Upcoming shows
Real News

NOW ON AIR
Now On Air

Maga First News with Peter Boykin

8:00 am 9:00 am



Maga First News

Upcoming Shows

Join The MAGA Network on Discord

0 0

MMA fighter Conor McGregor arrested in Florida for breaking fan’s phone

UFC fighter Conor McGregor appears in a police booking photo at Miami-Dade County Jail in Miami
UFC fighter Conor McGregor appears in a police booking photo at Miami-Dade County Jail in Miami, Florida, U.S. March 11, 2019. Miami-Dade County Corrections/Handout via REUTERS

March 12, 2019

(Reuters) – Conor McGregor was arrested in Miami Beach on Monday after a fan said the Irish mixed martial arts fighter smashed his phone and then walked off with the shattered remains, police records show.

McGregor, 30, was booked into the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center in Miami on suspicion of robbery and criminal mischief, according to an arrest affidavit filed in connection with the incident, which took place shortly after 5 a.m. (0900 GMT) on Monday.

“The victim and the defendant were exiting the Fountainbleau Hotel and the victim attempted to take a picture of the defendant with his cell phone,” the arrest report said, without identifying the second man’s name.

“The defendant slapped the victim’s phone out of his hand, causing it to fall to the floor. The defendant then stomped on the victim’s phone several times, damaging it,” the report said, adding that the device was valued at $1,000.

McGregor was taken into custody later on Monday. It was not immediately clear if he had retained a local attorney to represent him.

McGregor was charged in April 2018 with three counts of assault and one count of criminal mischief after police said he attacked a charter bus in New York carrying UFC fighters, throwing a moving dolly through a window and injuring other fighters.

He later pleaded guilty to a reduced disorderly conduct charge.

(Reporting by Dan Whitcomb; Editing by Alistair Bell)

Source: OANN

0 0

Multiple people shot outside nightclub in Australia

A Victoria Police personnel works at the scene of a multiple shooting outside Love Machine nightclub in Prahran, Melbourne
A Victoria Police personnel works at the scene of a multiple shooting outside Love Machine nightclub in Prahran, Melbourne, Australia April 14, 2019. AAP Image/Ellen Smith/via REUTERS

April 14, 2019

SYDNEY (Reuters) – Multiple people have been shot outside a nightclub in the Australian city of Melbourne, police said on Sunday.

Two men were in hospital in critical condition, police said, while two other men had non-life-threatening injuries.

The shooting occurred outside a nightclub in the southeastern Melbourne suburb of Prahran about 3:20 a.m. on Sunday, police said.

A police spokeswoman said by telephone that there was no suggestion the attack was terror-related at this stage.

The Age newspaper reported one of the wounded was a guard who was shot in the face in what the report described as a drive-by shooting outside the Love Machine nightclub.

Police were investigating but no arrests have yet been made.

(Reporting by Alison Bevege in SYDNEY and Ismail Shakil in BENGALURU; editing by Jonathan Oatis)

Source: OANN

0 0

AG Barr Confirms: Obama Admin Did Conduct ‘Unauthorized Surveillance’ of Trump Campaign

Super Male Vitality

Limited Advanced Release

69.95

31.47

The all new and advanced Super Male Vitality formula uses the newest extraction technology with even more powerful concentrations of various herbs and extracts designed to be even stronger.

https://www.infowars.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/smv-200.jpg

https://www.infowarsstore.com/super-male-vitality.html?ims=jftqm&utm_campaign=IW+-+SuperMale+-STFA+-+55%25+Off+-+Widget&utm_source=Infowars+Widget&utm_medium=Widget&utm_content=IW-STFA-SuperMale-55%25off-Widget

https://www.infowarsstore.com/super-male-vitality.html?ims=jftqm&utm_campaign=IW+-+SuperMale+-STFA+-+55%25+Off+-+Widget&utm_source=Infowars+Widget&utm_medium=Widget&utm_content=IW-STFA-SuperMale-55%25off-Widget

Super Male Vitality

69.95

31.47

The all new and advanced Super Male Vitality formula uses the newest extraction technology with even more powerful concentrations of various herbs and extracts designed to be even stronger.

