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They Pump $15 Billion A Year Into Bangladesh’s Economy — But At What Cost? – NPR
They Pump $15 Billion A Year Into Bangladesh’s Economy — But At What Cost? – NPR

Mim Akter Tania, 22, thought she was getting a job as a hospital custodian in Saudi Arabia. Instead, she says, she ended up as a domestic servant with an abusive boss.

Jason Beaubien/NPR


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Mim Akter Tania, 22, thought she was getting a job as a hospital custodian in Saudi Arabia. Instead, she says, she ended up as a domestic servant with an abusive boss.

Jason Beaubien/NPR

How do you get ahead in Bangladesh?

Often it’s by leaving Bangladesh.

An estimated 10 million Bangladeshis are currently working abroad, primarily as low-skilled laborers in the Arabian Gulf. Only India, Mexico, Russia and China send out more migrant workers each year according to the World Bank.

The Bangladeshi migrant workers are gardeners, construction workers, janitors and maids. On average they earn $400 a month, far more than they’d make doing the same jobs at home. And the totals add up. The $15 billion sent home by migrant workers last year — called “remittances” in economic jargon — is Bangladesh’s second-largest source of foreign earnings after its gigantic textile industry.

But their months or years abroad can turn into misery, with stories of scams, exploitation and abuse, according to labor activists and human rights groups.

Getting in line

An entire industry has developed in Bangladesh to recruit, screen and process workers who yearn to go abroad.

Outside a two-story office building on the eastern side of the capital, Dhaka, young men hoping to get jobs in the Arabian Gulf are waiting on the street. Before they can finalize a labor contract they have to get poked, prodded and fingerprinted at a branch office of the Gulf Approved Medical Centres Association.

Mohammad Kiron Mia, 36, has worked abroad twice in Oman, as a tailor and then a gardener. He says he can earn twice as much there as in Bangladesh and that these jobs are a chance “to make a better life for my family and my children.”

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Mohammad Kiron Mia, 36, has worked abroad twice in Oman, as a tailor and then a gardener. He says he can earn twice as much there as in Bangladesh and that these jobs are a chance “to make a better life for my family and my children.”

Jason Beaubien/NPR

The job seekers are given physical exams at the Saudi-run agency to make sure they are fit to work. They are screened for HIV, TB and other infectious diseases. If they test positive, they’re barred from working in the Gulf (an official in the GAMCA office says they can still find work somewhere else in the world). Women have to take a pregnancy exam and are excluded if they’re pregnant.

The agency uploads their fingerprints and travel documents into a centralized database that will be available to immigration authorities in the countries the workers are sent to.

One of the applicants on a recent April day is Mohammad Kiron Mia, who is trying to get a job as a gardener in Oman.

For Mia, 36, this will be his third trip overseas. During the first he worked as a tailor in Oman for seven months. Then he returned on a two-year contract as a gardener.

“We are poor people,” he says of himself and several neighbors from his village who are with him outside the agency. He is hoping to return to Oman: “The jobs in Oman are better opportunities for us because the work permit costs far less than a permit for Saudi Arabia or Dubai.”

Permit fees are based on the destination and job and can cost thousands of dollars.

“I want to make a better life for my family and my children,” he says. “I can make twice as much money working in Oman compared to working here in Bangladesh.”

The GAMCA office where Mia has come to submit his paperwork is one of 46 across Bangladesh that process workers exclusively for Gulf countries. Other labor brokers with other agencies set up jobs for Bangladeshis seeking to work in India, Malaysia, Singapore and other parts of Asia.

“Bangladesh is one of the top 10 countries in the world for migration and remittance according to World Bank,” says Shariful Islam Hasan, head of migration for BRAC, Bangladesh’s largest nonprofit development and social service agency. Hasan says remittances are hugely important to Bangladesh. A single migrant’s wages help provide education, health care and food for that worker’s family. Bangladeshis will work abroad sometimes for five, 10, even 20 years, he says, to try to attain a better life.

“You will not find a single person in Bangladesh who doesn’t have someone — a relative, someone — abroad,” he says. “So everyone is very much involved with this migration and remittances process.”

One of the great benefits of remittances, Hasan says, is that unlike the money brought into the country by exports from the garment industry, this money is dispersed all across Bangladesh.

Yet Bangladesh is still one of the poorest countries in the world. Despite recent progress, per capita income remains below $2,000 a year.

Low wages and a lack of formal jobs at home push millions of Bangladeshis to seek work abroad. Rickshaw drivers hustle to earn a $5 or $6 a day. The minimum wage in Bangladesh’s largest industry, textiles, is just $95 per month.

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Low wages and a lack of formal jobs at home push millions of Bangladeshis to seek work abroad. Rickshaw drivers hustle to earn a $5 or $6 a day. The minimum wage in Bangladesh’s largest industry, textiles, is just $95 per month.

Allison Joyce/Getty Images

Broken promises

Hasan says there are many hazards for foreign workers. Some are scammed by job brokers who overcharge them for visas, flights and work permits. Others sign up to do one type of work — for instance driving a delivery van in Abu Dhabi — and end up toiling long hours instead outside in scorching heat on a construction site in Dubai. Women primarily find jobs as maids and housecleaners. Hasan says women are often overworked and subjected to physical, emotional and even sexual abuse.

“If you don’t get a holiday, if you don’t have food or what you need — according to the definition of modern-day slavery, this is one kind of slavery,” he says.

Mim Akter Tania, 22, knows this all too well. Tania shares an apartment with her husband, daughter and another young married couple in a crowded part of the Bangladesh capital known as Old Dhaka. When Tania got a contract last year to work as a custodian at a hospital in Saudi Arabia, she was incredibly excited.

“At that time we didn’t have much money so I thought that going to Saudi Arabia might give us a better chance to live a good life,” she says.

She hoped she could move up from mopping floors at the hospital to working as a nurse’s assistant or a medical technician. She sent her daughter, just a year old at the time, to live with her mother and signed a two-year contract to work in Saudi Arabia.

But when Tania got to Riyadh there was no job in a hospital.

Instead she was sent to work as domestic servant.

She says that after she worked all day at her boss’s house, he would send her in the evening to clean his brother’s house.

“I knew I had to do the work but my employer was not a good human being,” Tania says. “He often beat me and behaved very rudely toward me.”

When the boss and his brother tried to rape her, she says, she ran away and went to the Saudi police.

But the police just brought her back to her employer’s house.

Two months after she arrived, she says, her boss pushed her off a balcony. The fall broke her leg. From the hospital Tania got in touch with the Bangladeshi Embassy, which moved her to a safe house full of other Bangladeshi women who had also fled their employers and were waiting to go home.

Her salary was supposed to be $160 a month plus room and board, but she says, “I never got any payment for the work I did there. None.”

Hasan from BRAC’s migration program and other worker advocates say that Tania’s experience is far too common. Bangladesh has come to rely so heavily on the money that workers send home every month, Hasan says, that mistreatment and abuse are often overlooked.

Masud Ali Yakub says going to work abroad was a “big mistake.” In 2014 he paid $7,500 for a three-year work permit in Qatar. He borrowed much of the money. Yakub hoped to get a job as a driver but only found low-paying work installing drywall. Yakub, at home now with his daughter in Dhaka, says he is still paying off his loans.

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Underage workers

At times even children get pulled into the foreign worker system.

At the Kurmitola General Hospital near the international airport in Dhaka, the Begum family is gathered on a row of blue plastic benches in the ground floor waiting room. Their daughter, who they say is 16, is huddled next to her mother. She is wearing a black burqa with no head covering over a filthy hooded sweatshirt. She has bruises on her left cheek and a cut at the base of her neck. A small duffel bag with a checked-luggage tag still wrapped around the handle sits at the girl’s feet. She refuses to speak. Her mother, Minara, says she and her husband hadn’t heard from their daughter in months when she suddenly called from Saudi Arabia saying she was coming home.

Minara says this whole saga started months ago with a woman named Beauty, who came to the Begum family’s village and offered to get Minara’s daughter a job cleaning houses in Dhaka. While the family no longer heard from their daughter regularly, every month Beauty sent them 16,000 taka, almost $200.

Minara says her daughter was 15 when she left their village with Beauty. Now, just a matter of months later the girl is holding a passport that lists her age as 26.

Her parents believe that Beauty must have arranged for the fake passport. Minara and her husband brought the teenager straight to this hospital from the airport, but she won’t let the doctors or nurses touch her. She refused to go into a small examination room and is scared to enter the stalls in the hospital’s public restrooms.

All her daughter will tell them, Minara says, is that she wants to go home.

Minara is still trying to understand what happened to her daughter, what horrors she experienced. One of the things that made Minara think her daughter was OK was that every month her wages arrived like clockwork. Minara had no idea that that money was coming from Saudi Arabia — and that it was part of the hundreds of millions of dollars in foreign remittances flowing every month into Bangladesh.

Source Article from https://www.npr.org/sections/goatsandsoda/2019/06/03/722085193/they-pump-15-billion-a-year-into-bangladeshs-economy-but-at-what-cost

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‘I wasn’t involved in that’: Kushner is mum on Trump’s birther conspiracy theory – The Washington Post
‘I wasn’t involved in that’: Kushner is mum on Trump’s birther conspiracy theory – The Washington Post

White House senior adviser Jared Kushner speaks during a discussion last month on the Middle East at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy. (Yuri Gripas/Reuters)

Isaac Stanley-Becker

June 3 at 10:03 AM

Jared Kushner, President Trump’s son-in-law and senior adviser, professed his innocence when asked in an interview on “Axios on HBO” that aired Sunday whether it was racist to question, as Trump did for five years, whether President Barack Obama was born in the United States.

“Look, I wasn’t really involved in that,” Kushner told Jonathan Swan of Axios when asked, “Was birtherism racist?”

The question referred to the campaign by Trump to undermine the legitimacy of the nation’s first black president. The conspiracy theory, never supported by any credible evidence, vaulted the real estate mogul and reality television star to political relevance. Trump didn’t abandon the idea until September 2016, more than a year into his presidential bid, which Kushner was instrumental in guiding.

“I know you weren’t,” Swan said, shrugging. “Was it racist?”

