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Comedian rips up the play book in Ukraine election success

A volunteer of a team managing social media pages of Ukrainian comic actor and presidential candidate Volodymyr Zelenskiy works on the candidate's Instagram page at the election campaign office in Kiev
A volunteer of a team managing social media pages of Ukrainian comic actor and presidential candidate Volodymyr Zelenskiy works on the candidate's Instagram page at the election campaign office in Kiev, Ukraine April 3, 2019. Picture taken April 3, 2019. REUTERS/Valentyn Ogirenko

April 5, 2019

By Matthias Williams and Margaryta Chornokondratenko

KIEV (Reuters) – As a comedian, TV host and actor, Volodymyr Zelenskiy knows how to start a show with a bang. He proved that by beating all comers in the first round of Ukraine’s presidential election.

As he plans for the grand finale, a runoff against President Petro Poroshenko on April 21, aides say he is sticking to an unorthodox campaign routine that has torn up the play book.

Appearing to turn the tables on Poroshenko, Zelenskiy on Wednesday evening accepted his challenge to take part in a policy debate. In a slick video with pumping music, he set his own conditions and gave his rival 24 hours to respond.

Poroshenko’s campaign team had hinted Zelenskiy would duck out because the comedian, who plays a fictional president in a popular TV series, would risk showing himself up.

Within 45 minutes of Zelenskiy’s video being posted on Facebook, it had been seen 141,000 times, shared more than 22,000 times and attracted 3,300 comments. It left a live countdown for Poroshenko to respond.

“You called me for a debate, dreaming that I would run away, duck out, hide. No. I’m not you in 2014,” said Zelenskiy, in a reference to Poroshenko not holding a debate during the previous election five years ago.

Poroshenko responded with a much more sober video in which he accepted Zelenskiy’s condition of holding the debate in a huge soccer stadium. But he cautioned: “Debate is not a show … This is no time to joke around. Being a president and commander in chief is not a game.”

Zelenskiy’s response to Poroshenko offered a snapshot of how he has upstaged his more experienced rivals, winning nearly twice as many votes as Poroshenko in the first round of the election on March 31.

Shunning traditional campaign tactics such as mass rallies or erecting tents in the street to distribute leaflets, he has relied heavily on social media and comedy gigs where he pokes fun at rivals, presenting himself as an everyman who stands up to corrupt elites — a man to whom Ukrainians can relate.

At stake is the leadership of a country on the frontline of the West’s standoff with Russia following the 2014 annexation of the Crimea peninsula and war in eastern Ukraine against Russia-backed separatists in which 13,000 people have been killed.

“NOT AFRAID TO BE CREATIVE”

Part of Zelenskiy’s campaign team works in a large house in an upscale area of the capital, Kiev. Inside, the offices have glass walls with messages scrawled on them and are filled with volunteers in their twenties bent over laptops.

“All that we do is to not be like everyone else,” said 28-year-old Michael Fedorov, whose team manages various Facebook, YouTube and Instagram pages. “We do not want to write typical posts. We do not want to speak the words that all politicians use. We want to get away from this as much as possible.”

He said Zelenskiy had from the start opposed traditional ways of doing things. “As a result, we have one platform only – that’s the internet,” he said.

Zelenskiy invites suggestions from Facebook followers on tackling problems such as high utility bills or their choice of prime minister.

Dmytro Razumkov, Zelenskiy’s political adviser, said the comedian would not hold mass rallies before the second vote because the focus was on ensuring he comes across as authentic and transparent.

“This is a person who is not a weather vane and does not change his position depending on whether it is more comfortable for a voter or less comfortable. You have to run for president, honestly stating your position and what will you do,” he said.

One challenge is attracting voters who are not internet-savvy — bridging the gap between online and offline.

Oleksandr Korniyenko, another senior member of Zelenskiy’s team, said one technique to get around this was emailing voters with campaign messages and encouraging them to print out the email and distribute it.

Another was encouraging Zelenskiy’s many young supporters to show his social media videos to older voters such as parents, he said.

Hoping a high turnout will favor Zelenskiy, his team is trying to ensure younger voters cast their ballots in email messages with headlines likely to make them click and read.

“Our emails are not the typical ‘You joined such and such a political party’. Instead we might have a crazy headline,” Fedorov said.

In the first round, an email was sent out by Zelenskiy’s team with the subject line “You’ve been left out”. The message itself said “everyone has already voted except you” and urged those who had voted to encourage others to vote, Fedorov said.

“We are not afraid to be creative,” he said.

“NOT A JOKE”

Zelenskiy has 3.3 million followers on Instagram, more than French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, British Prime Minister Theresa May and Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte combined. Poroshenko has 234,000.

The comedian’s posts offer snapshots of his life such as working out in the gym or going for a run, and allow him to poke fun at his rivals’ expense.

When former Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko, who was eliminated in the first round of voting, posted a video of herself eating a hot dog at a popular gas station chain to show her common touch, Zelenskiy posted a picture of himself and his team eating a hotdog at the same chain.

