November, 2019 | últimas notícias

Wildfire near Santa Barbara threatens thousands of homes, rages out of control – NBC News

GOLETA, Calif. — A wildfire burning Tuesday on Southern California mountains north of Santa Barbara forced as many as 6,300 people from their homes, but an approaching storm offered hope that the flames would be doused, authorities said.

The so-called Cave fire was a threat to an estimated 2,400 structures, Santa Barbara County fire spokesman Mike Eliason told KEYT-TV.

The National Weather Service said rain was expected to reach the area by midnight.

The fire started at about 4 p.m. Monday in Los Padres National Forest as winds gusted up to 30 mph.

By Tuesday morning it was estimated at more than 6 square miles with no containment. No homes had been lost and there were no injuries, Eliason tweeted.

The fire was mainly burning through dry, brushy canyons and ridges of the Santa Ynez Mountains but evacuations were ordered in populated foothill areas.

Firefighters battle flames along Highway 154 near Santa Barbara, Calif., on Nov. 26, 2019.Noah Berger / AP

A 1990 wildfire in the same area destroyed more than 400 homes.

Firefighters were told during a morning briefing that the area had not received any rain in 180 days and vegetation was ready to burn, as was demonstrated by the fire’s exponential growth in its early hours.

The firefighters were cautioned that roads into the rugged area may be too narrow for their engines, and that many residents had not left.

The arrival of an expected low pressure system and its accompanying rain also posed hazards ranging from shifting winds to debris flows from steep mountainsides, the firefighters were told.

As much as an inch of rain was expected in the area, and crews were warned to not drive across flowing water.

The dangers of the cycle of fire and flood is a raw memory in the region.

In January 2018, a downpour on recently burned slopes just east of Santa Barbara unleashed massive debris flows that devastated the community of Montecito, destroying homes and killing 23 people.

Source Article from http://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/wildfire-near-santa-barbara-threatens-thousands-homes-rages-out-control-n1091691

59 views no comments

UN climate change report: the world has backed itself into a dangerous corner – Vox.com

The world is further off course than ever from meeting the goals of the Paris climate agreement and averting climate catastrophe as the divide between countries’ pledges and actions continues to grow.

This grim assessment comes from the latest United Nations Emissions Gap Report published Tuesday. “Gap” refers to the difference between what countries have committed to do to limit climate change and what they actually need to do to meet greenhouse gas targets.

The findings aren’t surprising, given that global greenhouse gas emissions have reached all-time highs in recent years, but they are still alarming. Since the first gap report was published in 2010, carbon dioxide emissions have risen 11 percent.

“The summary findings are bleak,” the report states. “Countries collectively failed to stop the growth in global GHG emissions, meaning that deeper and faster cuts are now required.”

The largest greenhouse gas emitters in the world in absolute terms (left) and per capita (right), excluding changes in land use.

UN Emissions Gap Report

The UN’s climate science body, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, reported last year that limiting warming this century to 1.5 degrees Celsius, the more ambitious target in the Paris agreement, would require immediate, drastic changes to the global economy. The world would have to halve its emissions by as soon as 2030, reach net-zero emissions by 2050, and then pull more carbon dioxide out of the air than it emits thereafter.

If the world had gotten its act together in 2010, countries would only have to reduce their emissions 3.3 percent per year to reach the 1.5 degree Celsius target.

Now global emissions have to fall by 7.6 percent a year between 2020 and 2030. But according to the new gap report, the current trajectory puts the world’s emissions to overshoot the 2030 target for 1.5 degrees Celsius by 38 percent. The current pace of emissions would lead to as much as 3.9 degrees Celsius (7 degrees Fahrenheit) of warming by 2100. This would be a world where millions more people would have to abandon coastal areas due to rising sea levels and vastly more dangerous periods of extreme heat.

At the same time, the IPCC has also warned that the changes in the climate already underway are leading to unprecedented and irreversible shifts in lands, oceans, and the frozen parts of the planet, making them hostile to life.

Yet despite a surging wave of youth climate change activism around the world and an unprecedented amount of discussion on climate change in the political arena, the level of response from countries on climate change has remained tepid.

In September, the UN convened the Climate Action Summit to prod countries to take more aggressive action to limit greenhouse gas emissions. But the three largest emitters in the world — China, the United States, and India — declined to step up their commitments in any significant way.

And the longer the world waits to act, the tougher it will be to limit warming. However, the gap reports says that it’s still possible to meet the Paris climate goals. It won’t be easy, but the technologies are already here to decarbonize electricity production, increase energy efficiency in buildings, restoring natural ecosystems, and make cropland take in more carbon than it emits.

Countries will have another chance to step up their ambitions next month in Madrid, Spain, at the next UN climate meeting, called COP25. There, countries will have to cement the details of how they plant to meet their targets under the Paris climate agreement and sort out contentious issues like how to account for emissions reductions, what obligations poorer countries face, and how to create an international carbon trading mechanism.

“These rules must be designed right,” said Yamide Dagnet, a senior associate at the World Resources Institute’s International Climate Action Initiative, during a call with reporters. “Without proper oversight and robustness, these mechanisms could severely undercut climate action by creating loopholes, letting countries off the hook for making meaningful emissions cuts, result in double counting, and jeopardize environmental integrity.”

