List of All Articles with Tag 'rica'

Donald Trump has lashed out what he described as “cockroaches” in Washington DC following the release of the Durham report. The 300-page report – from an investigation led by Trump-appointed Special Counsel John Durham – railed against the FBI for opening a probe into alleged ties between Mr Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign and the Russian government. “THEY ARE SCUM, LIKE COCKROACHES ALL OVER WASHINGTON, D.C.,” the former president wrote on Truth Social in response to the findings. Meanwhile, Mr Trump’s name has cropped up in a bombshell lawsuit brought against Rudy Giuliani, the former New York City mayor and his former personal attorney. Mr Giuliani’s former aide Noelle Dunphy is suing Mr Giuliani for sexual harassment while she worked for him in 2019 and 2020. Mr Giuliani has strongly denied the claims. In the lawsuit, Ms Dunphy claims that she was told that he and then-president Mr Trump were offering to sell presidential pardons for $2m apiece. She also claims that she was forced to give Mr Giuliani oral sex while he was on speakerphone to Mr Trump. Read More Trump claimed the Durham probe would uncover the 'crime of the century.' Here's what it really found Trump says AOC ‘went crazy’ over CNN town hall as he slams Democrat’s relationship Rudy Giuliani said he and Trump were selling pardons for $2m apiece, ex-aide claims Trump tells former adviser Michael Flynn: 'We’re going to bring you back'

“Doomsday cult mom” Lori Vallow has been pictured with a slight smirk on her face in a new mugshot after she was convicted of murdering her two children and conspiring to murder her new husband Chad Daybell’s first wife. Vallow, 49, was found guilty of first-degree murder, conspiracy, and grand theft over the deaths of daughter Tylee Ryan, 16, son Joshua “JJ” Vallow, 7, and conspiracy to murder Tammy Daybell, 49, in Ada County Courthouse in Boise, Idaho. Tylee and JJ were last seen in September 2019. In June 2020, their remains were found buried on the Daybell property. Tammy died one month after their disappearance in October 2019. Over six weeks, prosecutors argued that Vallow conspired with Mr Daybell and her brother Alex Cox to kill the three victims, motivated by greed and their doomsday cult beliefs. On Friday 12 May, jurors convicted her on all charges. She will be sentenced within 90 days’ time where she faces life in prison. Judge Steven Boyce has now ordered a pre-sentence investigation to look into Vallow’s background including prior criminal record, social history, health, education and employment records. Read More Lori Vallow’s nephew-in-law says she’s not ‘inherently evil’ as she faces new charges for his attempted murder ‘Cult mom’ Lori Vallow appears to smirk in new mugshot after murder conviction Lori Vallow had two alleged accomplices in her children’s murders. One will never face justice Who is Lori Vallow? Mom-of-three, beauty queen – and now convicted killer

A Colorado man attempted to switch places with his dog to convince law enforcement officials that the pet was behind the wheel to avoid a ticket, police said. The driver, who was not named, was pulled over for speeding on Saturday before the man “attempted to switch places with his dog, who was in the passenger seat”, the Springfield police department said. The man, who was driving from Las Animas to Pueblo, got lost in Springfield and was stopped by the police around 11.30pm on Saturday night. An officer watched the entire episode of the driver maneuvering inside the car to swap places with the dog before the man himself got out from the passenger side. “The male party then exited the passenger side of the vehicle and claimed he was not driving,” the police said. The police said that the man showed clear signs of intoxication and when asked about his alcohol consumption then he ran from the officer before being nabbed again. “The male party was apprehended quickly within about 20 yards of the vehicle,” police said. The man was found to have two active warrants for his arrest out of Pueblo and was booked for his warrants and charged with drinking and driving, speeding and resisting arrest. “The dog was given to an acquaintance of the driver to take care of while the party was in jail,” the police said. “The dog does not face any charges and was let go with just a warning,” they added. In January, the Wyandotte Police Department (WPD) of Michigan took to Facebook to share that a police dog was under investigation for allegedly stealing lunch from one of its colleagues. Sharing the mugshot of the dog named Officer Ice, the police department said the canine is “not cooperating with the investigation” and had a history of rummaging through trash cans. The cheeky post went viral on social media and was followed by other similar posts by the department. Read More World's oldest dog celebrates 31st birthday, according to Guinness World Records Puppy found with swastikas ‘drawn all over her body’ 40 monkeys killed in suspected case of ‘mass poisoning’ in India

Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group Inc. said it isn’t financing an oil pipeline in East Africa, joining a growing

The San Francisco district attorney has released the surveillance footage that showed the fatal shooting of a 24-year-old transgender activist accused of shoplifting by a Walgreens security guard. The video was released on Monday following a public outcry after it was announced that the district attorney won't file charges against the guard, identified as Michael Earl-Wayne Anthony. The footage shows the guard assaulting unarmed Banko Brown on 27 April before fatally shooting him outside a downtown Walgreens. Brown was a budding community organiser known for helping Black transgender youth and reportedly struggled with homelessness. Last week, the board of supervisors unanimously approved a resolution urging district attorney Brooke Jenkins's office to release more evidence. She cited self-defence in her decision not to charge the guard. The video, which does not have sound, shows Brown heading for the door with a bag in his hand when he is intercepted by the guard. He then pushes and repeatedly punches Brown in the head before pinning him to the ground. The scuffle continues when after a point, the guard lifts Brown into the air. When Mr Anthony lets Brown go, he picks up the bag and moves to exit the store. He turns around and appears to step toward Mr Anthony, at which point the guard lifts his gun and shoots once, sending Brown falling back onto the ground. Mr Anthony, who was initially arrested and later released, told the police that he asked Brown to put the items back, but Brown was aggressive and fought to keep them. He said he told Brown he would let him go if he calmed down, and that Brown kept saying he was going to stab him. However, a knife was not found on Brown. Mr Anthony argued that he let Brown go, but he drew his gun and kept it pointed at the ground just in case Brown attacked. He said he shot when Brown advanced. The case was discharged by the district attorney on 1 May. The guard in interviews also misgendered Brown, referring to him as “she” and “her”. San Francisco supervisor Shamann Walton said in a statement that the video does not show justification for the shooting. Mr Walton said he plans to join board president Aaron Peskin in calling on the state attorney general for an independent review of the prosecutor’s decision. But Ms Jenkins, who has been criticised for handling the case, said that even after seeking more evidence, there was nothing to rebut the guard’s claim of self-defense. She pleaded with viewers to review all the evidence, including witness and police reports, given that the video footage lacks sound. "There will be a temptation, as human beings, to only view the video footage of this incident and nothing else," Ms Jenkins said. "We are accustomed to seeing videos online, and that often is what captures our attention rather than going the extra step to look deeper." Community members on Monday afternoon gathered outside Walgreens to protest against Ms Jenkins's decision to not file charges. Activists, politicians and others who reviewed the released footage of Brown’s death alleged that the video proves the security guard did not act in self-defence as suggested by the district attorney. Demonstrators with banners that read ”Justice for Banko Brown” demanded that Ms Jenkins press charges against the guard. "I was sad, but now I'm mad. I'm so mad. He was on the way to the centre the day he died," Tumani Drew, a friend of Brown's, told The San Francisco Standard. "All we know is that Banko was leaving the store. Anthony had no right to take his life." Brown worked as a community organiser for the Young Women’s Freedom Center – a nonprofit that provides support for young women and trans youths. "We do not need to see the video to know that Banko Brown’s killing was unjustified. Armed force is not a justified response to poverty,” said Julia Arroyo, the centre’s co-executive director. "We must live with the sobering reality that he was killed for no other cause but $14." Read More Transgender woman jailed for rape sent to male prison Payback? Project funds axed after Kansas lawmaker defies governor on abortion, trans rights Wave of anti-transgender bills in Republican-led states divides US faith leaders

