drugs, followed by dividend payments and only after that acquisitions.</p>
<p>The overhaul of the drugs business, which has produced fewer blockbuster medicines than rivals in recent years, is underway in both the commercial and research fields.</p>
<p>GSK runs its consumer healthcare business via a joint venture with Novartis ( <a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=NOVN.S" type="external">NOVN.S</a>), which complicates any acquisitions. Novartis has the right to sell down its 36.5 percent stake, valued at around $10 billion, from this month, although it has previously indicated it is in no rush to do so.</p>
<p>Additional reporting by Paul Sandle and Ben Hirschler; Editing by David Goodman and Mark Potter</p> Our Standards:
<a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a>
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norfolk southern corp norfolk southern board increases quarterly dividend 18 percent norfolk southern corp board approved 18 percent increase quarterly dividend companys common stock 61 72 cents per share source text eikon company coverage standards thomson reuters trust principles new york reuters wall street tumbled friday 1000 points knocked dow two days investors increasingly nervous potential us trade war china shied away risk ahead weekend sought shelter losses volatile session sampp 500 came within hair 200day moving average key technical level benchmark index also nudged closer february low marked correction ending 99 percent lower jan 26 record concern trade war could look like investors want manage risk escalates rapidly could major headwind market said peter kenny senior market strategist global markets advisory group new york president donald trumps plans tariffs 60 billion chinese goods moved worlds two largest economies closer trade war china declared plans levy duties 3 billion us imports including fruit wine even urged united states pull back brink dow jones industrial average dji fell 42469 points 177 percent 235332 sampp 500 spx lost 5543 points 210 percent 258826 hitting intraday low barely 200day moving average 258522 nasdaq composite ixic dropped 17401 points 243 percent 699267 week dow 567 percent sampp 500 595 percent nasdaq 654 percent marking biggest weekly percentage falls since january 2016 dow 116 percent since jan 26 high hit lowest close since confirming correction february file photo traders work floor new york stock exchange nyse new york us march 22 2018 reutersbrendan mcdermid cboe volatility index vix widely followed barometer expected nearterm volatility sampp 500 finished 153 points 2487 highest close since feb 13 sampps financial sector spsy sampps biggest percentage loser 3 percent volatile session whipsawed volatile treasury yields dow jones amp company inc 235332 dji dow jones indexes 42469 177 dji spx ixic fbo amzno bloomberg news cited chinas ambassador united states saying country looking options response tariffs could include scaling back purchases us treasuries nasdaq weighed declines momentum stocks facebook fbo amazoncom amzno microsoft msfto googles parent alphabet googlo semiconductor sector took fall micron technologys muo quarterly report stoked fears falling nand prices philadelphia semiconductor index sox slumped 33 percent declining issues outnumbered advancing ones nyse 396to1 ratio nasdaq 372to1 ratio favored decliners sampp 500 posted two new 52week highs 42 new lows nasdaq composite recorded 23 new highs 93 new lows volume us exchanges 811 billion shares 73 billion average last 20 trading days additional reporting caroline valetkevitch saqib iqbal ahmed april joyner new york sruthi shankar bengaluru editing nick zieminski james dalgleish standards thomson reuters trust principles washington reuters united states friday charged sanctioned nine iranians iranian company attempting hack hundreds universities worldwide dozens companies parts us government including main energy regulator behalf tehrans government cyber attacks beginning least 2013 pilfered 31 terabytes academic data intellectual property 144 us universities 176 universities 21 countries us department justice said describing campaign one largest statesponsored hacks ever prosecuted us treasury department said placing sanctions nine people mabna institute company us prosecutors characterized designed help iranian research organizations steal information us deputy attorney general rod rosenstein said nine iranians considered fugitives may face extradition 100 countries travel outside iran authorities aggressively investigate prosecute hostile actors attempt profit americas ideas infiltrating computer systems stealing intellectual property rosenstein said news conference said case disrupt defendants hacking operations deter similar crimes hackers accused directly employed irans government instead charged criminal conduct waged primarily mabna institute behalf islamic revolutionary guard corps elite military force assigned defend irans shiite theocracy internal external threats immediate response charges sanctions irans staterun media targeting federal energy regulatory commission ferc especially concerning us attorney geoffrey berman said oversees interstate regulation energy united states holds details countrys sensitive infrastructure hackers targeted email accounts 100000 professors worldwide half located united states compromised 8000 prosecutors said hackers also targeted us labor department united nations computer systems us states hawaii indiana prosecutors said fridays actions part effort senior cyber security officials white house across us government blame foreign countries malicious hacks announced day us president donald trump named john bolton former us ambassador united nations deeply skeptical 2015 international nuclear accord iran new national security adviser trump repeatedly cast doubt nuclear deal us world powers eased sanctions exchange tehran putting limits nuclear program internet firms alerted department justice friday privately warned major internet infrastructure companies expect attacks iran executive one company received alert said officials said likely retaliation would denial service attacks websites destructive disrupt commerce communication us deputy attorney general rod rosenstein speaks news conference law enforcement officials justice department announce nine iranians charged conducting massive cyber theft campaign washington us march 23 2018 reutersyuri gripas britains national cyber security centre said twitter mabna institute almost certainly responsible cyber attacks targeting universities around world sanctions charges fourth time past months trump administration blamed foreign government major cyber attacks practice relatively rare obama administration last week administration accused russian government cyber attacks stretching back least two years targeted us power grid washington imposed new sanctions 19 russians five groups including moscows intelligence services meddling 2016 us election cyber attacks fridays indictment us district court new york said iranian hackers extensive background research university professors sending spearphishing emails tailored academic interests scholarly published articles slideshow 6 images emails purported professors another university indicated sender read article written prosecutors said emails would direct recipients click links related articles would direct victims malicious internet domain appeared similar victims actual university portal would prompted enter login credentials accounts compromised hackers would steal reams academic data intellectual property related science technology engineering social sciences medicine indictment said stolen data obtained benefit irans revolutionary guard sold within iran websites megapaper gigapaper universities iran prosecutors said password spraying hackers targeted compromised employee email accounts 36 usbased companies 11 companies countries including germany italy britain prosecutors said victim companies united states included two media entertainment companies one law firm 11 technology firms two bank investment firms among others unlike precise targeting professors companies fell victim broad technique known password spraying involves finding lists company email accounts online attempting hack using common default passwords inside hackers would steal entire email mailboxes treasury department also placed sanctions another iranian behzad mesri sometimes known skote vahshat mesri charged 2017 hacking cable tv network hbo leak unaired episodes fantasy drama game thrones mesri still large officials said obama administration 2016 indicted seven iranians distributeddenialofservice attacks dozens us banks trying shut new york dam hackers also accused working behalf irans government none iranians indicted 2016 arrested extradited justice department spokesman said reporting dustin volz joseph menn additional reporting lisa lambert timothy gardner susan heavey editing grant mccool standards thomson reuters trust principles reuters dropbox incs shares closed 2842 35 percent first day trading friday investors rushed buy biggest technology initial public offering year even wider sector languished stock opened 29 nasdaq soared much 50 percent high 3160 early trading stocks opening price dropbox market valuation 1267 billion well 10 billion valuation last private funding round ipo priced 21 per share late thursday 1 projected range 18 20 several times oversubscribed solid firstday pop came despite weakness wider us stock market sampp 500 slid 18 percent nasdaq dropped 24 percent adding losses 2 percent thursday sampp tech index 273 percent dropboxs muchawaited debut ended long dry spell us ipo market big tech names last socalled tech unicorn hit market snap inc last march snapchat owner trading roughly 4 percent 17 ipo price case dropbox investors get chance get exposure nextgeneration tech company proven business model said tom taulli investorplacecom analyst dropbox inc cofounder drew houston speaks front cofounder arash ferdowsi celebrate dropbox dbx listed companys initial public offering ipo nasdaq market site new york us march 23 2018 reuterslucas jackson pop dropboxs price may bode well spotify valued roughly 19 billion private market music streaming service filed direct listing start trading new york stock exchange april 3 dropbox going public right time attractive story justify need financing market dynamics good said josh lerner professor investment banking harvard business school slideshow 9 images time environment also competitive san franciscobased company started free service share store photos music large files competes alphabet incs google microsoft corp amazoncom inc well box inc yet turn profit common startups invest heavily growth public company dropbox pressure quickly trim losses 11year old company reported revenue 111 billion 2017 8448 million year earlier net loss nearly halved 2102 million 2016 strong performance dropbox ipo may open door technology unicorns ipo throughout rest 2018 said sohail prasad cofounder cochief executive equidate platform trading shares private technology firms investors bought dropbox stock within last six months theyd 75 percent reporting sweta singh bengaluru salvador rodriguez san francisco additional reporting nikhil subba diptendu lahiri editing dan burns meredith mazzilli standards thomson reuters trust principles london reuters glaxosmithkline gskl quit race buy pfizers pfen consumer healthcare business endangering auction us drugmaker hoped would bring much 20 billion immediately clear whether offers business includes advil painkillers centrum vitamins following weeks deadline binding bids glaxosmithkline gsk announced withdrawal friday seen frontrunner buy assets reckitt benckiser rbl left race late wednesday johnson amp johnson jnjn stepped away auction january source familiar matter said gsk declined make final bid assets end continue review opportunities may accelerate strategy must meet criteria returns compromise priorities capital allocation gsk chief executive emma walmsley said statement gsk shares rose nearly 4 percent investors concerns potential dividend cut eased pfizer said friday continued evaluate potential alternatives business include spinoff sale transaction well retaining yet made decision continue expect make one 2018 spokesman said sources familiar matter said thursday possible bids friday source said pfizer could try tap private equity funds pfizer worlds fifthlargest player consumer health 25 percent market bolstered aging populations growing interest health wellness business also includes chapstick lip balm caltrate supplements seen attractive come market bad time gsk reckitt shareholder pressure exercise financial discipline potential suitors bayer baygnde sanofi sasypa busy projects file photo pfizer logo seen world headquarters new york us april 28 2014 reutersandrew kellyfile photo global consumer health market slowed 46 percent likeforlike sales growth 03 percent growth morgan stanley analysts said december major players overthecounter market grappling pricing pressure stoked online players amazon amzno private label competitors pfizers hope fetching around 20 billion translated multiple 20 times units core earnings according bernstein analysts line past deals sector faster growing times differences price expectations also hobbled german drugmaker merck kgaas mrcgde attempts sell consumer products unit price tag 4 billion euros 5 billion deterred initial suitors nestle nesns perrigo prgon privateequity consortium glaxosmithkline plc 13156 gskl london stock exchange 4180 328 gskl pfen rbl jnjn baygnde reckitts early interest merck assets also waned pfizer auction gained momentum split opinion buying pfizer business would boldest move date walmsley took gsk last april wisdom deal split opinion among investors worried risk companys dividend acquiring additional consumer health assets reasonable price could fairly safe way boost earnings since scale key overthecounter remedies could distracted fixing gsks core pharma division particular headache walmsley consumer products veteran worked 17 years loreal oreppa since work cut persuade market right person lead britains top pharmaceuticals company last month bid reassure investors spelt first priority improving performance prescription drugs followed dividend payments acquisitions overhaul drugs business produced fewer blockbuster medicines rivals recent years underway commercial research fields gsk runs consumer healthcare business via joint venture novartis novns complicates acquisitions novartis right sell 365 percent stake valued around 10 billion month although previously indicated rush additional reporting paul sandle ben hirschler editing david goodman mark potter standards thomson reuters trust principles
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<p>Copyright © 2013 Albuquerque Journal</p>
<p>Valley Meat Company, the former beef packing plant in Roswell that hopes to process horse meat for export, received its long-delayed permit for federal meat inspections Friday, removing one hurdle to the plant’s opening but refueling opposition to domestic horse slaughter.</p>
<p>Other hurdles – including White House and Congressional opposition, the stalled renewal of a state wastewater discharge permit and a cacophony of protests by animal-rights activists – could still derail the plant’s opening.</p>
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<p>A. Blair Dunn, an Albuquerque attorney representing Valley Meat Co., said the company received its “grant of inspection” Friday from the USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service, which clears the way for federal meat inspectors to inspect horse meat processed at the plant.</p>
<p>But like the Obama administration, both the House and Senate agriculture committees are backing proposals to cut funding for those inspections, and Congress has yet to pass an agriculture appropriations bill that would contain – or eliminate – such funding.</p>
<p>“Neither of those appropriations bills, especially given last week’s death of the farm bill in the House, will preclude Valley Meat from opening,” Dunn said Friday.</p>
<p>“It likely means the funding (for inspections) will continue to be in place – certainly during fiscal year 2014, because it looks more and more like Congress is looking at a continuing resolution. So the funding is there and likely to be there for 2014.”</p>
<p>Packing plants that slaughter horses have been unable to operate in the United States since 2007, when Congress prohibited the USDA from financing inspections of horse meat. But in 2011, Congress quietly removed that ban, and the 2012 Agriculture Appropriations Act opened the door to resume domestic horse slaughter.</p>
<p>Besides Valley Meat, Rains Natural Meats in Gallatin, Mo., and Responsible Transportation in Sigourney, Iowa, have applied for federal horse slaughter inspections.</p>
<p>Last year, Valley Meat sued the USDA, saying it was intentionally dragging its feet on its grant of inspection application. That suit remains pending, Dunn said.</p>
<p>Opposition abounds</p>
<p>The possibility of resuming horse meat processing in the United States has triggered a huge debate. Proponents say horse slaughter is a viable alternative to the burgeoning population of unwanted horses in the United States, and a preferable option to shipping more than 150,000 horses to Canada or Mexico for slaughter. Concerns have been raised that Mexican slaughter plants are virtually unregulated, and that horses are subjected to deplorable conditions and cruel death.</p>