“Like I said, I wasn’t involved in that,” Kushner repeated.

Asked a third time whether he perceived the behavior by his father-in-law to be racist, even if he didn’t take part in it himself, Kushner offered, “Look, I know who the president is, and I have not seen anything in him that is racist. So again, I was not involved in that.” He declined to say whether he wished Trump had not become the face of birtherism, maintaining once more, “I was not involved in that. That was a long time ago.”

The response came in a wide-ranging interview that touched on the murder of Jamal Khashoggi, the Saudi journalist and Washington Post contributing columnist, and the way the president’s son-in-law, a political neophyte and former Democrat, got his job. Kushner strained to defend the president while also declining to embrace aspects of his politics, such as curtailing abortion rights.

“Again, I was not the person who was elected,” he said, adding, “I’m here to enforce his positions.” Kushner’s apparent belief that he can advance the president’s agenda without being held responsible for it finds a parallel in his wife’s attitude that, “I don’t know what it means to be complicit, but I hope time will prove that I have done a good job.”

The rare interview also prompted Kushner, the White House’s Middle East czar, to question whether the Palestinians were capable of governing themselves.

“The hope is that over time, they can become capable of governing,” said Kushner, an architect of Trump’s “deal of the century,” a yet-to-be-released plan to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

[Kushner arrives in Israel to political chaos and a new roadblock to his peace plan]

He said there would be a “high bar” for Palestinian freedom from Israeli government and military interference. While he stressed of the Palestinians, “I do think they should have self-determination,” he also said, in response to questions about the depth of his engagement with Palestinian concerns, “I’m not here to be trusted.” He said the Palestinians would judge his plan on its merits, not “based on trusting me.”

The interview landed at an especially delicate moment for Kushner, a 38-year-old real estate developer, investor and newspaper publisher. Trump’s threat to slap tariffs on Mexico for failing to contain the surge of migrants crossing the southern border was issued over the expressed objections of his son-in-law, who favored dialogue to try to resolve the migration crisis. And The Washington Post reported Sunday that Trump’s own secretary of state, Mike Pompeo, privately told Jewish leaders that Kushner’s plan to end the standoff between Israelis and Palestinians could fail to gain traction.

“It may be rejected. Could be in the end, folks will say, ‘It’s not particularly original, it doesn’t particularly work for me,’ that is, ‘It’s got two good things and nine bad things, I’m out,’” Pompeo said in an audio recording of a closed-door meeting of the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations.

[Pompeo delivers unfiltered view of Trump’s Middle East peace plan in closed-door meeting]

Pompeo said he understood why the public perception was already that the deal would be one-sided. “I get why people think this is going to be a deal that only the Israelis could love,” he said.

Repeated delays in the plan’s unveiling have sharpened the focus on its unconventional origins. It is the brainchild of Kushner, who is married to Trump’s eldest daughter, and Jason Greenblatt, a presidential adviser and former real estate lawyer. Both men are Orthodox Jews with long-standing interest in Israel but without government or diplomatic experience.

Kushner, in the Axios interview, addressed criticism that he owes his position to nepotism, acknowledging that his personal relationship with the president made his role possible. Still, he defended his capabilities.

“The president wouldn’t have been able to get me to work on his campaign had it not been for familial relations,” Kushner said. “I guess because I’m related to him people will make that accusation one way or the other. I do think I have a good track record in all the things I’ve done, of focusing on producing results.”

He said he did not dwell on what he would do without the advantages he was handed but felt “blessed” to have had many opportunities. “My grandparents came here as refugees and they were able to build a great life for themselves,” said Kushner, whose paternal grandparents were Holocaust survivors.

Describing how he brought a picture of his refugee ancestors with him to Washington, he claimed not to see a contradiction with the administration’s hard line on asylum.

“We inherited a crazy world,” Kushner said. He continued, describing the administration’s approach to the refugee crisis emanating from the civil war in Syria: “In the scheme of the magnitude of the problem we have, I think that we’re doing our best to try to make as much impact to allow refugees to be able to go back to their places and conflicts in places like Syria and find ways to make sure that you’re funding these situations so that the people that are immediately becoming refugees can get as much care as possible. But we have a lot of tragedies all over the world.”

The White House adviser made a similar realpolitik assessment of the administration’s continued embrace of Mohammed bin Salman, the Saudi crown prince who, in the judgment of the CIA, ordered Khashoggi’s execution.

Kushner would not say whether he had discussed the murder, which he called “horrific,” with the Saudi prince. The kingdom is a “long-term ally,” Kushner said, heralding these ties as vital to American interests, namely in countering Iran.

Kushner’s comments drew scorn from advocates of human rights and experts in international law.

Kenneth Roth, executive director of Human Rights Watch, observed that Kushner’s concern for religious tolerance, expressive rights and the rule of law — prerequisites to Palestinian self-governance, according to the White House adviser — appeared more flexible when it came to Saudi Arabia and Egypt. He listed these countries as examples of authoritarian regimes that have earned praise from the Trump administration.

The blunt discussion of birtherism came in response to Kushner’s affirmation that he had not seen his father-in-law say or do anything racist. The line of questioning drew on comments from Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, the New York Democrat and bugbear of the Trump family, who declared in a “60 Minutes” interview in January that there was “no question” that the president was a racist.

She is hardly the only Democrat to hold that view, which is virtually creed among Democrats vying to oust Trump from the Oval Office. Former vice president Joe Biden, who has made his ties to Obama a focal point of his campaign, announced his candidacy by focusing on Trump’s reaction to the deadly “Unite the Right” rally in 2017, when he said there were “very fine people” among torch-wielding white supremacists who descended on Charlottesville.

Not just Democratic presidential contenders, but also the majority of Americans, believe Trump has worsened race relations, according to a study published in April by the Pew Research Center.

Kushner dismissed the criticism.

“No, absolutely not,” he said. “You can’t not be a racist for 69 years and then run for president and be a racist. And what I’ll say is that when a lot of the Democrats call the president a racist, I think they’re doing a disservice to people who suffer because of real racism in this country.”

Those who argue that the president harbors racial prejudice hardly suggest that his worldview was transformed when he decided to enter politics. Rather, they point to his role in racial controversies reaching back decades.

In 1973, the Justice Department under President Richard M. Nixon sued Trump Management, which was led by Trump and his father, for allegedly refusing to rent to black tenants in violation of the Fair Housing Act. In 1989, Trump stoked racial tensions when he called for the reinstatement of the death penalty to punish the black and Latino teenagers convicted — wrongfully, it turned out — of brutally assaulting a white woman jogging in Central Park.

In the Netflix miniseries dramatizing the jogger case, “When They See Us,” which was released on Friday, Trump is referred to as a “bigot” whose “15 minutes” are “almost up.”

Not if Kushner has anything to say about it. The president’s son-in-law has reportedly taken on an ever greater role in the 2020 reelection effort.

Tim Elfrink contributed to this report.

More from Morning Mix:

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‘Which monkey is gonna stay on the couch?’: Airbnb host kicks out black guests in racist exchange

Visitors threw food into a wildlife habitat. Now, a beloved otter is dead.

Source Article from https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2019/06/03/jared-kushner-axios-birtherism-trump-defense-palestinians/

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The 29 most eyebrow-raising lines from Jared Kushner’s Axios interview – CNN
The 29 most eyebrow-raising lines from Jared Kushner’s Axios interview – 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/2019/06/03/politics/jared-kushner-axios/index.html

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Chicago police: 52 shot, 10 fatally in weekend violence – 10TV
Chicago police: 52 shot, 10 fatally in weekend violence – 10TV

CHICAGO (AP) — Chicago’s police chief on Monday decried a “despicable level of violence” during a weekend in which 52 people in the city were shot, eight of them fatally, and two people were stabbed to death.

Police believe most of the shootings were gang related, Superintendent Eddie Johnson said.



The shootings happened from 6 p.m. Friday until midnight Sunday on one of the warmest and sunniest weekends of the year in Chicago. The city often sees an increase in violence in warmer weather.

Johnson said the department increased the number of uniformed officers on the street — targeting areas where police expected gang members to retaliate for previous shootings. He said he believes that effort helped police seize 92 illegal firearms, nearly twice as many as the department seizes in a typical warm-weather weekend.

Homicides in Chicago surged to more than 770 three years ago, but have dropped since — to 660 in 2017 and 561 last year. They’re on pace to drop even more this year.

Police urged residents to come forward with any information that would help in the investigations of the shootings.

Chicago police say in the coming weeks more patrol officers will be deployed, including officers on bicycles and on foot, in some of the most popular destinations for tourists and residents in the nation’s third-largest city.

Johnson also reiterated his complaints about what he says are lax gun laws and court policies that he says turn the county jail into a revolving door for gun offenders.

“Until we stop giving them (gun offenders) the sense that they can do this with impunity, then we are going to continue to have these press conferences,” he said.

Source Article from https://www.10tv.com/article/chicago-police-52-shot-10-fatally-weekend-violence-2019-jun

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Trump arrives in London, calls Mayor Sadiq Khan a ‘stone cold loser’ – The Washington Post
Trump arrives in London, calls Mayor Sadiq Khan a ‘stone cold loser’ – The Washington Post

Toluse Olorunnipa

William Booth

Anne Gearan

June 3 at 6:37 AM

LONDON — Even before President Trump arrived in London on Monday for three days of planned pomp and circumstance, his state visit had already become dominated by insults and political intrigue.

 Hours before he was scheduled to visit Queen Elizabeth II at Buckingham Palace, the president launched a Twitter attack against London Mayor Sadiq Khan, who has publicly objected to the plan to fete Trump with a ceremonial state visit. Trump responded by criticizing Khan’s record as mayor and attacking him over his height.

 “@SadiqKhan, who by all accounts has done a terrible job as Mayor of London, has been foolishly ‘nasty’ to the visiting President of the United States, by far the most important ally of the United Kingdom. He is a stone cold loser who should focus on crime in London, not me,” Trump wrote on Twitter as Air Force One was about to land in Britain. “Kahn [sic] reminds me very much of our very dumb and incompetent Mayor of NYC, de Blasio, who has also done a terrible job – only half his height. In any event, I look forward to being a great friend to the United Kingdom, and am looking very much forward to my visit. Landing now!”