Source Article from https://www.vox.com/2019/11/26/20983626/climate-change-un-emissions-gap-report

19 views no comments

Pompeo refuses to say what he and Giuliani talked about in newly disclosed calls – USA TODAY

WASHINGTON – Secretary of State Mike Pompeo refused to answer questions Tuesday about two phone calls he had with Rudy Giuliani, a central player in the Ukraine scandal and President Donald Trump’s personal lawyer.

The State Department released emails late Friday night showing that Pompeo and Giuliani spoke by phone in late March, as Giuliani was ramping up pressure on Ukrainian officials to open two investigations that would benefit Trump politically. The documents, turned over after a court ordered the State Department to comply with a freedom of information request, do not reveal the subject or context of the two Pompeo-Giuliani conversations.

“I don’t have much to say with respect to the Ukraine investigation,” Pompeo said when asked during a news conference Tuesday about his conversations with Giuliani.

Pompeo’s refusal to talk about his role in the Ukraine pressure campaign – which is now the subject of a House impeachment inquiry into Trump’s actions – comes after other witnesses testified that he knew about and approved of Trump and Giuliani’s Ukraine campaign.

During the now-famous July 25 phone call, Trump personally asked Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelensky, to investigate former Vice President Joe Biden, his potential rival in the 2020 presidential race, and to probe a debunked conspiracy theory alleging Ukraine interfered in the 2016 U.S. presidential election.

Pompeo has acknowledged that he listened in on that phone call, and he has defended Trump’s actions as “wholly appropriate.” That July 25 conversation is now at the heart of the House Democrats’ impeachment probe into allegations that the president solicited foreign interference in the 2020 election.

Gordon Sondland, Trump’s ambassador to the European Union, testified to the House Intelligence Committee last week that Pompeo was “in the loop” on the Ukrainian effort. Sondland described that as a clear “quid pro quo” and said Pompeo was kept apprised of the effort.

On Tuesday, Pompeo was specifically asked if he and Giuliani discussed the then-U.S. ambassador to Ukraine, Marie Yovanovitch, who Giuliani had targeted for ouster. Critics say Yovanovictch’s anti-corruption work in Ukraine was an impediment to Giuliani’s efforts to dig up dirt on Joe Biden and his son, Hunter Biden, who served on the board of a Ukrainian energy company.

Pompeo cut Yovanovitch’s tenure in Ukraine short, but he has never publicly explained why.

The new emails, released by a left-leaning outside group, show that Pompeo spoke with Giuliani on March 26 and again on March 29.

Pompeo also refused on Tuesday to knock down a debunked conspiracy theory that Ukraine, not Russia, hacked the Democratic National Committee’s email server in 2016. Last week, Fiona Hill, Trump’s former top Russia adviser on the National Security Council, said that was a “fictional narrative” propagated by the Kremlin to distract from Moscow’s complicity in trying to sway the outcome of the 2016 U.S. presidential election.

Pompeo was asked whether he believes the U.S. or Ukraine should investigate the GOP assertion that it was Ukraine, not Russia, that hacked the DNC’s emails.

Pompeo, who served as Trump’s CIA director before becoming his chief diplomat, did not offer any evidence that Ukraine interfered in the U.S. election. But he said “any time there is information that any country has messed with American elections we not only have a right but a duty” to investigate that.

In July 2018, the U.S. Department of Justice indicted 12 Russian military intelligence officers for the hacking scheme, which targeted the Democratic National Committee and Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign as part of the Kremlin’s effort to undermine the 2016 election. That indictment said the Russians “engaged in a sustained effort” to penetrate the most sensitive repositories of information held by the Democratic Party.

Pompeo did not mention Russia on Friday, even though the U.S. intelligence community has concluded that Russian President Vladimir Putin directed an extensive and sophisticated campaign to interfere with the 2016 election. He said when he was CIA director, he saw evidence that “many countries” tried to sway the U.S. election.

“Russia was the foreign power that systematically attacked our democratic institutions in 2016,” Hill told lawmakers last week.

Pompeo also sidestepped a question about Trump’s tweet, posted on Tuesday morning, suggesting he would “love to have Mike Pompeo” and other top administration officials testify before the House impeachment inquiry but was barring them to protect future presidents’ prerogatives.

“When the time is right, all good things happen,” Pompeo responded when asked if he was considering testifying about his role in the matter.

Contributing: Kevin Johnson

Source Article from https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2019/11/26/pompeo-mum-what-he-and-giuliani-discussed-newly-disclosed-calls/4306508002/

16 views no comments

House Judiciary Committee slates first public impeachment hearing next week – CNN

Chat with us in Facebook Messenger. Find out what’s happening in the world as it unfolds.

Source Article from https://www.cnn.com/2019/11/26/politics/judiciary-committee-hearing/index.html

22 views no comments

Trump impeachment: White House aides can be made to testify – BBC News

Image copyright
Reuters

Image caption

Don McGahn must testify in the impeachment inquiry, a judge has ruled

A federal judge has ruled that White House staff can be made to testify before Congress, rejecting the Trump administration’s claims of immunity.

The ruling specifically compels former White House counsel Don McGahn to testify to an inquiry into Russian interference in the 2016 US election.

But it also has major implications for the Democrat-led impeachment inquiry against President Donald Trump.

The justice department says it will appeal against the ruling.