https://www.infowars.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/smv-200.jpg

https://www.infowarsstore.com/super-male-vitality.html?ims=jftqm&utm_campaign=IW+-+SuperMale+-STFA+-+55%25+Off+-+Widget&utm_source=Infowars+Widget&utm_medium=Widget&utm_content=IW-STFA-SuperMale-55%25off-Widget

https://www.infowarsstore.com/super-male-vitality.html?ims=jftqm&utm_campaign=IW+-+SuperMale+-STFA+-+55%25+Off+-+Widget&utm_source=Infowars+Widget&utm_medium=Widget&utm_content=IW-STFA-SuperMale-55%25off-Widget

Brain Force Plus

39.95

15.98

Flip the switch and supercharge your state of mind with the all-new Brain Force PLUS: 20% more capsules and a critically enhanced formula featuring a brand new ingredient and increased potency* – all for the same low price.

https://www.infowars.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/bf-300-1.jpg

https://www.infowarsstore.com/brain-force.html?ims=bnlem&utm_campaign=IW+-+Brain+Force+-STFA+-+60%25+Off+-+Widget&utm_source=Infowars+Widget&utm_medium=Widget&utm_content=IW-STFA-BrainForce-60%25off-Widget

https://www.infowarsstore.com/brain-force.html?ims=bnlem&utm_campaign=IW+-+Brain+Force+-STFA+-+60%25+Off+-+Widget&utm_source=Infowars+Widget&utm_medium=Widget&utm_content=IW-STFA-BrainForce-60%25off-Widget

DNA Force Plus

149.95

59.80

With one of our most advanced formulas yet, DNA Force Plus is finally here. Focusing on overhauling your body's cellular engines and protecting them from reactive oxygen species, DNA Force Plus has one of the best combinations of antioxidants on the market.

https://www.infowars.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/dna-210.jpg

https://www.infowarsstore.com/dna-force-plus.html?ims=xxqxg&utm_campaign=DNA+Force+Plus+-+STFA+Ending+Soon+-+60%25+Off+&utm_source=Infowars+Widget&utm_medium=Widget&utm_content=IW-DNAFP-Widget-60%25off-STFA

https://www.infowarsstore.com/dna-force-plus.html?ims=xxqxg&utm_campaign=DNA+Force+Plus+-+STFA+Ending+Soon+-+60%25+Off+&utm_source=Infowars+Widget&utm_medium=Widget&utm_content=IW-DNAFP-Widget-60%25off-STFA

DNA Force Plus

149.95

59.80

With one of our most advanced formulas yet, DNA Force Plus is finally here. Focusing on overhauling your body's cellular engines and protecting them from reactive oxygen species, DNA Force Plus has one of the best combinations of antioxidants on the market.

https://www.infowars.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/dna-210.jpg

https://www.infowarsstore.com/dna-force-plus.html?ims=xxqxg&utm_campaign=DNA+Force+Plus+-+STFA+Ending+Soon+-+60%25+Off+&utm_source=Infowars+Widget&utm_medium=Widget&utm_content=IW-DNAFP-Widget-60%25off-STFA

https://www.infowarsstore.com/dna-force-plus.html?ims=xxqxg&utm_campaign=DNA+Force+Plus+-+STFA+Ending+Soon+-+60%25+Off+&utm_source=Infowars+Widget&utm_medium=Widget&utm_content=IW-DNAFP-Widget-60%25off-STFA

DNA Force Plus

149.95

59.80

With one of our most advanced formulas yet, DNA Force Plus is finally here. Focusing on overhauling your body's cellular engines and protecting them from reactive oxygen species, DNA Force Plus has one of the best combinations of antioxidants on the market.

https://www.infowars.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/dna-210.jpg

https://www.infowarsstore.com/dna-force-plus.html?ims=xxqxg&utm_campaign=DNA+Force+Plus+-+STFA+Ending+Soon+-+60%25+Off+&utm_source=Infowars+Widget&utm_medium=Widget&utm_content=IW-DNAFP-Widget-60%25off-STFA

https://www.infowarsstore.com/dna-force-plus.html?ims=xxqxg&utm_campaign=DNA+Force+Plus+-+STFA+Ending+Soon+-+60%25+Off+&utm_source=Infowars+Widget&utm_medium=Widget&utm_content=IW-DNAFP-Widget-60%25off-STFA

Source: InfoWars

0 0

No sign yet of Trump’s tax returns, increasing likelihood of court fight

U.S. President Trump departs on travel to the Texas from the White House in Washington
U.S. President Donald Trump talks to reporters as he departs for travel to Texas from the White House in Washington, U.S., April 10, 2019. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque

April 11, 2019

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The likelihood of a court fight over President Donald Trump’s tax returns grew on Wednesday when the U.S. Treasury Department showed no sign of complying with a deadline set by Democratic legislators and Trump himself stuck to his refusal to publicly release them.