 It was the latest broadside by Trump, who has prefaced his visit with digs at Prime Minister Theresa May, opposition leader Jeremy Corbyn and American-born royal Meghan, Duchess of Sussex.

 Trump later attended an official welcome ceremony with the queen, which is set to be followed by a private lunch, a tour of Westminster Abbey, tea with Prince Charles and his wife, Camilla, and an evening banquet at Buckingham Palace with the queen and other members of the British elite.

 On Tuesday, Trump plans to hold meetings with May, who is stepping down as Conservative leader later this week after failing to gain support for her Brexit plan.


In this file photo taken on June 11, 2018, London Mayor Sadiq Khan speaks during the launch of London Tech Week. (Daniel Leal-Olivas/AFP/Getty Images)

 Despite the standard itinerary, Trump’s visit is shaping up to be unlike any other by an American leader. 

 On Tuesday, tens of thousands of protesters are expected to pack London’s Trafalgar Square. A blimp showing Trump as a diaper-clad baby will take flight and hover above the scene.

 London mayor Khan, a Muslim and the son of a Pakistani immigrant bus driver, has become the rhetorical leader of London’s resistance to the president. Writing in the Guardian newspaper Sunday, Khan said Trump used the language of the “fascists of the 20th century.”

 “Donald Trump is just one of the most egregious examples of a growing global threat,” he wrote. “The far right is on the rise around the world, threatening our hard-won rights and freedoms and the values that have defined our liberal, democratic societies for more than seventy years.”

 Khan’s spokesman responded to Trump’s Twitter attack Monday, saying that “childish insults” should be “beneath the president of the United States.”

 Khan also criticized Trump for inserting himself into the internal politics of Britain, where a fierce competition is underway between those seeking to replace May as prime minister.

 In recent interviews with British newspapers, Trump has criticized May’s approach to the Brexit negotiations, offered an endorsement of May’s rival and potential successor Boris Johnson and asserted that Brexit leader Nigel Farage should be the country’s top negotiator with the European Union. Trump also responded to previous criticism from the Duchess of Sussex, formerly known as Meghan Markle, by saying: “I didn’t know that she was nasty.”

[As Trump’s state visit looms, Britain seems a reluctant host]

 Typically, a state visit includes a few nights bunking with the monarch at Buckingham Palace in central London. But Trump will not be staying there, as the palace is undergoing renovations. 

 Nor will he receive the royal welcome at Horse Guards Parade or a gold carriage procession down the Mall, due to security concerns.

 Woody Johnson, the U.S. ambassador and owner of the New York Jets football team, called the state visit “very significant.” 

 “He knows the security and prosperity of the U.S. is directly linked to the security and prosperity of the U.K. The special relationship will be a huge focus as we remember D-Day,” Johnson told the BBC. 

 “When I last spoke to him he was extremely enthusiastic. The president’s mother was born here, and this is part of his DNA. Everything he is about revolves around this relationship. It could not be more important,” Johnson said

 Johnson said the Trump administration was looking forward to signing a U.S.-British trade deal — though in the past Johnson warned that the exit deal with the E.U. that May tried to pass through Parliament could threaten an agreement with Washington. 

 More controversial, Johnson said Sunday that a future trade deal with the United States would include British health care, specifically the social medicine program called the National Health Service. Although Britons often complain about it, the program has broad support.

 Many Britons have expressed fear that the United States has designs on profiting from the NHS.

 Asked if British consumers would buy U.S. meat and vegetables, which have less strict regulations over chemicals, Johnson said British consumers would make their own choices.

 It’s unclear how much Trump will be able to focus on the British pageantry rather than the political drama back in the United States, where the president faces a burgeoning trade war with Mexico, intensifying congressional investigations and growing calls for impeachment.

 Trump’s unprompted attack on New York Mayor Bill de Blasio — who is one of two dozen Democratic candidates seeking to unseat Trump — offers a signal that the president will continue to engage in domestic politics even while on foreign soil.

While in Japan last month, Trump used the words of North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un to attack another rival, former vice president Joe Biden — calling him a “low IQ individual.”

Read more

Britain is at its most delicate political moment in years. Now here comes Trump.

Trump says in recorded interview that Duchess Meghan was ‘nasty’ about him, then tweets: I never called Meghan Markle ‘nasty

Today’s coverage from Post correspondents around the world

Like Washington Post World on Facebook and stay updated on foreign news

Source Article from https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/europe/trump-arrives-in-london-calls-mayor-sadiq-khan-a-stone-cold-loser/2019/06/03/40836170-8234-11e9-b585-e36b16a531aa_story.html

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Donald Trump rocks the boat as he arrives for banquet with British queen – Reuters
Donald Trump rocks the boat as he arrives for banquet with British queen – Reuters

LONDON (Reuters) – Britain rolled out the royal red carpet for Donald Trump on Monday but the pomp, pageantry and banquet with Queen Elizabeth looked set to be overshadowed by the U.S. President’s views on Brexit, the UK’s next leader and a row over China’s Huawei.

Trump and his wife, Melania, were greeted by the 93-year-old monarch at Buckingham Palace at the start of a three-day state visit which sees him feted with the full force of royal ceremony: a formal dinner with the queen, tea with heir Prince Charles, and a tour of Westminster Abbey, coronation church of English monarchs for 1,000 years.

“I look forward to being a great friend to the United Kingdom, and am looking very much forward to my visit,” Trump wrote on Twitter as he landed at London’s Stansted Airport.

But beyond the theatre, the proudly unpredictable 45th U.S. president is rocking the boat with the United States’ closest ally, whose political establishment has been in chaos for months over Britain’s departure from the European Union.

As he was flying into the British capital, he reignited a feud with London Mayor Sadiq Khan – who had written on Sunday that Britain should not be rolling out the red carpet for the U.S. president – describing him as a “stone cold loser.

The state visit, promised by Prime Minister Theresa May back in January 2017 when she became the first foreign leader to meet him after he took office, is cast as a chance to celebrate Britain’s “special relationship” with the United States, boost trade links and reaffirm security cooperation.

At Buckingham Palace, Melania, stood beside Elizabeth and Charles’s wife Camilla, while Charles and Trump inspected the guard.

Trump will have lunch with the queen before the monarch’s second son Prince Andrew accompanies him to Westminster Abbey where the president will lay a wreath at the Grave of the Unknown Warrior.

The day culminates with a lavish state banquet at Buckingham Palace – where men wear white tie coats with tails and women evening gowns.

UNCONVENTIONAL

But away from the pageantry, Trump is set to make his trip the most unconventional state visit in recent British history.

He has already waded far into Britain’s turbulent domestic politics, where more than a dozen candidates are vying to replace May, who announced last month she was quitting after failing to get her EU divorce deal through parliament.

The president, who has regularly criticised May’s Brexit tactics, said Britain must leave the bloc on the due date of Oct. 31 with or without a deal and praised a more radical Brexit-supporting potential successor as British leader.

He also called for arch-Brexiteer Nigel Farage, a scourge of May’s ruling Conservative Party, to conduct talks with the EU.

Brexit is the most significant geopolitical move for the United Kingdom since World War Two and if it ever happens then London will be more reliant on the United States as ties loosen with the other 27 members of the EU.

HUAWEI TENSIONS

At a meeting with May, Trump will also warn Britain that security cooperation, a cornerstone of the western intelligence network, could be hurt if London allows China’s Huawei a role in building parts of the 5G network, the next generation of cellular technology.

The Trump administration has told allies not to use its 5G technology and equipment because of fears it would allow China to spy on sensitive communications and data. Huawei denies it is, or could be, a vehicle for Chinese intelligence.

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo told Britain last month it needed to change its attitude towards China and Huawei, casting the world’s second largest economy as a threat to the West similar to that once posed by the Soviet Union.

Britain’s relationship with the United States is an enduring alliance, but some British voters see Trump as crude, volatile and opposed to their values on issues ranging from global warming to his treatment of women.

Hundreds of thousands protested against him during a trip last year and a blimp depicting Trump as a snarling, nappy-clad baby will fly outside Britain’s parliament during the visit. Other protesters plan a “carnival of resistance” in central London.

Jeremy Corbyn, the socialist leader of Britain’s opposition Labour Party, who has declined an invitation to attend the state banquet, scolded Trump for getting involved in British politics.

Slideshow (24 Images)

Another senior Labour lawmaker, Yvette Cooper, said it was wrong to gift Trump the opportunity of photographs with the royal to boost his re-election campaign next year.

“So appalled Theresa May has given this man a red carpeted platform to do this,” she wrote on Twitter. “Doesn’t help Britain to be lavishing pomp on a president so determined to be divisive, childish & destructive.”

While Monday is dominated by pageantry, the second day of Trump’s trip will focus on politics, including a breakfast with business leaders, talks with May in 10 Downing Street, a news conference and a dinner at the U.S. ambassador’s residence.

Additional reporting by Kate Holton, Andrew MacAskill, Alistair Smout and William Schomberg; Writing by Guy Faulconbridge and Michael Holden; Editing by Jon Boyle

Source Article from https://www.reuters.com/article/uk-usa-trump-britain/donald-trump-rocks-the-boat-as-he-arrives-for-banquet-with-british-queen-idUSKCN1T30FS

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Virginia Beach gunman gave resignation before shooting, was in ‘good standing,’ authorities say – Fox News
Virginia Beach gunman gave resignation before shooting, was in ‘good standing,’ authorities say – Fox News
Video

How do authorities in the medical community respond to mass shootings?

Dr. Marc Siegel says that triaging victims is a major key to saving lives in a mass shooting situation.

The Virginia Beach shooter who killed 12 people and wounded several others in a municipal complex on Friday had submitted his resignation earlier that morning, officials said Sunday.

The gunman, identified as 40-year-old DeWayne Craddock, was an engineer with the city’s public utilities department for 15 years. In a news conference Sunday morning, Virginia Beach City Manager Dave Hansen described the man’s work performance as “satisfactory” with no ongoing issues of discipline.

