São Paulo – Five Arab nations are in the list of countries with very high Human Development Index (HDI) of the United Nations Development Programme (Undp). In the list of 49 countries which comprise the ranking, Qatar is the 31st and the first among Arabs. Also listed are Saudi Arabia, at 34th, the Emirates, at 40th, Bahrain, at 44th, and Kuwait, at the 46th position. Norway, Australia and Swiss are at the top of the list, in ascending order.
The HDI shows quality of life and economic development of a country, evaluating areas such as health, education and income. The index ranges from zero to one. The closer to one, the better qualified is the country. Norway, the first in the ranking of the study disclosed this Thursday (24th), which concerns last year, had a 0.944 HDI. Qatar has 0.851, Saudi Arabia 0.836, Emirates 0.827, Bahrain 0.815 and Kuwait 0.814.
The United Nations classify the countries in four levels of HDI: very high, high, medium and low. Brazil is part of the group of nations with high level, at 0.744. It is placed 79th in the general ranking. Among the Arabs, high HDI nations include Libya, Oman, Lebanon, Jordan and Algeria. Out of those, only Algeria is behind Brazil, at the 93rd position, with 0.717.
Arabs classified with medium human development are Palestine, Egypt, Syria, Iraq, and Morocco. The list of countries with low HDI includes the Arabs Yemen, Comoro Islands, Mauritania, Sudan and Djibouti. Two of the Arab nations, Tunisia and Somalia, are not classified. The average score of very high HDI nations is 0.890, while high HDI average is 0.735. Medium indexes are 0.614 and low are 0.493.The Arab nation’s average HDI is 0.682.
In the Arab World, Comoro Islands moved down one position in the ranking in relation to 2012’s survey, Egypt dropped two positions, Kuwait has also dropped two positions, Libya moved down five, Mauritania moved down two and Syria moved down four positions. Morocco was the only country which moved up, two positions. The other nations remained in the same position in the ranking.
The report points out that most countries improved their human development in relation to the situation they were in 1990. In this group there are over 40 developing countries, which accommodate most of the world population. The Undp stresses, though, that the growth rate of the HDI slowed down in all groups: very high, high, medium and low.
According to the Undp, 2.2 million people are in poor or almost poor condition. Around 842 million people, or 12% of the population, are chronically hungry. And almost half of the workers in the world, over 1.5 billion people have informal or unstable employment. The report stressed that the gains, in health and nutrition areas, may be quickly reverted by natural disasters or economic recessions.
Tras salir de la Asamblea Nacional, el ahora exmandatario de Ecuador, Rafael Correa, recibió atención en el hospital de Instituto Ecuatoriano de Seguridad Social (IESS) Carlos Andrade Marín.
El exmandatario Correa está “bien” a pesar de una neumonía por la que fue internado en el hospital de Quito, informó el partido Alianza PAIS (AP) mediante su secretaria ejecutiva.
“Después de revisión médica, se confirma @MashiRafael (Correa) está en HCAM (Hospital Carlos Andrade Marín) con neumonía”, escribió en su cuenta de Twitter la secretaria de AP y legisladora Gabriela Rivadeneira.
Después de revisión médica, se confirma @MashiRafael está en HCAM con neumonía. Estará interno hasta confirmación de mejoría.
La dirigente agregó que Correa estará internado “hasta confirmación de mejoría”.
El pasado lunes, durante la inauguración de la Plataforma Financiera, Rafael Correa, se quejó de que tenía 39 grados de fiebre.
La extitular de la Asamblea Nacional aseguró que “debido a las demandantes actividades de estos últimos días, agotamiento y cambios bruscos del clima, (Correa) se realizó un chequeo médico de rutina del que ha salido sin mayores novedades”.
Macri con soroche
El presidente argentino Mauricio Macri se sintió mal durante la ceremonia en la Asamblea Nacional. Varios medios de comunicación locales hablan de que sufrió una descompensación debido a la altura de Quito. Luego de tomar un té de coca superó el mal de altura. (I)
Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam places hand over his heart at a funeral for a state trooper Saturday in Chilhowie, Va., during one of his first public appearances since the blackface scandal broke.
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Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam places hand over his heart at a funeral for a state trooper Saturday in Chilhowie, Va., during one of his first public appearances since the blackface scandal broke.
Steve Helber/Pool/Getty Images
It may be tough to believe it’s been just a week and a half since a racist photograph in a decades-old medical school yearbook knocked Virginia’s leadership into disarray.
But amid all this turmoil, there is at least one thing that has not happened: Not one of the three men has bowed to public pressure and resigned.
Virginia “needs someone who is strong who has empathy, who has courage and who has a moral compass,” Northam told CBS News on Sunday, in his first televised interview since the scandal broke. “And that’s why I’m not going anywhere. I have learned from this. I have a lot more to learn.”
Northam’s assertion defies the condemnations issued recently by prominent Virginian politicians on both sides of the aisle — many of whom have also called on Fairfax, who is black, to step down for very different reasons.