“In order to not be considered as just a joke, we decided to be serious like everyone else,” he wrote underneath.

Zelenskiy is likely to come under more scrutiny over policy before the runoff, including in the debate. He is wealthy and the image of the fictional president he plays, humble and scrupulously honest, is likely to be challenged by Poroshenko.

Zelenskiy has been accused during the campaign of being the puppet of a rich businessman whose TV channel airs his shows. Zelenskiy and the oligarch deny this, and both say their relationship is purely professional.

Razumkov says the campaign has shown Zelenskiy is his own man.

“In the Zelenskiy campaign, everything is completely different. When he launched his campaign, he said: ‘I want to show how you can become president, but remain a human being.'”

(Editing by Timothy Heritage)

Source: OANN

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St Patrick’s suspect previously arrested at other cathedral

A college philosophy teacher arrested after entering St. Patrick's Cathedral carrying two cans of gasoline, lighter fluid and butane lighters had also been arrested at a New Jersey cathedral this week and had booked a Thursday flight to Rome, the New York Police Department said.

Marc Lamparello, 37, is facing charges including attempted arson and reckless endangerment after his arrest Wednesday night at the New York City landmark, said John Miller, the New York Police Department's deputy commissioner of intelligence and counterterrorism.

It happened just days after Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris was ravaged by a fire that investigators said Thursday was most likely electrical. Miller would not discuss anything Lamparello told investigators after his arrest but stressed that there "doesn't appear to be any connection to any terrorist group or any terrorist-related intent here."

Before going to St. Patrick's on Wednesday, Miller said, Lamparello booked a $2,800 ticket on a 5:20 p.m. Thursday flight to Italy. He didn't speculate on Lamparello's motivations for planning the trip.

Lamparello remained in police custody Thursday and had not been arraigned.

It wasn't immediately clear whether Lamparello had a lawyer who could speak for him. A man leaving his parents' house Thursday in Hasbrouck Heights, New Jersey, close to New York City, had no comment for a reporter when asked about Lamparello.

Lamparello "wasn't weird," said a neighbor, Salvatore Altomare, adding that he "seemed like ... a nice guy, walked a straight line."

Altomare described the family as "very good people. ... They're real Americans — try to do the right thing."

Two nights before his arrest in New York, police in Newark arrested Lamparello after he wouldn't leave the Cathedral Basilica of the Sacred Heart at closing time after a late Mass. Essex County Sheriff Armando Fontoura said Thursday that Lamparello was calm and respectful to the officers but was adamant about not leaving.

"He said, 'This is a house of god, it should be open, I'm not leaving. You'll have to lock me up,'" Fontoura said.

After he was charged with three minor offenses including defiant trespass, emergency medical services personnel examined Lamparello and determined he wasn't a threat. Lamparello's mother arrived and the two drove back to Hasbrouck Heights in his van, according to Fontoura.

"There was no reason to check the van at that point," he said.

Lamparello is a philosophy instructor who has taught at New York City's Lehman and Brooklyn colleges and Seton Hall University in New Jersey. Lehman's website listed him as a Ph.D. candidate at the City University of New York's Graduate Center.

In a statement, Lehman College spokesperson Sarah Ramsey said, "We are aware that an individual was arrested last night after an incident at St. Patrick's Cathedral. The individual was hired at Lehman College during this academic year, and was a part-time, online instructor this semester. We are taking the appropriate steps to terminate the individual's employment with the college."

A page on Amazon.com describes Lamparello's 2016 book, "Reason and Counterpoint," as offering "ambitious and highly creative answers to some of the most vexing philosophical questions, while also using skepticism to question some of the most basic assumptions at the heart of philosophical method and inquiry."

Miller said surveillance camera footage showed Lamparello circling St. Patrick's several times in a minivan well over an hour before he parked outside the cathedral on Fifth Avenue, walked around the area, returned to his vehicle, and retrieved the gasoline and lighter fluid.

When he entered the church, he was confronted by a security officer, who notified counterterrorism officers standing outside. Lamparello told the officers his car was out of gas and headed in a direction away from where he was parked, Miller said.

Officers found his vehicle and determined it was not out of gas, Miller said.

___

David Porter reported from Hasbrouck Heights, New Jersey. Associated Press researcher Rhonda Shafner and writer Deepti Hajela contributed to this report.

Source: Fox News National

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Breakdancing among sports given provisional green light for Paris 2024

Bach President of the IOC attends a news conference after an Executive Board meeting in Lausanne
Thomas Bach, President of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) attends a news conference after an Executive Board meeting in Lausanne, Switzerland, March 27, 2019. REUTERS/Denis Balibouse

March 27, 2019

By Karolos Grohmann

LAUSANNE, Switzerland (Reuters) – Breakdancing was among four sports given a provisional green light for inclusion in the Paris 2024 Games by the International Olympic Committee on Wednesday, IOC President Thomas Bach said.