VIRGINIA BEACH SHOOTER’S KIN OFFER CONDOLENCES IN NOTE TAPED UP OUTSIDE HOME

In response to a reporter’s question, Hansen said the shooter had notified his chain of command of his intention to quit via email on Friday, hours before the shooting.

Police said the investigation is ongoing for a possible motive for the deadly rampage that killed 12 people and left several others injured Friday. (AP)

Hansen also reiterated that Craddock was not fired or in the process of being fired leading up to the shooting. Police are continuing to investigate a possible motive for the deadly rampage.

Virginia Beach Police Chief James Cervera said that there was no “glaring” motive and no information on whether the gunman was targeting a specific person.

VIRGINIA BEACH POLICE ZERO IN ON SHOOTER’S WEAPONS CACHE AND JOB BACKGROUND

Cervera also released more details on the timeline of the shooting.

A longtime city employee opened fire at the building Friday before police shot and killed him, authorities said. (AP)

Officers arrived outside the building within two minutes of receiving a call of shots fired, the chief said. Minutes later, the officers who entered the building engaged in a “long gun battle” with the suspect. Cervera said the gunfight lasted 5 to 8 minutes and the number of rounds fired went into the double digits, though he couldn’t give specific numbers.

One officer was shot and wounded during the exchange of gunfire, he said. Officers eventually breached a door the gunman had been firing behind. The suspect was wounded when officers took him into custody. Police immediately rendered first aid, but Craddock later died.

The community prayed together on Saturday during the vigil at Strawbridge Marketplace for the victims of the shooting. (Daniel Sangjib Min/Richmond Times-Dispatch via AP)

Cervera praised the officers for making immediate efforts to save the suspect’s life after taking fire and seeing a fellow officer wounded, saying “our police officers truly believe in the sanctity of life.”

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The community united on Saturday night to pay tribute to each of the victims of the shooting, by way of a prayer service. Roughly 100 people, including Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax, attended the service, where each of the victim’s names was read aloud, followed by a moment of silence.

Further memorial services were to be planned, Hansen said.

Fox News’ Vandana Rambaran and the Associated Press contributed to this report.

Source Article from https://www.foxnews.com/us/virginia-beach-gunman-resignation-good-standing

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Donald Trump’s state visit to the UK: live updates – CNN
Donald Trump’s state visit to the UK: live updates – CNN

DANIEL LEAL-OLIVAS/AFP/Getty Images

London’s mayor Sadiq Khan has attacked as “un-British” the decision to roll out the red carpet for Donald Trump’s UK visit.

Khan, who has clashed with Trump on a number of occasions, called the president “one of the most egregious examples of a growing global threat” in an explosive opinion piece in the Observer newspaper on Sunday.

“America is like a best friend, and with a best friend you have a responsibility to be direct and honest when you believe they are making a mistake,” Khan wrote, adding that Trump’s “divisive behaviour flies in the face of the ideals America was founded upon – equality, liberty and religious freedom.”

Khan and Trump have been critics of each other for some time, and their disagreements intensified after Trump attacked Khan in the aftermath of a terror attack on London in 2017.

“This is a man who tried to exploit Londoners’ fears following a horrific terrorist attack on our city, amplified the tweets of a British far-right racist group, (and) denounced as fake news robust scientific evidence warning of the dangers of climate change,” Khan wrote in the piece.

“In years to come, I suspect this state visit will be one we look back on with profound regret and acknowledge that we were on the wrong side of history,” he concluded.

Source Article from https://www.cnn.com/politics/live-news/trump-uk-visit-2019-gbr-intl/index.html

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Kevin Hassett, President Trump’s top economist, to leave White House – The Washington Post
Kevin Hassett, President Trump’s top economist, to leave White House – The Washington Post

Kevin Hassett, chairman of the White House Council of Economic Advisers, talks to reporters outside the White House on March 4. (Carolyn Kaster/AP)

Jeff Stein

June 2 at 10:07 PM

Kevin Hassett, the White House’s top economist, will leave the administration, President Trump announced on Twitter late Sunday, on the eve of his trip to Europe.

Hassett, 57, who has served as chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers since September 2017, is leaving as Trump confronts an increasingly hostile trade war on two fronts — with China and with Mexico, the latter of which Trump threatened with tariffs last week if it doesn’t do more to stem illegal migration.

A longtime conservative economist, Hassett helped shape the 2017 Republican tax law and has been a staunch defender of the president’s policies on other issues. Historically, he has been an advocate of open trade policies, although in recent months he has been put in the position of defending Trump’s most confrontational approach.

Hassett said in an interview Sunday night that his departure was unrelated to the escalating trade conflict. He said that he informed the president of his plans to leave during a conversation in the White House last week, and that he will stay in the position for about another month.

“The trade story and the departure story are completely different stories,” Hassett said, adding that he considers the post a two-year position.

Hassett’s tenure may be defined by his role in crafting the tax law, which he cited as his top accomplishment on the job along with improving the transparency of the economic models published by the Council of Economic Advisers.

The council’s arguments in support of the law have been fiercely criticized as outlandish since close to the start of debate about the legislation.

“Hassett thought the tax cut would largely go to workers’ paychecks. He was wrong,” Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.) said Sunday. “He was fortunate to serve in an administration where facts don’t matter.”

Brian Riedl, a conservative analyst at the Manhattan Institute, added that Hassett’s White House legacy will likely be judged by the degree to which the tax law encourages the investment and wage growth “forcefully predicted” by the council.

“At this point, it is too early to tell,” Riedl said.

Trump said on Twitter on Sunday night that Hassett has done a great job.

A “very talented replacement will be named as soon as I get back to the U.S.,” the president wrote. “I want to thank Kevin for all he has done — he is a true friend!”

Hassett declined to comment on his conversation with Trump about a replacement, but noted that the Council of Economic Advisers was “chuck full” of good advisers.

“CEA will be in good hands,” he said. “There are plenty of great candidates, and he’ll have an announcement.”

Alan Auerbach, an economics professor at the University of California at Berkeley who taught Hassett, said that a key part of the role of economic adviser is shooting down policy proposals and that he was concerned that Hassett’s replacement may allow for the administration to execute more economically ill-advised plans.

“What bad things didn’t happen because he was there?” Auerbach said. “To the extent he did that, I think it was good that he was there.”

Source Article from https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2019/06/03/kevin-hassett-president-trumps-top-economist-leave-white-house/

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Trump lashes out against Mexico ahead of border talks: ‘We want action, not talk’ – CNBC
Trump lashes out against Mexico ahead of border talks: ‘We want action, not talk’ – CNBC

President Donald Trump lashed out against Mexico on Sunday ahead of bilateral immigration talks geared toward averting the imposition of escalating tariffs on Mexican imports set to take effect next week. 

“Mexico is sending a big delegation to talk about the Border. Problem is, they’ve been ‘talking’ for 25 years. We want action, not talk,” Trump wrote in a post on Twitter. 

“They could solve the Border Crisis in one day if they so desired,” he wrote. “Otherwise, our companies and jobs are coming back to the USA!”

The taunts threaten negotiations scheduled this week. Trump on Thursday announced via Twitter that he intended to apply gradually increasing tariffs on Mexican imports starting June 10 at a rate of 5%. Trump said the tariffs will remain in place until illegal immigration into the United States from Mexico is halted. 

Trump’s surprise announcement tanked markets that were already falling on U.S.-China trade worries. On Friday, the major indexes closed down more than 1%, with the S&P 500 off by more than 6% for the month. Analysts have warned the tariff battles if left unresolved could spark a global recession within a year. 

Mexican Foreign Minister Marcelo Ebrard is scheduled to meet with Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Wednesday to discuss curbing immigration into the U.S. through Mexico. President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, elected last year, said Saturday that he expects “good results. “

Trump has seemingly tried to minimize expectations, though. In tweets earlier Sunday, Trump wrote that Mexico was an “abuser.”

“It has been this way for decades,” he wrote. 

Given Trump’s negotiating style, the verbal attacks on Mexico could give way to a more friendly negotiating posture.

Early in his presidency, Trump told his then-Secretary of State Rex Tillerson not to bother negotiating with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, referring to the reclusive despot as “Little Rocket Man.” The next year, Trump and Kim “fell in love,” Trump said.

“I was really tough and so was he, and we went back and forth,” Trump said at a West Virginia rally in 2018. “And then we fell in love, OK?”

Investors are eagerly awaiting whether Trump will have a similar change of heart in the case of Mexico, a country he singled out as early as his June 2015 announcement speech. At the time, Trump claimed that the country was sending rapists and drug dealers to the United States. The president has since made border security the rallying cry of his re-election campaign. 

On Monday, the Mexican delegation is scheduled to provide more details about their negotiation activities during a morning news briefing.

Source Article from https://www.cnbc.com/2019/06/02/trump-lashes-out-against-mexico-ahead-of-border-talks.html

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Maryland couple found dead in Dominican Republic hotel room – Fox News
Maryland couple found dead in Dominican Republic hotel room – Fox News
Video

Fox News Flash top headlines for June 2

Fox News Flash top headlines for June 2 are here. Check out what’s clicking on Foxnews.com

A Maryland couple has been found dead in their hotel room in the Dominican Republic.

The news of the death of Edward Holmes and Cynthia Day, who were engaged and had posted numerous photos on social media showing how much they were enjoying their vacation, comes just days after a Delaware woman said that that she was assaulted while vacationing in the Dominican Republic earlier this year. It also comes weeks after the U.S. State Department issued a travel advisory for Americans traveling there, citing a rise in crime.

The bodies of Holmes, 63, and Day, 49, were found Thursday by an employee of the Bahia Principe Hotel in La Romana who went to their room after they failed to check out, according to multiple published reports. The couple were scheduled to return to the U.S. that day.

CNN reported that a spokesman for the Dominican Republic National Police, Frank Felix Duran Mejia, said there was no evidence of violence.

BODIES OF AMERICAN COUPLE MISSING IN DOMINICAN REPUBLIC BELIEVED FOUND

Friends of the couple posted on Facebook that conversations with them over the phone recently indicated they were happy and excited to return home and to their future as a married couple. They arrived at the hotel on May 25.