Since a second woman came forward Friday with a sexual assault claim against him, the lieutenant governor has been asked to resign by the Democratic Party of Virginia, Sen. Tim Kaine and nearly the state’s entire Democratic congressional delegation, among others.
But Fairfax has steadfastly maintained that the two incidents that surfaced this week — one from 2004, and the other from 2000 — were consensual sexual encounters, and he has asked for the FBI to conduct an investigation in order to ensure “due process.”
Despite the controversy this week, Justin Fairfax continued to fulfill his duties as lieutenant governor — such as presiding over Senate sessions at the Capitol. Here he is gavelling a session to order Friday in Richmond.
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Despite the controversy this week, Justin Fairfax continued to fulfill his duties as lieutenant governor — such as presiding over Senate sessions at the Capitol. Here he is gavelling a session to order Friday in Richmond.
Steve Helber/AP
Those rebuttals have not satisfied fellow Democrat Patrick Hope, a state delegate who has promised to introduce articles of impeachment when lawmakers reconvene Monday. Both of Fairfax’s accusers, Vanessa Tyson and Meredith Watson, announced over the weekend that they would be willing to testify at an impeachment hearing if called upon.
“Ms. Watson stands ready, although it will be painful, to tell the Virginia Legislature what Mr. Fairfax did to her when she was 20 years old,” Watson’s lawyers says in a statement emailed to NPR. They also noted she would be able to provide “at least two witnesses whom Ms. Watson told of the assault the day after Fairfax raped her.” (Emphasis theirs.)
As embattled as the politicians may seem at the moment, it’s possible that today’s unique political environment will help the three men hang onto office. Alison Dagnes, a political science professor at Shippensburg University of Pennsylvania, says they’ve got the benefit of deep political polarization, the growth of partisan media — and now the model of President Trump, who has often survived his scandals simply by riding out the news cycle.
“That has served as an unfortunate lesson now for politicians who are in office. And this is regardless of party because Northam, of course, is a Democrat,” says Dagnes, who has studied and written extensively about political scandals.
And according to Dagnes, the increasingly tumultuous news cycle may help politicians endure scandal until the public loses interest — but it doesn’t help resolve the painful questions those scandals have raised.
“When politicians are given the cue that if they just keep their mouth closed and they disappear for a little while, it’ll all go away, they’re wrong. They may keep their job, but at what cost?” she says. “Because the country will still be hurt by this until we address it.”
Gregory Howard, interim dean of theology at Richmond’s historically black Virginia Union University, says there’s still another point not to miss when thinking about the apologies offered by Northam and Herring.
“Every now and again, we slip up, we fall, and we have a responsibility to dust ourselves off and seek for full healing and reconciliation — but reconciliation that is based upon the one who has been offended, not the offender,” Howard explains.
For now, it appears Virginians themselves remain split on whether their leaders must step down. In a poll conducted late last week by The Washington Post and the Schar School of Policy and Government at George Mason University, respondents were evenly divided as to whether Northam should resign. And most of them did not know enough about Fairfax’s response to the allegations to feel strongly about it.
To Howard and many of his students, though, the answer is clear.
“This is not a partisan issue. This is not a political issue,” he says. “This is a matter of humanity and morality.”
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La empresa encargada del sistema de voto electrónico de Venezuela denunció en Londres la manipulación de la cifra de participación. En la foto, Antonio Mugica, director ejecutivo de Smartmatic.
Smartmatic, la empresa a cargo del sistema de voto electrónico empleado en las elecciones a la Asamblea Constituyente de Venezuela, denunció este miércoles que “hubo manipulación del dato de participación”.
El director ejecutivo de la compañía, Antonio Mugica, afirmó que Smarmatic estimaba “la diferencia entre la cantidad anunciada y la que arroja el sistema es de al menos un millón de electores“.
En una conferencia de prensa convocada en Londres, Mugica aclaró que por el momento no podían precisar el número exacto.
“Una auditoría permitiría conocer la cantidad exacta de participación”, aseguró Mugica, quien sin embargo no quiso comentar sobre el impacto de esa supuesta discrepancia para la validez de la elección.
La presidenta del Consejo Nacional Electoral (CNE), Tibisay Lucena, tachó la denuncia de Mugica de “irresponsable” y “sin fundamento”, al tiempo que defendió la cifra reportada el domingo: un 41,53% de participación con 8 millones de venezolanos en las urnas.
Ante el boicot de la oposición, el conteo del nivel de participación se convirtió en el número clave con el que medir el apoyo con el que contaba la Constituyente impulsada por el gobierno de Nicolás Maduro.
La oposición había celebrado un referendo informal dos semanas antes en las que aseguró haber contado con más de 7,6 millones de votos en rechazo de la iniciativa de Maduro.
Derechos de autor de la imagen AFP
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La oposición alegó que debía llamarse a un referendo antes de la votación para elegir los delegados de la ANC.