The Paris 2024 organizing committee in February proposed surfing, skateboarding and sport climbing as well as breakdancing for inclusion in the Games.

“We decided to recommend the four sports (for ratification) to the IOC session in June in Lausanne,” Bach told a news conference. “It is a provisional inclusion because the final decision should only be taken at the end of 2020.”

Surfing, climbing and skateboarding will be part of the Tokyo 2020 Olympics and their performance as new sports there will be key for their final inclusion in Paris.

“There will be a meeting in November 2020 and a board meeting in December where the final decision should be taken. In the meantime there is a monitoring program… to see how they perform, to look at governance, integrity of competitions, refereeing and judging system,” Bach said.

The Paris Games organizers have said they want to deliver a program that will be “in keeping with the times and inspire new audiences and attract young people … and which can be played anywhere and anytime in urban and other environments.”

Under new IOC rules first introduced for the Tokyo Games, Olympic host cities can hand-pick sports and propose them for inclusion in those Games if they are popular in that country and add to the Games’ appeal.

The IOC is eager to refresh the Games’ sports program to remain relevant to sponsors, broadcasters and fans.

(Reporting by Karolos Grohmann; Editing by Toby Davis)

Source: OANN

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Americans killed in Ethiopian Airlines crash included Army captain from Illinois, California brothers

An Army captain from the Chicago area and two brothers on an adventure before one was set to become a father were among the Americans killed when an Ethiopian Airlines jetliner plunged out of the sky on Sunday.

Antoine Lewis, 40, of Matteson, Ill., was a passenger on Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302 when the jetliner crashed shortly after takeoff, killing all 157 people onboard, according to Matteson Mayor Sheila Chalmers-Currin.

"I was devastated. Shocked and devastated," she told FOX32. "He was a humanitarian, a faith-driven man."

Lewis was in Africa doing Christian missionary work at the time of the air disaster. The 40-year-old enlisted in the army as a third-generation family member before going on to serve in Afghanistan, WGN reported.

FAA SAYS BOEING 737 MAX JETS CAN BE OPERATED DESPITE AUSTRALIA, CHINA GROUNDING THE PLANE

His father, Rodney Lewis, told WLS-TV he was stationed in Ottawa before leaving to go to Ethiopia.

Antoine Lewis was in Africa doing Christian missionary work at the time of the air disaster.

Antoine Lewis was in Africa doing Christian missionary work at the time of the air disaster. (Facebook)

"He was also stationed in South Korea, he was a military man, he loved it, he was moving up through the military," he said. "He went in as an enlisted man and he got his undergraduate degree and his graduate degree."

Lewis had planned to start a business or charity and build a home in Africa following his retirement from the military in a few years, according to family members. He leaves behind a wife and 15-year-old son.

One last trip before fatherhood turns deadly

Mel Riffel and his brother, Bennett Riffel, were on one last adventure before he was to become a father in May.

Mel Riffel and his brother, Bennett Riffel, were on one last adventure before he was to become a father in May. (Facebook)

Brothers Mel and Bennett Riffel were on one last adventure before Mel was expecting to become a father in May when they were killed in the crash.

The brothers from Redding, Calif. had been in Australia before visiting Africa, Redding Chamber of Commerce President Jake Mangas told the Record Searchlight. Mangas said he is close friends with the brothers' parents, Ike and Susan Riffel.

"Our family is devastated for Ike and Susan and certainly for Melvin's wife, Brittney," Mangas told the newspaper. "They are wonderful, faith-filled people and if there is any encouragement to me, it's in this difficult circumstance, I know they are surrounded by a community that loves them very much."

Parishioners at St. Joseph Church and School spent Monday placing flowers in the brothers' memory.  Both attended the church elementary school and their mother is the parish secretary, according to KRCR-TV.

ETHIOPIAN AIRLINES PLANE'S BLACK BOX RECOVERED AFTER DEADLY CRASH, BUT IS REPORTEDLY DAMAGED

"The community, we've been through a lot of things this past year, this year," Father Fred Gucor told the television station. "Very supportive community, just this morning after the Mass, people are offering prayer, offering them help, anything, anything."

In a statement to KRCR, a spokesperson for Ike and Susan Riffel said they were appreciating the outpouring so far.

"We appreciate the outpouring of love and support from the community. We ask for continued prayers," the spokesperson said.

'Great writer and an avid surfer'

Matt Vecere was among the 157 people killed in an Ethiopian Airlines crash.

Matt Vecere was among the 157 people killed in an Ethiopian Airlines crash. (IQAir)

A man originally from New Jersey who worked for a company that develops air quality products was also among the dead.

Matt Vecere grew up in Sea Isle City and studied ocean engineering at the Florida Institute of Technology. He later moved back to New Jersey when he transferred to Stockton University, FOX29 reported.

In 2005, Vecere moved to California, where he was living at the time of the crash while working for IQ Air, a Swiss-based company that develops air quality products. In a statement posted to Twitter, the company said it was "greatly saddened by the loss of our friend and colleague."