Edward Holmes and Cynthia Day

The Dominican newspaper Diario Libre said that a hotel employee mentioned that Holmes contacted the front desk about feeling ill, but that the couple turned down treatment.

The Delaware woman, Tammy Lawrence-Daley, said she was attacked in Punta Cana, which is a popular tourist area. She said that her attacker wore a uniform that indicated he was an employee of the all-inclusive resort in which she was saying.

Lawrence-Daley, who said she was vacationing in the Dominican Republic with her husband and some friends, posted photos of her bruised and swollen face on Facebook. She suffered a broken nose, other facial fractures and bites on her body, among other things, she said.

WOMAN SHARES HORRIFYING STORY, PICTURES AFTER ALLEGED ATTACK

She told the Associated Press that she went public about the attack, which she said occurred in January, to heighten awareness about the dangers of visiting the country, even for tourists staying at an all-inclusive resort.

Edward Holmes and Cynthia Day

Lawrence-Daley said the attack happened when she was walking on the property at about 10:30 p.m. to buy a snack. She said the man who attacked her came at her from behind and forced her into a maintenance room. She said the hotel employees were slow to act when her husband and friends reported that she had not returned to the room. Security workers eventually found her in the maintenance room, she said.

In March, a New York couple visiting the Dominican Republican was reported missing after they did not get on their flight home even though they checked out of their hotel at the scheduled time. Weeks later, National Police commander Frank Félix Duran Mejía said that the couple apparently had gotten into an accident, possibly due to a mix of speeding, alcohol and dark roads. Orlando Moore, 43, and Portia Ravenelle, 32, had planned a four-day getaway and also had posted photos of their vacation on social media, praising the trip. The couple’s car was retrieved from the sea, and Moore’s decomposed body was recovered from the water. Ravenelle reportedly had ended up at a hospital, where she died.

Tammy Lawrence-Daley after an attack at a resort in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic in January 2019. Lawrence-Daley made the attack public on social media, detailing a vicious hours-long assault by a man she said was wearing the uniform of an all-inclusive resort. (Chris Daley via AP)

New York Reps. Adriano Espaillat and Eliot Engel wrote FBI Director Christopher Wray, indicating they wanted more evidence that the tragedy was an accident, and asking that the agency “work quickly to conduct a thorough investigation regarding details of their reported deaths that raise questions for us,” according to the New York Daily News.

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The U.S. State Department issued a travel advisory for the Dominican Republic in April, urging those visiting there to “exercise increased caution…due to crime.”

“Violent crime, including armed robbery, homicide and sexual assault is a concern throughout the Dominican Republic,” the advisory said. “The wide availability of weapons, the use and trade of illicit drugs, and a weak criminal justice system contribute to the high level of criminality on the broader scale.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Source Article from https://www.foxnews.com/us/maryland-couple-found-dead-in-their-hotel-room-in-dominican-republic

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Virginia Beach shooter notified boss of plans to leave job – NBC News
Virginia Beach shooter notified boss of plans to leave job – NBC News

A city engineer in Virginia Beach who killed 12 people in a shooting rampage at work had submitted his resignation letter earlier that day, a city official said Sunday.

Virginia Beach City Manager Dave Hansen said DeWayne Craddock, 40, sent his two-weeks notice in an email Friday morning.

Hansen said Craddock, who had worked with the city’s utilities department for 15 years and died in a gun battle with police, was not forced to resign nor did he appear to be quitting because he had applied for another job but was not hired.

Hansen was asked in a news conference Sunday whether Craddock had explained in the email why he was quitting.

“We are determining where that letter is,” he said, adding that one of the victims killed was Craddock’s supervisor, but he did not provide further details.

Virginia Beach Police Chief James Cervera said investigators were looking as “deep as we can” into Craddock’s personal and professional life to figure out a motive.

Four of the injured were in critical condition Sunday, according to Sentara Healthcare.

“Critical condition suggests all these patients are in ICUs and medically fragile,” Sentara said in a statement.

Of the city employees killed, four were engineers who worked to maintain streets and protect wetlands. Three were right-of-way agents who reviewed property lines. The others included an account clerk, a technician, an administrative assistant and a special projects coordinator.

In all, they had served the city of Virginia Beach for more than 150 years.

“They leave a void that we will never be able to fill,” said Hansen, who had worked for years with many of the dead.

One of the victims, Christopher Kelly Rapp of Powhatan, enjoyed Scottish music and joined a pipe band last fall. He played with the group in October during a Celtic festival in Virginia and marched with bandmates on St. Patrick’s Day.

“Chris was reserved but very friendly, quietly engaging members one-on-one after our weekly practices,” the band, Tidewater Pipes & Drums, said in a statement.

Another victim, Mary Louise Gayle of Virginia Beach, was described as a “super sweet lady” who always had a big smile.

The other employees killed were Tara Welch Gallagher, Alexander Mikhail Gusev, Katherine A. Nixon, Ryan Keith Cox, Joshua O. Hardy and Michelle “Missy” Langer, all of Virginia Beach; Laquita C. Brown and Robert “Bobby” Williams, both of Chesapeake; and Richard H. Nettleton of Norfolk. The 12th victim, Herbert “Bert” Snelling of Virginia Beach, was a contractor who was in the building to seek a permit.

Joseph Scott, an engineering technician with the utilities department, said he had worked with Craddock and had a brief interaction with him Friday, passing him in the men’s restroom inside a municipal building about five minutes before the shooting.

“He was in there brushing his teeth, which he always did after he ate,” Scott said. “I said ‘Hey, how you doing? What are you doing this weekend?’ It was just a brief conversation.”

Another employee, account clerk Terry Inman, recalled coming face-to-face with Craddock during the rampage.

Inman, who worked with Craddock in the public utilities department, said he turned around and saw Craddock standing inside the building with a gun on Friday afternoon.

When Inman said he shouted at Craddock to stop, the gunman looked straight at him but didn’t raise his weapon or make any other gesture to indicate he actually saw Inman or anyone else.

After Craddock left the room, Inman and co-worker Ned Carlstrom heard gunshots again. They think that was when their friend and co-worker, Ryan Keith Cox, was killed.

Authorities have said the shooter fired indiscriminately.

Craddock appeared to have had no felony record, making him eligible to purchase guns.

Government investigators identified two .45-caliber pistols used in the attack, said Ashan Benedict, the regional special agent for the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms.

All indications were that the shooter purchased the weapons legally, one in 2016 and one in 2018, Benedict said. The police chief said at least one had a noise suppressor.

Craddock graduated from Denbigh High School in nearby Newport News in 1996 and joined the Virginia Army National Guard. He was discharged in 2002. He received basic military training and advanced individual training at Fort Sill, Oklahoma. He later graduated from Old Dominion University with a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering.

Scott said he worked in a different division from Craddock, whom he described as quiet, polite and a “nice guy.” Scott said he thought Craddock was in good standing at work and had never heard negative reports about him.

A handwritten note was posted Saturday at the Craddock family home expressing condolences to the shooting victims on behalf of his family.

Speaking at a vigil Sunday, pastor Luther Allen pleaded with political leaders and activists to break the cycle of mass shootings.

“We are tired of the same old same old of violence and outcry and prayer and back to the same old thing again,” he said. “God, we need something different and we need it right now.

“As you go back to the municipal center on Monday, as you go back to Richmond on Monday, go back with the agenda and go be forewarned that November is coming,” he continued. “And we shall remember May 31st, 2019, and what you do between now and November will let us know if you’re still truly on our side. God bless you.”

Tim Stelloh is a reporter for NBC News, based in California.

Source Article from https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/virginia-beach-shooter-notified-boss-plans-leave-job-n1012971

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Trump Denies Calling Duchess Meghan ‘Nasty’ – Snopes.com
Trump Denies Calling Duchess Meghan ‘Nasty’ – Snopes.com

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump insisted Sunday that he never called Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex and the wife of Britain’s Prince Harry, “nasty.”

The president used the adjective while discussing Meghan in a recent interview with Britain’s The Sun newspaper in the run-up to his state visit to the U.K. on Monday. But debate on social media since then has raged over whether his use of “nasty” referred to the duchess herself or the negative things she said about him in 2016.

Trump and his defenders have accused the news media of spreading a deliberately false narrative about him.

A look at the claim:

Trump, in fact, did use the word “nasty” to describe Meghan when asked about her comments about him during the 2016 campaign.

In audio of the interview posted on the newspaper’s website, Trump discusses the upcoming state visit, his second meeting with Queen Elizabeth II, and the Trump family members who are tagging along on the trip. The reporter then asks about Meghan, who isn’t joining other royals to meet Trump and his wife, Melania, due to the recent birth of her first child, Archie, in May.

Asked if he was sorry to miss out on meeting the American-born Meghan and told that she “wasn’t so nice about you” during the campaign, Trump says: “I didn’t know that. No, I hope she’s OK. I did not know that.”

When told that Meghan once said she might move to Canada if Trump was elected, Trump responds: “No, I didn’t know that she was nasty.”

The former Meghan Markle supported Hillary Clinton, the Democratic presidential candidate in 2016, calling Trump “divisive” and “misogynistic.” The former actress also said she might move to Canada. “Suits,” the cable TV legal drama she starred in at the time, was filming in Toronto.

She ultimately married Prince Harry in 2018 and moved to Britain.

After the interview was released, reporters at some news organizations tweeted that Trump called Meghan “nasty,” sparking debate.

The case isn’t as clear as Trump portrays it to be, said Kathleen Hall Jamieson, director of the University of Pennsylvania’s Annenberg Public Policy Center.

Jamieson said in an email that since Trump’s interviewer is informing him about a statement that Trump says he was unaware of “one would ordinarily assume that his answer refers to that statement.” But she says the answer — “was nasty” — could also refer to a person or to what the person said.

Complicating matters, Jamieson said, is Trump’s history of verbal attacks on people he views as antagonists and his sensitivity to negative statements about his election.

“As a result, difficult to know what he meant,” she said.

In the Sun interview, Trump also spoke positively about Meghan when asked whether it was good for an American to be a member of the British royal family.