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<p>Animal-rights groups and horse advocates say there is no way to humanely kill horses, and that an iconic symbol of the American West deserves better. They also say there’s no way to ensure the safety of horse meat.</p>
<p>The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, Animal Welfare Institute and Animal Protection of New Mexico issued a joint statement Friday condemning the USDA’s actions.</p>
<p>“New Mexicans reject the idea of a horse slaughter plant in our state,” Lisa Jennings, executive director of Animal Protection of New Mexico, said in the statement. “Horses are a valuable part of our heritage, and we have worked hard to develop a robust safety net for them, not condemn them to slaughter.”</p>
<p>The joint statement included comments from Gov. Susana Martinez, state Attorney General Gary King and state Land Commissioner and veterinarian Ray Powell, all of whom are on record as opposing domestic house slaughter.</p>
<p>New Mexico’s congressional delegation also weighed in on the controversy, with Democrats blasting the USDA decision.</p>
<p>“By issuing a grant of inspection to Valley Meat Company in Roswell, the USDA has ignored the significant and compelling food safety, animal welfare and environmental protection concerns associated with this particular plant,” said Rep. Michelle Lujan Grisham.</p>
<p>She also said it was “completely irresponsible for the USDA to blame Congress for not acting when the USDA has failed to be an engaged and effective regulator in this process.”</p>
<p>Rep. Steve Pearce, R-N.M., has said horse slaughter is a more humane alternative than allowing horses to starve or shipping them to Mexico for slaughter.</p>
<p>“Congressman Pearce is pleased that the USDA finally followed current law and provided an answer to Valley Meat Company’s request. No matter what the circumstance, every business deserves an answer and fair treatment under the law,” Pearce spokesman Eric Layer said Friday.</p>
<p>Democrat Sens. Tom Udall and Martin Heinrich criticized the USDA decision, as did Rep. Ben Ray Luján, D-N.M.</p>
<p>“Sen. Heinrich will continue to pursue measures at the federal level to reinstate the ban on horse slaughter, including eliminating money for horse slaughter inspections and outlawing the sale and transport of horses or horse meat,” said Heinrich spokeswoman Whitney Potter.</p>
<p>Udall said horse slaughter is not practical in New Mexico or safe for consumers.</p>
<p>More hurdles ahead</p>
<p>Valley Meat Co., which has spent thousands of dollars converting the Roswell plant for horse slaughter and passed a USDA inspection, also faces a state hurdle regarding discharge of wastewater.</p>
<p>Though the plant applied to renew its current wastewater discharge permit in 2010, the state has yet to act on it.</p>
<p>” … They’re just going through the normal renewal process, but Valley still has the permit that they were operating on in 2012, so there’s no impediment to that,” Dunn said.</p>
<p>He conceded that threatened lawsuits could delay Valley Meat Co. from opening.</p>
<p>“We’ve heard repeatedly that there are going to be other lawsuits … to try to stop Valley from opening. … How much success they’ll might have with that I don’t know, but it’s bound to slow things down a little bit.”</p>
<p>“Assuming that none of those impediments or lawsuits are in place, within a couple of weeks Valley Meat could be up and running,” Dunn said. “Right now it’s just a matter of getting the hiring done and getting people to the plant to go to work.”</p>
<p>Dunn said the plant could employ between 40 and 100 workers.</p>
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copyright 2013 albuquerque journal valley meat company former beef packing plant roswell hopes process horse meat export received longdelayed permit federal meat inspections friday removing one hurdle plants opening refueling opposition domestic horse slaughter hurdles including white house congressional opposition stalled renewal state wastewater discharge permit cacophony protests animalrights activists could still derail plants opening advertisement blair dunn albuquerque attorney representing valley meat co said company received grant inspection friday usdas food safety inspection service clears way federal meat inspectors inspect horse meat processed plant like obama administration house senate agriculture committees backing proposals cut funding inspections congress yet pass agriculture appropriations bill would contain eliminate funding neither appropriations bills especially given last weeks death farm bill house preclude valley meat opening dunn said friday likely means funding inspections continue place certainly fiscal year 2014 looks like congress looking continuing resolution funding likely 2014 packing plants slaughter horses unable operate united states since 2007 congress prohibited usda financing inspections horse meat 2011 congress quietly removed ban 2012 agriculture appropriations act opened door resume domestic horse slaughter besides valley meat rains natural meats gallatin mo responsible transportation sigourney iowa applied federal horse slaughter inspections last year valley meat sued usda saying intentionally dragging feet grant inspection application suit remains pending dunn said opposition abounds possibility resuming horse meat processing united states triggered huge debate proponents say horse slaughter viable alternative burgeoning population unwanted horses united states preferable option shipping 150000 horses canada mexico slaughter concerns raised mexican slaughter plants virtually unregulated horses subjected deplorable conditions cruel death advertisement animalrights groups horse advocates say way humanely kill horses iconic symbol american west deserves better also say theres way ensure safety horse meat american society prevention cruelty animals animal welfare institute animal protection new mexico issued joint statement friday condemning usdas actions new mexicans reject idea horse slaughter plant state lisa jennings executive director animal protection new mexico said statement horses valuable part heritage worked hard develop robust safety net condemn slaughter joint statement included comments gov susana martinez state attorney general gary king state land commissioner veterinarian ray powell record opposing domestic house slaughter new mexicos congressional delegation also weighed controversy democrats blasting usda decision issuing grant inspection valley meat company roswell usda ignored significant compelling food safety animal welfare environmental protection concerns associated particular plant said rep michelle lujan grisham also said completely irresponsible usda blame congress acting usda failed engaged effective regulator process rep steve pearce rnm said horse slaughter humane alternative allowing horses starve shipping mexico slaughter congressman pearce pleased usda finally followed current law provided answer valley meat companys request matter circumstance every business deserves answer fair treatment law pearce spokesman eric layer said friday democrat sens tom udall martin heinrich criticized usda decision rep ben ray luján dnm sen heinrich continue pursue measures federal level reinstate ban horse slaughter including eliminating money horse slaughter inspections outlawing sale transport horses horse meat said heinrich spokeswoman whitney potter udall said horse slaughter practical new mexico safe consumers hurdles ahead valley meat co spent thousands dollars converting roswell plant horse slaughter passed usda inspection also faces state hurdle regarding discharge wastewater though plant applied renew current wastewater discharge permit 2010 state yet act theyre going normal renewal process valley still permit operating 2012 theres impediment dunn said conceded threatened lawsuits could delay valley meat co opening weve heard repeatedly going lawsuits try stop valley opening much success theyll might dont know bound slow things little bit assuming none impediments lawsuits place within couple weeks valley meat could running dunn said right matter getting hiring done getting people plant go work dunn said plant could employ 40 100 workers
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<p>They gazed out on a dizzying sight of receding canyons and sheer rock walls, with the Colorado River cutting though the canyon floor a mile down.</p>
<p>Generations of park managers have tried to preserve that natural vista, but officials here say a proposed development would alter the view.</p>
<p>Looking eastward from the canyon’s popular South Rim, visitors could soon see a hive of construction as workers build restaurants, hotels and shops on a distant mesa on the Navajo Indian reservation.</p>
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<p>The developers also plan a gondola ride from those attractions to whisk tourists to the canyon floor, where they would stroll along an elevated riverside walkway to a restaurant at the confluence of the Colorado and Little Colorado rivers.</p>
<p>That project and a second, unrelated development proposed for just south of the canyon have set off alarms at the National Park Service, which sees them as the most serious threat the park has faced in its 95-year history.</p>
<p>The first would alter the natural beauty of the canyon and encroach on its borders. The second, a major housing and commercial development, jeopardizes the fragile ecology and water supply on the arid South Rim plateau.</p>
<p>Grand Canyon’s glass-bottom Skywalk is seen prior to the First Walk ceremonies on the Hualapai Indian Reservation at Grand Canyon West, Ariz., in March 2007. Since then,the tribe has also offered helicopter tours that land on tribal property next to the Colorado River. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin, FILE)</p>
<p>The Tusayan development would add 2,200 homes and 3 million square feet of commercial space to a town two blocks long.</p>
<p>Park officials say existing development around the park and the scarcity of water have already stressed the park’s ability to handle visitors. The new projects would only make matters worse.</p>
<p>“They are serious threats to the future of the park,” said park Supt. Dave Uberuaga. “When you have that size and scope of potential development that close to the park, it will impact our visitor experience.”</p>
<p>The Grand Canyon affords once-in-a-lifetime views, but it has always been difficult for anyone except seasoned hikers to reach the canyon floor. Most of the 5 million annual visitors stop at the rim, look out and move on without ever venturing into the canyon.</p>
<p>Native American tribes are changing that. Grand Canyon West, on Hualapai land, operates the Skywalk attraction, a popular glass walkway that juts out over the canyon. Since 2007, the tribe has offered helicopter tours that land on tribal property next to the river.</p>
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<p>The proposed Grand Canyon Escalade gondola would afford a rare opportunity for tourists to reach the canyon floor, said developer R. Lamar Whitmer, who is working with the Navajo.</p>
<p>The park service offers nothing more than “a drive-by wilderness experience,” Whitmer said. “The average person can’t ride a mule to the bottom of the canyon. We want them to feel the canyon from the bottom.”</p>
<p>It’s at the bottom that the conflict lies, as the Navajo contend that they have rights to property above the high-water mark of the rivers.</p>
<p>Park officials say the Navajo are mistaken. Federal jurisdiction extends a quarter-mile on either side of the Colorado, the park says, and no development can occur any closer to the water.</p>
<p>For now, the park is waiting for the tribe to complete its planning process before providing an official response.</p>
<p>The project requires approval of the Navajo tribal government – and some within the tribe have voiced objections, particularly about the gondola’s terminus near the confluence of the rivers.</p>
<p>Tribal opponents believe the two rivers represent male and female, and where they meet is where life begins.</p>
<p>“That’s where our spirits go back to,” said Renae Yellowhorse of the group Save the Confluence. “My father passed away last March. That’s where he resides. If there is a development there, where are our prayers going to go?”</p>
<p>Two miles from the Grand Canyon’s front entrance is a project that park officials say is a more fundamental threat because they expect it to diminish the small amount of water found naturally on the arid Colorado Plateau.</p>
<p>The park’s main gateway community of Tusayan has approved plans for a development that would increase the town’s demand for water fourfold.</p>
<p>But the plans do not say where the water will come from. With Arizona suffering though its worst drought in 110 years of records, the park service says there isn’t enough water to sustain both wildlife and the new development.</p>
<p>“That kind of water just isn’t around there,” said Uberuaga. Yet the city continues “to pursue a full buildout and full development at whatever pace the developer wants.”</p>
<p>Water is already so precious that the park’s resident elk herd recently figured out how to operate the Grand Canyon’s new water faucets and began serving themselves.</p>
<p>The situation remained an amusing photo op until a young elk pair began to vigorously defend the water fountain, chasing away tourists.</p>
<p>The park currently imports all water for its South Rim hotels, restaurants and amenities from springs on the north side of the canyon. An antiquated aluminum pipeline threads 13 miles though the serpentine fissures on the canyon floor, then up a mile of sheer rock on the South Rim.</p>
<p>The pipeline regularly breaks down, requiring helicopters and burros to ferry crews at a minimum cost of $25,000 per service call.</p>
<p>The park would like to replace the water system, but the price tag – as much as $150 million – is more than twice the yearly construction budget for all 400 parks in the National Park Service system.</p>
<p>Tusayan developer Tom De Paolo and partners in Stilo Development Group, backed by Italian investors, have been trying to build at the Grand Canyon since 1991, when they began systematically acquiring private land within nearby Kaibab National Forest to site the development.</p>
<p>Thwarted for more than 20 years by a number of issues, including lack of water, the developers led campaigns to incorporate Tusayan as a city, giving it control of development within its boundaries, and to elect city officials who either work for the developer or a partner.</p>
<p>The town has the right to take water from the plateau’s aquifer, and their wells have caused water sources in the park to decline 10% in recent years. Park officials strongly oppose any new wells.</p>
<p>De Paolo said he has acquired water options from farmers along the Colorado River in Laughlin, Nev. From there, he said, a dormant coal slurry pipeline could be retrofitted to carry water to Tusayan.</p>
<p>To mend relations with park officials, De Paolo proposes using the pipeline to provide water to the Grand Canyon as well as afford it a corridor to run much-needed natural gas and telecommunication lines.</p>
<p>Still, he has not relinquished his leverage with the park: the possibility of tapping the aquifer.</p>
<p>“Why do we want to preclude an option that is available to us when we don’t have to?” he said.</p>
<p>Park officials are trying to persuade Tusayan to downsize its plans. And they intend to urge the U.S. Forest Service to carefully review a road easement across two miles of Kaibab National Forest to the site of the proposed development.</p>
<p>To Dave Nimkin of the National Parks Conservation Association, the developments represent “profound and enormous threats to the park. It’s a grim forecast.”</p>
<p>Water is already a precious commodity.</p>
<p>The park has a stash of 13 million gallons in storage tanks on the South Rim, about an 18-day supply. And half of that must be kept in reserve for fire protection.</p>
<p>When water in the tanks drops to half of capacity, said Tim Jarrell, the park’s chief of maintenance, “we start to think about cutting back on the number of people we let in the park.”</p>