Republican Trump has consistently refused requests by politicians, journalists and others, stating his reason for not doing so is that the returns are under audit. Tax and legal experts have said, however, that an audit should not prevent their public release, a practice presidents have followed for decades.

With only hours left before a midnight deadline set for the Treasury Department by the Democratic-controlled U.S. House of Representatives tax committee, the panel said it had not received the returns.

The department, which has consulted with the White House on the panel’s demand, did not respond to requests for comment.

Democrats want to review Trump’s returns chiefly as part of their investigations into possible conflicts of interest posed by his continued ownership of extensive business interests even as he serves the public as president.

Republicans oppose release of the returns, arguing that it would politicize tax data. The returns of U.S. taxpayers are generally held as confidential by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), which is part of the Treasury Department.

“There is a high likelihood this ends up in the courts, which is, in a way, unusual because typically when there’s a request like this by Congress, the matter is settled more politically with a compromise,” said Jessica Levinson, a professor at Loyola Law School in Los Angeles who specializes in political process law. “But in this case both sides have really dug in.”

Legal experts have said that little case law would be available to guide judges if Congress were to take the administration to court over the issue.

Asked about the matter on Wednesday, Trump once again said his tax returns were being audited by the IRS. “I would love to give them, but I’m not going to do it while I’m under audit. It’s very simple,” Trump told reporters.

House tax committee Chairman Richard Neal last week requested six years of Trump’s personal and business returns from the IRS, invoking a seldom-used law entitling him to make such a request.

Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said in an interview on CNBC television on Wednesday that it was appropriate for his agency to consult with the White House counsel on Neal’s request. Mnuchin had said on Tuesday that Treasury Department lawyers had held “informational” discussions with the White House about an expected request for the returns, a step that Democrats criticized as uncalled for under the law.

Democrats say a 1924 statute requires the Treasury secretary to turn over tax returns to the chairmen of the congressional tax committees who ask for them for investigative purposes.

(Reporting by Steve Holland, Jason Lange, Tim Ahmann and Richard Cowan; additional reporting by Susan Heavey; writing by Meredith Mazzilli; editing by Bernadette Baum and Grant McCool)

Source: OANN

0 0

Lessors rush to repossess more Jet Airways planes, even as emergency funds awaited

FILE PHOTO: Jet Airways aircrafts are seen parked at the Indira Gandhi International Airport in New Delhi
FILE PHOTO: Jet Airways aircrafts are seen parked at the Indira Gandhi International Airport in New Delhi, India, April 13, 2019. REUTERS/Anushree Fadnavis

April 17, 2019

MUMBAI (Reuters) – Lessors to India’s Jet Airways Ltd have applied to deregister another four Boeing Co 737 planes, the Indian aviation regulator said on its website on Wednesday, even as the embattled carrier seeks emergency funding from its lenders.

Latest analysis of data disclosed by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation shows that Jet’s lessors have, so far, sought to deregister and repossess at least four dozen of the planes operated by Jet. Once deregistered, lessors are free to reclaim a plane and lease it to another airline anywhere in the world.

The moves come even as Jet scrambles to secure emergency funds and its lenders try to hurry through a sale process to identify an investor willing to acquire a majority stake in the airline and attempt to turn it around.

Lenders are likely to invite binding bids from four shortlisted suitors, private equity firms TPG Capital and Indigo Partners, Indian sovereign wealth fund National Investment and Infrastructure Fund, and the UAE’s Etihad Airways that already owns a minority stake in Jet, local media reported.

TPG declined to comment, while the other three did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Reuters.

Jet will be forced to shut down as soon as Wednesday if it does not get emergency funding from its lenders, two sources familiar with the matter told Reuters on Tuesday.

Jet CEO Vinay Dube said on Tuesday in a letter to employees, seen by Reuters, that the carrier had stressed to its lenders the need for some urgent funding, critical to the continuation of its operations.

At its peak, Jet had over 120 planes and hundreds of daily flights. The airline, once India’s leading private carrier, has been forced in recent months to cancel hundreds of flights to dozens of domestic and overseas destinations.