“I think it’s nice. I think it’s nice. I’m sure she will do excellently. She’ll be very good. She’ll be very good. I hope she does,” Trump said.

Source Article from https://www.snopes.com/ap/2019/06/02/trump-denies-calling-duchess-meghan-nasty/

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Trump says Mexico is an ‘abuser’ of the US, amid tariff negotiations – Fox News
Trump says Mexico is an ‘abuser’ of the US, amid tariff negotiations – Fox News
Video

Trump announces tariffs on Mexico over immigration

White House trade adviser Peter Navarro says Mexico exports illegal aliens and it’s time to tax them.

President Trump on Sunday called Mexico an “abuser” of the United States, and warned that if the country does not do more to “stop the invasion” of the Southern border, his newly-imposed tariffs on Mexican goods would force companies based in Mexico to be “brought back” into the U.S.

The president’s tweets come following his announcement on Thursday to impose a new 5 percent tariff on all Mexican imports — a tariff that would increase over time.

MEXICO DISPATCHES TEAM TO DC TO NEGOTIATE TARIFFS, AS TRUMP DEMANDS ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION REMEDY

“The problem is that Mexico is an ‘abuser’ of the United States, taking but never giving. It has been this way for decades. Either they stop the invasion of our Country by Drug Dealers, Cartels, Human Traffickers, Coyotes and Illegal Immigrants, which they can do very easily, or our many companies and jobs that have been foolishly allowed to move South of the Border, will  be brought back into the United States through taxation (Tariffs),” Trump tweeted early Sunday.

“America has had enough!” he added.

Trump announced the new tariffs, which are slated to go into effect on June 10, on Thursday. The president said a new 5 percent tariff would be placed on all Mexican imports to pressure the country to do more to help crack down on the surge of migrants trying to cross the U.S. Southern border. Trump warned, though, that the tariff percentage would gradually increase up to 25 percent “until the illegal immigration problem is remedied.”

Fox News has learned that the tariffs, on all goods by land, sea, and air from Mexico, will hike up to 10 percent on July 1, 15 percent on August 1, 20 percent on September 1, and to 25 percent by October 1.

“Tariffs will permanently remain at the 25 percent level unless and until Mexico substantially stops the illegal flow of aliens coming through its territory,” the White House said in a statement this week.

MEXICAN PRESIDENT SAYS HE EXPECTS ‘GOOD RESULTS’ FROM TARIFF NEGOTIATIONS WITH US

But upon the announcement of the new tariffs, Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador dispatched his foreign relations secretary to Washington on Friday, as the country scrambled to negotiate a solution with the U.S.

Over the weekend, though, Obrador said he expects “good results” from the upcoming talks in Washington and reportedly suggested he is open to reinforcing efforts to stem illegal immigration. Obrador said that Mexican officials plan to convey to the Trump administration what they have been doing to stop illegal immigration, and added that they are open to additional  measures “without violating human rights.”

In a letter to Trump on Thursday following the announcements of the tariffs, Obrador said that “social problems are not solved with duties or coercive measures,” and added that the United States has a history of being a nation of immigrants.

“The Statue of Liberty is not an empty symbol,” he wrote in the letter.

But despite upcoming talks, White House acting chief of staff Mick Mulvaney, on “Fox News Sunday,” said the president’s move to impose tariffs was one to show how serious he is about the situation at the border.

“I fully expect these tariffs to go on to at least the 5 percent level on June 10th the president is deadly serious about fixing the situation at the southern border,” Mulvaney told Fox News’ Chris Wallace Sunday.

Mulvaney also explained how tariffs against Mexico would benefit the U.S., citing the positive change in the economy following the administration slapping tariffs on Chinese goods.

“American consumers have gone to products that are made in the United States, for example, that don’t carry those tariffs, and we think the same thing will happen here and the American consumers will not pay for the burden of tariffs,” Mulvaney said. “American taxpayers are paying hundreds of billions of dollars for illegal immigrants. They’re paying hundreds of billions of dollars for the drugs that come across the southern border, so there’s already a cost associated with this that we are trying to get off of the backs of ordinary Americans.”

Meanwhile, on Sunday, the president blasted congressional Democrats, claiming they “are doing nothing” to address securing the border.

“The Democrats are doing nothing on the Border to address the Humanitarian and National Security Crisis! Could be fixed so easily if they would vote with Republicans to fix the loopholes!” he tweeted.

Trump added: “The Wall is under construction and moving along quickly, despite all of the Radical Liberal Democrat lawsuits. What are they thinking as our Country is invaded by so many people (illegals) and things (Drugs) that we do not want. Make America Great Again!”

The president’s tweets come as the border sees a historic number of migrants attempting to enter the U.S.

Last week, more than 1,000 illegal immigrants were apprehended by U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents near the U.S.-Mexico border—the largest ever group of migrants ever apprehended at a single time, sources told Fox News.

The group of 1,036 illegal immigrants found in the El Paso sector included migrants from Guatemala, El Salvador and Honduras, according to sources.

There were 58,474 families apprehended last month, according to CBP. In March, the agency said that there was an increase of nearly 106 percent over the same period last year.

A top Border Patrol official told lawmakers in April that authorities have apprehended more families illegally crossing the border between October 2018 and February of this year than during all of the 2018 fiscal year (Oct. 1, 2017-Sept. 30, 2018).

Fox News’ Travis Fedschun, John Roberts, Brie Stimson and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Source Article from https://www.foxnews.com/politics/trump-says-mexico-is-an-abuser-of-the-us-amid-tariff-negotiations

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Trump says the UK should “walk away” from its Brexit deal – Vox.com
Trump says the UK should “walk away” from its Brexit deal – Vox.com

President Donald Trump inserted himself into the UK’s fraught politics ahead of his official state visit to the nation Sunday, suggesting the government should “walk away” from a Brexit deal with the European Union if British demands are not met.

“I would walk away,” Trump said in an interview with The Sunday Times. “If you don’t get the deal you want, if you don’t get a fair deal, then you walk away.”

Trump also criticized the sum the UK must pay the EU as part of its exit, roughly $50 billion.

“If I were them, I wouldn’t pay $50 billion,” the president said. “That is a tremendous number.”

Outgoing UK Prime Minister Theresa May negotiated an exit deal with the European Union, but has failed to get Parliament to agree to the plan. Leaving the EU without a deal could cause the UK economic harm; President Trump, however, believes that no deal is better than a bad deal, and suggested it isn’t too late to get the EU to come back to the negotiating table — something EU officials have said they have no will to do.

Trump suggested the UK sue the EU to give the nation “ammunition” in its fight to leave, and also said the kingdom’s people would be wise to send Nigel Farage, leader of Brexit Party, to Brussels to renegotiate the separation deal. The Brexit Party recently took first place in the UK election for its European Parliament representatives, winning 29 seats.

“I like Nigel a lot,” Trump said. “He has a lot to offer, he is a very smart person. They won’t bring him in but think how well they would do if they did. They just haven’t figured that out yet.”

The US president has had many kind words for Theresa May’s rivals; earlier, Trump said Boris Johnson, Prime Minister Theresa May’s former foreign secretary and a prominent Brexit campaigner, would make a great prime minister following May’s resignation. Johnson has said the UK should leave the EU by October 31 with or without a deal.

Johnson is one of the frontrunners to become the next prime minister but, as Vox’s Jen Kirby reported, he may not want Trump’s backing given how reviled the US president is in the UK. Widespread protests are expected to greet the American delegation when it arrives Monday.

Demonstrations happened last time Trump came to the UK, complete with a Trump baby blimp. But protesters have upped the ante and are reportedly planning to unveil a 16-foot-tall robot of a texting Trump sitting on a golden toilet — a toilet that farts and says “No collusion.” (It was made in China, to add insult to injury.)

Major protests are expected on June 4 in London, though there will be other, smaller protests (including a pot-and-pan banging outside Trump’s state dinner on Monday) in London and other cities.

Trump will have a respite later Tuesday, when he hosts a dinner at the US Ambassador’s residence on Tuesday, which Prince Charles and Camilla will attend.

On Wednesday, Trump heads to Portsmouth — a major departure port for the allied naval forces in the Normandy invasion in World War II — where ceremonies will be held to commemorate D-Day. There are some worries over Trump protests there, with some fearing it may detract from the solemn ceremonies.

Trump is also facing criticism over a comment he made about the popular new duchess, Meghan Markle. Although the royal family stays away from commenting on politics, particularly foreign politics, Markle was critical of Trump during the 2016 election, back when she was a private American citizen.

When asked about Markle saying she’d move to Canada if he was elected, Trump responded, “I didn’t know she was nasty.”

The president took to Twitter to claim he’d never made that statement; however, as NBC News reports, audio seems to suggest he did, in fact, say those words about the duchess. Markle will not dine with the president along with the rest of the royal family because she’s on maternity leave.

Source Article from https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2019/6/2/18649406/donald-trump-uk-walk-away-brexit-state-visit

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Boeing notifies FAA about improperly made parts on 737 Max – ABC News
Boeing notifies FAA about improperly made parts on 737 Max – ABC News

Boeing told officials with the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) that certain parts on its grounded 737 Max passenger planes may have been improperly manufactured, the administration revealed.

The FAA released a statement on Sunday, saying the aircraft maker had expressed concern for as many as 148 parts on the 737 Max and 737 Next Generation, a previous model of the aircraft.

At least 32 Boeing Next Generation aircraft and 33 Boeing Max aircraft could be affected in the U.S., according to the FAA. It said 133 Next Generation and 179 Max aircraft could be affected globally.

One part in particular, the leading edge slat tracks, may have been improperly manufactured and may not meet all applicable regulatory requirements for strength and durability, according to the FAA statement.

“The affected parts may be susceptible to premature failure or cracks resulting from the improper manufacturing process,” the statement said. “Although a complete failure of a leading-edge slat track would not result in the loss of the aircraft, a risk remains that a failed part could lead to aircraft damage in fight.”

Ted S. Warren/AP
Workers walk past a Boeing 737 MAX 8 airplane being built at Boeing Co.’s Renton Assembly Plant Wednesday, March 13, 2019, in Renton, Wash.