"Matt was a great writer and an avid surfer with a passion for helping others," the company said. "Our hearts are with Matt's family and all who lost their lives in this tragedy."

'Always had a smile on his face'

Mucaad Hussein of St. Cloud, Minnesota was on his way to visit relatives in Kenya when he was among those who perished.

Mucaad Hussein of St. Cloud, Minnesota was on his way to visit relatives in Kenya when he was among those who perished. (Facebook)

Mucaad Hussein of St. Cloud, Minnesota was on his way to visit relatives in Kenya when he ended up on the doomed flight.

Friends told FOX9 that Hussein was in his early 30s and had come to Minnesota in the 12th grade from Ethiopia. He later became a U.S. citizen, graduated from Apollo High School in St. Cloud and then studied at both St. Cloud Technical College and St. Cloud State.

“We used to play soccer together—very much involved in the youth soccer,” longtime friend Haji Yussuf told FOX9. “He was involved in a lot of different teams here in St. Cloud—youth programs. He was very visible in the community—very social, very outgoing—always smiling—always had a smile on his face.”

CLICK HERE FOR THE FOX NEWS APP

Hussein an activist who was involved with local politics, loved to play soccer, FOX9 reported.

Aviation experts from the Federal Aviation Administration arrived at the crash site Tuesday outside the capital, Addis Ababa, with representatives from the National Transportation Safety Board to join the Ethiopian-led investigation.

The FAA said it expects Boeing will soon complete improvements to an automated anti-stall system suspected of contributing to the deadly crash of another new Boeing 737 Max 8 in October, and update training requirements and related flight crew manuals.

Boeing has said it has no reason to pull the popular aircraft from the skies.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Source: Fox News National

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Veterans should have choice on health care provider: Dan Caldwell

Dan Caldwell, the executive director of Concerned Veterans for America, said on "America's Newsroom" Wednesday that while many Americans get quality health care from the Department of Veterans Affairs system, those who served in the military and wish to join private networks should have that choice.

He said that New York Democratic Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez "is really off base" with her contention at a Town Hall last week that the veterans health care system is efficient and "if it ain't broke, don't fix it."

"In many cases, yes, the V.A. is performing well, it is giving veterans high-quality care, but in other cases they aren't," Caldwell said. "Just because some veterans are getting good care isn't an excuse not to fix the V.A. for the veterans who aren't getting good care. And that's why we support giving veterans a choice, so if a veteran wants to access care in the community because he or she feels they aren't getting good care in the V.A., they can do that. And that's what President Trump supports -- not privatizing the V.A., not dismantling the V.A."

The V.A. Mission Act, which Congress passed in June and President Trump signed into law, allows veterans the option of using their benefits at a network of private health care providers.

OCASIO-CORTEZ DECLARES VA 'ISN'T BROKEN,' ALREADY PROVIDES TOP-NOTCH CARE 

"Through legislation like the V.A. Mission Act, they're trying to put the veteran at the center of the V.A., not the bureaucracy," Caldwell said. "Giving veterans a choice will force the private sector and the V.A. to compete for veterans, this will give veterans the power to choose."

The department was plagued by scandal during the Obama administration -- including secret wait lists, systemic neglect and veterans dying while waiting to see a doctor.

Caldwell credited Trump, Congress and V.A. Secretary Robert Wilkie for getting the measure passed. Wilkie is the fourth secretary to lead the VA in the past four years, while the VA’s $200 billion budget has doubled in the past decade.

"If implemented properly, it will fix a lot of the long-term systemic problems in the V.A.," he said, adding "You're seeing more people like Congresswoman Ocasio-Cortez inside and outside trying to stop the implementation of the bill and keep veterans trapped in many cases in failing V.A. hospitals. And that's not just wrong, that's immoral."

President Trump on Wednesday took aim at Ocasio-Cortez's V.A. remarks, tweeting: "Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is correct, the VA is not broken, it is doing great. But that is only because of the Trump Administration. We got Veterans Choice & Accountability passed."

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

Ocasio-Cortez said at the Town Hall: "They are trying to fix it. But who are they trying to fix it for, is the question we've got to ask. And this is who they're trying to fix it for. They're trying to fix the V.A. for insurance companies. They're trying to fix it for insurance corporations, and ultimately they're trying to fix the V.A. for the for-profit health care industry that does not put people or veterans first."

The Associated Press contributed to this story.

Source: Fox News Politics

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Three more women accuse Biden of improper contact, say his video wasn’t enough

Just hours after former Vice President Joe Biden appeared on video to promise he'd be "more mindful" about others' personal space, three more women have gone public claiming he touched them inappropriately -- and all three said Biden's video didn't go far enough.

In an article published late Wednesday in The Washington Post, Vail Kohnert-Yount charged that when she was an intern in the White House in 2013, Biden approached her to introduce herself.

“He then put his hand on the back of my head and pressed his forehead to my forehead while he talked to me," Kohnert-Yount told The Post. "I was so shocked that it was hard to focus on what he was saying. I remember he told me I was a ‘pretty girl.'"