Smartmatic, una multinacional de origen venezolano, ha sido el proveedor de la plataforma tecnológica de votación y servicios para las elecciones en Venezuela desde 2004, incluyendo la elección del domingo para la Asamblea Constituyente.
Sin embargo, en el caso de la última votación no hubo presencia de auditores de la oposición, fundamentales como testigos del proceso, explica la firma, que tenía entre sus responsabilidades la totalización de los votos.
En el comunicado leído por Mugica en Londres se sugiere que las autoridades electorales de Venezuela simplemente decidieron ignorar el reporte de totalización de votos generado por el sistema de Smartmatic.
“Nuestro sistema automatizado está diseñado para evidenciar cualquier manipulación, pero deben existir personas observando el sistema y esperando por esas evidencias: los auditores”, explicó Mugica.
“En esta elección no hubo auditores de la oposición porque ésta no participó”, agregó.
Derechos de autor de la imagen EPA
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En el caso de la última votación no hubo presencia de auditores de la oposición.
Antes del anuncio de Smartmatic, varios países ya habían dicho que no van a reconocer el resultado de los comicios del domingo, que fueron boicoteados por la oposición venezolana.
La oposición ya había estimado la participación en los comicios en únicamente el 12,4% del padrón electoral, es decir, unos 2,4 millones de electores.
Después del anuncio, el presidente de la Asamblea Nacional y líder opositor Julio Borges señaló que lo dicho por la compañía confirma las denuncias opositoras.
Derechos de autor de la imagen EPA
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Borges claificó la revelación de Smarmatic de un “terremoto a nivel mundial”.
“Es un terremoto a nivel mundial, porque lo que se venía diciendo a gritos viene a tener confirmación completa. Smartmatic ha declarado que tiene la data dura incontrovertible según la cual las elecciones de la Constituyente no fueron sólo un fraude por la convocatoria, sino que todos los resultados que leyó el CNE esa noche son absolutamente fraudulentos”.
“Sin lugar a dudas los rectores del CNE son sujetos de un delito que es adulterar el resultado electoral”, afirmó Borges.
El parlamentario anunció que un grupo de diputados se dirigirá al Ministerio Público a pedir que se abran “investigaciones penales porque lo que ha ocurrido es un delito que comienza por la misma cabeza del órgano electoral”.
“Esto constituye una razón más para seguir luchando”, dijo Borges, que pidió más ayuda a la comunidad internacional.
Derechos de autor de la imagen AFP
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En el pasado, la empresa había sido acusada de vínculos con Hugo Chávez.
La presidenta del CNE descalificó la declaración del jefe de Smartmatic por considerar que se trataba de una “opinión sin precedentes”.
“Es una aseveración irresponsable con base en estimaciones sin fundamento en la data que maneja exclusivamente el Poder Electoral”, afirmó Lucena en una declaración a medios.
“No es una empresa privada radicada fuera del país la que garantiza la transparencia y credibilidad del sistema electoral venezolano”, sentenció.
“Su único rol es la de proveer ciertos servicios y soporte técnico que no son determinantes en sus resultados”.
“No les iba a gustar”
El gobierno de Venezuela, sin embargo, ha defendido la legitimidad de la nueva asamblea, que tiene como misión redactar una nueva Constitución y se espera ordene la disolución del actual parlamento, controlado por la oposición.
BBC Mundo le preguntó director de la firma, el venezolano Antonio Mugica, si había discutido sus hallazgos con el gobierno de Venezuela y las autoridades electorales, y -después de una larga pausa- el ejecutivo respondió negativamente.
“Pasamos los dos últimos días asegurándonos de que esto que estamos diciendo es verdad, que es preciso”, dijo.
“No sentimos que alertar a las autoridades del CNE antes de hacer esta declaración fuera lo correcto”, explicó.
Luego elaboró: “Pensamos que a las autoridades no les iba a gustar lo que teníamos para decir“.
Y según el periódico venezolano El Nacional, una veintena de técnicos de Smartmatic abandonaron Venezuela poco antes de la conferencia de Mugica.
Derechos de autor de la imagen AFP
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El gobierno venezolano aseguró que la elección tuvo un 41,53% de participación con 8 millones de venezolanos en las urnas.
Interrogado sobre la credibilidad de sus señalamientos, Mugica dijo que los números estaban ahí para quien quiera analizarlos.
“Lo que nosotros podemos asegurar, sin ninguna duda, es que las cifras oficiales y las que arrojó el sistema no concuerdan“, insistió Mugica.
Las controversias de Smartmatic
Entre 2004 y 2015 Smartmatic ha participado en 14 elecciones, estableció más de medio millón de máquinas para votar y procesó más de 377 millones de votos en Venezuela, según información provista por la empresa.
Pero la empresa, que afirma haber ayudado a millones de votantes a depositar más de 3.700 millones de votos en elecciones en todo el mundo, no es ajena a las controversias.
Derechos de autor de la imagen EPA
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El gobierno de Venezuela ha defendido la legitimidad de la nueva asamblea.