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gazed dizzying sight receding canyons sheer rock walls colorado river cutting though canyon floor mile generations park managers tried preserve natural vista officials say proposed development would alter view looking eastward canyons popular south rim visitors could soon see hive construction workers build restaurants hotels shops distant mesa navajo indian reservation advertisement developers also plan gondola ride attractions whisk tourists canyon floor would stroll along elevated riverside walkway restaurant confluence colorado little colorado rivers project second unrelated development proposed south canyon set alarms national park service sees serious threat park faced 95year history first would alter natural beauty canyon encroach borders second major housing commercial development jeopardizes fragile ecology water supply arid south rim plateau grand canyons glassbottom skywalk seen prior first walk ceremonies hualapai indian reservation grand canyon west ariz march 2007 since thenthe tribe also offered helicopter tours land tribal property next colorado river ap photoross franklin file tusayan development would add 2200 homes 3 million square feet commercial space town two blocks long park officials say existing development around park scarcity water already stressed parks ability handle visitors new projects would make matters worse serious threats future park said park supt dave uberuaga size scope potential development close park impact visitor experience grand canyon affords onceinalifetime views always difficult anyone except seasoned hikers reach canyon floor 5 million annual visitors stop rim look move without ever venturing canyon native american tribes changing grand canyon west hualapai land operates skywalk attraction popular glass walkway juts canyon since 2007 tribe offered helicopter tours land tribal property next river advertisement proposed grand canyon escalade gondola would afford rare opportunity tourists reach canyon floor said developer r lamar whitmer working navajo park service offers nothing driveby wilderness experience whitmer said average person cant ride mule bottom canyon want feel canyon bottom bottom conflict lies navajo contend rights property highwater mark rivers park officials say navajo mistaken federal jurisdiction extends quartermile either side colorado park says development occur closer water park waiting tribe complete planning process providing official response project requires approval navajo tribal government within tribe voiced objections particularly gondolas terminus near confluence rivers tribal opponents believe two rivers represent male female meet life begins thats spirits go back said renae yellowhorse group save confluence father passed away last march thats resides development prayers going go two miles grand canyons front entrance project park officials say fundamental threat expect diminish small amount water found naturally arid colorado plateau parks main gateway community tusayan approved plans development would increase towns demand water fourfold plans say water come arizona suffering though worst drought 110 years records park service says isnt enough water sustain wildlife new development kind water isnt around said uberuaga yet city continues pursue full buildout full development whatever pace developer wants water already precious parks resident elk herd recently figured operate grand canyons new water faucets began serving situation remained amusing photo op young elk pair began vigorously defend water fountain chasing away tourists park currently imports water south rim hotels restaurants amenities springs north side canyon antiquated aluminum pipeline threads 13 miles though serpentine fissures canyon floor mile sheer rock south rim pipeline regularly breaks requiring helicopters burros ferry crews minimum cost 25000 per service call park would like replace water system price tag much 150 million twice yearly construction budget 400 parks national park service system tusayan developer tom de paolo partners stilo development group backed italian investors trying build grand canyon since 1991 began systematically acquiring private land within nearby kaibab national forest site development thwarted 20 years number issues including lack water developers led campaigns incorporate tusayan city giving control development within boundaries elect city officials either work developer partner town right take water plateaus aquifer wells caused water sources park decline 10 recent years park officials strongly oppose new wells de paolo said acquired water options farmers along colorado river laughlin nev said dormant coal slurry pipeline could retrofitted carry water tusayan mend relations park officials de paolo proposes using pipeline provide water grand canyon well afford corridor run muchneeded natural gas telecommunication lines still relinquished leverage park possibility tapping aquifer want preclude option available us dont said park officials trying persuade tusayan downsize plans intend urge us forest service carefully review road easement across two miles kaibab national forest site proposed development dave nimkin national parks conservation association developments represent profound enormous threats park grim forecast water already precious commodity park stash 13 million gallons storage tanks south rim 18day supply half must kept reserve fire protection water tanks drops half capacity said tim jarrell parks chief maintenance start think cutting back number people let park
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<p>The following is an interview with Socialist Party USA National Co-Chair, Billy Wharton. We discuss the past, present and future of the movement to get a better understanding of the Socialist Party.</p>
<p>Could you give a summary of the history of the Socialist Party, as you understand it?</p>
<p>Billy: In one sense, the history of the Socialist Party USA (SP-USA) is quite old. You can track our origins back to the formation of the old Socialist Party of America (SPA) in 1901. The SPA was the party of Eugene Debs and Norman Thomas and was seriously engaged in the class struggles of the 20th Century, including the labor radicalism of the 1930s, the anti-war movements, and the struggle for Civil Rights. In addition, SPA members served as elected representatives in State and Local governments all across America – with the national Presidential campaign ticket of Eugene Debs and Emil Seidel receiving 897,000 votes.</p>
<p>Our current organization dates itself directly back to the collapse of the old SPA in 1972. The new Socialist Party USA was formed by members of the Debs Caucus in the old SPA. The basis of creating the SP-USA was the belief in electoral action independent of the Democratic Party, a firm opposition to US imperialism abroad and strong commitment to democracy both internally and in the society at large. Leaders of the founding of the SP-USA include longtime anti-war activist David McReynolds, the former SPA Mayor of Milwaukee Frank Zeidler and Los Angeles based Socialist activist Maggie Phair.</p>
<p>What is the current state of the Socialist Party in the United States?</p>
<p>Billy: The SP-USA has an organized presence in 20 states throughout the country. The organization has grown since the economic crisis in 2008, as organizing has spread beyond its East Coast base into the South and West. Particularly strong party activism in California has led to the creation of multiple local organizations and has greatly increased the SP-USA’s bi-coastal presence. We are seeing more engagement by members in grassroots organizing projects and more candidates presenting themselves as Socialists engaged in elections.</p>
<p>Has anyone affiliated with the Socialist Party been elected into office? If so, how did they get elected?</p>
<p>Billy: We recently had two members of the SP-USA elected to local office. In Detroit, a member was elected to a local District Council and in Florida to a local Water Board. In both cases, these Socialists had waged multiple campaigns for elected office and had gained the expertise of presenting themselves as electoral candidate. There are nearly a dozen other members who have recently or are currently preparing themselves to put Socialism on the ballot.</p>
<p>It is, however, important to remember that running as a Socialist is about more than just vote totals. The elections offer two important opportunities. First, they are a time when many people pay closer attention to politics. As a result, Socialists have a unique opportunity to present their politics – ideas like full employment, democratic control over workplaces, socialized healthcare, and the end of the military industrial complex. Simultaneously, running locally as a Socialist allows our candidates to use socialist principles of solidarity, compassion and justice to analyze the local social and economic problems created by capitalism. This is a healthy process for any socialist candidate to go through.</p>
<p>Outside of political campaigns how else have Socialists made an impact in society?</p>
<p>Billy: The great bulk of our political activity is not focused on electoral action. Most of our members are engaged in grassroots campaigning. This continues a proud tradition developed in the Socialist Party of America of socialists participating directly in campaigns that aim to transform people’s everyday lives. Eugene Debs was a leader in the Railway Worker’s Union, A. Philip Randolph in the Sleeping Car Porters Union and the Civil Rights movement and David McReynolds in the movement against the Vietnam War. In each case, these activists put a human face on socialism while also advancing political struggle.</p>
<p>Today, a new generation of socialists in the SP-USA continues this tradition. We have been very active in anti-war groups throughout the country. SP-USA members in Memphis are working with the new Memphis Bus Riders Union. In New York City we are engaged in the struggle to win a Living Wage for low-wage workers. And we have been very active locally with coalitions supporting single-payer healthcare.</p>
<p>From my perspective the Socialist Party had great success in the early 1900s up until 1950s. Given some of the obvious factors, why does it seem the Socialist Party as a political party has had less visibility?</p>
<p>Billy: We disagree. Socialists have been and are currently engaged in a variety of political struggles. Today we can see an important socialist role in things like the Occupy Wall Street (OWS) movement. Although OWS is not explicitly a socialist movement, the critique it raises about the 1% fits well with a socialist program. We are, therefore, quite active inside of this movement – pushing it on, protecting against co-option by the Democratic Party and presenting our socialist ideas.</p>
<p>Plus, since the economic crisis of 2008 and the election of Obama, socialists have gained a large amount of national attention. This has included previously unprecedented access to the mainstream media. So, I think that more and more people are noticing socialism. The trick is try to build our movement in a healthy way by supporting the on-the-ground organizing already underway and by making the party a positive contributor to the success of those movements.</p>
<p>Is the Socialist Party more noticeable from state to state?</p>
<p>Billy: I mentioned earlier that we have had some positive bi-coastal successes in recent years. We have also been able, especially since 2008, to open up political work in other parts of the country. Particularly important is our local group in Memphis which is hosting our upcoming National Organizing Conference. Salt Lake City is another area where our brave members are bringing socialist organizing back to the state. Finally, in Indianapolis, SP-USA organizers are fighting to gain ballot access in upcoming state elections. This is certainly an exciting time for us all over the country.</p>
<p>What are some of the perceptions you hear about regarding the Socialist Party?</p>
<p>Billy: One important one is associating democratic socialism with the former Soviet Union. This is a particularly frustrating one for SP-USA members since the old SPA was engaged in protesting against Washington and Moscow during the Cold War. Ours was and is a socialism that is dedicated to extending democratic rights so that regular people can access them. We like to say that socialism is radical democracy and, as such, we oppose any form of undemocratic socialism or “ends justify the means” politics.</p>
<p>The second really basic misunderstanding is about competition and innovation. Socialists believe in competition. We just do not believe in capitalist style competition where a small group like the 1% is allowed to monopolize 35% of the wealth in society. Instead, we want people to compete about who can come up with the best idea or the greatest innovation or the latest cure for a disease. This is positive competition that will benefit the society and should bring positive attention to the individual person or persons who develop it. Capitalism actually prevents this kind of competition since every action has to have a profit motive connected to it. So, I think that socialism will mean a more competitive society because people will have more time and more resources to pursue things that are beneficial to society as a whole.</p>
<p>Any final thoughts?</p>
<p>Billy: I thank you for this opportunity to get some ideas out. I would encourage people that are reading this to take a serious look at democratic socialism as a political, economic and social alternative to capitalism. One great way to do this is to check out our Statement of Principles at: http://socialistparty-usa.org/principles.html And to visit our Socialist WebZine: www.socialistzine.org Keep up the struggle! Vote Socialist in 2012!</p>
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following interview socialist party usa national cochair billy wharton discuss past present future movement get better understanding socialist party could give summary history socialist party understand billy one sense history socialist party usa spusa quite old track origins back formation old socialist party america spa 1901 spa party eugene debs norman thomas seriously engaged class struggles 20th century including labor radicalism 1930s antiwar movements struggle civil rights addition spa members served elected representatives state local governments across america national presidential campaign ticket eugene debs emil seidel receiving 897000 votes current organization dates directly back collapse old spa 1972 new socialist party usa formed members debs caucus old spa basis creating spusa belief electoral action independent democratic party firm opposition us imperialism abroad strong commitment democracy internally society large leaders founding spusa include longtime antiwar activist david mcreynolds former spa mayor milwaukee frank zeidler los angeles based socialist activist maggie phair current state socialist party united states billy spusa organized presence 20 states throughout country organization grown since economic crisis 2008 organizing spread beyond east coast base south west particularly strong party activism california led creation multiple local organizations greatly increased spusas bicoastal presence seeing engagement members grassroots organizing projects candidates presenting socialists engaged elections anyone affiliated socialist party elected office get elected billy recently two members spusa elected local office detroit member elected local district council florida local water board cases socialists waged multiple campaigns elected office gained expertise presenting electoral candidate nearly dozen members recently currently preparing put socialism ballot however important remember running socialist vote totals elections offer two important opportunities first time many people pay closer attention politics result socialists unique opportunity present politics ideas like full employment democratic control workplaces socialized healthcare end military industrial complex simultaneously running locally socialist allows candidates use socialist principles solidarity compassion justice analyze local social economic problems created capitalism healthy process socialist candidate go outside political campaigns else socialists made impact society billy great bulk political activity focused electoral action members engaged grassroots campaigning continues proud tradition developed socialist party america socialists participating directly campaigns aim transform peoples everyday lives eugene debs leader railway workers union philip randolph sleeping car porters union civil rights movement david mcreynolds movement vietnam war case activists put human face socialism also advancing political struggle today new generation socialists spusa continues tradition active antiwar groups throughout country spusa members memphis working new memphis bus riders union new york city engaged struggle win living wage lowwage workers active locally coalitions supporting singlepayer healthcare perspective socialist party great success early 1900s 1950s given obvious factors seem socialist party political party less visibility billy disagree socialists currently engaged variety political struggles today see important socialist role things like occupy wall street ows movement although ows explicitly socialist movement critique raises 1 fits well socialist program therefore quite active inside movement pushing protecting cooption democratic party presenting socialist ideas plus since economic crisis 2008 election obama socialists gained large amount national attention included previously unprecedented access mainstream media think people noticing socialism trick try build movement healthy way supporting ontheground organizing already underway making party positive contributor success movements socialist party noticeable state state billy mentioned earlier positive bicoastal successes recent years also able especially since 2008 open political work parts country particularly important local group memphis hosting upcoming national organizing conference salt lake city another area brave members bringing socialist organizing back state finally indianapolis spusa organizers fighting gain ballot access upcoming state elections certainly exciting time us country perceptions hear regarding socialist party billy one important one associating democratic socialism former soviet union particularly frustrating one spusa members since old spa engaged protesting washington moscow cold war socialism dedicated extending democratic rights regular people access like say socialism radical democracy oppose form undemocratic socialism ends justify means politics second really basic misunderstanding competition innovation socialists believe competition believe capitalist style competition small group like 1 allowed monopolize 35 wealth society instead want people compete come best idea greatest innovation latest cure disease positive competition benefit society bring positive attention individual person persons develop capitalism actually prevents kind competition since every action profit motive connected think socialism mean competitive society people time resources pursue things beneficial society whole final thoughts billy thank opportunity get ideas would encourage people reading take serious look democratic socialism political economic social alternative capitalism one great way check statement principles httpsocialistpartyusaorgprincipleshtml visit socialist webzine wwwsocialistzineorg keep struggle vote socialist 2012