Although Kohnert-Yount said she did not consider Biden's behavior to be "sexual assault or harassment,” she added that "it was the kind of inappropriate behavior that makes many women feel uncomfortable and unequal in the workplace.”

Earlier on Wednesday, Biden -- who is widely expected to enter the 2020 presidential race soon -- responded to a series of other misconduct allegations leveled against him by promising to “be more mindful about respecting personal space in the future.”

BIDEN IS 'READY TO KILL BERNIE,' AMID ALLEGATIONS SANDERS TEAM MAY BE LEAKING ALLEGATIONS TO SABOTAGE HIM

Biden also acknowledged the allegations in a tweeted video.

“Social norms are changing. I understand that, and I’ve heard what these women are saying," Biden tweeted. "Politics to me has always been about making connections, but I will be more mindful about respecting personal space in the future. That’s my responsibility and I will meet it."

Responding to Biden's comments, Kohnert-Yount told The Post: “I appreciate his attempt to do better in the future, but to me this is not mainly about whether Joe Biden has adequate respect for personal space. It’s about women deserving equal respect in the workplace.”

A second woman, Sofie Karasek, told The Post that Biden acted inappropriately when he placed his forehead against hers following the Oscars ceremony in 2016. Karasek had appeared on-stage with 51 other people who said they had experienced sexual assault. A photograph of the incident is widely available online.

In his comments Monday, Karasek said Biden “still didn’t take ownership in the way that he needs to.”

Biden "emphasized that he wants to connect with people and, of course, that’s important," Karasek said. "But again, all of our interactions and friendships are a two-way street. . . . Too often it doesn’t matter how the woman feels about it or they just assume that they’re fine with it."

Finally, Ally Coll said Biden squeezed her "for a beat too long" while she was a staffer organizing a reception for Democrats in 2008. She now runs the Purple Campaign, a nonprofit devoted to combating sexual harassment.

On its website, the Purple Campaign stated: "Courageous women have broken the silence by sharing their experiences with sexual harassment in the workplace, exposing a systemic problem that exists across every industry. Now we must work together to create lasting change."

Vice President Joe Biden with customers at a diner in Seaman, Ohio, in September 2012. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster, File)

Vice President Joe Biden with customers at a diner in Seaman, Ohio, in September 2012. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster, File)

The page continued: "The Purple Campaign’s mission is to end workplace sexual harassment by implementing stronger corporate policies, establishing better laws and empowering people to create lasting change within their own workplaces and communities."

Coll told The Post that while Biden's behavior didn't concern her at first, over time she came to realize it was inappropriate.

She told The Post that Biden's video illustrated "a continued lack of understanding about why these stories are being told and their relevance in the #MeToo era.”

FILE - In this March 13, 2017, file photo, former Vice President Joe Biden, right, embraces University of Delaware President Dennis Assanis during an event to formally launch the Biden Institute, a research and policy center focused on domestic issues at the University of Delaware, in Newark, Del. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky, File)

FILE - In this March 13, 2017, file photo, former Vice President Joe Biden, right, embraces University of Delaware President Dennis Assanis during an event to formally launch the Biden Institute, a research and policy center focused on domestic issues at the University of Delaware, in Newark, Del. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky, File)

Other allegations against Biden surfaced Tuesday from two women who spoke to The New York Times. One of the claims dated from 2012, while the other encounter was said to have taken place a few years later.

In the 2012 incident, writer D.J. Hill said Biden put his hand on her shoulder, then dropped it down her back in a way that made her "very uncomfortable" while Hill and her husband posed for pictures with him at a fundraiser in Minneapolis. Hill said her husband noticed the movement and made a joke about it.

In the second incident, former college student Caitlyn Caruso told the paper that Biden "rested his hand on her thigh — even as she squirmed in her seat to show her discomfort — and hugged her 'just a little bit too long' at an event on sexual assault at the University of Nevada at Las Vegas," as the paper reported. Caruso, now 22, said she was 19 at the time and had just recounted her own story of sexual assault.

On Monday, Amy Lappos, a former aide to Rep. Jim Himes, D-Conn., told the Hartford Courant that Biden touched her face with both hands and rubbed noses in 2009. Late last week, former Nevada politician Lucy Flores -- who campaigned for Bernie Sanders and served on the board of an activist group aligned with Sanders -- wrote that Biden had grabbed her shoulders, smelled her hair and kissed her on the back of her head at a campaign event in 2014.

FILE - In this May 22, 2013 file photo, Newly commissioned officer Erin Talbot, left, poses for a photograph with Vice President Joe Biden during commencement for the United States Coast Guard Academy in New London, Conn. AP Photo/Jessica Hill)

FILE - In this May 22, 2013 file photo, Newly commissioned officer Erin Talbot, left, poses for a photograph with Vice President Joe Biden during commencement for the United States Coast Guard Academy in New London, Conn. AP Photo/Jessica Hill)

A former Sanders staffer told Fox News on Wednesday that Flores is a "racist" and a "fraud."