On its website, Jet Airways disclosed it was operating only about three dozen flights on Wednesday.

Shares in the company, which have tumbled about 60 percent in the last year, closed on Tuesday at 240.50 rupees a share.

The company still has a market capitalization of $393.8 million, as investors cling to hopes of a rescue. Indian markets were closed due to a public holiday on Wednesday.

(Reporting by Tanvi Mehta and Euan Rocha in Mumbai; Editing by Himani Sarkar)

Source: OANN

0 0

Soccer: England women must win trophies before fighting for equal pay – Duggan

Women's International Friendly - England v Sweden
FILE PHOTO: Soccer Football - Women's International Friendly - England v Sweden - New York Stadium, Rotherham, Britain - November 11, 2018 England's Toni Duggan Action Images via Reuters/Craig Brough

April 19, 2019

By Richard Martin

BARCELONA (Reuters) – England women’s forward Toni Duggan says her nation must match the achievements of three-times world champions the United States and “put trophies on the table” before they also ask for equal conditions as the men’s team.

All 28 members of the U.S. 2015 World Cup winning squad have filed a lawsuit against their national federation, complaining about wages and working conditions compared to the men’s side, who failed to qualify for the 2018 World Cup.

“You look at the U.S. team and they’re a lot more successful than the men’s and that’s their argument. So first and foremost England need to be more successful,” Duggan told Reuters in an interview at Barcelona’s training ground.

“I can’t sit here and say we’re going to get to that stage, we need to be putting trophies on the table. Hopefully one day we’ll be like that, but fair play to the U.S. team because it (equal pay) is what they deserve.”

Duggan was part of the England side which reached the World Cup semi-finals in 2015 and the last four of the 2017 European Championships.

After the Lionesses piped the U.S. to win the four-nation SheBelieves Cup in March, she challenged the team to take the next step and go all the way in this year’s World Cup in France.

“I believe we can, we’ve got to two semi-finals at major tournaments, we’ve beat all the tough opponents. So it’s possible but it’s OK saying it, it’s about doing it,” Duggan said.

She is also confident her side will be able to continue the feel-good factor Gareth Southgate’s men’s side provided back home with their run to the last four in Russia, which she said began with the women’s excellent 2015 World Cup campaign.

“To be honest, we started it, we had amazing support in Canada and Gareth followed on from that, great credit to him because he got them playing nice soccer and people wanted to be part of supporting England again,” she said.

“There was a dip in the past few years but the buzz is back and I’m sure everyone will be behind us this summer.”

Former Manchester United and Everton player Phil Neville had no experience of the women’s game when he succeeded Mark Sampson as England coach last year but Duggan praised the impact he has had on the team.

“We need people like Phil who have experienced winning trophies to share that experience with us,” she said. “The standards he sets are important to him, everyone’s enjoying life under him and the new style we play, hopefully we can see that in the summer.”

CHAMPIONS LEAGUE PUSH

Before the World Cup, Duggan can look forward to a thrilling end to the season with Barcelona, who are involved in a close-run title-tilt with Atletico Madrid and meet Bayern Munich in the Champions League semi-finals.

Barca have missed out on the last-four stage on three occasions and last year were beaten in the quarter-finals by eventual winners Olympique Lyonnais.

“I just felt Lyon had a little more than us. We were a new team but we’re more together now,” Duggan said.

“We’re on a good run, winning games comfortably. Bayern won’t be easy but I believe this is our chance.”

Duggan has already made history with Barca, scoring in a 2-0 win at title rivals Atletico in front of 60,739 people at the Wanda Metropolitano stadium which smashed the world attendance record for a women’s game.

More than 20,000 people watched last week’s derby between Real Betis and Sevilla, while 48,000 went to Athletic Bilbao’s San Mames to see their women’s side take on Atletico Madrid in January.

“I’ve played in big games, at Wembley, a World Cup semi-final, but the atmosphere with 60,000 people was amazing,” Duggan added.

“In Spain they’re doing something right because the attendances keep creeping up and teams are getting the opportunity to play at the men’s stadiums.

“That’s the way forward for this women’s game and you see it spreading across the world with Juventus doing it. It was a great occasion and hopefully we can keep the ball rolling.”