President Joe Biden is ready to discuss the debt ceiling with congressional leaders at the White House in a high-profile session with reverberations across the globe as early outlines of a potential deal begin to emerge despite painstakingly slow negotiations. Raising the stakes, the Tuesday afternoon session comes as Biden is preparing to depart for the Group of Seven summit in Japan where the U.S. leadership will be on the world stage later this week. The president and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy are trying to strike a budget deal before the U.S. Treasury runs out of cash to keep paying the nation's bills, which could occur as soon as June 1. While Biden has remained upbeat that “we'll be able to do this,” McCarthy is prodding the president to move faster to avert a crisis. The Republican speaker says they need an agreement soon to avoid default. Expectations are low that a deal is that close at hand. Instead, it is more likely that staff talks will continue while the president is overseas. “I just don’t see the progress happening,” McCarthy told reporters Monday. But Biden was optimistic, saying over the weekend, “There’s a desire on their part as well as ours to reach an agreement." It's the second time in a week that Biden has met with McCarthy of California and other congressional leaders at the White House. Biden is confronting a politically divided Congress for the first time on the debt ceiling, a test for both the president and McCarthy, the new speaker, as they work to stave off an economic crisis that could come from a federal default. The meeting will also include Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York, Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky and House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries of New York. Even as the Democratic president and the Republican speaker box around the politics of the issue — with Biden insisting he’s not negotiating over the debt ceiling and McCarthy working to extract spending cuts — various areas of possible agreement appear to be emerging. Talks have been under way at the Capitol for much of the past week, closed-door discussions where White House and congressional staff are discussing what it would take to craft a budget deal that would unlock a separate vote to lift the nation’s borrowing capacity, now set at $31 trillion. Among the items on the table: clawing back some $30 billion in untapped COVID-19 money, imposing future budget caps, approving permitting reforms to ease energy development and putting bolstered work requirements on recipients of government aid, according to those familiar with the talks. McCarthy has complained the talks are slow-going, saying he first met with Biden more than 100 days ago and that the president should be more focused on issues at home. "An American president should focus on the solutions of America," McCarthy said ahead of Biden's trip. But Biden has insisted Republicans must rule out default and consider budget issues separate from the need to raise the nation's debt limit. The president has said it took McCarthy all this time to put forward his own proposal after Republicans failed to produce their own budget this year. The debt limit must be lifted, as has been done countless times before, to allow continued borrowing to pay already accrued bills. Compounding pressure on Washington to strike a deal, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said Monday that agency estimates are unchanged on the possible X-date when the U.S. could run out of cash — perhaps as early as June 1. But Yellen, in a letter to the House and Senate, left some opening for a possible time extension on a national default, stating that “the actual date Treasury exhausts extraordinary measures could be a number of days or weeks later than these estimates.” She said she would update Congress next week “as more information becomes available.” Time is dwindling. Congress has just a few days when both the House and Senate are in session to pass legislation. “It’s time for the principals to get more engaged, get their closers out there,” said Sen. John Thune of South Dakota, the Republican whip. “My impression is that they have too many cooks in the kitchen, too many people in the room and not the right people.” Details of a potential budget deal remain politically daunting, and it’s not at all clear they go far enough to satisfy McCarthy’s hard-right faction in the House or would be acceptable to a sizable number of Democrats whose votes would almost certainly be needed to secure any final deal. Republicans led by McCarthy want Biden to accept their proposal to roll back spending, cap future outlays and make other policy changes in the package passed last month by House Republicans. McCarthy says the House is the only chamber that has taken action to raise the debt ceiling. But the House bill is almost certain to fail in the Senate, controlled by Democrats, and Biden has said he would veto it. Biden did signal over the weekend that he could be open to tougher work requirements for certain government aid programs, which Republicans are proposing as part of the ongoing discussion. He has said he will not accept anything that takes away people’s health care coverage. An increase in the debt limit would not authorize new federal spending. It would only allow for borrowing to pay for what Congress has already approved. As June 1 approaches, the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office has warned of a “significant risk” of default sometime in the first two weeks of next month. The CBO noted that if the cash flow at the Treasury and the “extraordinary measures” that the department is now using can continue to pay for bills through June 15, the government can probably finance its operations through the end of July. That’s because the expected tax revenues that will come in mid-June and other measures will give the federal government enough cash for at least a few more weeks. ___ Associated Press writer Kevin Freking contributed to this report. Read More Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Pence allies launching super PAC to back former vice president's expected 2024 candidacy South Korea and Japan use G-7 to push improvement in ties long marked by animosity Wisconsin judge allows for lawsuit against fake Trump electors to proceed