The FAA said it would issue an Airworthiness Directive to mandate Boeing’s service actions to “identify and remove the discrepant parts from service.” The FAA said the parts in question were manufactured by a Boeing sub-tier supplier, but it did not provide supplier’s name.

Boeing said it contacted all 737 operators and told them to inspect the slat track assemblies on certain airplanes.

“Slat tracks are used to guide the slats located on the leading edge of an airplane’s wings. Boeing has not been informed of any in-service issues related to this batch of slat tracks,” Boeing said in a statement Sunday. “If operators find the parts in question, they are to replace them with new ones before returning the airplane to service.”

Kevin McAllister, president and CEO of Boeing Commercial Airplane, said the company would do everything it could to help operators with any potential issues.

“We are committed to supporting our customers in every way possible as they identify and replace these potentially non-conforming tracks,” McAllister said in a statement.

The 737 Max was grounded worldwide following two deadly crashes involving the model. An Ethiopia Airlines crash in March killed all 157 people on board, marking the second deadly crash of a Boeing 737 MAX 8 plane in just five months.

The FAA issued an emergency order to ground the jets earlier this year, citing satellite-based tracking data that linked the Ethiopia jet’s movements to those of Lion Air Flight 610, which killed 189 people when it crashed off Indonesia in October.

Source Article from https://abcnews.go.com/US/boeing-notifies-faa-improperly-made-parts-737-max/story?id=63441185

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China has made its trade war demands ahead of the G20 summit: tariffs have not ‘made America great again’ – Business Insider
China has made its trade war demands ahead of the G20 summit: tariffs have not ‘made America great again’ – Business Insider

On Sunday, a senior Chinese official made a series of statements outlining the Chinese government’s terms for negotiation and pushed back on the United States’ use of pressure to force concessions, according to multiple reports.

Vice Commerce Minister Wang Shouwen, who led the working-level team in earlier negotiations, said on Sunday that the US bears responsibility for the collapse of trade talks, and noted that any deal must include “balanced” language between the two countries, according to a Bloomberg report.

“We’re willing to adopt a cooperative approach to find a solution,” Wang said, according to a Wall Street Journal report.

According to an Associated Press report, Wang added: “During the consultations, China has overcome many difficulties and put forward pragmatic solutions. However, the U.S. has backtracked, and when you give them an inch, they want a yard.”

Chinese Defense Minister Wei Fenghe reinforced Wang’s comments during a defense forum in Singapore on Sunday, according to the AP report.

“If the U.S. wants to talk, we will keep the door open. If they want a fight, we will fight till the end,” Wei said.

Washington raised tariffs to 25% from 10% on $200 billion worth of Chinese goods on May 10, and Beijing retaliated three days later by announcing raised tariffs on $60 billion worth of American goods that went into effect Saturday. In May, the US made a list of prospective tariffs on another $300 billion worth of goods that have yet to go into effect.

Read More: THE TECH COLD WAR: Everything that’s happened in the new China-US tech conflict involving Google, Huawei, Apple, and Trump

According to a white paper released by the Chinese government alongside Wang’s public comments, the trade war has not “made America great again,” and has instead had negative impacts across the US economy.

The white paper also outlined requirements for a trade deal between the two countries: the United States remove all additional tariffs, China’s purchases of US goods should be “realistic,” and there should be a clearly defined “balance” in the agreement’s text.

The statements come ahead of the G20 summit, where it is unclear whether negotiators will meet. According to a Wall Street Journal report, the paper and the timing of its release is a way for China to make its position clear going into the international summit.

This all comes as trade tensions between the United States and China continue to escalate in what is feared to become a tech Cold War. Washington’s blacklisting of Chinese telecoms giant Huawei is still a major pain point in negotiations, and has led to Chinese retaliation against US tech companies. On Wednesday, China hinted it may restrict rare earth exports to the US, which could cripple US tech, defense, and manufacturing industries.

Source Article from https://www.businessinsider.com/china-us-trade-talks-negotiation-g20-2019-6

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Gillibrand lights into NRA as ‘worst organization in this country’ at Fox News town hall – Fox News
Gillibrand lights into NRA as ‘worst organization in this country’ at Fox News town hall – Fox News
Video

Town Hall with Kirsten Gillibrand: Part 1

Democratic 2020 presidential candidate Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand discusses gun violence, the importance of women’s voices in public life, push for Sen. Al Franken’s resignation and her position on abortion with moderator Chris Wallace in Dubuque, Iowa.

Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y. sought to revive her struggling presidential candidacy at a fiery Fox News town hall in Dubuque, Iowa Sunday by unapologetically embracing late-term abortion, and lighting into the National Rifle Association (NRA) as “the worst organization in this country.”

In one particularly testy moment, moderator Chris Wallace challenged Gillibrand’s attack on Fox News’ coverage of elected Democrats’ comments and legislative action on infanticide: “Instead of talking about Fox News, why don’t you answer Susan’s question?” Wallace asked, referring to an audience member who had questioned Gillibrand about late-term abortion.

At the outset, the town hall focused on gun violence, in the wake of the massacre of 12 people Friday at a Virginia Beach municipal building.

“Americans are feeling ripped apart by the gun deaths we have seen, year after year, month after month,” Gillibrand said. “The most outrageous thing that’s happened to our democracy is how much fear, and division, and hate has been spread. I think the NRA is the worst organization in this country for doing exactly that. They care more about their profits than the American people.”

Chris Wallace pushes back against Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand’s criticism of Fox News

Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Gillibrand claims a ‘false narrative’ has been created in the abortion debate.

Gillibrand went on to call for universal background checks, a bump stock ban, and a federal anti-weapons trafficking law. She also accused the NRA of having a “chokehold” on members of Congress. (The Trump administration has already banned bump stocks, over the objections of some conservatives who raised concerns about the constitutionality of the sweeping executive order.)

Wallace pointed out that Friday’s shooting would not have been stopped by any of Gillibrand’s proposed initiatives, and inquired whether she could provide more specific ideas that could have prevented the murders.

“Stop being beholden to the NRA like President Trump is,” Gillibrand offered. “The NRA is lying to the American people. It is not about the Second Amendment. It is about gun sales. … It is literally about greed and corruption, and making sure the status quo remains the same.”

Wallace then noted that Gillibrand boasted in 2009 about receiving a 100 percent “A” rating from the NRA and said she kept two guns under her bed. She was also a member of the conservative Democratic Blue Dog coalition when she represented New York’s rural 20th congressional district in the House.

Gillibrand first began recasting her politics upon her appointment by then-New York Gov. David Paterson to fill the Senate seat vacated by Hillary Clinton in 2009.

DEMS BLOCK ‘BORN ALIVE’ BILL TO PROTECT INFANTS THAT SURVIVE ABORTIONS

This photograph released by the state shows Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey signing a bill that virtually outlaws abortion in the state on Wednesday, May 15, 2019, in Montgomery, Ala. (Hal Yeager/Alabama Governor’s Office via AP)

“I came from a district that was really rural — Second Amendment was important, hunting was important,” Gillibrand responded. “I recognize people have different communities.”

Pressed on what changed once she arrived in the Senate and quickly received an “F” rating from the NRA, Gillibrand continued: “Just realizing that not every part of this country is like my rural, upstate district.”

Gillibrand also issued a full-throated endorsement of abortion rights, and insisted she would “codify Roe v. Wade, so it is forever the law of the land” when asked to clarify whether she supported late-term abortions.

She also suggested “all-male” legislators were behind the passage of a slew of pro-life “heartbeat” laws that have passed recently in southern states. However, Alabama’s female governor, Kay Ivey, enacted the state’s restrictive anti-abortion law in May, while the Democratic representative behind a similar bill in Louisiana is an African-American woman. Several other women legislators also supported the bills.

At one point, Gillibrand attempted to attack Fox News’ coverage of Democrats’ efforts to block anti-infanticide legislation, in the wake of Virginia Democrat Gov. Ralph Northam’s apparent endorsement of the practice.

But Wallace interjected, saying Gillibrand apparently wanted to enhance her credibility among progressives with impolite and inappropriate jabs at the network hosting her for the event.

Town Hall with Kirsten Gillibrand: Part 2

Democratic 2020 presidential candidate Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand answers audience questions with moderator Chris Wallace in Dubuque, Iowa.

Wallace then probed Gillibrand’s Dec. 2018 tweet stating that “Our future is: Female, Intersectional, Powered by our belief in one another.” The tweet attracted mockery in conservative circles, with Florida Sen. Marco Rubio responding; “Our future is: AMERICAN. An identity based not on gender, race, ethnicity or religion. But on the powerful truth that all people are created equal with a God-given right to life, liberty & the pursuit of happiness.”

“Really good questions, Chris,” Gillibrand responded when asked what she meant by her remarks. “What I mean by ‘our future is female’ is that we want more women’s voices heard. I was so inspired by the 2018 election. … Our first two Muslim-American women [elected to Congress].”

“What about men?” Wallace asked.

“They’re already there. Do you not know?” Gillibrand replied, to applause. “It’s not meant to be exclusionary, it’s meant to be inclusive.”

“That’s very reassuring,” Wallace said.

Gillibrand continued: “Intersectional to me, means when you’re discriminated against in more than one way.” She offered the example of a black, homosexual woman who is discriminated against because she is black, a woman, and gay.

At the California Democratic Party convention in San Francisco this weekend, Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper elicited loud boos from attendees in a viral video moment when he declared “socialism is not the answer” to enacting progressive policies and beating Trump. Hickenlooper quickly highlighted the negative reaction on his Twitter account: “I know this message won’t be popular with everyone in our party. But the stakes are too high. We cannot hand this election to Donald Trump.”

Hickenlooper also declared that “we shouldn’t try to achieve universal coverage by removing private insurance from 150 million Americans,” and said addressing climate change shouldn’t necessitate “guaranteeing every American a government job.” Both statements also drew boos.

Asked where she stood on the issue, Gillibrand refused to wholeheartedly endorse either capitalism or socialism.

“There’s a lot of confusion,” Gillibrand said. “There’s a big difference between capitalism and greed. We know what healthy capitalism looks like. … Over the last few decades, we’ve seen income inequality grow because we care more today about shareholders than we do about workers.”