The impeachment inquiry is trying to establish whether Mr Trump pressured Ukraine’s president to investigate his political rival Joe Biden. The Trump administration has refused to co-operate with the impeachment inquiry and other Democrat-led investigations, directing current and former White House officials to defy subpoenas for testimony and documents.

Mr McGahn, who left his post in October 2018, was called to appear before the House Judiciary Committee in May to answer questions about the president’s alleged attempts to impede the now-concluded Mueller investigation into Russian involvement in the 2016 presidential election.

But in her ruling, US District Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson said that “no one is above the law”.

Media captionWhat does it take to impeach a president?

“Executive branch officials are not absolutely immune from compulsory congressional process – no matter how many times the executive branch has asserted as much over the years – even if the president expressly directs such officials’ noncompliance,” she wrote.

Judge Jackson also explicitly said the president “does not have the power” to stop his aides from responding to subpoenas from Congress – adding that “presidents are not kings”.

“No one, not even the head of the Executive branch, is above the law,” Judge Jackson said.

But she did say that Mr McGahn could invoke executive privilege “where appropriate”, to protect potentially sensitive information.

Judiciary Committee chairman Jerrold Nadler said that he expects Mr McGahn to “follow his legal obligations and promptly appear before the Committee”.

What are the legal implications?

By Jonathan Turley, law professor at George Washington University

“Presidents are not kings.” Those words from a 120-page decision by US District Court Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson are likely to be repeated like a mantra by Democrats in Congress. With members seeking to impeach President Trump for obstructing their impeachment inquiry by blocking witnesses and discovery, the timing and language of the opinion could not have been better.

Ms Jackson at times allowed the rhetoric to outpace the analysis in declaring, for example, that “presidents are not kings” and “this means that they do not have subjects, bound by loyalty or blood, whose destiny they are entitled to control. Rather, in this land of liberty, it is indisputable that current and former employees of the White House work for the people of the United States…”

I am not sure that seeking review on a claim of immunity is the same as a president declaring oneself king or former presidential aides effective vassals.

However, while Republicans are attacking Jackson as a liberal Obama appointee, the ultimate holding is clearly correct. I have written previously that the White House was wrong in claiming that it can block even the appearance of such witnesses – as opposed to allowing an appearance while instructing the witness not to answer certain questions on privileged matter. It is the difference between immunity and privilege.

Nevertheless, I fail to see the good-faith basis for the extreme position stated by the White House – a criticism that I have had with a number of current cases moving through the courts. These cases seem crafted with a greater interest in the ultimate delay rather than the decision in the litigation. That strategy however continues to pile up losses for the White House – precedent that will bind future presidents.

Jonathan Turley is a legal analyst for the BBC. He testified as a constitutional expert during the Clinton impeachment.

Why is Congress investigating Trump?

Monday’s ruling could have an effect on who testifies during the current impeachment hearings in Congress.

Democrats may use it to summon figures such as former National Security Adviser John Bolton and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo.

The impeachment case centres on whether President Trump used the threat of withholding US military aid to pressure Ukraine into investigating a domestic political rival.

At the heart of the impeachment inquiry is a phone call on 25 July this year between Mr Trump and Ukraine’s newly elected president, Volodymyr Zelensky.

Image copyright
Reuters

Image caption

A phone call between Presidents Trump and Zelensky is at the centre of the impeachment inquiry

During the call, Mr Trump urged his counterpart to look into unsubstantiated corruption claims against Democratic White House contender Joe Biden.

Mr Trump’s critics say this alleged political pressure on a vulnerable US ally amounted to abuse of power.

The president has denied any wrongdoing and has called the inquiry a “witch hunt”.

What next with the impeachment inquiry?

The Judiciary Committee is expected to begin drafting articles of impeachment – which are the charges of wrongdoing against the president – in early December.

After a vote in the Democratic-controlled House, a trial would be held in the Republican-run Senate.

If Mr Trump was convicted by a two-thirds majority – an outcome deemed highly unlikely – he would become the first US president to be removed from office through impeachment.

The White House and some Republicans want the trial to be limited to two weeks.

Learn more about the impeachment inquiry

document.createElement(‘header’);
document.createElement(‘nav’);
document.createElement(‘section’);
document.createElement(‘article’);
document.createElement(‘aside’);
document.createElement(‘footer’);

GO DEEPER: Here’s a 100, 300 and 800-word summary of the story
WHAT’S IMPEACHMENT? A political process to remove a president
VIEW FROM TRUMP COUNTRY: Hear from residents of a West Virginia town
ON THE DOORSTEP: A Democrat sells impeachment to voters

Source Article from https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-50554162

35 views no comments

Don McGahn appeals ruling that he must testify in impeachment probe – CNN

Chat with us in Facebook Messenger. Find out what’s happening in the world as it unfolds.

Source Article from https://www.cnn.com/2019/11/26/politics/house-mcgahn-jackson-impeachment-appeal/index.html

31 views no comments

White House lifts lockdown after airspace violation was reported – CNBC

The White House on Tuesday was briefly put on lockdown, as fighter jets were scrambled in Washington following an airspace violation, law enforcement officials told NBC News.

The lockdown was lifted less than 30 minutes after it was first reported by White House reporters.

“The White House was locked down this morning due to a potential violation of the restricted airspace in the National Capital Region,” a Secret Service spokesman told CNBC in a statement. “The lockdown has been lifted at this time.”