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<p>Update:</p>
<p>UNM’s Daily Lobo reports on its Twitter feed that it will resume normal print publication on Thursday.</p>
<p>Update:</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p>
<p>Central New Mexico Community College today reinstated its student-run paper, saying administrators suspended it because they were concerned over a high school student being quoted in the controversial sex issue.</p>
<p>The reinstatement took place at a meeting on campus Wednesday afternoon.</p>
<p>According to a copy of a speech CNM President Kathie Winograd delivered at the meeting, the school will now give the confiscated newspapers back to the CNM Chronicle, which dedicated its latest issue to the topic of sex, including stories about sex classes and practices, sexual resources, an article on abstinance and feature on “favorite sexual position.”</p>
<p>When the suspension was made public Tuesday, CNM administrators said it was due to long-standing concerns regarding oversight of the paper. But on Wednesday, Winograd said the school pulled the sex issue because “we needed to check on legal ramifications of information on a minor in a publication of the college.”</p>
<p>“I believe as a college we have failed to provide the CNM Chronicle with the level of editorial resources and education that it needs and deserves. I hope that in today’s Publication Board meeting, the board will discuss ways the college can provide you a better educational experience through your participation with the CNM Chronicle. We encourage you to bring our community partners here today to the table to assist us in creating a positive situation moving forward,” Winograd said.</p>
<p>The reinstatement is immediate, Winograd said.</p>
<p>The CNM Chronicle’s return likely means the Daily Lobo will also continue operations. The Lobo announced Wednesday that it was halting print publications until the Chronicle was reinstated.</p>
<p>Update:</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p>
<p>The University of New Mexico’s student newspaper, the Daily Lobo, is protesting Central New Mexico Community College’s decision to temporarily suspend its weekly student newspaper.</p>
<p>It, too, will stop print publication until CNM reinstates the newspaper, according to the <a href="http://www.dailylobo.com/article/2013/03/daily-lobo-not-published-in-print-until-further-notice" type="external">Daily Lobo website</a>.</p>
<p>However, it will continue publishing online, according to the statement from Editor-in-Chief Elizabeth Cleary.</p>
<p>CNM suspended publication of The CNM Chronicle on Tuesday following a the publication of an issue devoted to sex.</p>
<p>The Daily Lobo called the move a violation of students’ rights to freedom of speech and freedom of the press.</p>
<p>Cleary said in a statement <a href="http://www.dailylobo.com/article/2013/03/daily-lobo-not-published-in-print-until-further-notice" type="external">(complete statement here)</a>:</p>
<p>“On Tuesday, CNM administrators, in a ruthless and authoritarian display of censorship, stripped students of some basic constitutional rights. Tuesday’s issue of the weekly, student-run CNM Chronicle centered on sex.”</p>
<p>Cleary went on to say: ” The Daily Lobo will not publish printed issues of the newspaper until the CNM administration agrees to reinstate Chronicle staff members to their former positions at the paper and allow the newspaper to remain free of faculty, staff or administrative oversight. The Daily Lobo will still be publishing content online at <a href="http://www.dailylobo.com/" type="external">DailyLobo.com</a>.”</p>
<p>This article appeared on Page C1 of the Albuquerque Journal.</p>
<p>CNM’s newspaper suspended</p>
<p>By Deborah Ziff/Journal Staff Writer</p>
<p>Central New Mexico Community College has temporarily suspended its student-run newspaper, The CNM Chronicle, after the publication of an issue devoted to sex.</p>
<p>To see the issue of the newspaper</p>
<p>College officials say the suspension is not entirely due to the most recent issue, but because of a long-standing concern over the oversight and content of the weekly newspaper.</p>
<p>But Jyllian Roach, editor-in-chief, said the issue hit the newsstands Tuesday and six hours later, she and other staff members got a call to meet with the dean of students.</p>
<p>“All we know at this time is they thought it was ‘raunchy’ and that was it,” she said.</p>
<p>The issue includes a how-to on using sex toys, stories on sex classes and practices, a “favorite sexual position” feature, contacts for sexual resources and an article on abstinence.</p>
<p>“It’s a sex issue, but it really focuses on education,” Roach said, adding that there’s no nudity or curse words.</p>
<p>College officials say they hope the newspaper is up and running again by the summer term after an evaluation of the paper’s structure and oversight.</p>
<p>A statement from the college reads:</p>
<p>“CNM does not have a journalism program, which has limited the college’s ability to provide the education and training that students need to appropriately operate a newspaper that is distributed to a student body of nearly 30,000. CNM is going to re-evaluate how students can be trained, educated and supervised in operating a widely disseminated student newspaper.”</p>
<p>A spokesman added that the college funds the newspaper. Students who work on it receive work-study money. They will be assigned other jobs on campus while the paper is suspended.</p>
<p>“The current issue was part of an ongoing pattern of concern with the content,” said Brad Moore, CNM spokesman. He declined to elaborate with examples of past concerns over content.</p>
<p>An attorney for the Arlington, Va.-based Student Press Law Center said he believes the college cannot legally shut the paper down. The fact that the college funds the newspaper is “irrelevant,” said Adam Goldstein, attorney advocate, adding that the college is a public institution.</p>
<p>“When you’re the government, you’re always subject to the First Amendment,” he said.</p>
<p>He added: “It sends a really adverse message in that you have to read the mind of your administration and try not antagonize them.”</p>
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update unms daily lobo reports twitter feed resume normal print publication thursday update advertisement central new mexico community college today reinstated studentrun paper saying administrators suspended concerned high school student quoted controversial sex issue reinstatement took place meeting campus wednesday afternoon according copy speech cnm president kathie winograd delivered meeting school give confiscated newspapers back cnm chronicle dedicated latest issue topic sex including stories sex classes practices sexual resources article abstinance feature favorite sexual position suspension made public tuesday cnm administrators said due longstanding concerns regarding oversight paper wednesday winograd said school pulled sex issue needed check legal ramifications information minor publication college believe college failed provide cnm chronicle level editorial resources education needs deserves hope todays publication board meeting board discuss ways college provide better educational experience participation cnm chronicle encourage bring community partners today table assist us creating positive situation moving forward winograd said reinstatement immediate winograd said cnm chronicles return likely means daily lobo also continue operations lobo announced wednesday halting print publications chronicle reinstated update advertisement university new mexicos student newspaper daily lobo protesting central new mexico community colleges decision temporarily suspend weekly student newspaper stop print publication cnm reinstates newspaper according daily lobo website however continue publishing online according statement editorinchief elizabeth cleary cnm suspended publication cnm chronicle tuesday following publication issue devoted sex daily lobo called move violation students rights freedom speech freedom press cleary said statement complete statement tuesday cnm administrators ruthless authoritarian display censorship stripped students basic constitutional rights tuesdays issue weekly studentrun cnm chronicle centered sex cleary went say daily lobo publish printed issues newspaper cnm administration agrees reinstate chronicle staff members former positions paper allow newspaper remain free faculty staff administrative oversight daily lobo still publishing content online dailylobocom article appeared page c1 albuquerque journal cnms newspaper suspended deborah ziffjournal staff writer central new mexico community college temporarily suspended studentrun newspaper cnm chronicle publication issue devoted sex see issue newspaper college officials say suspension entirely due recent issue longstanding concern oversight content weekly newspaper jyllian roach editorinchief said issue hit newsstands tuesday six hours later staff members got call meet dean students know time thought raunchy said issue includes howto using sex toys stories sex classes practices favorite sexual position feature contacts sexual resources article abstinence sex issue really focuses education roach said adding theres nudity curse words college officials say hope newspaper running summer term evaluation papers structure oversight statement college reads cnm journalism program limited colleges ability provide education training students need appropriately operate newspaper distributed student body nearly 30000 cnm going reevaluate students trained educated supervised operating widely disseminated student newspaper spokesman added college funds newspaper students work receive workstudy money assigned jobs campus paper suspended current issue part ongoing pattern concern content said brad moore cnm spokesman declined elaborate examples past concerns content attorney arlington vabased student press law center said believes college legally shut paper fact college funds newspaper irrelevant said adam goldstein attorney advocate adding college public institution youre government youre always subject first amendment said added sends really adverse message read mind administration try antagonize
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<p>Obama, in a speech today at Georgetown University, was to announce he’s issuing a presidential memorandum to launch the first-ever federal regulations on carbon dioxide emitted by existing power plants, moving to curb the gases blamed for global warming despite adamant opposition from Republicans and some energy producers.</p>
<p>The far-reaching plan marks Obama’s most prominent effort yet to deliver on a major priority he laid out in his first presidential campaign and recommitted to at the start of his second term: to fight climate change in the U.S. and abroad and prepare American communities for its effects. Environmental activists have been irked that Obama’s high-minded goals never materialized into a comprehensive plan.</p>
<p>By expanding permitting on public lands, Obama hopes to generate enough electricity from renewable energy projects such as wind and solar to power the equivalent of 6 million homes by 2020, effectively doubling the electric capacity federal lands now produce, senior administration officials said. He’ll also set a goal to install 100 megawatts of energy-producing capacity at federal housing projects by the end of the decade.</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p>
<p>Obama also was to announce $8 billion in federal loan guarantees to spur investment in technologies that can keep carbon dioxide produced by power plants from being released into the atmosphere.</p>
<p>“While no single step can reverse the effects of climate change, we have a moral obligation to act on behalf of future generations,” the White House said in a statement, arguing that climate change is no longer a distant threat — the 12 hottest years on record all occurred in the past 15 years.</p>
<p>The linchpin of Obama’s plan involves new and existing power plants. Forty percent of U.S. carbon dioxide emissions, and one-third of greenhouse gases overall, come from electric power plants, according to the federal Energy Information Administration. The Obama administration already has proposed controls on new plants, but those controls have been delayed and not yet finalized. Today’s announcement would be the first public confirmation that Obama plans to extend carbon controls to existing plants.</p>
<p>“The country is facing a threat; the president is facing facts,” said Dan Lashof of the Natural Resources Defense Council, praising Obama for taking aim at power plants. “Reducing that pollution is the most important step we can take as a nation to stand up to climate change.”</p>
<p>A spokesman for major power companies said the industry long has understood the importance of addressing climate change and has been working to reduce greenhouse gas emissions for two decades. The industry will consider whether new climate change policies and regulations “mesh” with its ongoing transition to a cleaner generating fleet and an enhanced electric grid, said Tom Kuhn, president of the Edison Electric Institute, a group that represents power companies.</p>
<p>Even before Obama spoke, reaction from Republicans was swift and dismissive, reflecting the opposition to climate legislation on Capitol Hill that prompted a frustrated Obama to sidestep lawmakers and take action himself. Don Stewart, a spokesman for Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., said imposing carbon rules on power plants amounts to a national energy tax.</p>
<p>“Will the president explain the massive costs to American jobs? Will the president explain how low-income Americans would pay for their new, higher utility bills?” Stewart said.</p>
<p>Senior administration officials, who weren’t authorized to comment by name and requested anonymity, said Obama will set a timeline for putting new power plant controls in place. But he won’t issue detailed emission targets or specifics. Instead, the president will launch a process in which the Environmental Protection Agency will work with states to develop specific plans to rein in carbon emissions, with flexibility for each state’s circumstances.</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p>
<p>Obama also will announce more aggressive steps to increase efficiency for appliances such as refrigerators and lamps, the White House said, adding that stricter standards could reduce carbon pollution by more than 3 billion tons between now and 2030 — the equivalent of a half-year’s worth of carbon pollution from power plants. Another component of Obama’s proposal will involve ramping up hydropower production from existing dams.</p>
<p>Obama raised climate change as a key second-term issue in his inaugural address in January, but has offered few details since. In his February State of the Union, he issued an ultimatum to lawmakers: “If Congress won’t act soon to protect future generations, I will.”</p>
<p>“His view reflects reality,” White House spokesman Jay Carney said Monday. “We’ve seen Congress attempt to deal with this issue, and fail to.”</p>
<p>Framing Obama’s efforts as part of a broader, global movement, the White House said the U.S. can play a leading role in persuading other nations to join in efforts to slow the warming of the planet.</p>
<p>Obama is calling for an end to U.S. support for public financing for new coal-fired plants overseas, officials said, but will exempt plants in the poorest nations as long as the cleanest technology available in those countries is being used. He’s also pledging to work with major polluting countries like China and India to curb emissions, building on an agreement Obama struck recently with China’s leader to phase out hydrofluorocarbons, potent greenhouse gases used in air conditions and refrigerators.</p>
<p>Another of Obama’s goals — to prepare communities for the inevitable effects of climate change — appears to be more aspiration than concrete plan. Community leaders and environmental activists say that what cities and states need to prepare for flooding and higher temperatures is money — something Obama is hard-pressed to provide without Congress’ go-ahead.</p>
<p>Sidestepping Congress by using executive action doesn’t guarantee Obama smooth sailing. Lawmakers could introduce legislation to thwart Obama’s efforts. And the rules for existing power plants will almost certainly face legal challenges in court.</p>