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

In his Twitter video, Biden discussed the "gestures of support and encouragement" that he said he's made to both men and women which "have made them uncomfortable."

"In my career, I’ve always tried to make a human connection," Biden said. "That’s my responsibility, I think. I shake hands, I hug people, I grab men and women by the shoulders and say ‘you can do this.’ And whether they’re women, men, young, old, it’s the way I’ve always been. It’s the way I’ve tried to show I care about them and I’m listening."

Fox News' Elizabeth Zwirz contributed to this report.

Source: Fox News Politics

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Tennis: Opelka claims first tour title with victory over Schnur

Tennis - Australian Open - First Round
Tennis - Australian Open - First Round - Court 8, Melbourne, Australia, January 14, 2019. Reilly Opelka of the U.S. in action during the match against John Isner of the U.S. REUTERS/Adnan Abidi

February 18, 2019

(Reuters) – Reilly Opelka blasted 43 aces and won his first ATP Tour title with a 6-1 6-7(7) 7-6(7) victory over Canadian Brayden Schnur at the New York Open on Sunday.

The 21-year-old American paved the way for the victory by successfully challenging what Schnur thought was a crucial ace at 7-7 in the final tiebreak.

Schnur’s shot was shown to be out by a millimeter or two, so instead of having championship point the Canadian had a second serve, which he netted.

Opelka then slammed his 43rd ace of the match for the victory. He had the same number of aces in beating top seed John Isner in their semi-final on Saturday.

Opelka easily won the opening set against Schnur but the Canadian rebounded in the second by saving two championship points in a tiebreak and claiming the set when Opelka double faulted.

(Reporting by Gene Cherry in Raleigh, North Carolina; Editing by Greg Stutchbury)

Source: OANN

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FILE PHOTO: Naqvi Founder and Group Chief Executive of Abraaj Group attends the annual meeting of the WEF in Davos
FILE PHOTO: Arif Naqvi, Founder and Group Chief Executive of Abraaj Group attends the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos, Switzerland, January 17, 2017. REUTERS/Ruben Sprich/File Photo

April 26, 2019

By Tom Arnold

LONDON (Reuters) – A London court case to extradite Arif Naqvi, founder of collapsed private equity firm Abraaj Group, to the United States on fraud charges was adjourned until May 24, a court official said on Friday.

Naqvi was remanded in custody until that date, the official said. A former managing partner of Dubai-based Abraaj, Sev Vettivetpillai, was released on conditional bail to appear again at Westminster Magistrates Court on June 12, the official said.

Under the U.S. charges, both men are accused of defrauding U.S. investors by inflating positions held by Abraaj in order to attract greater funds from them, causing them financial loss, the official said.

Vettivetpillai could not be reached for a comment.

Naqvi, in a statement released through a PR firm, has pleaded innocent.

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission alleges that Naqvi and his firm raised money for the Abraaj Growth Markets Health Fund, collecting more than $100 million over three years from U.S.-based charitable organizations and other U.S. investors.

Naqvi and Vettivetpillai were arrested in Britain earlier this month. Another executive, Mustafa Abdel-Wadood was arrested at a New York hotel, Assistant U.S. Attorney Andrea Griswold said at a hearing in Manhattan federal court on April 11.

Abdel-Wadood appeared at the Manhattan hearing and pleaded not guilty to securities fraud, wire fraud and conspiracy charges.

(Editing by Jane Merriman)

Source: OANN

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Former Vice President Joe Biden announces his 2020 candidacy
Former U.S. Vice President Joe Biden announces his candidacy for the Democratic presidential nomination in this still image taken from a video released April 25, 2019. BIDEN CAMPAIGN HANDOUT via REUTERS ATTENTION EDITORS – THIS IMAGE HAS BEEN SUPPLIED BY A THIRD PARTY. NO RESALES. NO ARCHIVES

April 26, 2019

By James Oliphant

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Former U.S. Vice President Joe Biden, in his first interview as a Democratic presidential candidate, said on Friday that he does not believe he treated law professor Anita Hill badly during the 1991 confirmation hearings for Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas.

Biden had joined the burgeoning 2020 Democratic field a day earlier.

Biden’s conduct during those hearings, when he was chairman of the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee, became a renewed subject of controversy after the New York Times reported that Biden had called Hill earlier this month in the run-up to his presidential bid and that Hill was dissatisfied with Biden’s expression of regret.

Appearing on ABC’s “The View,” Biden largely defended his actions as a senator almost 30 years ago, saying he believed Hill’s allegations of sexual harassment levied at Thomas and tried to derail his confirmation.

Activists have long been unhappy that Hill was questioned in graphic detail by the all-white, all-male committee chaired by Biden.

“I’m sorry she was treated the way she was treated,” Biden said, but later, he asserted, “I don’t think I treated her badly. … How do you stop people from asking inflammatory questions?”

“There were a lot of mistakes made across the board and for those I apologize,” he said.