En la propia Venezuela, la oposición en su momento denunció que el sistema no había evitado irregularidades durante el referendo revocatorio de 2004, pero el proceso fue validado por observadores electorales de la Unión Europea, el Centro Carter y la Organización de Estados Americanos (OEA).
Y candidatos perdedores también denunciaron fraude en comicios manejados por Smartmatic en Filipinas.
Esta, sin embargo, es la primera vez que la compañía entra en contradicción con las autoridades electorales de un país.
Nacida en Venezuela, pero ahora con sede en Londres, Smartmatic fue acusada en sus orígenes de tener vínculos demasiado estrechos con el ahora fallecido presidente venezolano Hugo Chávez.
Pero dada su cada vez mayor presencia internacional, la empresa puede haber decidido que su credibilidad es mucho más importante que cualquier vínculo que haya podido tener con la Revolución Bolivariana.
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Rep. Liz Cheney, R-Wyo., warned fellow Republicans on Tuesday that American democracy faces a threat it has “never seen before” in a defiant floor speech on the eve of a vote that is expected to result in her removal from the role of House Republican Conference Chair.
Cheney, who lost support from fellow GOP leaders in recent weeks amid a public feud with former President Donald Trump, said her stand was driven by a “reverence for the rule of law.” In a scathing six-minute speech, the Wyoming Republican said Trump “risks inciting further violence” and had “misled” millions of Americans with disproven claims that the results of the 2020 presidential election were fraudulent.
“This is not about policy. This is not about partisanship. This is about our duty as Americans,” Cheney said. “Remaining silent and ignoring the lie emboldens the liar. I will not participate in that. I will not sit back and watch in silence while others lead our party down a path that abandons the rule of law and joins the former president’s crusade to undermine our democracy.”
House Republicans are expected to vote Wednesday to oust Cheney from the party’s No. 3 leadership position and replace her with Rep. Elise Stefanik of New York, a prominent Trump ally. Top Republicans, including House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy and Minority Whip Steve Scalise, have expressed support for Stefanik in recent days.
In her floor speech, Cheney warned that efforts to damage confidence in the democratic system would undermine the rule of law at home and hurt America’s standing on the international stage.
“As the party of Reagan, Republicans have championed democracy, won the Cold War and defeated the Soviet communists,” Cheney said. “Today, America is on the cusp of another Cold War – this time with communist China. Attacks against our democratic process and the rule of law empower our adversaries and feed communist propaganda that American democracy is a failure. We must speak the truth.”
Cheney emerged as one of Trump’s most prominent critics within the GOP following the Jan. 6 riot at the Capitol. She was one of 10 House Republicans who voted to impeach Trump on a single charge of incitement of insurrection.
The lawmaker’s public feud with Trump raised concerns among House GOP leaders about her ability to serve effectively as conference chair, a position that dictates party messaging, ahead of the crucial 2022 midterm election.
New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo is single — and ready to mingle!
“I am eligible,” Cuomo said on 1010WINS Thursday.
The 62-year-old dad of three was asked about a new survey by matchmaker Maureen Tara Nelson, which found that he and his little brother, CNN anchor Chris Cuomo, are hot commodities among New York City women.
“Now that you raise it, most-wanted eligibility, my brother is married, I am not married, so I don’t think he would qualify as eligible. However, I am eligible,” Cuomo responded, chuckling.
And he didn’t need to look very far for his next date.
When anchor Susan Richard pointed out that both she and the governor are Sagittariuses from Queens, he replied: “Sounds good to me. It all started in Queens, Susan.”
Cuomo and his longtime girlfriend, chef and author Sandra Lee, split last fall.
Stephen Moore speaks during a Bloomberg Television interview in Washington, D.C., on Thursday. He withdrew from consideration for a seat on the Federal Reserve Board, President Trump said.
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Stephen Moore speaks during a Bloomberg Television interview in Washington, D.C., on Thursday. He withdrew from consideration for a seat on the Federal Reserve Board, President Trump said.
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Updated at 1:24 p.m. ET
Stephen Moore, a Trump campaign adviser and conservative pundit, has withdrawn his name from consideration to serve on the Federal Reserve Board, President Trump said Thursday.
“Steve Moore, a great pro-growth economist and a truly fine person, has decided to withdraw from the Fed process,” Trump said in a tweet.
Steve Moore, a great pro-growth economist and a truly fine person, has decided to withdraw from the Fed process. Steve won the battle of ideas including Tax Cuts….
Moore came under criticism from lawmakers for past remarks and writings about women. Moore wrote that women should not be allowed to referee men’s NCAA basketball games and that women earning more than men “could be disruptive to family stability.”
Sen. Joni Ernst, R-Iowa, called Moore’s past writings “ridiculous” and said she was “not enthused” about supporting him.
In an interview Thursday with Bloomberg News, Moore said he will “do what the president wants me to do. If he wants me to keep fighting, I’m going to keep fighting. If he thinks it’s time to throw in the towel, I’ll do that.”