A small aircraft violated airspace rules in a restricted area, officials told the Associated Press. The North American Aerospace Defense Command said the plane was not considered hostile.

NBC also reported that a security alert was raised at the Capitol building.

U.S. Capitol Police confirmed to NBC that access to the Capitol Complex buildings was halted “for a short time.” The situation was cleared at 9:12 a.m., Capitol Police said, about 45 minutes after the aircraft was first reported in the restricted airspace.

The White House referred CNBC to the Secret Service.

This is breaking news. Please check back for updates.

Source Article from https://www.cnbc.com/2019/11/26/white-house-on-lockdown-due-to-airspace-violation-fighter-jets-scrambled.html

32 views no comments

Denver Weather: Major Snow Totals, Even More To Fall During The Day Tuesday – CBS Denver

(CBS4) – A major Colorado snowstorm has dropped huge amounts of snow in the Denver metro area and in northern Colorado, and it’s not done. Plan on another 5 to 8 inches in the Denver metro area Tuesday and another 3 to 6 inches in the Fort Collins area where there is already more than a foot on the ground.

Snowy conditions on College Avenue in Old Town Fort Collins on Tuesday morning. (credit: CBS)

The Colorado Department of Transportation urged drivers to stay off the roads on Colorado’s Front Range, in the foothills and on the Eastern Plains. They described the conditions as “treacherous.”

“Do not consider going out unless your vehicle is equipped for the snow,” CDOT wrote in a news release. “Winter tires with adequate tread is essential. You must take it slow, do not pass plows, leave a safe space behind the vehicle ahead and expect road closures.”

(credit: CBS)

Denver International Airport reported 7 inches of snow as of 5 a.m. and there were hundreds of canceled flights on this busy Thanksgiving week travel day. So, right now this is 5th snowiest storm in the last 3 years. That ranking should go up.

(credit: CBS)

The highest snow totals reported so far are as follows:

Coal Creek Canyon, 20 inches
Fort Collins, 14
Boulder, 14
Loveland, 12.5
Elizabeth, 12
Louisville, 11.2

❄️FORT COLLINS SNOW❄️

We’re live in Fort Collins where we’ve seen 11 inches of snow in less than 12 hours!!!!

Downtown is a ghost town, aside from hard workers clearing snow.

Some areas saw more than 2 inches of snow falling every hour overnight!!@CBSDenver #cowx #4wx pic.twitter.com/I5SYBXzQEX

— Dillon Thomas (@DillonMThomas) November 26, 2019

Some parts of Fort Collins and Boulder will likely approach 20 inches before this storm departs later on Tuesday.

(credit: CBS)

Colorado ski resorts are seeing lesser accumulation from this storm, but there’s still plenty of powder at the ski areas:

Monarch, 9 inches
Steamboat, 8
Beaver Creek, 5
Snowmass, 5
Aspen Mountain, 4
Breckenridge, 3

CBS4’s Mekialaya White reports in Denver on Tuesday morning in the snow. (credit: CBS)

A big chunk of Colorado’s Eastern Plains (plus the Castle Rock area) is now under a Blizzard Warning through 5 p.m. Interstate 76 and Interstate 70 are closed in both directions east of the metro area. A Winter Storm Warning continues for the Denver area through 2 p.m. Tuesday. The Colorado National Guard has also been called in to help with the response to the storm and was on standby Tuesday morning.

A rock slide near Idaho Springs closed Interstate 70 westbound in the morning and the closure was expected to last a long time. A fatal crash also took place near Avon in the snowy conditions.

You probably could have guessed it, but the few school districts that were scheduled to have classes on Tuesday have pretty much all canceled school.

Holiday travel for the most part will have to wait until Wednesday as our roads are going to be very icy and snow packed. Tuesday will not be a day to be out and about. Stay home if you can!

The snow will quickly clear by Tuesday evening. In the wake of the storm, we will be left behind with bitter cold temperatures. We’ll drop to the single digits on Tuesday night. We will be cold but dry on Thanksgiving. And then we’re watching another storm on Friday that is heading our way.

Source Article from https://denver.cbslocal.com/2019/11/26/denver-snow-totals-northern-colorado-weather-snowstorm-warning-blizzard/

29 views no comments

Cave Fire: Wind-driven blaze burning above Santa Barbara prompts evacuations – KABC-TV

SANTA BARBARA, Calif. (KABC) — A wind-driven brush fire erupted in the mountains above Santa Barbara, prompting mandatory evacuations Monday afternoon.

The blaze started around 4 p.m. off Highway 154, along East Camino Cielo near Painted Cave in the Los Padres National Forest. So far, the blaze, dubbed the Cave Fire, has burned 3,300 acres. Containment is at 0%.

Mandatory evacuations have been issued, with boundaries expanded from Ontare Road to Fairview Avenue north of Cathedral Oaks, according to Santa Barbara city officials.

Officials also noted southern parts of the county have experienced power outages due to the Cave Fire, which are not related to a public safety power shutoff.

Outages were reported in the unincorporated areas between the cities of Goleta and Santa Barbara, along Highway 154 through Mission Canyon and parts of Summerland and Carpinteria.

Santa Barbara County proclaimed a local emergency due to the fire that started burning in the Santa Ynez Mountains. The Board of Supervisors is expected to ratify the proclamation Tuesday.