Gillibrand similarly toed both sides of the line on immigration, saying she “fully support[s] border security.” But she also condemned President Trump’s aggressive illegal immigration enforcement efforts, calling them “inhumane.” She vowed a humane asylum process, more border security funding, and “comprehensive immigration reform with a pathway to citizenship” — a lofty legislative goal that has stalled several times in recent years.

The senator also implied the deaths of several children in Border Patrol custody were the fault of the Trump administration, without evidence. Advocates have long questioned the Border Patrol’s ability to care for the thousands of parents and children in its custody, but there have been no indications that maltreatment in Border Patrol custody caused the deaths.

Since jumping into the race in January, Gillibrand has been hovering right around one percent – or less – in most national and early voting state polls. She’s watched one-time extreme long-shots like Buttigieg and entrepreneur Andrew Yang move ahead of her in the polls.

Asked how she could compete with frontrunner Joe Biden, Gillibrand responded, “This is a marathon, not a sprint … It’s still early, I’m still introducing myself to the voters.”

Town Hall with Kirsten Gillibrand: Part 3

Democratic 2020 presidential candidate Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand answers audience questions with moderator Chris Wallace in Dubuque, Iowa.

In a personal moment, Gillibrand defended her decision to call for former Minnesota Democrat Sen. Al Franken’s ouster, amid allegations he behaved inappropriately and made improper physical contact with women. She described a conversation she had with her son at the time.

“Theo, it’s not okay to grope a woman anywhere on her body without her consent. … It’s not OK for Al Franken, and it’s not OK for you.”

Key Democrat donors reportedly swore off Gillibrand after the episode, saying she was trying to advance her own career at the expense of the party. Billionaire left-wing megadonor George Soros, in an interview with The Washington Post, said Gillibrand was the only Democrat he hoped would not win the presidency.

“I was not going to remain silent,” Gillibrand told Wallace. “If a few Democratic donors are angry because I stood by eight women … that’s on them.”

Wallace countered that Gillibrand could be seen as an opportunist, especially because she only said Bill Clinton should have resigned during the Monica Lewinsky scandal in 2017 — long after Clinton campaigned and fundraised for Gillibrand in 2006 and 2009, and after Hillary Clinton lost her 2016 presidential bid.

Town Hall with Kirsten Gillibrand: Part 4

Democratic 2020 presidential candidate Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand answers audience questions with moderator Chris Wallace in Dubuque, Iowa.

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

“Do we value women?” Gillibrand asked, pivoting to discuss her general work on women’s issues. “What the #MeToo movement has been about, has been creating space for men and women to come forward and tell their truth.”

Gillibrand was the latest 2020 Democratic White House hopeful to take part in a Fox News town hall, following Sens. Bernie Sanders of Vermont and Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota as well as South Bend, Indiana Mayor Pete Buttigieg.

Former San Antonio, Texas Mayor Julian Castro – who later served as Housing and Urban Development secretary under President Barack Obama – is on deck, with a June 13 Fox News town hall.

Fox News’ Paul Steinhauser and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Source Article from https://www.foxnews.com/politics/gillibrand-hoping-to-revive-struggling-presidential-bid-takes-stage-at-fox-news-town-hall

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Virginia Beach gunman gave resignation before shooting, was in ‘good standing,’ authorities say – Fox News
Virginia Beach gunman gave resignation before shooting, was in ‘good standing,’ authorities say – Fox News
Video

How do authorities in the medical community respond to mass shootings?

Dr. Marc Siegel says that triaging victims is a major key to saving lives in a mass shooting situation.

The Virginia Beach shooter who killed 12 people and wounded several others in a municipal complex on Friday had submitted his resignation earlier that morning, officials said Sunday.

The gunman, identified as 40-year-old DeWayne Craddock, was an engineer with the city’s public utilities department for 15 years. In a news conference Sunday morning, Virginia Beach City Manager Dave Hansen described the man’s work performance as “satisfactory” with no ongoing issues of discipline.

VIRGINIA BEACH SHOOTER’S KIN OFFER CONDOLENCES IN NOTE TAPED UP OUTSIDE HOME

In response to a reporter’s question, Hansen said the shooter had notified his chain of command of his intention to quit via email on Friday, hours before the shooting.

Police said the investigation is ongoing for a possible motive for the deadly rampage that killed 12 people and left several others injured Friday. (AP)

Hansen also reiterated that Craddock was not fired or in the process of being fired leading up to the shooting. Police are continuing to investigate a possible motive for the deadly rampage.

Virginia Beach Police Chief James Cervera said that there was no “glaring” motive and no information on whether the gunman was targeting a specific person.

VIRGINIA BEACH POLICE ZERO IN ON SHOOTER’S WEAPONS CACHE AND JOB BACKGROUND

Cervera also released more details on the timeline of the shooting.

A longtime city employee opened fire at the building Friday before police shot and killed him, authorities said. (AP)

Officers arrived outside the building within two minutes of receiving a call of shots fired, the chief said. Minutes later, the officers who entered the building engaged in a “long gun battle” with the suspect. Cervera said the gunfight lasted 5 to 8 minutes and the number of rounds fired went into the double digits, though he couldn’t give specific numbers.

One officer was shot and wounded during the exchange of gunfire, he said. Officers eventually breached a door the gunman had been firing behind. The suspect was wounded when officers took him into custody. Police immediately rendered first aid, but Craddock later died.

The community prayed together on Saturday during the vigil at Strawbridge Marketplace for the victims of the shooting. (Daniel Sangjib Min/Richmond Times-Dispatch via AP)

Cervera praised the officers for making immediate efforts to save the suspect’s life after taking fire and seeing a fellow officer wounded, saying “our police officers truly believe in the sanctity of life.”

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

The community united on Saturday night to pay tribute to each of the victims of the shooting, by way of a prayer service. Roughly 100 people, including Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax, attended the service, where each of the victim’s names was read aloud, followed by a moment of silence.

Further memorial services were to be planned, Hansen said.

Fox News’ Vandana Rambaran and the Associated Press contributed to this report.

Source Article from https://www.foxnews.com/us/virginia-beach-gunman-resignation-good-standing

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Pentagon informs White House the military must not be politicized – Washington Examiner
Pentagon informs White House the military must not be politicized – Washington Examiner

Acting Defense Secretary Patrick Shanahan informed the White House that the U.S. military must not be politicized, following a move by aides to President Trump to obscure the USS John S. McCain from Trump’s view during a presidential visit to Japan.

“Secretary Shanahan directed his chief of staff to speak with the White House military office and reaffirm his mandate that the Department of Defense will not be politicized,” Lt. Col. Joe Buccino, a Pentagon spokesman, said in a statement, according to Reuters. “The chief of staff reported that he did reinforce this message,” Buccino said.

The message amounts to a rare rebuke of the White House by a federal agency, all of which are subordinate to the president. Shanahan has been serving as acting secretary of defense since New Year’s Day, and Trump just last month nominated him to serve in the position in a permanent capacity.

The reaffirmation of the military’s independence stems from an incident in which the White House military office told the U.S. Navy’s 7th Fleet to cover the name of the warship, which was harbored in Japan, to ensure Trump didn’t see it. The directive was never carried out.

Shanahan said that he had spoken with McCain’s widow about the incident.

Trump and the late senator were bitter rivals, with Trump insulting McCain during the 2016 presidential campaign for being captured in Vietnam and McCain voting in 2017 to sink a Trump-backed effort to overhaul Obamacare.

Source Article from https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/pentagon-informs-white-house-the-military-must-not-be-politicized

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Boeing tells FAA to inspect wings for faulty parts on 737 airplanes – CBS News
Boeing tells FAA to inspect wings for faulty parts on 737 airplanes – CBS News

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) released a statement Sunday saying Boeing has informed them that some parts for the company’s grounded 737 Max passenger plane, and prior model 737 Next Generation (NG), may have been improperly manufactured. Boeing said the part known as a leading-edge slat track — a mechanism that modifies the lift and drag characteristics of the plane’s wing during takeoffs and landings — is among 148 parts from a Boeing supplier that are under concern.

According to the FAA, 32 Boeing NG and 33 Boeing Max aircraft are affected in the U.S., with the number increasing to 133 NG and 179 Max worldwide.

In its statement, the FAA said, “The affected parts may be susceptible to premature failure or cracks resulting from the improper manufacturing process. Although a complete failure of a leading-edge slat track would not result in the loss of the aircraft, a risk remains that a failed part could lead to aircraft damage in fight.”

The Boeing 737 Next Generation airplane seen in an undated photo provided by Boeing.

Boeing


The FAA is issuing an Airworthiness Directive to mandate Boeing’s service actions to identify and remove the discrepant parts from service, estimating that “up to 148 parts manufactured by a Boeing sub-tier supplier are affected.”

In response, Boeing told CBS News they are working with the FAA and have “contacted 737 operators advising them to inspect the slat track assemblies on certain airplanes. One batch of slat tracks with specific lot numbers produced by a supplier was found to have a potential nonconformance.”

“We are committed to supporting our customers in every way possible as they identify and replace these potentially non-conforming tracks,” said Kevin McAllister, president & CEO of Boeing Commercial Airplanes. Boeing confirmed that it has not been informed of any “in-service issues related to this batch of slat tracks.”

Boeing has faced increased scrutiny since two crashes of Boeing 737 Max planes killed 346 people. In October 2018, Lion Air Flight 610 crashed 12 minutes after takeoff, killing all 189 people on board. In March of this year, Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302 crashed into the ground six minutes after takeoff, killing 157 people. In response, all Boeing 737 Max planes were grounded worldwide.

On Wednesday, Boeing CEO Dennis Muilenburg told “CBS Evening News” incoming anchor Norah O’Donnell, “We can’t change what has happened in these accidents but we can be absolutely resolute in what we’re going to do on safety going forward.”

Boeing CEO says he would put his family in a 737 Max

Kathryn Krupnik contributed to this report.

Source Article from https://www.cbsnews.com/news/boeing-confirms-to-faa-737-max-737-next-generation-slat-tracks-issue-passenger-planes/

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