In March, Trump tweeted, “I have known Steve for a long time – and have no doubt he will be an outstanding choice!”
But the idea of putting Moore on the Fed prompted a strong backlash from many economists. “More than possibly any other economist in modern America, he has a track record of getting the big issues wrong,” said Justin Wolfers of the University of Michigan. “Not just occasionally but time after time.”
Opponents said Moore’s partisan bent could hurt the Fed’s reputation for independence.
Moore is the second of Trump’s potential choices for the Fed to be withdrawn. Last month, the president said Herman Cain, a former Republican presidential candidate, had pulled out of contention for a Fed seat. Cain was known for his “9-9-9” tax plan, but dropped out of the 2012 GOP race after allegations that he sexually harassed women and cheated on his wife — allegations Cain denied.
A moda dos “palhaços assustadores” incomodou Conor McGregor. Em entrevista à página de Facebook “The LAD Bible”, o campeão dos penas do UFC afirmou que “arrancaria a cabeça” da pessoa vestida dessa maneira, caso a encontrasse.
“Eu arrancaria a cabeça de um desses com um tapa. Se eu vejo um cara pulando e gritando na minha cara com uma máscara de palhaço, eu estapearia a cara dele, arrancaria a máscara e enfiaria na bunda dele. Entende o que eu digo? Que p… é essa? Eu não sei que p… é essa”, afirmou McGregor.
A onda dos “palhaços assustadores” teve início nos Estados Unidos e se espalhou também pela Europa. De início, a moda acontecia para dar sustos nas pessoas. Recentemente, no entanto, passou a se tornar algo mais perigoso.
Já nos Estados Unidos, de acordo com informações da BBC, um homem disparou tiros para o alto com seu fuzil AR-15 depois de sua mulher o alertar sobre a presença de “palhaços horrorosos” na rua. O caso aconteceu na cidade de Bardstown, no Kentucky.
No entanto, tratava-se apenas de uma mulher que estava passeando com seu cachorro na rua à meia-noite, disse o porta-voz do departamento de polícia de Bardstown, Reece Riley.
“Pessoas foram mortas ou o que? Eu não soube de pessoas que foram mortas. Eu ouvi que houve alguém esfaqueado e coisas assim. Eu não sei, é doideira. Só não chegue perto de mim vestido de palhaço. Na verdade, não chegue perto de mim, ponto. Chega perto de mim e eu estapeio sua cara de qualquer forma. Mas se você estiver com uma fantasia de palhaço, eu vou estapear ainda mais”, completou McGregor.
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Failed gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams has ruled out running for Senate next year. The rumor is that the candidate who still hasn’t admitted she lost last year’s governor’s race wants to take a crack at losing in the Democratic presidential 2020 primary.
“I will not be a candidate for the United States Senate,” the Georgia Democrat and election truther said Tuesday in a video uploaded to social media. “The fights to be waged require a deep commitment to the job, and I do not see the U.S. Senate as the best role for me in this battle for our nation’s future.”
She adds, “I still don’t know exactly what’s next for me. Over the coming weeks, you’ll be hearing more from me and my team about groundbreaking initiatives to protect the right to vote and to increase the participation of Americans in setting the course for Georgia and the future of our country.”
On Monday, Abrams reportedly told Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., of her decision not to run for Senate. This should come as a great irritation to the New York lawmaker, who had been lobbying hard to get Abrams to challenge Sen. David Perdue, R-Ga., in 2020, according to Politico.
“If you look at her background — she knows what working people, middle-class people go through. I’m very excited that she’s agreed to be the respondent to the president,” Schumer sucked up in January when he announced Abrams had been asked to give the Democratic response to President Trump’s State of the Union address.
He added, “She has led the charge for voting rights, which is at the root of just about everything else.”
A fat lot of good that show of reverence did Schumer and the other Democratic leaders, who had hoped Abrams would help them put an important seat in play to wrest control of the Senate from Republicans. With her announcement Tuesday, Abrams threw cold water on their dream of unseating Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky. By the sound of it, it also seems Abrams is going back to her favorite new hobby: publicly mulling her political future while maintaining, without evidence, that she is the rightful governor of Georgia.
“I think you don’t run for second place,” Abrams said on “The View.” “If I’m going to enter a primary, then I’m going to enter a primary.”
Serious question: Is there a bigger charity case in American politics right now than Abrams? She blew it in 2018 despite having tons of backing and sympathetic publicity from the national media. She also claims she won that race when it wasn’t really close (she lost by a margin of about 55,000 votes). Democrats keep handing her second chances and she keeps scoffing at their offers because, well, I guess she actually believes her own press.
If nothing else, at least Abrams turning down the chance to lose a Senate race has spared us all from the inevitability of her claiming later that, along with being the rightful governor of Georgia, she is also its rightful senator.
President Biden ripped state leaders for sitting on rental aid for landlords and tenants impacted by the pandemic.
Earlier this week, he called on Congress to extend the eviction moratorium — several days before the federal ban was set to expire.