Video from the fire captured a family trying to escape the fast-moving fire on Highway 154, with flames surrounding their vehicle as they drove by. The person who posted the video said they followed a fire crew to safety.

Multiple fire engines, along with hand crews and a water-dropping helicopter were at the scene.

Strike teams from neighboring counties have been called in to help. Los Angeles County Fire also sent a “Firehawk” firefighting plane to assist with the effort.

There were no immediate details on whether any homes have been damaged from the blaze.

Highway 154 is closed between Highway 192 and Highway 246.

Source Article from https://abc7.com/blaze-burning-above-santa-barbara-prompts-evacuations/5719448/

28 views no comments

Navy says review board will not look at case of SEAL Eddie Gallagher, who will retire – USA TODAY

Navy SEAL Eddie Gallagher, whose demotion for posing for a photo with a combatant’s corpse was reversed by President Donald Trump, will retire and a planned review of his status has been canceled, the Navy announced late Monday.

“He will retire from active duty,” Navy Cdr. Clay Doss said in a statement. “We will not provide additional details due to privacy concerns.”

The announcement marked the formal end of the review, which could have led to Gallagher’s expulsion from the elite special operations SEAL group, after Trump issued an order to Defense Secretary Mark Esper that Gallagher be allowed to keep his Trident pin symbolizing his SEAL membership.

“The case of Eddie Gallagher has dragged on for months, and it’s distracting too many. It must end,” Esper told reporters at the Pentagon on Monday. “Eddie Gallagher will retain his Trident as the commander in chief directed, and will retire at the end of this month.”

Eddie Gallagher:Trump’s advocacy for Navy SEAL Eddie Gallagher is latest intervention for conservative cause celebre

Gallagher’s case and the planned review were at the center of the firing of Navy Secretary Richard Spencer on Sunday. Esper said he asked for Spencer’s resignation because Spencer had broken the chain of command by talking to White House officials about a “deal whereby if the president allowed the Navy to handle the case, he would guarantee that Eddie Gallagher would be restored to rank, allowed to retain his Trident and permitted to retire.”

Spencer confirmed Esper’s account in an interview with CBS News. He said he talked to White House counsel Pat Cipollone the day Trump announced that he was reversing Gallagher’s demotion and proposed a deal that would allow Gallagher to keep his Trident if Trump agreed not to intervene and “let the Navy do its administrative work.”

Spencer said Cipollone turned down the offer and said the president would remain involved in the case.

“In order to preserve the resiliency of the naval institution, I had to step up and do something when it came to the Gallagher case,” Spencer said.

He said he did not tell Esper about the conversation with Cipollone because Esper was traveling at the time.

“I will take the bad on me, for not letting him know I did that,” Spencer said.

In a letter to the president acknowledging his termination, Spencer said it had “become apparent” that they “no longer share the same understanding” on the “key principle of good order and discipline.”

Read the letter:Richard Spencer’s scathing final letter as Navy secretary

And Spencer said he could not “in good conscience obey an order that I believe violates the sacred oath I took in the presence of my family, my flag and my faith to support and defend the Constitution of the United States.”

Spencer confirmed to CBS News that he was referring to an order to allow Gallagher to remain a SEAL, saying such an order “erodes” the “good order and discipline” the Navy secretary should champion.

Esper said Monday that Spencer had threatened to resign if ordered to allow Gallagher to keep his Trident pin, which Spencer denies.

“I never threatened to resign.” Spencer told CBS. “I don’t threaten.”

Gallagher case:Trump’s advocacy for Navy SEAL Eddie Gallagher is latest intervention for conservative cause celebre

When asked why Spencer would threaten to resign over allowing Gallagher to remain a SEAL but then offer the White House a deal that would guarantee exactly that, Esper said, “I cannot reconcile the personal statements, with the public statements, with the written word, and that’s why I lost trust and confidence” in Spencer.

Spencer’s firing drew objections from several lawmakers.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said Spencer “did the right thing” and “should be proud.”

“Good order, morale and discipline in the armed services have to transcend politics and Spencer stood for that,” Schumer said.

Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va., who sits on the Armed Services Committee, said in a statement that Spencer “served our country well despite having to work under an unethical Commander in Chief who lacks an understanding of what makes America great.”

“We have many unanswered questions about Secretary Spencer’s departure,” Kaine said. “The Senate Armed Services Committee must fully investigate what happened to ensure accountability.”

Turkey pardon:Trump to pick between Bread and Butter at annual turkey pardoning ceremony

Trump defended his intervention in the case on Monday, telling reporters in the Oval Office, “I have to protect my war fighters.”

“I think what I’m doing is sticking up for our armed forces,” he said.

Gallagher was acquitted of fatally stabbing a teen Islamic State captive and firing on civilians but he was demoted for posing with the prisoner’s corpse. Trump, who had spoken out on Gallagher’s case for months – including a threat to rescind the medals awarded to the Navy prosecutors – reversed the demotion Nov. 15.

Last week, the Navy announced the planned review of Gallagher’s status, drawing Trump’s ire.

“The Navy will NOT be taking away Warfighter and Navy Seal Eddie Gallagher’s Trident Pin,” Trump declared on Twitter the next day. “This case was handled very badly from the beginning. Get back to business!”