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obama speech today georgetown university announce hes issuing presidential memorandum launch firstever federal regulations carbon dioxide emitted existing power plants moving curb gases blamed global warming despite adamant opposition republicans energy producers farreaching plan marks obamas prominent effort yet deliver major priority laid first presidential campaign recommitted start second term fight climate change us abroad prepare american communities effects environmental activists irked obamas highminded goals never materialized comprehensive plan expanding permitting public lands obama hopes generate enough electricity renewable energy projects wind solar power equivalent 6 million homes 2020 effectively doubling electric capacity federal lands produce senior administration officials said hell also set goal install 100 megawatts energyproducing capacity federal housing projects end decade advertisement obama also announce 8 billion federal loan guarantees spur investment technologies keep carbon dioxide produced power plants released atmosphere single step reverse effects climate change moral obligation act behalf future generations white house said statement arguing climate change longer distant threat 12 hottest years record occurred past 15 years linchpin obamas plan involves new existing power plants forty percent us carbon dioxide emissions onethird greenhouse gases overall come electric power plants according federal energy information administration obama administration already proposed controls new plants controls delayed yet finalized todays announcement would first public confirmation obama plans extend carbon controls existing plants country facing threat president facing facts said dan lashof natural resources defense council praising obama taking aim power plants reducing pollution important step take nation stand climate change spokesman major power companies said industry long understood importance addressing climate change working reduce greenhouse gas emissions two decades industry consider whether new climate change policies regulations mesh ongoing transition cleaner generating fleet enhanced electric grid said tom kuhn president edison electric institute group represents power companies even obama spoke reaction republicans swift dismissive reflecting opposition climate legislation capitol hill prompted frustrated obama sidestep lawmakers take action stewart spokesman senate minority leader mitch mcconnell rky said imposing carbon rules power plants amounts national energy tax president explain massive costs american jobs president explain lowincome americans would pay new higher utility bills stewart said senior administration officials werent authorized comment name requested anonymity said obama set timeline putting new power plant controls place wont issue detailed emission targets specifics instead president launch process environmental protection agency work states develop specific plans rein carbon emissions flexibility states circumstances advertisement obama also announce aggressive steps increase efficiency appliances refrigerators lamps white house said adding stricter standards could reduce carbon pollution 3 billion tons 2030 equivalent halfyears worth carbon pollution power plants another component obamas proposal involve ramping hydropower production existing dams obama raised climate change key secondterm issue inaugural address january offered details since february state union issued ultimatum lawmakers congress wont act soon protect future generations view reflects reality white house spokesman jay carney said monday weve seen congress attempt deal issue fail framing obamas efforts part broader global movement white house said us play leading role persuading nations join efforts slow warming planet obama calling end us support public financing new coalfired plants overseas officials said exempt plants poorest nations long cleanest technology available countries used hes also pledging work major polluting countries like china india curb emissions building agreement obama struck recently chinas leader phase hydrofluorocarbons potent greenhouse gases used air conditions refrigerators another obamas goals prepare communities inevitable effects climate change appears aspiration concrete plan community leaders environmental activists say cities states need prepare flooding higher temperatures money something obama hardpressed provide without congress goahead sidestepping congress using executive action doesnt guarantee obama smooth sailing lawmakers could introduce legislation thwart obamas efforts rules existing power plants almost certainly face legal challenges court
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<p>NEW YORK (AP) — They are business survivors — owners whose small companies withstood the Great Recession that forced thousands of others out of business. Along the way, many had to lay off workers, forgo salaries or find new ways to earn money.</p>
<p>Ten years after the official start of the downturn, some entrepreneurs profiled by The Associated Press as the recession began say now that they are grateful but not gleeful; they have many painful memories and lessons learned.</p>
<p>"I have to say I'm ultraconservative now," says Jen Miller, who told the AP in early 2008 she was feeling the impact of a weaker economy on her business that sells clothing, knickknacks and other items that companies give away to clients and customers.</p>
<p>Recent surveys of business owners show that many have the same cautious mindset. They're careful about hiring, borrowing much money or taking other risks, because they're mindful that another downturn could hit.</p>
<p>Labor Department figures illustrate the recession's toll:</p>
<p>—Quarterly tallies show that the number of new companies peaked at 236,000 at the end of 2006 but then began falling, reaching 192,000 in the third quarter of 2009. The figure made it back to 237,000 in the first quarter of 2012.</p>
<p>—Business closings, in the 190,000 range until the start of 2006, peaked at 253,000 at the end of 2008 and didn't return to pre-recession levels until the third quarter of 2011.</p>
<p>Miller avoided laying off her two staffers at Printing and Promotional Partners in Jacksonville, Florida, but says now, "there were times when I didn't take a paycheck." Miller ran her company cautiously and has been able to add an employee.</p>
<p>"I probably could add more staff, but I never want to be in a position to let someone go if things slack off," she says.</p>
<p>A look at how other owners who were interviewed for AP stories from 2006 to 2008 have fared:</p>
<p>NOT ALL THE WAY BACK</p>
<p>By 2010, revenue at Beth McRae's public relations company had fallen 80 percent from three years earlier. Fearing she would have to lay off her five employees, she urged them all to find jobs elsewhere. They did.</p>
<p>"It felt like the world was coming to an end. It was devastating to have a robust business bottom out like that," says McRae, who's based in Phoenix, an area particularly hard-hit by the housing market collapse that helped spawn the recession.</p>
<p>When McRae spoke with the AP in 2007, she had begun a routine of prayer, meditation and yoga to help ease her stress. She also used credit cards to pay her bills.</p>
<p>Revenue started creeping higher by early 2011 as clients who had slashed their marketing budgets felt safe enough to seek publicity again. McRae was able to hire one person that year. But business is still below where it was in 2007, and she has no further plans to hire.</p>
<p>"I'd have to see a lot of additional revenue come in the door before I'd do that," she says.</p>
<p>IN THE MIDST OF THE HOUSTING BUST</p>
<p>Jeremy Brandt was getting up every morning thinking about how to save his company — and whether to even try.</p>
<p>The housing market was already in trouble in 2006 and prices were falling. Brandt's Dallas-based business linking real estate investors and home sellers was crashing.</p>
<p>"We lost 75 percent of our clients in a year. ... We lost money for over 24 months," says Brandt, the owner of the company then known as 1-800-CashOffer and now called We Buy Houses.</p>
<p>Brandt told the AP in October 2008 he was seeking advice from mentors and other business owners. That helped him stay in business, but eventually, Brandt had to cut his staff by three-quarters, laying off seven workers.</p>
<p>"You're wondering, when do you pull the plug? Are you stupid to be rescuing a sinking ship?" he now says.</p>
<p>The business survived by shifting focus. With investors all but gone from the market, Brandt began working with real estate agents, charging referral fees for linking those representing buyers and sellers. He slowly built a new client base. And because so many other real estate companies had shut down, he had less competition. When the market began recovering, he had a head start on people who decided to give real estate a try again.</p>
<p>"I'm one of the people who has the battle scars and tells younger people how to get through every day," Brandt says.</p>
<p>FINDING SUCCESS AMID THE CHAOS</p>
<p>One company found opportunity in the vacant retail storefronts of the recession.</p>
<p>Inwindow Outdoor, which installed advertising displays, covered empty store windows in New York with colorful vinyl ads that helped mask the evidence of the troubled economy. In November 2008, CEO Steve Birnhak told the AP the company was surprisingly very busy.</p>
<p>Neither the recession nor its aftermath did damage, Birnhak now says, calling business "fairly consistent."</p>
<p>The company began including video screens in some locations, which helped it evolve: Retailers began asking for video displays for windows and selling floors, using multiple screens and interactive features. Passers-by and shoppers can touch screens, learn more or just have fun.</p>
<p>That transformation — it's now called Inwindow Interactive — allowed it to thrive even as the number of empty stores dropped.</p>
<p>"Instead of being a short-term type of thing, we're doing more interactive work that is more permanent," Birnhak says.</p>
<p>SWITCHING INDUSTRIES</p>
<p>When he realized the economy would be struggling for a long time, Scott Gingold sold his market research firm and switched to a completely new industry.</p>
<p>Marketing budgets are often the first expenses businesses cut when the economy weakens. Gingold, whose business, Powerfeedback, was based in Easton, Pennsylvania, found that his contacts at client companies were afraid to spend money because it could cost them their jobs.</p>
<p>They "didn't want to be the person whose boss said, 'You just spent $25,000 for market research — how did that help us today?'" Gingold says.</p>
<p>When Gingold spoke with the AP in November 2008, he said his employees were all asking what they could do to help.</p>
<p>His revenue fell 35 percent by 2011. That year, with the aftermath of the recession still strangling business, Gingold knew that if he kept the business, he would have to lay off some of his 35 staffers.</p>
<p>Gingold sold the company and moved into technology. He bought Lehigh Valley Technology Co. in 2012, believing the business that provides network and server services could withstand economic hard times.</p>
<p>"It's going to evolve, it's going to change, but it's not going to go away like market research," he says.</p>
<p>REMAKING A BUSINESS</p>
<p>Jennefer Witter's company was still doing well when she started putting together a contingency plan.</p>
<p>Witter, who specialized in publicity for real estate-related companies including architectural firms, told the AP in September 2006 that while her company was successful, she was looking at her options.</p>
<p>She says now she began feeling the recession's impact in 2008 as clients curtailed their spending and realized she had to do more to revamp her company, The Boreland Group. "I started going outside my comfort zone," she says.</p>
<p>In 2008 she began taking on clients in a variety of industries, but steered clear of those whose fortunes were closely tied to the economy. She offered different services, like coaching sessions for startups that needed publicity but couldn't afford a full-fledged marketing campaign. She made herself more visible, starting to give speeches in universities, community organizations, women's groups. She's made so many appearances that public speaking is now a side business.</p>
<p>"I've had to really work on the business consistently to make sure there were things in the pipeline," she says.</p>
<p>LETTING GO OF A DREAM</p>
<p>Plenty of people who lost jobs were interested in learning new skills at Robert Fellman's computer training and repair schools in southern Florida. But many couldn't afford the tuition of $4,995 or more at PC Professor, and enrollment fell.</p>
<p>When Fellman spoke with the AP in 2008, he was dealing with more than revenue issues — he was worried about his employees. "There's panic in their eyes," he said at the time.</p>
<p>Fellman's business limped along, then got a boost from a 2009 economic stimulus package that increased funding to help people get job training. "Grants and scholarships were the savior that kept us in business," says Fellman, who estimates that a quarter of his current students receive financial aid.</p>
<p>As the economy improved, so did revenue. Fellman, who had locations in West Palm Beach and Boca Raton, opened a third location in Fort Lauderdale last year. But he has given up a pre-recession hope to open branches in major cities across the country.</p>
<p>"I don't know if it's part of our dream and mission anymore," Fellman says.</p>
<p>_____</p>
<p>Follow Joyce Rosenberg at <a href="http://www.twitter.com/JoyceMRosenberg" type="external">www.twitter.com/JoyceMRosenberg</a> . Her work can be found here: <a href="" type="internal">https://apnews.com/search/joyce%20rosenberg</a></p>
<p>NEW YORK (AP) — They are business survivors — owners whose small companies withstood the Great Recession that forced thousands of others out of business. Along the way, many had to lay off workers, forgo salaries or find new ways to earn money.</p>
<p>Ten years after the official start of the downturn, some entrepreneurs profiled by The Associated Press as the recession began say now that they are grateful but not gleeful; they have many painful memories and lessons learned.</p>
<p>"I have to say I'm ultraconservative now," says Jen Miller, who told the AP in early 2008 she was feeling the impact of a weaker economy on her business that sells clothing, knickknacks and other items that companies give away to clients and customers.</p>
<p>Recent surveys of business owners show that many have the same cautious mindset. They're careful about hiring, borrowing much money or taking other risks, because they're mindful that another downturn could hit.</p>
<p>Labor Department figures illustrate the recession's toll:</p>
<p>—Quarterly tallies show that the number of new companies peaked at 236,000 at the end of 2006 but then began falling, reaching 192,000 in the third quarter of 2009. The figure made it back to 237,000 in the first quarter of 2012.</p>
<p>—Business closings, in the 190,000 range until the start of 2006, peaked at 253,000 at the end of 2008 and didn't return to pre-recession levels until the third quarter of 2011.</p>
<p>Miller avoided laying off her two staffers at Printing and Promotional Partners in Jacksonville, Florida, but says now, "there were times when I didn't take a paycheck." Miller ran her company cautiously and has been able to add an employee.</p>
<p>"I probably could add more staff, but I never want to be in a position to let someone go if things slack off," she says.</p>
<p>A look at how other owners who were interviewed for AP stories from 2006 to 2008 have fared:</p>
<p>NOT ALL THE WAY BACK</p>
<p>By 2010, revenue at Beth McRae's public relations company had fallen 80 percent from three years earlier. Fearing she would have to lay off her five employees, she urged them all to find jobs elsewhere. They did.</p>
<p>"It felt like the world was coming to an end. It was devastating to have a robust business bottom out like that," says McRae, who's based in Phoenix, an area particularly hard-hit by the housing market collapse that helped spawn the recession.</p>
<p>When McRae spoke with the AP in 2007, she had begun a routine of prayer, meditation and yoga to help ease her stress. She also used credit cards to pay her bills.</p>
<p>Revenue started creeping higher by early 2011 as clients who had slashed their marketing budgets felt safe enough to seek publicity again. McRae was able to hire one person that year. But business is still below where it was in 2007, and she has no further plans to hire.</p>
<p>"I'd have to see a lot of additional revenue come in the door before I'd do that," she says.</p>
<p>IN THE MIDST OF THE HOUSTING BUST</p>
<p>Jeremy Brandt was getting up every morning thinking about how to save his company — and whether to even try.</p>
<p>The housing market was already in trouble in 2006 and prices were falling. Brandt's Dallas-based business linking real estate investors and home sellers was crashing.</p>
<p>"We lost 75 percent of our clients in a year. ... We lost money for over 24 months," says Brandt, the owner of the company then known as 1-800-CashOffer and now called We Buy Houses.</p>
<p>Brandt told the AP in October 2008 he was seeking advice from mentors and other business owners. That helped him stay in business, but eventually, Brandt had to cut his staff by three-quarters, laying off seven workers.</p>
<p>"You're wondering, when do you pull the plug? Are you stupid to be rescuing a sinking ship?" he now says.</p>
<p>The business survived by shifting focus. With investors all but gone from the market, Brandt began working with real estate agents, charging referral fees for linking those representing buyers and sellers. He slowly built a new client base. And because so many other real estate companies had shut down, he had less competition. When the market began recovering, he had a head start on people who decided to give real estate a try again.</p>