(Reporting by Richard Martin; Editing by Christian Radnedge)

Source: OANN

0 0

Nunes sues Twitter, some users, seeks over $250M alleging anti-conservative 'shadow bans,' smears

California GOP Rep. Devin Nunes filed a major lawsuit seeking $250 million in compensatory damages and $350,000 in punitive damages against Twitter and a handful of its users on Monday, accusing the social media site of "shadow-banning conservatives" including himself to influence the 2018 elections, explicitly and systematically censoring opposing viewpoints and "ignoring" lawful complaints of repeated abusive behavior.

In a complaint filed in Virginia state court on Monday, Nunes said Twitter was guilty of "knowingly hosting and monetizing content that is clearly abusive, hateful and defamatory – providing both a voice and financial incentive to the defamers – thereby facilitating defamation on its platform."

Although federal law ordinarily exempts services like Twitter from defamation liability, Nunes' suit said the platform has taken such an active role in curating and banning content that it should lose that protection and face liability like any other organization that defames.

"Twitter created and developed the content at issue in this case by transforming false accusations of criminal conduct, imputed wrongdoing, dishonesty and lack of integrity into a publicly available commodity used by unscrupulous political operatives and their donor/clients as a weapon," Nunes' legal team wrote.

In large part because of Twitter's actions, Nunes "endured an orchestrated defamation campaign of stunning breadth and scope, one that no human being should ever have to bear and suffer in their whole life" in the past year, according to the complaint.

The complaint also named specific Twitter accounts that spread allegedly defamatory material about Nunes. One defendant, identified as "Liz" Mair, purportedly published tweets that "implied that Nunes colluded with prostitutes and cocaine addicts, that Nunes does cocaine, and that Nunes was involved in a 'Russian money laundering front,'" according to Nunes' lawyers. They specifically quoted a June 22, 2018 tweet that implied Nunes invested in a winery that "allegedly used underage hookers to solicit investment."

Mair did not respond to Fox News' request for comment.

The complaint also names "Devin Nunes’ Mom," "a person who, with Twitter’s consent, hijacked Nunes’ name, falsely impersonated Nunes’ mother, and created and maintained an account on Twitter (@DevinNunesMom) for the sole purpose of attacking, defaming, disparaging and demeaning Nunes," according to the complaint.

"In her endless barrage of tweets, Devin Nunes’ Mom maliciously attacked every aspect of Nunes’ character, honesty, integrity, ethics and fitness to perform his duties as a United States Congressman," Nunes' lawyers wrote.

As of Monday afternoon, the DevinNunesMom account was suspended by Twitter when Fox News tried to access it. The complaint stated that "Twitter only suspended the account in 2019 after Nunes’ real mother, Toni Dian Nunes, complained. ... Twitter permitted @DevinNunesMom, for instance, to tweet and retweet with impunity throughout 2018."

However, according to the complaint, "Twitter did nothing to investigate or review the defamation that appeared in plain view on its platform. Twitter consciously allowed the defamation of Nunes to continue. As part of its agenda to squelch Nunes’ voice, cause him extreme pain and suffering, influence the 2018 Congressional election, and distract, intimidate and interfere with Nunes’ investigation into corruption and Russian involvement in the 2016 Presidential Election, Twitter did absolutely nothing."

The complaint also charged that Twitter "shadow-banned" Nunes in 2018 "in order to restrict his free speech and to amplify the abusive and hateful content published and republished by Mair, Devin Nunes’ Mom," and other accounts.

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

"The shadow-banning was intentional," the complaint continued. "It was calculated to interfere with and influence the federal election and interfere with Nunes’ ongoing investigation as a member of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence. Twitter’s actions affected the election results. The combination of the shadow-ban and Twitter’s refusal to enforce its Terms and Rules in the face of clear and present abuse and hateful conduct caused Nunes to lose support amongst voters."

The lawsuit cited numerous media reports, including a Vice News story from last summer, reporting that Twitter had, for a time, downplayed the visibility of prominent conservatives in its search results.

On Monday, Sean Davis, the managing editor of The Federalist, wrote that he had recently been the apparent victim of a form of shadow-banning on Twitter.

"Twitter gave me no notice or explanation when it shadowbanned one of my Tweets about Russian interference in our elections," Davis wrote. "But what's worse is how Twitter apparently gives its users the fraudulent impression that their tweets, which Twitter secretly bans, are still public."

Davis charged that Twitter "claimed in its e-mail to me that it 'mistakenly remove[d]' a completely anodyne tweet about public congressional testimony, but didn't explain why it left the tweet--and metrics showing no engagement--visible to me when logged in. Is conning users a bug, or a feature?"