Source Article from https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2019/11/26/navy-seal-eddie-gallagher-retire-review-canceled/4305553002/

33 views no comments

A wealthy Venezuelan hosted Giuliani as he pursued Ukraine campaign. Then Giuliani lobbied the Justice Department on his behalf. – The Washington Post

Here’s what you need to know to understand the impeachment inquiry into President Trump.

What’s happening now: The House Intelligence Committee has begun writing a report summarizing its findings in the impeachment inquiry.

The committee held public impeachment hearings Nov. 13-21, with multiple officials appearing for questioning.

This followed closed-door hearings and subpoenaed documents related to the president’s July 25 phone call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.

What happens next: Once the report is completed, proceedings move to the House Judiciary Committee, which could draft specific articles of impeachment, possibly as soon as lawmakers return from the Thanksgiving recess. Here’s a guide to how impeachment works.

How we got here: On the heels of a complaint from a whistleblower, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) announced the beginning of an official impeachment inquiry against President Trump on Sept. 24. Here’s what has happened since then.

Stay informed: Read the latest reporting and analysis on the impeachment inquiry here.

Listen: Follow The Post’s coverage with daily updates from across our podcasts.

Want to understand the impeachment inquiry better? Sign up for the 5-Minute Fix to get a guide in your inbox every weekday. Have questions? Submit them here, and they may be answered in the newsletter.

Source Article from https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/a-wealthy-venezuelan-hosted-giuliani-as-he-pursued-ukraine-campaign-then-giuliani-lobbied-the-justice-department-on-his-behalf/2019/11/26/272105a2-0ec5-11ea-b0fc-62cc38411ebb_story.html

29 views no comments

CO2, Other Greenhouse Gases Continue To Rise, According To UN – NPR

Solar panels at Chile’s Quilapilún energy plant are part of a joint venture by Chile and China. China has been investing heavily in renewable energy technology.

Esteban Felix/AP

hide caption

toggle caption

Esteban Felix/AP

Solar panels at Chile’s Quilapilún energy plant are part of a joint venture by Chile and China. China has been investing heavily in renewable energy technology.

Esteban Felix/AP

Greenhouse gas emissions have steadily risen for the last decade despite the current and future threat posed by climate change, according to a new United Nations report.

The annual report compares how clean the world’s economies are to how clean they need to be in order to avoid the most catastrophic effects of climate change — a disparity known as the “emissions gap.”

However, this year’s report describes more of a chasm than a gap. Global emissions of carbon dioxide, methane and other greenhouse gasses have continued to steadily increase over the last decade. In 2018, the report notes that global fossil fuel CO2 emissions from electricity generation and industry grew by a mammoth 2%.

“There is no sign of [greenhouse gas] emissions peaking in the next few years,” the authors write. Every year that emissions continue to increase, “means that deeper and faster cuts will be required” in order to keep the Earth from warming more than 1.5 to 2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels.

The Earth is already more than 1 degree warmer than it was before industrialization, and that is driving more frequent and severe storms, droughts, heat waves and other extreme weather. According to the 2018 National Climate Assessment, if global emissions fail to fall in the coming decade, it will slow economic growth and cause serious damage to infrastructure and property in the United States.

“This is urgent, but we can do it,” says Elliot Diringer of the Center for Climate and Energy Solutions, a climate policy think tank in Washington, D.C. The annual emissions gap report “heightens even further the public and political pressure on governments to do their utmost,” he says.

The United States is currently not on track to meet its greenhouse gas reduction commitments under the Paris Agreement, which the United States ratified and is technically still part of until its withdrawal takes effect in November 2020.

U.S. emissions have decreased in the last decade as appliances and vehicles get more efficient and the economy moves away from pollutant-heavy energy sources, such as coal. However, a strong economy paired with regulatory rollbacks have pushed emissions back up in recent years, slowing the country’s downward emissions trend.

According to the new report, six other major economies are also lagging behind their commitments, including Canada, Japan, Australia and Brazil.

Meanwhile, China’s greenhouse emissions have continued to grow, although they appear to be on track to peak before 2030, which is the target date that Beijing set for itself. The new U.N. report points out that per capita emissions in China are now “in the same range” as the European Union. China has also invested heavily in renewable energy such as solar and wind, and leads the world in electric vehicle infrastructure, although such investments have slowed in recent years.

The new report lays out recommendations for how the world’s top economies could cut emissions in the next decade. For example, countries could ban new coal-fired power plants, require all new vehicles to be CO2-free by 2030, expand mass transit and require all new buildings to be entirely electric.

The report comes just a few weeks before world leaders meet in Madrid for the annual Conference of the Parties to the U.N. Framework Convention on Climate Change, where they will discuss whether to make bolder national promises to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the coming years. The report warns that countries must promise to reduce emissions three to five times more than they already have.

Source Article from https://www.npr.org/2019/11/26/782586224/greenhouse-gas-emissions-are-still-rising-u-n-report-says

24 views no comments

Judge tells Trump he’s not a king — the President is not so sure – CNN

Chat with us in Facebook Messenger. Find out what’s happening in the world as it unfolds.