<p>"I'm one of the people who has the battle scars and tells younger people how to get through every day," Brandt says.</p>
<p>FINDING SUCCESS AMID THE CHAOS</p>
<p>One company found opportunity in the vacant retail storefronts of the recession.</p>
<p>Inwindow Outdoor, which installed advertising displays, covered empty store windows in New York with colorful vinyl ads that helped mask the evidence of the troubled economy. In November 2008, CEO Steve Birnhak told the AP the company was surprisingly very busy.</p>
<p>Neither the recession nor its aftermath did damage, Birnhak now says, calling business "fairly consistent."</p>
<p>The company began including video screens in some locations, which helped it evolve: Retailers began asking for video displays for windows and selling floors, using multiple screens and interactive features. Passers-by and shoppers can touch screens, learn more or just have fun.</p>
<p>That transformation — it's now called Inwindow Interactive — allowed it to thrive even as the number of empty stores dropped.</p>
<p>"Instead of being a short-term type of thing, we're doing more interactive work that is more permanent," Birnhak says.</p>
<p>SWITCHING INDUSTRIES</p>
<p>When he realized the economy would be struggling for a long time, Scott Gingold sold his market research firm and switched to a completely new industry.</p>
<p>Marketing budgets are often the first expenses businesses cut when the economy weakens. Gingold, whose business, Powerfeedback, was based in Easton, Pennsylvania, found that his contacts at client companies were afraid to spend money because it could cost them their jobs.</p>
<p>They "didn't want to be the person whose boss said, 'You just spent $25,000 for market research — how did that help us today?'" Gingold says.</p>
<p>When Gingold spoke with the AP in November 2008, he said his employees were all asking what they could do to help.</p>
<p>His revenue fell 35 percent by 2011. That year, with the aftermath of the recession still strangling business, Gingold knew that if he kept the business, he would have to lay off some of his 35 staffers.</p>
<p>Gingold sold the company and moved into technology. He bought Lehigh Valley Technology Co. in 2012, believing the business that provides network and server services could withstand economic hard times.</p>
<p>"It's going to evolve, it's going to change, but it's not going to go away like market research," he says.</p>
<p>REMAKING A BUSINESS</p>
<p>Jennefer Witter's company was still doing well when she started putting together a contingency plan.</p>
<p>Witter, who specialized in publicity for real estate-related companies including architectural firms, told the AP in September 2006 that while her company was successful, she was looking at her options.</p>
<p>She says now she began feeling the recession's impact in 2008 as clients curtailed their spending and realized she had to do more to revamp her company, The Boreland Group. "I started going outside my comfort zone," she says.</p>
<p>In 2008 she began taking on clients in a variety of industries, but steered clear of those whose fortunes were closely tied to the economy. She offered different services, like coaching sessions for startups that needed publicity but couldn't afford a full-fledged marketing campaign. She made herself more visible, starting to give speeches in universities, community organizations, women's groups. She's made so many appearances that public speaking is now a side business.</p>
<p>"I've had to really work on the business consistently to make sure there were things in the pipeline," she says.</p>
<p>LETTING GO OF A DREAM</p>
<p>Plenty of people who lost jobs were interested in learning new skills at Robert Fellman's computer training and repair schools in southern Florida. But many couldn't afford the tuition of $4,995 or more at PC Professor, and enrollment fell.</p>
<p>When Fellman spoke with the AP in 2008, he was dealing with more than revenue issues — he was worried about his employees. "There's panic in their eyes," he said at the time.</p>
<p>Fellman's business limped along, then got a boost from a 2009 economic stimulus package that increased funding to help people get job training. "Grants and scholarships were the savior that kept us in business," says Fellman, who estimates that a quarter of his current students receive financial aid.</p>
<p>As the economy improved, so did revenue. Fellman, who had locations in West Palm Beach and Boca Raton, opened a third location in Fort Lauderdale last year. But he has given up a pre-recession hope to open branches in major cities across the country.</p>
<p>"I don't know if it's part of our dream and mission anymore," Fellman says.</p>
<p>_____</p>
<p>Follow Joyce Rosenberg at <a href="http://www.twitter.com/JoyceMRosenberg" type="external">www.twitter.com/JoyceMRosenberg</a> . Her work can be found here: <a href="" type="internal">https://apnews.com/search/joyce%20rosenberg</a></p>
| false | 2 |
new york ap business survivors owners whose small companies withstood great recession forced thousands others business along way many lay workers forgo salaries find new ways earn money ten years official start downturn entrepreneurs profiled associated press recession began say grateful gleeful many painful memories lessons learned say im ultraconservative says jen miller told ap early 2008 feeling impact weaker economy business sells clothing knickknacks items companies give away clients customers recent surveys business owners show many cautious mindset theyre careful hiring borrowing much money taking risks theyre mindful another downturn could hit labor department figures illustrate recessions toll quarterly tallies show number new companies peaked 236000 end 2006 began falling reaching 192000 third quarter 2009 figure made back 237000 first quarter 2012 business closings 190000 range start 2006 peaked 253000 end 2008 didnt return prerecession levels third quarter 2011 miller avoided laying two staffers printing promotional partners jacksonville florida says times didnt take paycheck miller ran company cautiously able add employee probably could add staff never want position let someone go things slack says look owners interviewed ap stories 2006 2008 fared way back 2010 revenue beth mcraes public relations company fallen 80 percent three years earlier fearing would lay five employees urged find jobs elsewhere felt like world coming end devastating robust business bottom like says mcrae whos based phoenix area particularly hardhit housing market collapse helped spawn recession mcrae spoke ap 2007 begun routine prayer meditation yoga help ease stress also used credit cards pay bills revenue started creeping higher early 2011 clients slashed marketing budgets felt safe enough seek publicity mcrae able hire one person year business still 2007 plans hire id see lot additional revenue come door id says midst housting bust jeremy brandt getting every morning thinking save company whether even try housing market already trouble 2006 prices falling brandts dallasbased business linking real estate investors home sellers crashing lost 75 percent clients year lost money 24 months says brandt owner company known 1800cashoffer called buy houses brandt told ap october 2008 seeking advice mentors business owners helped stay business eventually brandt cut staff threequarters laying seven workers youre wondering pull plug stupid rescuing sinking ship says business survived shifting focus investors gone market brandt began working real estate agents charging referral fees linking representing buyers sellers slowly built new client base many real estate companies shut less competition market began recovering head start people decided give real estate try im one people battle scars tells younger people get every day brandt says finding success amid chaos one company found opportunity vacant retail storefronts recession inwindow outdoor installed advertising displays covered empty store windows new york colorful vinyl ads helped mask evidence troubled economy november 2008 ceo steve birnhak told ap company surprisingly busy neither recession aftermath damage birnhak says calling business fairly consistent company began including video screens locations helped evolve retailers began asking video displays windows selling floors using multiple screens interactive features passersby shoppers touch screens learn fun transformation called inwindow interactive allowed thrive even number empty stores dropped instead shortterm type thing interactive work permanent birnhak says switching industries realized economy would struggling long time scott gingold sold market research firm switched completely new industry marketing budgets often first expenses businesses cut economy weakens gingold whose business powerfeedback based easton pennsylvania found contacts client companies afraid spend money could cost jobs didnt want person whose boss said spent 25000 market research help us today gingold says gingold spoke ap november 2008 said employees asking could help revenue fell 35 percent 2011 year aftermath recession still strangling business gingold knew kept business would lay 35 staffers gingold sold company moved technology bought lehigh valley technology co 2012 believing business provides network server services could withstand economic hard times going evolve going change going go away like market research says remaking business jennefer witters company still well started putting together contingency plan witter specialized publicity real estaterelated companies including architectural firms told ap september 2006 company successful looking options says began feeling recessions impact 2008 clients curtailed spending realized revamp company boreland group started going outside comfort zone says 2008 began taking clients variety industries steered clear whose fortunes closely tied economy offered different services like coaching sessions startups needed publicity couldnt afford fullfledged marketing campaign made visible starting give speeches universities community organizations womens groups shes made many appearances public speaking side business ive really work business consistently make sure things pipeline says letting go dream plenty people lost jobs interested learning new skills robert fellmans computer training repair schools southern florida many couldnt afford tuition 4995 pc professor enrollment fell fellman spoke ap 2008 dealing revenue issues worried employees theres panic eyes said time fellmans business limped along got boost 2009 economic stimulus package increased funding help people get job training grants scholarships savior kept us business says fellman estimates quarter current students receive financial aid economy improved revenue fellman locations west palm beach boca raton opened third location fort lauderdale last year given prerecession hope open branches major cities across country dont know part dream mission anymore fellman says _____ follow joyce rosenberg wwwtwittercomjoycemrosenberg work found httpsapnewscomsearchjoyce20rosenberg new york ap business survivors owners whose small companies withstood great recession forced thousands others business along way many lay workers forgo salaries find new ways earn money ten years official start downturn entrepreneurs profiled associated press recession began say grateful gleeful many painful memories lessons learned say im ultraconservative says jen miller told ap early 2008 feeling impact weaker economy business sells clothing knickknacks items companies give away clients customers recent surveys business owners show many cautious mindset theyre careful hiring borrowing much money taking risks theyre mindful another downturn could hit labor department figures illustrate recessions toll quarterly tallies show number new companies peaked 236000 end 2006 began falling reaching 192000 third quarter 2009 figure made back 237000 first quarter 2012 business closings 190000 range start 2006 peaked 253000 end 2008 didnt return prerecession levels third quarter 2011 miller avoided laying two staffers printing promotional partners jacksonville florida says times didnt take paycheck miller ran company cautiously able add employee probably could add staff never want position let someone go things slack says look owners interviewed ap stories 2006 2008 fared way back 2010 revenue beth mcraes public relations company fallen 80 percent three years earlier fearing would lay five employees urged find jobs elsewhere felt like world coming end devastating robust business bottom like says mcrae whos based phoenix area particularly hardhit housing market collapse helped spawn recession mcrae spoke ap 2007 begun routine prayer meditation yoga help ease stress also used credit cards pay bills revenue started creeping higher early 2011 clients slashed marketing budgets felt safe enough seek publicity mcrae able hire one person year business still 2007 plans hire id see lot additional revenue come door id says midst housting bust jeremy brandt getting every morning thinking save company whether even try housing market already trouble 2006 prices falling brandts dallasbased business linking real estate investors home sellers crashing lost 75 percent clients year lost money 24 months says brandt owner company known 1800cashoffer called buy houses brandt told ap october 2008 seeking advice mentors business owners helped stay business eventually brandt cut staff threequarters laying seven workers youre wondering pull plug stupid rescuing sinking ship says business survived shifting focus investors gone market brandt began working real estate agents charging referral fees linking representing buyers sellers slowly built new client base many real estate companies shut less competition market began recovering head start people decided give real estate try im one people battle scars tells younger people get every day brandt says finding success amid chaos one company found opportunity vacant retail storefronts recession inwindow outdoor installed advertising displays covered empty store windows new york colorful vinyl ads helped mask evidence troubled economy november 2008 ceo steve birnhak told ap company surprisingly busy neither recession aftermath damage birnhak says calling business fairly consistent company began including video screens locations helped evolve retailers began asking video displays windows selling floors using multiple screens interactive features passersby shoppers touch screens learn fun transformation called inwindow interactive allowed thrive even number empty stores dropped instead shortterm type thing interactive work permanent birnhak says switching industries realized economy would struggling long time scott gingold sold market research firm switched completely new industry marketing budgets often first expenses businesses cut economy weakens gingold whose business powerfeedback based easton pennsylvania found contacts client companies afraid spend money could cost jobs didnt want person whose boss said spent 25000 market research help us today gingold says gingold spoke ap november 2008 said employees asking could help revenue fell 35 percent 2011 year aftermath recession still strangling business gingold knew kept business would lay 35 staffers gingold sold company moved technology bought lehigh valley technology co 2012 believing business provides network server services could withstand economic hard times going evolve going change going go away like market research says remaking business jennefer witters company still well started putting together contingency plan witter specialized publicity real estaterelated companies including architectural firms told ap september 2006 company successful looking options says began feeling recessions impact 2008 clients curtailed spending realized revamp company boreland group started going outside comfort zone says 2008 began taking clients variety industries steered clear whose fortunes closely tied economy offered different services like coaching sessions startups needed publicity couldnt afford fullfledged marketing campaign made visible starting give speeches universities community organizations womens groups shes made many appearances public speaking side business ive really work business consistently make sure things pipeline says letting go dream plenty people lost jobs interested learning new skills robert fellmans computer training repair schools southern florida many couldnt afford tuition 4995 pc professor enrollment fell fellman spoke ap 2008 dealing revenue issues worried employees theres panic eyes said time fellmans business limped along got boost 2009 economic stimulus package increased funding help people get job training grants scholarships savior kept us business says fellman estimates quarter current students receive financial aid economy improved revenue fellman locations west palm beach boca raton opened third location fort lauderdale last year given prerecession hope open branches major cities across country dont know part dream mission anymore fellman says _____ follow joyce rosenberg wwwtwittercomjoycemrosenberg work found httpsapnewscomsearchjoyce20rosenberg
| 1,716 |
<p>NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. East Coast crude inventories fell to 11.3 million barrels last week, the lowest level since October of 2014, according to U.S. Energy Information Administration data released on Wednesday.</p>
<p>U.S. Midwest crude inventories declined to 122.5 million barrels last week, the lowest weekly level since February of 2015, EIA data showed.</p>
<p>U.S. East coast distillate inventories dropped to 36.3 million barrels last week, the lowest weekly level since June 2015 - EIA data shows.</p>