Fox News' Catherine Herridge contributed to this report.

Source: Fox News Politics

NOW ON AIR
Now On Air

Maga First News with Peter Boykin

8:00 am 9:00 am



Park Yoo-chun, a K-pop idol singer, arrives at the Suwon district court in Suwon
Park Yoo-chun, a K-pop idol singer, arrives at the Suwon district court in Suwon, South Korea, April 26, 2019. REUTERS/Kim Hong-Ji

April 26, 2019

SEOUL (Reuters) – K-pop and drama star Park Yu-chun was arrested on Friday on charges of buying and using illegal drugs, a court said, the latest in a series of scandals to hit the South Korean entertainment business.

Suwon District Court approved the arrest warrant for Park, 32, due to concerns over possible destruction of evidence and flight risk, a court spokesman told Reuters.

Park is suspected of having bought about 1.5 grams of methamphetamine with his former girlfriend earlier this year and using the drug around five times, an official at the Gyeonggi Nambu Provincial Police Agency said.

Park has denied wrongdoing, saying he had never taken drugs, and he again denied the charges in court, Yonhap news agency said.

Park’s contract with his management agency had been canceled and he would leave the entertainment industry, Park’s management agency, C-JeS Entertainment, said on Wednesday.

Park was a member of boyband TVXQ between 2003 and 2009 before leaving the group with two other members, forming the group JYJ.

A scandal involving sex tapes, prostitutes and secret chat about rape led at least four other K-pop stars to quit the industry earlier this year.

The cases sparked a nationwide drugs bust and investigations into tax evasion and police collusion at night clubs and other nightlife spots.

(Reporting by Joyce Lee; Additional reporting by Heekyong Yang; Editing by Nick Macfie)

Source: OANN

Listen to https://magaoneradio.net and Listen Daily! Don't Forget to Share Click a Link Below!
FILE PHOTO: An American Airlines Boeing 737 MAX 8 flight taxis after landing at Reagan National Airport in Washington
FILE PHOTO: An American Airlines Boeing 737 MAX 8 flight from Los Angeles taxis after landing at Reagan National Airport shortly after an announcement was made by the FAA that the planes were being grounded by the United States over safety issues in Washington, U.S. March 13, 2019. REUTERS/Joshua Roberts/File Photo

April 26, 2019

(Reuters) – American Airlines Group Inc cut its 2019 profit forecast on Friday, saying it expected to take a $350 million hit from the grounding of Boeing’s 737 MAX planes after cancelling 1,200 flights in the first quarter.

The company said it now expects its 2019 adjusted profit to be between $4.00 per share and $6.00 per share.

Analysts on average had expected 2019 earnings of $5.63 per share, according to Refinitiv data.

The No. 1 U.S. airline by passenger traffic said net income rose to $185 million, or 41 cents per share, in the first quarter ended March 31, from $159 million, or 34 cents per share, a year earlier.

Total operating revenue rose 2 percent to $10.58 billion.

(Reporting by Sanjana Shivdas in Bengaluru)

Source: OANN

Listen to https://magaoneradio.net and Listen Daily! Don't Forget to Share Click a Link Below!
2020 Democratic presidential candidate Pete Buttigieg speaks at a campaign event in Des Moines, Iowa
2020 Democratic presidential candidate Pete Buttigieg speaks at a campaign event in Des Moines, Iowa, U.S., April 16, 2019. REUTERS/Elijah Nouvelage

April 26, 2019

By James Oliphant

MARSHALLTOWN, Iowa (Reuters) – Four years ago, Donald Trump campaigned in small towns like Marshalltown, Iowa, vowing to restore economic prosperity to the U.S. heartland.

In his bid to replace Trump in the White House, Pete Buttigieg is taking a similar tack. The difference, he says, is that he can point to a model of success: South Bend, Indiana, the revitalized city where he has been mayor since 2012.

The Democratic presidential contender has vaulted to the congested field’s top tier in recent weeks, drawing media and donor attention for his youth, history-making status as the first openly gay major presidential candidate and a resume that includes military service in Afghanistan.

But Buttigieg’s main argument for his candidacy is that he is a turnaround artist in the mold of Trump, although the Democrat does not expressly invoke the comparison with the Republican president.