Rep. Hoyer asked for unanimous consent to extend the ban, which failed, and the House adjourned.
President Joe Biden slammed state leaders Friday for sitting on billions in rental aid as the eviction moratorium is set to expire on Saturday.
Biden called on state and local governments to disperse the Emergency Rental Assistance funding they received in February.
“Five months later, with localities across the nation showing that they can deliver funds effectively – there can be no excuse for any state or locality not accelerating funds to landlords and tenants that have been hurt during this pandemic,” Biden said in a statement.
“Every state and local government must get these funds out to ensure we prevent every eviction we can,” Biden continued.
Lawmakers have been shifting the responsibility of letting the moratorium lapse.
Earlier this week, the president called on Congress to extend the eviction ban just days before the moratorium was set to expire, saying his administration would have “strongly supported” the decision to renew the ban but claimed to be unable to do so citing a ruling from the Supreme Court.
“In June, when CDC extended the eviction moratorium until July 31st, the Supreme Court’s ruling stated that ‘clear and specific congressional authorization (via new legislation) would be necessary for the CDC to extend the moratorium past July 31,'” White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said in a statement.
According to Washington Post reporter Seung Min Kim, when she asked “why the administration waited until this week to push this to Congress — the White House insisted it had been ‘having conversations with Congress for some time about this.'”
However, a House Democratic aide, granted anonymity to speak candidly, told Insider that the White House statement on Thursday “just didn’t leave enough time.”
“Their statement hit us totally out of the blue, nobody was expecting it,” the aide said.
On the House floor on Friday evening, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, a Democrat from Maryland, asked for unanimous consent on extending the eviction moratorium before the House adjourned ahead of the deadline at the end of July.
The vote failed upon one objection, and the House is scheduled to reconvene until late September, pending any “significant legislation” that could call them into session sooner.
After the bill failed, Pelosi, Hoyer and House Majority whip Rep. James Clyburn wrote a statement expressing their disappointment. Earlier in the week and as late as Thursday, members of the House reportedly believed that the White House would extend the moratorium on it’s own.
“It is extremely disappointing that House and Senate Republicans have refused to work with us on this issue,” they wrote after the vote. “We strongly urge them to reconsider their opposition to helping millions of Americans and instead join with us to help renters and landlords hit hardest by the pandemic and prevent a nationwide eviction crisis.”
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez tweeted that her and Rep. Cori Bush, ” tried to object to the House adjourning session and force a roll call on whether we should leave.”
“They rushed to adjourn before we could get to the floor,” she wrote.
Around 6 million Americans are at risk of getting evicted in the coming months, or 16% of all renters, per Census Pulse Survey Data, after the moratorium expires on July 31.
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La policía publicó la imagen de quienes consideran los tres sospechosos del ataque en el aeropuerto.
Bélgica se encuentra en alerta máxima después de que tres explosiones, dos en el aeropuerto y una en el metro, dejaran al menos 31 muertos y más de 180 heridos en Bruselas, en una serie de atentados reivindicados por el autodenominado Estado Islámico.
Con Bruselas tomada por el ejército, la policía busca a uno de los tres supuestos autores del ataque en el aeropuerto. Los otros dos, que aparecen un una imagen difundia por las autoridades, se cree que murieron inmolados.
La fiscalía señaló que la operación desplegada en el barrio de Schaerbeek llevó a “descubrir un artefacto explosivo que contenía, entre otras cosas, clavos”.
Los investigadores también hallaron productos químicos y una bandera de Estado Islámico, organización que reivindicó la autoría de los atentados en un texto publicado en inglés en el que señala a Bélgica como uno de los países que “participa en la coalición internacional contra EI”.
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El Ministerio de Salud y el operador de trenes subterráneos informaron que se han confirmado 11 muertos en el aeropuerto.
Los atentados tuvieron lugar temprano en la mañana. Las dos primeras explosiones, las del aeropuerto de Zaventem, a 7 kilómetros de Bruselas, fueron a las 07:00 de la mañana (hora local). Hasta ahora ahí se han confirmado 11 muertos y 81 heridos.
Una hora más tarde se registró otra explosión en la céntrica estación de metro de Maalbeek, también en la capital, que dejó 20 muertos y 106 heridos, 17 de ellos de gravedad.
En el aeropuerto, Gavin Lee, enviado especial de la BBC, habló con testigos que le describieron el horror de la escena.
“La gente corría por encima de los que habían caído, no podía respirar, no me creo que estoy viva”, le dijo Antoine, joven de 15 años mientras caminaba junto a sus compañeros de la escuela.
Mientras le hablaba Antoine a la BBC, pasaba una fila de tres autos fúnebres en dirección a las ruinas del aeropuerto: la gente lloraba al verlos.
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Las autoridades han decretado la “máxima alerta terrorista” en todo el país.
Al tiempo, numerosos turistas le preguntaban a los agentes de policía qué debían hacer, dónde podían ir para estar seguros y cuándo se reabriría el aeropuerto.