<p>Reporting By Jarrett Renshaw; Editing by Marguerita Choy</p> Our Standards:
<a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a>
<p>SYDNEY (Reuters) - A hush settled over financial markets on Wednesday as investors counted down to a likely hike in U.S. interest rates and guidance on how many more to expect this year, while trade war fears kept export nations’ currencies on edge.</p> FILE PHOTO: A man looks at an electronic stock quotation board outside a brokerage in Tokyo, Japan February 9, 2018. REUTERS/Toru Hanai
<p>MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan .MIAPJ0000PUS edged up 0.5 percent after a run of losses, tracking overnight gains on Wall Street.</p>
<p>Chinese shares were a bit more buoyant with Hong Kong's Hang Seng index <a href="/finance/markets/index?symbol=.HSI" type="external">.HSI</a> gaining 1.2 percent as real estate firms posted stellar profits.</p>
<p>E-Mini futures for the S&amp;P 500 ESc1 inched up 0.1 percent, while FTSE futures FFIc1 were off a fraction.</p>
<p>Markets are convinced the Federal Reserve will announce a quarter point hike at 1800 GMT, but are less sure if it will signal three or four for the year as a whole.</p>
<p>“A significant weighting toward four hikes this year may well cause both equity and bond markets to sell off,” Jonathan Sheridan, analyst at FIIG Securities in Sydney, said.</p>
<p>“The concerns here are that the Fed overshoots with raising rates into a faltering economy,” Sheridan added.</p>
<p>“If this opinion takes hold then we may well see falling longer term rates and a flatter yield curve, and it would also be negative for equities as it increases the chances of a recession.”</p>
<p>The Fed has raised rates five times since it began tightening policy in late 2015. Yet the dollar has not really responded, ending 2017 down about 10 percent against a basket of currencies. .DXY</p>
<p>“We remind readers that every single FOMC rate hike this cycle has been a ‘dovish hike’ and the USD has declined on the day(s) post the rise,” Richard Grace, chief currency strategist at Commonwealth Bank of Australia wrote in a note to clients.</p>
<p>On Wednesday, the dollar index held near three-week highs around at 90.267 .DXY. Against the Japanese yen <a href="/finance/currencies/quote?srcCurr=JPY&amp;destCurr=USD" type="external">JPY=</a>, the greenback hovered near a one-week top at 106.46.</p>
<p>(GRAPHIC: Developed market currencies against the Dollar - <a href="http://reut.rs/2FYAg0X" type="external">reut.rs/2FYAg0X</a>)</p> TRADE WAR FEARS
<p>Another major overhang for financial markets is the specter of a global trade war.</p>
<p>U.S. President Donald Trump is expected to unveil up to $60 billion in import duties on Chinese goods by Friday. The move comes after Trump imposed tariffs on imported steel and aluminum earlier this month.</p>
<p>Investors are worried Trump’s actions could escalate into a full-blown trade war if China and other countries retaliate with similar or harsher measures, threatening global growth.</p>
<p>To add to these concerns, a meeting of finance ministers and central banks of the world’s 20 biggest economies this week failed to diffuse the threat.</p>
<a href="/finance/markets/index?symbol=.HSI" type="external">Hang Seng Indexes Co Ltd</a> 31846.83 .HSI Hong Kong Stock +296.90 (+0.94%) .HSI
<p>The so-called G20 agreed only to stand by an ambiguous declaration on trade from 2017 and “recognized” the need for more “dialogue and actions”.</p>
<p>The currencies of export-heavy nations such as the Australian, New Zealand and Canadian dollars were on the defensive after being knocked down to multi-month lows.</p>
<p>The Aussie <a href="/finance/currencies/quote?srcCurr=AUD&amp;destCurr=USD" type="external">AUD=D4</a> fell to a three-month trough of $0.7679 overnight while the kiwi dollar <a href="/finance/currencies/quote?srcCurr=NZD&amp;destCurr=USD" type="external">NZD=D4</a> hit the lowest since early January. The Canadian dollar <a href="/finance/currencies/quote?srcCurr=CAD&amp;destCurr=USD" type="external">CAD=D4</a> held at $1.3029 from Monday's low of $1.3124, a level not seen since mid-2017.</p>
<p>Equity analysts have also turned increasingly downbeat.</p>
<p>“Cracks in the bull case are starting to emerge,” said Michael Hartnett, chief investment strategist at Bank of America Merrill Lynch, citing the bank’s March fund manager survey.</p>
<p>“The threat of a trade war returns to the top of the list of tail risks most commonly cited by investors, followed by inflation and a slowdown in global growth,” he added.</p>
<p>“Investors have yet to act on these fears, however, as rates and earnings are keeping the bulls bullish.”</p>
<p>Among major commodities, oil prices were lifted by tensions in the Middle East and healthy demand. [O/R]</p>
<p>U.S. crude CLc1 rose 15 cents to $63.69 per barrel. Brent LCOc1 gained 16 cents to $67.58.</p>
<p>Spot gold added 0.2 percent to $1,313.31 an ounce XAU=.</p>
<p>Reporting by Swati Pandey, Editing by Simon Cameron-Moore and Himani Sarkar</p> Our Standards:
<a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a>
<p>NEW YORK/CHICAGO (Reuters) - The Weinstein Company’s bankruptcy filing will not protect ex-Chairman Harvey Weinstein, who has been accused of sexual harassment and assault, an attorney for the studio told U.S. Bankruptcy Court Judge Mary Walrath on Tuesday.</p>
<p>“We are not here to protect Harvey Weinstein,” attorney Paul Zumbro said. “(The Weinstein Company) filing for bankruptcy relief in no way affects anyone’s ability to pursue civil or criminal claims against Harvey Weinstein.”</p>
<p>Weinstein, who co-founded the company with his brother Bob and once was one of Hollywood’s most influential men, has been accused of sexual misconduct including rape by more than 70 women. He has denied having non-consensual sex with anyone. It has been unclear how his alleged victims would be treated in a potential bankruptcy filing.</p>
<p>The Weinstein Company filed for bankruptcy late Monday after it spent months looking for a buyer or investor. Texas private equity firm Lantern Capital agreed to buy the Company out of bankruptcy for $310 million, setting the floor for other bidders in a court-supervised auction scheduled for later this spring.</p>
<p>The bankruptcy will halt victim’s lawsuits against the company and any sexual misconduct claims would likely be compensated only after secured creditors are paid in full. A failed offer for the studio from former Obama administration official Maria Contreras-Sweet included an $80 million to $90 million compensation fund that would supplement any insurance payouts victims would receive.</p>
<p>As part of the bankruptcy filing, the Weinstein Company said it released anyone “who suffered or witnessed any form of sexual misconduct by Harvey Weinstein” from nondisclosure agreements.</p>
<p>“Since October, it has been reported that Harvey Weinstein used non-disclosure agreements as a secret weapon to silence his accusers. Effective immediately, those ‘agreements’ end,” the company said in an emailed statement.</p> FILE PHOTO - Harvey Weinstein speaks at the UBS 40th Annual Global Media and Communications Conference in New York, December 5, 2012. REUTERS/Carlo Allegri
<p>In court Tuesday, the film studio also received approval to tap some of its bankruptcy loan to make payroll for its remaining employees.</p>
<p>The Weinstein Company, which has won 28 Academy Awards, owns a film library of 277 feature films that have generated over $2 billion in aggregate box office receipts worldwide.</p>
<p>Yet the company said in court papers it has lost about 25 percent of its workforce and many of its longtime business partners since October 2017, when accusations against Harvey Weinstein became public.</p>
<p>“It is an understatement to say that the last six months have been trying for the company,” Chief Restructuring Officer Robert Del Genio said in court papers.</p>
<p>The studio has spent months looking for a buyer or investor. Before the deal with Contreras-Sweet failed, the company had tried securing rescue financing from other investors.</p>
<p>Lions Gate Entertainment Corp had made an earlier offer for some of the company’s assets, as had Qatar-owned film company Miramax, which was founded by Harvey Weinstein and Bob Weinstein. Both could be among potential bidders in the auction.</p>
<p>Movie producer Killer Content also said bankruptcy would be the best option for the company and that it may be interested in the studio’s assets in a bankruptcy auction.</p>
<p>Launched in October 2005, the studio produced and distributed critically acclaimed hits including “The King’s Speech” and “Silver Linings Playbook,” as well as TV series such as long-running fashion reality competition “Project Runway.”</p>
<p>Reporting by Jessica DiNapoli in New York, Tracy Rucinski in Chicago and Ismail Shakil in Bengaluru; Editing by Marguerita Choy and Leslie Adler</p> Our Standards:
<a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a>
<p>SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Oil prices rose on Wednesday, lifted by tensions in the Middle East and healthy demand, although rising U.S. output continued to weigh on markets.</p> FILE PHOTO: An oil well pump jack is seen at an oil field supply yard near Denver, Colorado, U.S., February 2, 2015. REUTERS/Rick Wilking/File Photo
<p>U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures CLc1 were at $63.80 a barrel at 0230 GMT, up 26 cents, or 0.4 percent, from their previous close.</p>
<p>Brent crude futures LCOc1 were at $67.71 per barrel, up 29 cents, or 0.4 percent.</p>
<p>Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman on Tuesday arrived in Washington for a state visit, raising speculation the United States could reimpose sanctions on Iran, following rewnewed criticism of the 2015 nuclear deal.</p>
<p>“The presence of the Saudi Crown Prince... in Washington and his clear agenda to ramp up pressure on Iran, has for me, been the key driver... of oil, which rose strongly,” said Greg McKenna, chief market strategist at futures brokerage AxiTrader.</p>
<p>Analysts also pointed to the nomination of Mike Pompeo as new U.S. Secretary of State as a risk to oil markets, given he fiercely opposed the 2015 pact as a member of Congress.</p>
<p>“The nomination of Mike Pompeo for U.S. Secretary of State ... raises the likelihood of oil trade disruptions,” U.S. bank Citi said in a note.</p>
<p>Should the United States reimpose sanctions against Iran, energy consultancy FGE said that would likely result in a 250,000 to 500,000 barrels per day (bpd) drop in its exports by year-end.</p>
<p>Analysts also pointed to healthy economic growth and a weak dollar as oil price drivers.</p>
<p>In a sign of healthy demand, U.S. crude stocks fell by 2.7 million barrels in the week ended March 16 to 425.3 million, the American Petroleum Institute said on Tuesday.</p>
<p>“The global economy is humming, and robust demand solidly underpins commodity prices,” said Norbert Ruecker, head of macro and commodity Research at Swiss bank Julius Baer.</p>
<p>Despite this, he said seasonally low demand at the end of the northern hemisphere winter season meant he had “a rather cautious near-term outlook on commodities.”</p>
<p>Looming over oil markets has been surging U.S. crude production C-OUT-T-EIA, which has risen by more than a fifth since mid-2016, to 10.38 million bpd, overtaking top exporter Saudi Arabia and putting the United States within reach of Russia’s 11 million bpd.</p>
<p>Still, some U.S. producers are holding back expansion in order to prevent a price crash.</p>
<p>“Larger players are holding back capital expenditures in an attempt to avoid past mistakes,” said consultancy FGE.</p>
<p>Reporting by Henning Gloystein; editing by Richard Pullin</p> Our Standards:
<a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a>
<p>(Reuters) - Toys ‘R’ Us said at a bankruptcy court hearing on Tuesday that it was working hard to maximize payments to suppliers and lenders, as it starts to shutter 735 big-box toy stores across the United States.</p> FILE PHOTO - People pass by Toys R Us store at Times Square in New York, U.S., March 9, 2018. REUTERS/Eduardo Munoz/File Photo
<p>More than 50 suppliers, including Barbie maker Mattel ( <a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=MAT.O" type="external">MAT.O</a>) and Lego, have objected in some form to the proceedings by the storied toy retailer to liquidate its U.S. business, putting 30,000 jobs at risk.</p>
<p>Toys ‘R’ Us had been trying to reorganize under U.S. Chapter 11 but last week said those efforts had failed and it was quickly running out of cash. It is also winding down its U.K business, but is looking for a buyer for operations in Canada, Europe and Asia.</p>
<p>Some trade vendors are demanding the company return any unpaid inventory rather than selling it and using going out of business sales to pay secured lenders and bankruptcy lawyers, at their cost, court papers showed.</p>
<p>“We’re making every effort to make sure (trade vendors) will be paid in full,” Lazard’s David Kurtz, who is advising Toys ‘R’ Us, testified at a hearing at U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Richmond, Virginia.</p>
<p>The company is seeking approval for a March 26 deadline for bids for each of its foreign businesses, minus U.K., followed by an auction on March 29.</p>
<p>It is also seeking approval for a series of U.S. liquidation procedures including a halt to more than $450 million in supplier payments as part of a plan that experts told Reuters could cause many small toy makers to disappear.</p>
<p>Toys ‘R’ Us was the last remaining specialty toy retailer in the United States. Hundreds of companies relied on its big-box stores as a showcase for both innovative toys as well as classics.</p>
<a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=MAT.O" type="external">Mattel Inc</a> 12.97 MAT.O Nasdaq -0.25 (-1.89%) MAT.O
<p>Under trade agreements, vendors were required to ship goods to Toys ‘R’ Us on unsecured trade credit.</p>
<p>In a court filing, Lego said any “wind-down must be implemented in a manner that is fair and equitable to all” of the company’s creditors.</p>
<p>The U.S. Trustee, a bankruptcy watchdog, has also objected, saying that while it is “resigned” to the company’s future, it is concerned about certain of the procedures and relief proposed as part of the liquidation.</p>
<p>Toys ‘R’ Us financial advisor Bill Kosturos of Alvarez &amp; Marsal was also testifying at the hearing before U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Keith Phillips, which could run into Wednesday.</p>
<p>Reporting by Tracy Rucinski; Editing by David Gregorio</p> Our Standards:
<a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a>
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new york reuters us east coast crude inventories fell 113 million barrels last week lowest level since october 2014 according us energy information administration data released wednesday us midwest crude inventories declined 1225 million barrels last week lowest weekly level since february 2015 eia data showed us east coast distillate inventories dropped 363 million barrels last week lowest weekly level since june 2015 eia data shows reporting jarrett renshaw editing marguerita choy standards thomson reuters trust principles sydney reuters hush settled financial markets wednesday investors counted likely hike us interest rates guidance many expect year trade war fears kept export nations currencies edge file photo man looks electronic stock quotation board outside brokerage tokyo japan february 9 2018 reuterstoru hanai mscis broadest index asiapacific shares outside japan miapj0000pus edged 05 percent run losses tracking overnight gains wall street chinese shares bit buoyant hong kongs hang seng index hsi gaining 12 percent real estate firms posted stellar profits emini futures sampp 500 esc1 inched 01 percent ftse futures ffic1 fraction markets convinced federal reserve announce quarter point hike 1800 gmt less sure signal three four year whole significant weighting toward four hikes year may well cause equity bond markets sell jonathan sheridan analyst fiig securities sydney said concerns fed overshoots raising rates faltering economy sheridan added opinion takes hold may well see falling longer term rates flatter yield curve would also negative equities increases chances recession fed raised rates five times since began tightening policy late 2015 yet dollar really responded ending 2017 10 percent basket currencies dxy remind readers every single fomc rate hike cycle dovish hike usd declined days post rise richard grace chief currency strategist commonwealth bank australia wrote note clients wednesday dollar index held near threeweek highs around 90267 dxy japanese yen jpy greenback hovered near oneweek top 10646 graphic developed market currencies dollar reutrs2fyag0x trade war fears another major overhang financial markets specter global trade war us president donald trump expected unveil 60 billion import duties chinese goods friday move comes trump imposed tariffs imported steel aluminum earlier month investors worried trumps actions could escalate fullblown trade war china countries retaliate similar harsher measures threatening global growth add concerns meeting finance ministers central banks worlds 20 biggest economies week failed diffuse threat hang seng indexes co ltd 3184683 hsi hong kong stock 29690 094 hsi socalled g20 agreed stand ambiguous declaration trade 2017 recognized need dialogue actions currencies exportheavy nations australian new zealand canadian dollars