Source Article from https://www.cnn.com/2019/11/26/politics/donald-trump-constitution-supreme-court-executive-power/index.html

23 views no comments

Top Democratic strategist pleads with party to abandon impeachment – Fox News

Video

Top Democratic strategist pleads with party to abandon impeachment

A top Democratic campaign consultant and former pollster for President Bill Clinton is pleading with party leaders to abandon plans to vote on the impeachment of President Trump or risk electoral disaster.

In an interview on “Fox and Friends” last week, Trump predicted that House Speaker Nancy Pelosi D-Calif., would not see the impeachment process through to a vote.

“No, I don’t expect it,” he said at the conclusion of two weeks of impeachment hearings, “I think it’s very hard for them to impeach you when they have absolutely nothing.”

The Hill reported on Saturday that a House Democratic leadership aide called it “fantasy land” to think there won’t be a vote on the House floor.

Democratic strategist Doug Schoen suggested that he hopes that the president is right.

“I am praying for censure. It can turn what could be a loss into a certain victory,” he said, arguing that Pelosi should forgo impeachment and instead vote to publicly reprimand the president.

“While the Democratic electorate is almost unanimously in favor of impeachment, swing voters in swing states… are decidedly mixed, if not negative,” the polling expert explained on Fox Nation’s “Deep Dive.”

“And given that states like Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Florida — ones the Democrats have to win in some combination to win the presidential election, it’s hard for me to see that impeachment is anything but a very problematic issue for the party,” he argued.

Video

Paradoxically, Fox News legal analyst Gregg Jarrett, who has been harshly critical of the Democrats’ impeachment effort, said that he hopes that the House votes and moves the process to the Senate.

“I’m praying for a trial because it will boomerang terribly on the Democrats and only ensure the president’s reelection come November,” said Jarrett.

“Let’s start exposing some of these malignant actions by people, not just [House Intelligence Committee Chairman] Adam Schiff, and the whistleblower, but others involved in this as well,” Jarrett contended. “This is the witch hunt, the sequel. And it’s ten times as preposterous as the original Trump/Russian collusion hoax.”

COULD PELOSI ABANDON IMPEACHMENT EFFORTS?: LEGAL ANALYST PREDICTS SHE MAY

Jarrett argued that if the Senate were to take up a trial of the president, Republicans would be a position to raise questions over former Vice President Joe Biden’s involvement in Ukraine policy, as well as his son Hunter’s work with a notoriously corrupt Ukrainian company.

‘There’s an old saying — the recoil is more dangerous than the projectile. And the recoil here is Hunter Biden and Joe Biden,” continued Jarrett. “I think the more we find out about the machinations of Hunter Biden, who appears increasingly like a prodigious grifter, this is only going to damage his father in his quest to become the next president of United States. I mean, Lindsey Graham is vowing an investigation of the activities of Hunter Biden and by implication, Joe Biden’s actions in a quid pro quo.”

Video

Schoen agreed with Jarrett that Joe and Hunter Biden’s behavior appeared to have been wildly inappropriate.

“The idea that Burisma, Hunter Biden and Joe Biden didn’t know what was going on is ridiculous,” said Schoen. “To me, Joe Biden turned the other cheek, turned the other eye, I put a bag over his head, whatever. Why did he do that? He had a troubled son who landed a big, lucrative gig, and he was hoping against hope that he could skate through. Well, we’re seeing now that that’s not the case. I don’t know that there was anything that was done that was illegal. It sure smells and it smells really bad.”

Schoen concluded that his party may regret devoting so much time and energy to the impeachment process.

“I also think that we Democrats are losing a huge opportunity because on issues like gun violence prevention, climate change, health care, we have an advantage. We won the midterm elections in 2018 because of the utilization and in part of those issues. And to not take advantage of what people care about, which is real-world day to day problems of our quality of life, and instead, just keep focusing on impeachment. If I were recommending to the Democrats what to do. I’d say vote for censure, get it and move on.”

To watch all of “Deep Dive” go to Fox Nation and sign up today.

CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP FOR A FOX NATION FREE TRIAL

Fox Nation programs are viewable on-demand and from your mobile device app, but only for Fox Nation subscribers. Go to Fox Nation to start a free trial and watch the extensive library from Tomi Lahren, Pete Hegseth, Abby Hornacek, Laura Ingraham, Ainsley Earhardt, Greg Gutfeld, Judge Andrew Napolitano and many more of your favorite Fox News personalities.

Source Article from https://www.foxnews.com/media/democrat-abandon-impeachment-president-trump

27 views no comments

Judge tells Trump he’s not a king — the President is not so sure – CNN

Chat with us in Facebook Messenger. Find out what’s happening in the world as it unfolds.

Source Article from https://www.cnn.com/2019/11/26/politics/donald-trump-constitution-supreme-court-executive-power/index.html

16 views no comments

Iran Guard chief warns US and allies not to ‘cross red lines’ – Al Jazeera English

Iran will destroy the United States and its allies if they cross Tehran’s red lines, the head of the country’s elite Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said in an address to a pro-government rally denouncing last week’s violent protests over the rise in fuel prices.

Addressing thousands of demonstrators in the capital on Monday, General Hossein Salami accused the US, the United Kingdom, Israel and Saudi Arabia of stoking the unrest, in which dozens were killed by Iran’s security forces.

“We have shown restraint … we have shown patience towards the hostile moves of America, the Zionist regime [Israel] and Saudi Arabia against the Islamic Republic of Iran … but we will destroy them if they cross our red lines,” he said.