“I’m not going around saying we’ve fixed every problem we’ve got,” Buttigieg, 37, said after a house party with voters in Marshalltown. “But I’m proud of what we have done together, and I think it’s a very powerful story.”

Critics argue improving the fortunes of a Midwestern city of 100,000 people does not qualify Buttigieg, who has never held national office, for the presidency of a country of 330 million. Others say South Bend still has pockets of despair and that minorities, in particular, have failed to benefit from its growth.

Buttigieg has told crowds in Iowa and elsewhere that his experience in reviving a struggling Rust Belt community allows him to make a case to voters that other Democratic candidates cannot. That may give him the means to win back some of the disaffected Democratic voters who turned their backs on Hillary Clinton in 2016 to vote for Trump.

Watching Buttigieg at a union hall in Des Moines last week, Rick Ryan, 45, a member of the United Steelworkers, lamented how many of his fellow union workers voted for Trump. The president turned in the best performance by a Republican among union households since Ronald Reagan in 1984.

Ryan said he hoped someone like Buttigieg could return them to the Democratic fold.

“He’s aware of the decline in the labor force in America, not just in Indiana or Des Moines or anywhere else,” Ryan said. “Jobs are going overseas. We need a find to way to bring that back.”

Randy Tucker, 56, of Pleasant Hill, Iowa, a member of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, said Trump appealed to union members “desperate for somebody to reach out to them, to help them, to listen to their voice.”

Buttigieg could do the same, he said. “In my heart right now, he’s No. 1.”

PAST VS. FUTURE

Buttigieg stresses a key difference in his and Trump’s approaches.

Trump, he tells crowds, is mired in the past, promising to rebuild the 20th century industrial economy. Buttigieg argues the pledge is misleading and unrealistic.

Buttigieg says his focus is on the future, and he often talks about what the country might look like decades from now.

“The only way that we can cultivate what makes America great is to look to the future and not be afraid of it,” Buttigieg said in Marshalltown.

Buttigieg knows his sexual preference may be a barrier to winning some blue-collar voters. But he notes that after he came out as gay in 2015, he won a second term as mayor with 80 percent of the vote in conservative Indiana.

Earlier this month, he announced his presidential bid at the hulking plant in South Bend that stopped making Studebaker autos more than 50 years ago. After lying dormant for decades, the building is being transformed into a high-tech hub after Buttigieg and other city leaders realized it would never again attract a large-scale industrial company.

“That building sat as a powerful reminder. We hoped we would get back that major employer that would fix our economy,” said Jeff Rea, president of the regional Chamber of Commerce.

Buttigieg is praised locally for spurring more than $100 million in downtown investment. During his two terms, unemployment has fallen to 4.1 percent from 11.8 percent.

But a study released in 2017 by the nonprofit group Prosperity Now said not all of the city’s residents had shared in its rebound. The median income for African-Americans remained half that of whites, while the unemployment rate for blacks was double.

Regina Williams-Preston, a city councilor running to replace Buttigieg as mayor, credits him for the revitalized downtown. But she said he had a “blind spot” when it came to focusing on troubled neighborhoods like the one she represents and only grew more engaged after community pressure.

“He understands it now,” she said. “The next step is figuring out how to open the doors of opportunity for everyone.”

‘ONE OF US’

Trump touts the fact that the United States added almost 300,000 manufacturing jobs last year as evidence he made good on his promise to restore the industrial sector. But that growth still left the country with fewer manufacturing jobs than in 2008.

The robust U.S. economy is likely the president’s greatest asset in his re-election bid, particularly in states he carried in 2016 such as Iowa, Wisconsin, Michigan and Pennsylvania. He won Buttigieg’s home state by 19 points over Clinton in 2016.

Sean Bagniewski, chairman of the Democratic Party in Polk County, Iowa, said Buttigieg would be well positioned to compete with Trump in the Midwest.

“People love the fact that he’s a mayor,” said Bagniewski, who has not endorsed a candidate in the nominating contest. “If you can talk about a positive future, and if you actually have experience that can do it, that’s a compelling vision in Iowa.”

Nan Whaley, the mayor of Dayton, Ohio, which faces many of the same challenges as South Bend, agreed.

“He’s one of us,” Whaley said. “That helps.”