defensive knocked multimonth lows aussie audd4 fell threemonth trough 07679 overnight kiwi dollar nzdd4 hit lowest since early january canadian dollar cadd4 held 13029 mondays low 13124 level seen since mid2017 equity analysts also turned increasingly downbeat cracks bull case starting emerge said michael hartnett chief investment strategist bank america merrill lynch citing banks march fund manager survey threat trade war returns top list tail risks commonly cited investors followed inflation slowdown global growth added investors yet act fears however rates earnings keeping bulls bullish among major commodities oil prices lifted tensions middle east healthy demand us crude clc1 rose 15 cents 6369 per barrel brent lcoc1 gained 16 cents 6758 spot gold added 02 percent 131331 ounce xau reporting swati pandey editing simon cameronmoore himani sarkar standards thomson reuters trust principles new yorkchicago reuters weinstein companys bankruptcy filing protect exchairman harvey weinstein accused sexual harassment assault attorney studio told us bankruptcy court judge mary walrath tuesday protect harvey weinstein attorney paul zumbro said weinstein company filing bankruptcy relief way affects anyones ability pursue civil criminal claims harvey weinstein weinstein cofounded company brother bob one hollywoods influential men accused sexual misconduct including rape 70 women denied nonconsensual sex anyone unclear alleged victims would treated potential bankruptcy filing weinstein company filed bankruptcy late monday spent months looking buyer investor texas private equity firm lantern capital agreed buy company bankruptcy 310 million setting floor bidders courtsupervised auction scheduled later spring bankruptcy halt victims lawsuits company sexual misconduct claims would likely compensated secured creditors paid full failed offer studio former obama administration official maria contrerassweet included 80 million 90 million compensation fund would supplement insurance payouts victims would receive part bankruptcy filing weinstein company said released anyone suffered witnessed form sexual misconduct harvey weinstein nondisclosure agreements since october reported harvey weinstein used nondisclosure agreements secret weapon silence accusers effective immediately agreements end company said emailed statement file photo harvey weinstein speaks ubs 40th annual global media communications conference new york december 5 2012 reuterscarlo allegri court tuesday film studio also received approval tap bankruptcy loan make payroll remaining employees weinstein company 28 academy awards owns film library 277 feature films generated 2 billion aggregate box office receipts worldwide yet company said court papers lost 25 percent workforce many longtime business partners since october 2017 accusations harvey weinstein became public understatement say last six months trying company chief restructuring officer robert del genio said court papers studio spent months looking buyer investor deal contrerassweet failed company tried securing rescue financing investors lions gate entertainment corp made earlier offer companys assets qatarowned film company miramax founded harvey weinstein bob weinstein could among potential bidders auction movie producer killer content also said bankruptcy would best option company may interested studios assets bankruptcy auction launched october 2005 studio produced distributed critically acclaimed hits including kings speech silver linings playbook well tv series longrunning fashion reality competition project runway reporting jessica dinapoli new york tracy rucinski chicago ismail shakil bengaluru editing marguerita choy leslie adler standards thomson reuters trust principles singapore reuters oil prices rose wednesday lifted tensions middle east healthy demand although rising us output continued weigh markets file photo oil well pump jack seen oil field supply yard near denver colorado us february 2 2015 reutersrick wilkingfile photo us west texas intermediate wti crude futures clc1 6380 barrel 0230 gmt 26 cents 04 percent previous close brent crude futures lcoc1 6771 per barrel 29 cents 04 percent saudi arabias crown prince mohammed bin salman tuesday arrived washington state visit raising speculation united states could reimpose sanctions iran following rewnewed criticism 2015 nuclear deal presence saudi crown prince washington clear agenda ramp pressure iran key driver oil rose strongly said greg mckenna chief market strategist futures brokerage axitrader analysts also pointed nomination mike pompeo new us secretary state risk oil markets given fiercely opposed 2015 pact member congress nomination mike pompeo us secretary state raises likelihood oil trade disruptions us bank citi said note united states reimpose sanctions iran energy consultancy fge said would likely result 250000 500000 barrels per day bpd drop exports yearend analysts also pointed healthy economic growth weak dollar oil price drivers sign healthy demand us crude stocks fell 27 million barrels week ended march 16 4253 million american petroleum institute said tuesday global economy humming robust demand solidly underpins commodity prices said norbert ruecker head macro commodity research swiss bank julius baer despite said seasonally low demand end northern hemisphere winter season meant rather cautious nearterm outlook commodities looming oil markets surging us crude production coutteia risen fifth since mid2016 1038 million bpd overtaking top exporter saudi arabia putting united states within reach russias 11 million bpd still us producers holding back expansion order prevent price crash larger players holding back capital expenditures attempt avoid past mistakes said consultancy fge reporting henning gloystein editing richard pullin standards thomson reuters trust principles reuters toys r us said bankruptcy court hearing tuesday working hard maximize payments suppliers lenders starts shutter 735 bigbox toy stores across united states file photo people pass toys r us store times square new york us march 9 2018 reuterseduardo munozfile photo 50 suppliers including barbie maker mattel mato lego objected form proceedings storied toy retailer liquidate us business putting 30000 jobs risk toys r us trying reorganize us chapter 11 last week said efforts failed quickly running cash also winding uk business looking buyer operations canada europe asia trade vendors demanding company return unpaid inventory rather selling using going business sales pay secured lenders bankruptcy lawyers cost court papers showed making every effort make sure trade vendors paid full lazards david kurtz advising toys r us testified hearing us bankruptcy court richmond virginia company seeking approval march 26 deadline bids foreign businesses minus uk followed auction march 29 also seeking approval series us liquidation procedures including halt 450 million supplier payments part plan experts told reuters could cause many small toy makers disappear toys r us last remaining specialty toy retailer united states hundreds companies relied bigbox stores showcase innovative toys well classics mattel inc 1297 mato nasdaq 025 189 mato trade agreements vendors required ship goods toys r us unsecured trade credit court filing lego said winddown must implemented manner fair equitable companys creditors us trustee bankruptcy watchdog also objected saying resigned companys future concerned certain procedures relief proposed part liquidation toys r us financial advisor bill kosturos alvarez amp marsal also testifying hearing us bankruptcy judge keith phillips could run wednesday reporting tracy rucinski editing david gregorio standards thomson reuters trust principles
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<p>FILE – In this Aug. 26, 2010 file photo, a couple walks through the surf together in Cannon Beach, Ore. OKCupid on Monday, July 28, 2014 became the latest company to admit that it has manipulated customer data to see how users of its dating service would react to one another. (AP Photo/Don Ryan, File)</p>
<p>NEW YORK — Think you’re in control? Think again.</p>
<p>OKCupid on Monday became the latest company to admit that it has manipulated customer data to see how users of its dating service would react to one another. The New York-based Internet company’s revelation follows news earlier this month that Facebook let researchers change news feeds to see how it would affect users’ moods. The fact is, big companies use customers as unwitting guinea pigs all the time –online and in the real world.</p>
<p>OKCupid’s claim, that its research was aimed at improving its services, is common. But some find that manipulating situations in order to study consumer behavior without consent raises troubling privacy concerns.</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p>
<p>“Every company is trying to influence consumers to purchase their product or feel a particular way about their company,” says Kit Yarrow, consumer psychologist at Golden Gate University in San Francisco. “The question is, when is it manipulation, when consumers are in some ways tricked, and when is it just influence?”</p>
<p>In a blog post on Monday OKCupid founder Christian Rudder detailed the experimentation: The company removed text or photos from profiles and in some cases told people they were a 90 percent match with another date-seeker instead of a 30 percent match. Rudder was unapologetic and said the results are being used to improve the sites’ algorithms.</p>
<p>“If you use the Internet, you’re the subject of hundreds of experiments at any given time, on every site,” Rudder wrote. “That’s how websites work.”</p>
<p>Facebook’s recent disclosure set off a firestorm on social media services and in the press. During one week in January 2012, the company let researchers manipulate 689,000 users’ news feeds to be either more positive or negative to study how the changes affected their moods.</p>
<p>But Internet companies aren’t the only ones studying unsuspecting customers. Retailers have been at it for decades.</p>
<p>Brick-and-mortar stores and restaurants have long used data drawn from customer loyalty programs, satisfaction surveys and exit interviews, to figure out how to best target consumers. For example, Darden, which operates the Olive Garden, analyzes customers’ checks to see what types of dishes people tend to combine. The restaurant chain also analyses how long customers wait for a table. Darden says the research, along with customer surveys, helps the company improve the customer experience.</p>
<p>“We collect all sorts of information about any interaction we have with guests to understand who our customers are, and who is visiting the restaurant,” says Chris Chang, senior vice president of technology strategy at Darden.</p>
<p>While Darden’s methods are considered traditional, retailers are beginning to use more high tech ways to study consumer behavior too.</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p>
<p>Alex and Ani, a New York-based jewelry and accessories maker that runs its own stores and also sells goods at department stores nationwide, works with technology company Prism Skylabs to use data taken from video footage create so-called “heat maps.” Using video they can track how customers flow through the store, and rearrange displays and move them to places where customers linger.</p>
<p>That’s just one piece of data the jewelry company uses, says Ryan Bonifacino, vice president of digital strategy. Once the company has the traffic patterns, they also evaluate timestamps on receipts and other point-of-sale information in an effort to create a profile of what types of people are shopping in the store and customize products to them.</p>
<p>“It’s not about one individual coming into a store, it’s about understanding the journey” of customers as a group, Bonifacino says.</p>
<p>Another example is Forest City, a Cleveland-based real estate developer, which operates malls around the country. The company works with U.K. firm Path Intelligence to identify shopper patterns through mobile phone movements. The system uses cellular data, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth. Forest City emphasizes that it does not collect personal data or any data that could be used to identify an individual shopper. The company has used the data to determine whether it should move an escalator in one mall to make the flow of traffic more efficient. Another time they were able to tell a retailer whether they should change locations or not.</p>
<p>“In the past, we would have used a gut feeling or anecdotal evidence, more low-tech ways to determine whether or not we should move the escalator,” says Stephanie Shriver-Engdahl, vice president digital strategy.</p>
<p>The use of “big data” and other ways to study consumers are likely to get more pervasive. The key to conducting studies without sparking outrage — both online and offline — is transparency, says marketing expert Allen Adamson, managing director of branding firm Landor Associates.</p>
<p>“Big data is everywhere, and people know that and are willing to deal with it,” he says. “If you tell consumers this is what you’re doing to make sure you’re meeting their needs and be able to offer the right merchandise, they’re usually accepting and understand.”</p>
<p>That’s true for Lucas Miller, 24, of Phoenix, who wasn’t fazed when OKCupid disclosed its experiments.</p>
<p>“In terms of tracking behavior, I’m far less worried about for-profit companies doing it than I am about the government,” he says.</p>
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file aug 26 2010 file photo couple walks surf together cannon beach ore okcupid monday july 28 2014 became latest company admit manipulated customer data see users dating service would react one another ap photodon ryan file new york think youre control think okcupid monday became latest company admit manipulated customer data see users dating service would react one another new yorkbased internet companys revelation follows news earlier month facebook let researchers change news feeds see would affect users moods fact big companies use customers unwitting guinea pigs time online real world okcupids claim research aimed improving services common find manipulating situations order study consumer behavior without consent raises troubling privacy concerns advertisement every company trying influence consumers purchase product feel particular way company says kit yarrow consumer psychologist golden gate university san francisco question manipulation consumers ways tricked influence blog post monday okcupid founder christian rudder detailed experimentation company removed text photos profiles cases told people 90 percent match another dateseeker instead 30 percent match rudder unapologetic said results used improve sites algorithms use internet youre subject hundreds experiments given time every site rudder wrote thats websites work facebooks recent disclosure set firestorm social media services press one week january 2012 company let researchers manipulate 689000 users news feeds either positive negative study changes affected moods internet companies arent ones studying unsuspecting customers retailers decades brickandmortar stores restaurants long used data drawn customer loyalty programs satisfaction surveys exit interviews figure best target consumers example darden operates olive garden analyzes customers checks see types dishes people tend combine restaurant chain also analyses long customers wait table darden says research along customer surveys helps company improve customer experience collect sorts information interaction guests understand customers visiting restaurant says chris chang senior vice president technology strategy darden dardens methods considered traditional retailers beginning use high tech ways study consumer behavior advertisement alex ani new yorkbased jewelry accessories maker runs stores also sells goods department stores nationwide works technology company prism skylabs use data taken video footage create socalled heat maps using video track customers flow store rearrange displays move places customers linger thats one piece data jewelry company uses says ryan bonifacino vice president digital strategy company traffic patterns also evaluate timestamps receipts pointofsale information effort create profile types people shopping store customize products one individual coming store understanding journey customers group bonifacino says another example forest city clevelandbased real estate developer operates malls around country company works uk firm path intelligence identify shopper patterns mobile phone movements system uses cellular data wifi bluetooth forest city emphasizes collect personal data data could used identify individual shopper company used data determine whether move escalator one mall make flow traffic efficient another time able tell retailer whether change locations past would used gut feeling anecdotal evidence lowtech ways determine whether move escalator says stephanie shriverengdahl vice president digital strategy use big data ways study consumers likely get pervasive key conducting studies without sparking outrage online offline transparency says marketing expert allen adamson managing director branding firm landor associates big data everywhere people know willing deal says tell consumers youre make sure youre meeting needs able offer right merchandise theyre usually accepting understand thats true lucas miller 24 phoenix wasnt fazed okcupid disclosed experiments terms tracking behavior im far less worried forprofit companies government says
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