Pero los policías también estaban confundidos, aunque trataban de ofrecer la poca información que tenían.
De repente un oficial gritó: “Rápido, no se detengan, evacúen, esto es serio”.
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Las imágenes muestran una columna de humo sobre una de las terminales.
Un bombero local, Pierre Meys, describió la situación de algunas de las víctimas como “heridas de guerra”.
“Creo que esto es lo peor que he visto en mi carrera”.
Las dos explosiones del aeropuerto se cree que tuvieron lugar en los extremos opuestos del área de facturación, una cerca del mostrador de la compañía American Airlines y otra junto a la cafetería Starbucks.
La agencia de noticias belga reportó que además se escucharon disparos así como gritos en árabe.
Una tercera bomba no hizo explosión y fue destruida por los servicios de seguridad.
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Por el aeropuerto de Zaventem pasaron el año pasado 23 millones de pasajeros. Y la explosiones tuvieron lugar en uno de los momentos del día en que la terminal está más concurrida.
El aeropuerto fue evacuado, se tuvieron que cancelar 500 vuelos y desviar medio centenar a otras terminales europeas. Las autoridades decretaron que permanezca cerrado también el miércoles y evaluarían si abrirlo el jueves.
Tras la captura de Abdeslam
Los ataques tuvieron lugar justo cuatro días después del arresto de Salah Abdeslam, el principal fugitivo de los ataques que en noviembre dejaron 130 muertos en parís y eso hace inevitable preguntarse si ambos hechos estarán relacionados.
Además, tras la captura, el ministro de Relaciones Exteriores belga, Didier Reynders, informó del descubrimiento de un depósito de armas que “sugeriría que los cómplices de Abdeslam podrían estar preparados para llevar a cabo más ataques”.
El ministro del Interior belga, Jan Jambon, dijo que el país se encuentraba en el máximo nivel de alerta ante posibles ataques en venganza por la captura de Abdeslam.
“Sabemos que frenar una célula… pone a otras en marcha. Somos conscientes de ello en este caso”, dijo.
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El metro ha sido cerrado.
Sin embargo, las fuerzas de seguridad belga estiman que los ataques fueron planeados con tiempo.
Como señala el corresponsal de Seguridad de la BBC, Frank Gardner, aunque parece que el detenido, clave en los ataques de París, está cooperando con la justicia, expertos en contraterrorismo creen que una de las claves de la estrategia de EI sea que una célula desconozca qué planea otra.
Así que, como dijo el primer ministro belga, Charles Michel, ocurrió lo que se temían. “Es un día negro para Bélgica”, dijo el primer Michel en una conferencia de prensa. El gobierno declaró tres días de luto oficial.
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Los servicios de emergencia siguen trabajando en los lugares en los que ocurrieron las explosiones.
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Varios pasajeros del metro utilizaron las vías para salir.
Sin transporte
Las autoridades de Bruselas, sede de las principales instituciones de la Unión Europea, decretaron la “máxima alerta terrorista”, nivel 4..
Durante horas, el transporte público permaneció cerrado y se le pidió a los ciudadanos que no salieran a la calle.
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El primer ministro belga, Charles Michel, llamó a la serenidad y a la solidaridad.
Alrededor de las 4:00 pm, los trenes y autobuses comenzaron a volver a funcionar y se liberó la circulación de la gente.
Eso, pese a que desde el centro de gestión de la emergencia, Peter Mertens insistía en que continuaba siendo “real y seria” la amenaza de más ataques.
También permaneció suspendido durante horas el servicio del Eurostar, el tren de alta velocidad que comunica Londres con París y Bruselas. A media tarde regresó el servicio aunque “limitado”.
La frontera entre Francia y Bélgica fue cerrada.
También se halló un paquete “sospechoso” en el palacio real, por lo que las instalaciones también fueron evacuadas.
El rey Felipe y la reina Matilde emitieron después un comunicado en respuesta a las explosiones. “Consternados por los odiosos ataques del (aeropuerto) internacional de Bruselas y del metro. Nuestros pensamientos están con las víctimas, sus familias y los servicios de emergencia”, señalaron.
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El techo falso de la sala de embarque del aeropuerto de Bruselas cayó y los cristales quedaron hechos añicos.
Reacciones
Las condenas a los atentados llegaron prácticamente desde todo el mundo.
El Consejo de Seguridad de Naciones Unidas emitió una fuerte condena a los ataques y llamaron a intensificar los esfuerzos regionales e internacionales para “superar el terrorismo y el extremismo violento”.
El secretario general de la ONU, Ban Ki-moon, también quiso expresar su condena y expresó su confianza en que la respuesta de Bélgica y Europa sea “compromioso con los derechos humanos, la democracia y la coexistencia pacífica”.
Los 28 gobiernos de la Unión Europea también reaccionaron y lo calificaron como un ataque a su “sociedad abierta y democrática”.
Desde La Habana, el presidente de Estados Unidos, Barack Obama, prometió hacer “lo que sea necesario” para ayudar a las autoridades belgas a hacer justicia.