Indonesia is turning to the yen market for a rare sale of blue bonds to raise funds for

Colombian rebel leader Pablo Beltran said on Tuesday that peace talks between his National Liberation Army and the government have been put “on pause” due to remarks made last week by President Gustavo Petro. Petro questioned whether members of the rebel group's delegation in Cuba could effectively control the actions of their own commanders on the battlefield. He also said the younger leaders of the group, known as the ELN, were motivated not by political goals, but by drug trafficking profits. In an interview published on Youtube by the ELN’s communication team, Beltran said that delegations from both sides would have to meet to “examine” the comments by Colombia's president before issues like a ceasefire and rural development schemes can continue to be discussed. The negotiations began in November and have failed to produce any major breakthroughs so far. The ELN was recognized as “an armed rebel group” by Colombia’s government during the last round of talks which took place in Mexico, a designation that enables it to seek policy changes in peace talks instead of just negotiating reduced sentences for their crimes. Beltran argued that Petro’s recent comments are putting its status as a “political organization” in jeopardy. “If they are saying one thing in the negotiations, while the president says another we feel like we are stuck in the middle,” Beltran said. “So we are asking for an explanation.” During a speech to military officers on Friday, Petro described members of the ELN’s peace delegation as “elderly” leaders who were interested in discussing political changes. But he questioned whether younger ELN commanders who lead troops on the ground have the same kind of goals. “They may use the same banners,” Petro said. “But what motivates them is (profiting from) illicit economies.” Petro added that elderly leaders like Beltran were “willing to sit down and talk. But are they really in charge?” The ELN was founded in the 1960s by union leaders, students and priests inspired by the Cuban revolution. It is Colombia’s largest remaining rebel group and has been notoriously difficult for previous Colombian governments to negotiate with. In 2016, Colombia’s government signed a peace deal with the larger FARC group that ended five decades of conflict in which an estimated 260,000 people were killed. But violence has continued to affect rural pockets of the country where the ELN has been fighting the Gulf Clan and FARC holdout groups for the control of drug trafficking routes and other resources. Petro promised during his presidential campaign that he would seek peace deals with all of Colombia’s major armed groups by rolling out a strategy he described as “total peace.” But the Gulf Clan recently gave up on the peace talks, while negotiations with FARC holdout groups are still in preliminary stages. Read More Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide

Multiple explosions were heard in Kyiv early Tuesday, marking the eighth Russian attack on the capital this month.

A former aide to Rudolph Giuliani says he told her the ex-New York City mayor and then-president Donald Trump were offering to sell presidential pardons for $2 million apiece, according to court documents. The bombshell allegation was levied in a complaint filed against Mr Giuliani by Noelle Dunphy, a New York-based public relations professional who is suing him for “unlawful abuses of power, wide-ranging sexual assault and harassment, wage theft, and other misconduct” committed while she worked for him in 2019 and 2020. Mr Giuliani has strongly denied the claims in the lawsuit. Earlier it it was reported that Mr Trump was shown tweets from Democrats blasting CNN for hosting the town hall with him to psyche him up during the live broadcast. During the initial commercial break, Trump adviser Jason Miller showed the former president recent tweets backstage at the New Hampshire college where the event was hosted, according to Axios. Mr Trump grew more bellicose as the night went on after being shown posts by several people slamming CNN, including New York progressive Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. Ms Ocasio-Cortez tweeted 23 minutes into the event: “CNN should be ashamed of themselves. They have lost total control of this ‘town hall’ to again be manipulated into platforming election disinformation, defenses of Jan 6th, and a public attack on a sexual abuse victim.” “The audience is cheering him on and laughing at the host,” she added. Meanwhile, Mr Trump posted an oddly phrased Mother’s Day message attacking the parents of his main foes on Sunday, as he rushed to stick it to the “Radical Left Fascists”. Read More Trump news – live: Aides showed Trump tweets by AOC and Andrew Yang to psyche him up during break in town hall Jason Sudeikis reveals his Ted Lasso character was changed because of Donald Trump Prosecutor ends probe of FBI's Trump-Russia investigation with harsh criticism, but no new charges One of far-right Rep Paul Gosar’s top aides pledged his loyalty to white supremacist Nick Fuentes, report finds Rick Perry teases possible 2024 run against Trump