Biden praised Hill as “remarkable” and said she is “one of the reasons we have the #MeToo movement.”

Asked why he had not reached out to Hill earlier, Biden said he had previously publicly stated he had regrets about her treatment and that he “didn’t want to quote invade her space.”

That seemed to be a reference to another controversy that looms over Biden’s presidential run: allegations by several women that he made them uncomfortable by touching them at political events.

Biden also addressed that criticism, saying he was now more “cognizant” about a woman’s “private space.” But he maintained that he had been “trying to bring solace.”

He suggested he was still trying to sort out the guidelines for his conduct going forward.

“I should be able to read better,” he said. “I have to be more careful.”

Pressed by the show’s panel for an apology to his accusers, Biden would not entirely capitulate.

“So, I invaded your space,” he replied. “I mean, I’m sorry this happened. But I’m not sorry in a sense that I think I did anything that was intentionally designed to do anything wrong or be inappropriate.”

Biden, 76, served as former President Barack Obama’s vice president for two terms. He is competing with 19 others for the Democratic presidential nomination and the chance to likely face President Donald Trump next year in the general election.

His first public event as a presidential candidate is scheduled for Monday in Pittsburgh.

(Reporting by James Oliphant; editing by Jonathan Oatis)

Source: OANN

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FILE PHOTO: The logo of Tesla is seen in Taipei
FILE PHOTO: The logo of Tesla is seen in Taipei, Taiwan August 11, 2017. REUTERS/Tyrone Siu/File Photo

April 26, 2019

By Noel Randewich

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) – Tesla Inc’s stock slumped over 4% on Friday to its lowest price in two years, rounding out a rough week that included worse-than-expected quarterly results and a pitch by Chief Executive Elon Musk on autonomous cars that failed to win over investors.

With investors betting Tesla will soon raise capital, the stock has fallen 13% for the week to its lowest level since January 2017, before the launch of the Model 3 sedan aimed at making the electric car maker profitable.

One positive development for Tesla: a U.S. District Court judge on Friday granted a request by Musk and the Securities and Exchange Commission for a second extension to resolve a dispute over Musk’s use of Twitter.

On Wednesday, Tesla posted a worse-than-expected loss of $702 million for the March quarter. Musk said Tesla would return to profit in the third quarter and that there was “some merit” to raising capital.

Musk is still battling to convince investors that demand for the Model 3, the company’s first car aimed at the mass consumer market, is “insanely” high, and that it can be delivered efficiently to customers around the world.

Tesla ended its first quarter with $2.2 billion, down from $3.7 billion in the prior quarter, and the company is planning expansions including a Shanghai factory, an upcoming Model Y SUV, and other projects.

(GRAPHIC: Tesla’s cash – https://tmsnrt.rs/2DyJjX6)

On Monday, Musk hosted a self-driving event, where he predicted Tesla would have over a million autonomous vehicles by next year. Some analysts perceived the presentation as a way to deflect attention from questions about demand, margin pressure, increasing competition and even Musk’s ongoing battle with U.S. regulators.

Tesla’s stock has now fallen 29 percent in 2019 and the company’s market capitalization has declined to $41 billion from $63 billion in mid-December.

(GRAPHIC: Tesla’s declining market cap – https://tmsnrt.rs/2Dwd62r)

Analysts now expect Tesla’s revenue to expand 19% in 2019, compared with 83% growth in 2018 and 68% growth in 2017, according to Refinitiv.

Following Tesla’s quarterly report, 12 analysts recommend selling the stock, while 11 recommend buying and eight are neutral. The median analyst price target is $275, up 16% from the stock’s current price of $236. Berenberg analyst Alexander Haissl has the most optimistic price target, at $500, while Cowen and Company’s Jeffrey Osborne has the lowest, at $160, according to Refinitiv.

(Reporting by Noel Randewich; editing by Jonathan Oatis)

Source: OANN

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Former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee said Friday that Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein’s rare public criticism of the Obama administration was a “soft” way of accusing the previous administration of covering up Russia’s attempts at hacking the 2016 presidential election.

While speaking Thursday in New York at the Public Servants Dinner of the Armenian Bar Association, Rosenstein said that the Obama administration “chose not to publicize the full story about Russian computer hackers and social media trolls and how they relate to Russia’s broader strategy to undermine America.”

During an appearance on “America’s Newsroom” Friday morning, Huckabee called the comments an “unusually candid moment for Rosenstein.”

“I thought it was a soft way of him saying there was a cover-up,” Huckabee said. “They knew the Russians were attempting to influence the election and attempting to hack the election but they didn’t fully disclose that to the American people and certainly didn’t disclose it to the Trump campaign.

SWALWELL NOT CERTAIN TRUMP ISN’T A ‘RUSSIAN ASSET’

“Instead they tried to set a trap for them. It failed. The Trump team did not take the bait. And that’s the one conclusion that we can certainly come away with from the $35 million worth of investigation,” Huckabee continued.