“Nos levantamos en solidaridad con ellos para condenar estos indignantes ataques contra personas inocentes”, dijo el mandatario.
También el primer ministro británico, David Cameron, dijo que Reino Unido hará todo para ayudar a Bruselas. Para ello, convocó al gabinete a una reunión urgente. Lo mismo que hizo en Francia François Hollande, quien desplegó unos 1.600 policías más en las fronteras, aeropuertos y estaciones de ferrocarril.
“Es un ataque a toda Europa”, dijo el presidente de Francia en rueda de prensa. “Los ataques en Bruselas son la manifestación de una amenaza global que exige una respuesta global”.
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Los líderes europeos han condenado las explosiones del metro y del aeropuerto de Bruselas.
Por su parte, el presidente de Rusia, Vladimir Putin, también se ha manifestado sobre las explosiones en Bélgica.
Tras calificarlas de “bárbaras”, expresó sus condolencias a los belgas a través de su secretario de prensa, Dmitry Peskov.
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Por su parte, Al-Azhar de Egipto, considerada la escuela sunita más prestigiosa, dijo que los ataques de Bruselas violan las enseñanzas sobre tolerancia del islam.
Y como otros líderes, llamó a la comunidad internacional a enfrentar la “epidemia de terrorismo” actual.
The FBI on Wednesday raided Democratic Congressman Henry Cuellar’s home and campaign office in Texas as part of a wide-ranging federal probe relating to the former Soviet state of Azerbaijan and several U.S. businessmen, a source familiar with the matter told ABC News.
A federal grand jury in Washington is investigating the matter, but it’s unclear if Cuellar is a target of the grand jury’s probe, ABC News was told.
After FBI agents executed a search warrant at Cuellar’s home in Laredo, Texas, an aide to Cuellar said in a statement that the congressman “will fully cooperate in any investigation.”
“He is committed to ensuring that justice and the law are upheld,” the statement said.
On Wednesday, an FBI spokesperson emphasized that any “law enforcement activity” at Cuellar’s home and campaign office was “court-authorized.”
Cuellar, who represents Texas’ 28th Congressional District along the U.S.-Mexico border, has been in Congress since 2005. In recent years he has served as a co-chair of the Congressional Azerbaijan Caucus, and repeatedly met with Azerbaijan officials, including the ambassador of Azerbaijan, Elin Suleymanov.
Over the past year, Cuellar has frequently criticized the Biden administration for some of its border-related policies.
Spokespeople for the FBI and Justice Department declined to comment for this story.
ABC News’ Luke Barr, Alexander Mallin and Benjamin Siegel contributed to this report.
Republican congressman Adam Kinzinger condemned President Donald Trump on Sunday for quoting Pastor Robert Jeffress’ warning that impeachment might cause a “Civil War-like” fracture in the U.S.
“If the Democrats are successful in removing the President from office (which they will never be), it will cause a Civil War like fracture in this Nation from which our Country will never heal.’ Pastor Robert Jeffress,@FoxNews,” the president wrote on Sunday evening in a series of tweets.
In response, Kinzinger tweeted: “I have visited nations ravaged by civil war.@realDonaldTrump. I have never imagined such a quote to be repeated by a President. This is beyond repugnant.”
The president’s tweet came shortly after Jeffress’ appearance on Fox News, where he spoke about the impeachment inquiry into Trump announced by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Tuesday.
Jeffress, a prominent evangelical pastor of a Texas megachurch who’s also a vocal supporter of Trump, has been accused on numerous occasions of making controversial and offensive remarks. In March, he said Christian followers of Trump have “deeper convictions” than other devotees during an interview on Fox News.
“Even though the evangelical number has dropped as a whole, the number of evangelicals turning out at the ballot box is greater than other groups, and it’s because evangelicals have deeper convictions,” Jeffress said. “They believe in absolute moral and spiritual truth, and they tend to vote those convictions at the ballot box.”
In August, Jeffress condemned a church denomination for sheltering migrants and fighting deportations as the White House cracked down on illegal immigration. “The church has no business in doing that. And look, the Bible is very clear about this,” Jeffress said. “In Romans 13, Paul says, ‘Government is established by God. To resist government is to resist God himself.'”
According to a CBS News poll, released on Sunday morning, a majority of Americans say they support the Democrat-led House’s recently-announced impeachment inquiry, with 55 percent of respondents approving of the impeachment inquiry and 45 percent disapproving of the move.
The weekend poll shows a slight rise in public support for the impeachment proceedings as Trump faces increased public scrutiny after a whistleblower accused the White House of covering up a phone conversation made between the president and Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelensky in July, during which the U.S. leader requested his foreign counterpart to look into former Vice President Joe Biden’s son, Hunter Biden.
The last impeachment survey, an NPR/PBS NewsHour/Marist poll conducted on Wednesday, found that 49 percent of Americans approved of the impeachment inquiry, while 49 percent disapproved and five percent said they were unsure.
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