A former aide to former Trump attorney Rudolph Giuliani says he told her the ex-New York City mayor and then-president Donald Trump were offering to sell presidential pardons for $2 million apiece, according to court documents. The bombshell allegation was levied in a complaint filed against Mr Giuliani by Noelle Dunphy, a New York-based public relations professional who is suing him for “unlawful abuses of power, wide-ranging sexual assault and harassment, wage theft, and other misconduct” committed while she worked for him in 2019 and 2020. The lawsuit also claims that she was subjected to sexual assault, harassment, wage theft and other misconduct by Mr Giuliani, and alleges that she was forced to perform sex acts on him and work in the nude. Ms Duphy’s lawsuit details an interaction she allegedly had with Mr Giuliani on or about 16 February 2019, when he was serving as Mr Trump’s personal attorney and attempting to dig up overseas dirt on then-former vice president Joe Biden, who at the time was two months away from entering the 2020 presidential race against Mr Trump. She writes that as they reviewed emails between him and Ukrainian government officials, she asked if he had to register as a foreign agent under the Foreign Agents Registration Act and offered to do the required paperwork for him. The former mayor replied that he was allowed to violate Fara and other US laws because “[he had] immunity”. She then states that Mr Giuliani asked her “if she knew anyone in need of a pardon” because he was “selling pardons for $2 million, which he and President Trump would split”. “He told Ms Dunphy that she could refer individuals seeking pardons to him, so long as they did not go through “the normal channels” of the Office of the Pardon Attorney, because correspondence going to that office would be subject to disclosure under the Freedom of Information Act,” she added. During Mr Trump’s presidency, he frequently granted pardons to wealthy or well-connected individuals without the involvement of the Pardon Attorney, the Department of Justice official who is charged with reviewing petitions for executive clemency and making recommendations as to whether a given petition should be granted. No evidence has ever emerged that Mr Trump or Mr Giuliani were ever compensated for any presidential pardon granted during Mr Trump’s time in office, but Ms Dunphy’s allegation matches that made by another person who once sought a pardon from the then-president. In August, The New York Times reported that former CIA officer John Kiriakou broached the topic with Mr Giuliani during a meeting at the Washington, DC hotel Mr Trump’s company ran between 2016 and 2022. Mr Kiriakou, who in 2012 was sentenced to nearly three years in prison for disclosing classified information, told the Times that one of Mr Giuliani’s associates at the meeting said the ex-New York City mayor could assist him — for a price. “It’s going to cost $2 million — he’s going to want two million bucks,” he recalled the Giuliani associate as saying. He also told the Times that he did not pursue a pardon through Mr Giuliani because he could not afford to pay him $2 million. “I laughed. Two million bucks — are you out of your mind?” Kiriakou told the outlet. “Even if I had two million bucks, I wouldn’t spend it to recover a $700,000 pension,” he said. Ted Goodman, a spokesperson for and adviser to Mr Giuliani, told The Independent in an email that the former New York mayor “unequivocally denies the allegations raised by Ms Dunphy”. “Mayor Giuliani’s lifetime of public service speaks for itself and he will pursue all available remedies and counterclaims,” he added. The Independent has reached out to Mr Trump’s team for comment. Read More Trump news – live: Aides showed Trump tweets by AOC and Andrew Yang to psyche him up during break in town hall Rudy Giuliani sued for $10m for alleged sexual assault by former employee Trump claimed the Durham probe would uncover the 'crime of the century.' Here's what it really found Trump tells former adviser Michael Flynn: 'We’re going to bring you back' Trump says AOC ‘went crazy’ over CNN town hall as he slams Democrat’s relationship Ivanka and Jared split over attending Trump 2024 launch – follow live Why was Donald Trump impeached twice during his first term? Four big lies Trump told during his 2024 presidential announcement

Asian equities are poised for a mixed opening as traders continue to look for clues of any breakthrough