(Reporting by James Oliphant; Editing by Colleen Jenkins and Peter Cooney)

Source: OANN

Listen to https://magaoneradio.net and Listen Daily! Don't Forget to Share Click a Link Below!
A man looks out at a flooded residential area in Gatineau
A man looks out at a flooded residential area in Gatineau, Quebec, Canada, April 24, 2019. REUTERS/Chris Wattie

April 26, 2019

MONTREAL/OTTAWA (Reuters) – Rising waters were prompting further evacuations in central Canada on Thursday, with the mayor of the country’s capital, Ottawa, declaring a state of emergency and Quebec authorities warning that a hydroelectric dam was at risk of breaking.

Ottawa Mayor Jim Watson declared the emergency in response to rising water levels along the Ottawa River and weather forecasts that called for significant rainfall on Friday.

In a statement on Twitter, Watson asked for help from the Ontario provincial government and the country’s military.

He warned that “flood levels are currently forecasted to exceed the levels that caused significant damage to numerous properties in the city of Ottawa in 2017.”

Spring flooding had killed one person and forced more than 900 people from their homes in Canada’s Quebec province as of 1 p.m. on Thursday, according to a government website.

Ottawa has received 80 requests for service related to potential flooding such as sandbagging, a city spokeswoman said.

The prospect of more rain over the next 24 to 48 hours triggered concerns on Thursday that the hydroelectric dam at Bell Falls in the western part of Quebec could be at risk of failing because of rising water levels.

Quebec’s provincial police said 250 people were protectively removed from homes in the area as of late afternoon in case the dam on the Rouge River breaks.

The dam is now at its full flow capacity of 980 cubic meters per second of water, said Francis Labbé, a spokesman for the province’s state-owned utility, Hydro Quebec. He said Hydro Quebec expected the flow could rise to 1,200 cubic meters per second of water over the next two days.

“We have to take the worst-case scenario into consideration, since we`re already at the maximum capacity,” Labbé said by phone.

The dam is part of a power station that no longer produces electricity, but is regularly inspected by Hydro Quebec, he said.

(Reporting by Allison Lampert in Montreal and David Ljunggren and Julie Gordon in Ottawa; Editing by James Dalgleish and Peter Cooney)

Source: OANN

Listen to https://magaoneradio.net and Listen Daily! Don't Forget to Share Click a Link Below!
FILE PHOTO: Funeral of journalist Lyra McKee in Belfast
FILE PHOTO: Pallbearers carry the coffin of journalist Lyra McKee at her funeral at St. Anne’s Cathedral in Belfast, Northern Ireland, April 24, 2019. REUTERS/Clodagh Kilcoyne/File Photo

April 26, 2019

BELFAST (Reuters) – Detectives investigating the murder of journalist Lyra McKee in Northern Ireland last week suspect the gunman who shot her dead is in his late teens as they made a further appeal to the local community who they believe know his identity.

McKee’s killing by an Irish nationalist militant during a riot in Londonderry has sparked outrage in the province where a 1998 peace deal mostly ended three decades of sectarian violence that cost the lives of some 3,600 people.

The New IRA, one of a small number of groups that oppose the peace accord, has said one of its members shot the 29-year-old reporter dead in the Creggan area of the city on Thursday when opening fire on police during a riot McKee was watching.

The killing, which followed a large car bomb in Londonderry in January that police also blamed on the New IRA, has raised fears that small marginalized militant groups are exploiting a political vacuum in the province and tensions caused by Britain’s decision to leave the European Union.

Police released footage on Friday of immediately before and after the shooting showing three men who were involved in the rioting and identified one as the gunman who they believe is in his late teens. 

“I believe that the information that can help us to bring those responsible for her murder to justice lies within the community. I need the public to tell me who he is,” Detective Superintendent Jason Murphy told reporters.

Murphy said those involved in the disorder on the night were teenagers or in their early 20s, and that about 100 people were on the ground watching the trouble as it unfolded.

He added that police believed the gun used in the attack was of a similar caliber to those used before in paramilitary type attacks in Creggan. 

“I recognize that people living in Creagan may find it’s difficult to come forward to speak to police. Today, I want to provide a personal reassurance that we are able to deal with those issues sensitively,” Murphy said, echoing similar appeals in recent days.

(Reporting by Amanda Ferguson, editing by Padraic Halpin and Toby Chopra)

Source: OANN

Listen to https://magaoneradio.net and Listen Daily! Don't Forget to Share Click a Link Below!

Listen to https://magaoneradio.net and Listen Daily! Don't Forget to Share Click a Link Below!
Current track

Title

Artist