Next week, Attorney General William Barr will testify before Congress and is expected to answer questions about Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation of President Trump, which found that there was not adequate evidence to conclude that President Trump and his administration colluded with Russia, though the president could not be exonerated in terms of the possibility that he obstructed justice.

Barr will testify to the Senate Judiciary Committee next Wednesday and to the House Judiciary Committee the following day.

TRUMP ASSESSES 2020 DEMS; TAKES SWIPES AT BIDEN, SANDERS; DISMISSES HARRIS, O’ROURKE; SAYS HE’S ROOTING FOR BUTTIGIEG 

“It is going to be a theater, an absolute show,” Huckabee said of the hearings. “Just like the Kavanaugh hearings were and like everything else is in Congress. We ought to close the curtain on them and can’t come back until after the election. They aren’t doing their job anyway. We aren’t paying them because they’re doing a wonderful service to the country and spare us the hypocrisy of thinking they’re interested in getting to the bottom of the facts,” he continued.

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

Ultimately, Huckabee argued, if Americans “took their partisan hats off,” they would see that President Trump was exonerated by the investigation.

Source: Fox News Politics

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Sri Lanka's former defense secretary Gotabaya Rajapaksa greets his supporters after his return from the United States, in Katunayake
Sri Lanka’s former defense secretary Gotabaya Rajapaksa greets his supporters after his return from the United States, in Katunayake, Sri Lanka April 12, 2019. REUTERS/Dinuka Liyanawatte

April 26, 2019

By Sanjeev Miglani and Shihar Aneez

COLOMBO (Reuters) – Sri Lanka’s former wartime defense chief, Gotabaya Rajapaksa, said on Friday he would run for president in elections this year and would stop the spread of Islamist extremism by rebuilding the intelligence service and surveilling citizens.

Gotabaya, as he is popularly known, is the younger brother of former President Mahinda Rajapaksa and the two led the country to a crushing defeat of separatist Tamil rebels a decade ago after a 26-year civil war.

More than 250 people were killed in bomb attacks on hotels and churches on Easter Sunday that the government has blamed on Islamist militants and that Islamic State has claimed responsibility for.

Gotabaya said the attacks could have been prevented if the island’s current government had not dismantled the intelligence network and extensive surveillance capabilities that he built up during the war and later on.

“Because the government was not prepared, that’s why you see a panic situation,” he said in an interview with Reuters.

Gotabaya said he would be a candidate “100 percent”, firming up months of speculation that he plans to run in the elections, which are due by December.

He was critical of the government’s response to the bombings. Since the attacks, the government has struggled to provide clear information about how they were staged, who was behind them and how serious the threat is from Islamic State to the country.

“Various people are blaming various people, not giving exactly the details as to what happened, even people expect the names, what organization did this, and how they came up to this level, that explanation was not given,” he said.

On Friday, President Maithripala Sirisena said the government led by premier Ranil Wickremesinghe should take responsibility for the attacks and that prior information warning of attacks was not shared with him.

Wickremesinghe said earlier he was not advised about warnings that came from India’s spy service either, presenting a picture of a government still in disarray since the two leaders fell out last October.

Gotabaya is facing lawsuits in the United States, where he is a dual citizen, over his role in the war and afterwards.

The South Africa-based International Truth and Justice Project, in partnership with U.S. law firm Hausfeld, filed a civil case in California this month against Gotabaya on behalf of a Tamil torture survivor.

In a separate case, Ahimsa Wickrematunga, the daughter of murdered investigative editor Lasantha Wickrematunga, filed a complaint for damages in the same U.S. District Court in California for allegedly instigating and authorizing the extrajudicial killing of her father.

Gotabaya said the cases were baseless and only a “little distraction” as he prepared for the election campaign. He said he had asked U.S. authorities to renounce his citizenship and that process was nearly done, clearing the way for his candidature.

‘DISMANTLE THE NETWORKS’

He said that if he won, his immediate focus would to be tackle the threat from radical Islam and to rebuild the security set-up.

“It’s a serious problem, you have to go deep into the groups, dismantle the networks,” he said, adding he would give the military a mandate to collect intelligence from the ground and to mount surveillance of groups turning to extremism.

Gotabaya said that a military intelligence cell he had set up in 2011 of 5,000 people, some of them with Arabic language skills and that was tracking the bent towards extremist ideology some of the Islamist groups were taking in eastern Sri Lanka was disbanded by the current government.

“They did not give priority to national security, there was a mix-up. They were talking about ethnic reconciliation, then they were talking about human rights issues, they were talking about individual freedoms,” he said.

President Sirisena’s government sought to forge reconciliation with minority Tamils and close the wounds of the war and launched investigations into allegations of rights abuse and torture against military officers.

Officials said many of these secret intelligence cells were disbanded because they faced allegations of abuse, including torture and extra judicial killings.

Muslims make up nearly 10 percent of Sri Lanka’s population of 22 million, which is predominantly Buddhist.

(Reporting by Sanjeev Miglani; Editing by Frances Kerry)

Source: OANN

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