The demonstrators, waving the Iranian flag and banners that read “Death to America” and “Death to Israel”, descended on Enqelab (Revolution) Square. Some in the crowd set fire to American flags.

Long-fraught relations between Tehran and Washington plunged to a new low in May last year when the US unilaterally withdrew from an international deal that gave Iran relief from sanctions in return for curbs on its nuclear programme.

In advance of the rally on Monday, Iran’s foreign ministry condemned the “interference of foreign countries” in the street violence.

“We recommend they watch the rallies taking place these days in our country so they realise who the real people are in our country,” spokesman Abbas Mousavi said.

Deadly fuel protests

Amnesty International said on Monday at least 146 demonstrators were killed across Iran since its leaders ordered security forces to stamp out the protests.

Iranian authorities have previously denied an Amnesty death toll, calling the rights group “biased” and saying only they could provide accurate figures.

“According to credible reports… those killed include at least 143 people,” said the London-based group. “The deaths have resulted almost entirely from the use of firearms.”

Amnesty said last week security forces had fired into crowds of protesters from rooftops and, in one case, from a helicopter.

Social media footage showed dozens of police on motorbikes driving into crowds and attacking protesters with clubs. Other videos showed police firing at people with live ammunition.

Thousands of young and working-class Iranians took to the streets on November 15 after fuel prices were raised by at least 50 percent, voicing outrage at a further squeeze on their living costs already compounded by the renewed US sanctions.

Protesters quickly expanded their demands to include a removal of leaders seen as unaccountable and corrupt.

Violence erupted with at least 100 banks and dozens of buildings torched, the worst disturbances in Iran since unrest over alleged election fraud was crushed in 2009.

‘Executions’

The Iranian authorities have warned the “rioters” of severe punishment if the unrest continued. Some politicians have called for the “execution” of the “ringleaders of the riots”.

They said late last week that disturbances had ceased, although unverified videos posted on social media after restrictions on internet access were partially lifted suggested sporadic protests continued in parts of the country.

Anxious to curb support for the unrest, authorities blocked internet access for it slowly began returning late last week.

Washington imposed sanctions on Iran’s information minister for his role in “wide-scale internet censorship”.

The US sided with Iran’s protesters, while France and Germany expressed deep concern over reports of deaths during the protests.

The Center for Human Rights in Iran, a New York-based advocacy group, said nearly 4,000 people were arrested during the demonstrations.

Source Article from https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2019/11/iran-guards-chief-warns-allies-cross-red-lines-191125140133735.html

18 views no comments

Trump Tells Allies He Wants Absolved War Criminals to Campaign for Him – The Daily Beast

22 views no comments

Federal judge says former White House counsel Don McGahn must speak to House: ‘Presidents are not kings’ – CNN

Chat with us in Facebook Messenger. Find out what’s happening in the world as it unfolds.

Source Article from https://www.cnn.com/2019/11/25/politics/don-mcgahn-house-subpoena-impeachment/index.html

23 views no comments

Supreme Court blocks subpoena for Trump financial records – NBC News

The U.S. Supreme Court late Monday blocked a House subpoena directing President Donald Trump’s accounting firm to turn over several years’ worth of financial documents, giving the president at least a temporary legal victory.

In a brief order, the court said the subpoena would remain on hold until the president’s lawyers file their appeal and the court acts on the case. The court gave his lawyers until Dec. 5 to file their appeal, a sign the justices intend to move quickly. But if the court agrees to hear the appeal, the stay would remain in effect for several more months.

The Democratic majority on the House Oversight Committee issued the subpoena in April, ordering the accounting firm Mazars USA to turn over Trump-related financial documents covering 2011 through 2018. The committee said it acted after former Trump lawyer Michael Cohen testified that “Mr. Trump inflated his total assets when it served his purposes and deflated his assets to reduce his real estate taxes.”

After lower courts rejected attempts to block the subpoena, President Trump’s lawyers urged the Supreme Court to keep it on hold while they prepare to appeal those rulings. Chief Justice John Roberts imposed a brief hold to give lawyers both sides to weigh in. Monday’s order extended that stay.

Mr. Trump’s private lawyers contended that the House has no authority to subpoena records unless it seeks information for the purpose of writing laws. In this case, they said, the House is improperly acting as an investigative body in an action that implicates the president.

While they cast the dispute as one raising profound constitutional questions involving the separation of powers, the House said it is not seeking anything covered by official privilege or, in fact, anything directly from the president at all. “There is no need for this court to make definitive pronouncements on the scope of Congress’s power in a case in which its ruling will be so limited in application and consequence.”

The House lawyers urged the court to lift the stay and let the subpoena take effect. But if the court is considering taking up the president’s appeal, they urged the justices to impose an unusually fast timetable, with all legal briefs to be due by Dec. 11. If that happened, the hold on the subpoena would remain in place until the court decided whether to hear and decide the case.

Source Article from https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/supreme-court/supreme-court-blocks-subpoena-trump-financial-records-n1091146

24 views no comments

Takeaways from a busy day in courts on the impeachment inquiry – CNN

Chat with us in Facebook Messenger. Find out what’s happening in the world as it unfolds.

Source Article from https://www.cnn.com/2019/11/25/politics/takeaways-supreme-court-impeachment-house/index.html