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China launches new rhetorical broadside against Taiwan

China says attempts by Taiwan's government to block its goal of bringing the self-governing island under Beijing's control are like "stretching out an arm to block a car."

The new rhetorical broadside was launched late Tuesday against Taiwanese President Tsai Ying-wen following her announcement of guidelines to counter China's "one country, two systems" framework for political unification with the island.

The statement from the spokesman for the Chinese Cabinet's Taiwan Affairs Office, An Fengshan, accused Tsai of harming relations between the sides and using the welfare of the Taiwanese people as a "poker chip" for the sake of electoral gains.

China says Taiwan is a part of its territory that must be brought under its control by force if necessary.

Tsai was elected in 2016 and faces re-election next year.

Source: Fox News World

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Students at Baylor University try to shut down Matt Walsh’s talk about Christian values

Conservative commentator Matt Walsh is getting pushback from students at Baylor University, a Christian university in Texas, for a speech he is scheduled to give Tuesday night defending the Christian values of protecting life, marriage, and gender.

Some Baylor students, however, are demanding Walsh's speech be shut down because of his "anti-LGBTQ" views, according to a Change.org petition that has garnered over 2,200 signatures as of Tuesday morning.

DC SCHOOL WON'T PLAY SPORTS AT CHRISTIAN SCHOOL WHERE KAREN PENCE TEACHES: 'THEY FEEL UNSAFE'

"This cannot be allowed to take place," the petition reads. "Please remove this from campus events. For the benefit of all LGBTQ+ students, alumni, and future students, this harmful hate speech must be kept off of our beloved campus."

But Walsh said this shutting down of free speech, let alone at a Christian university in Texas of all places, is nothing new.

"You think that people would at least be open to hearing the message," Walsh told "Fox & Friends" Tuesday morning. "We know the situation on college campuses, where often times opposing viewpoints are not welcome and students don't know how to deal with someone presenting a point of view that's foreign to them."

COLUMBIA STUDENT GROUP ACCUSED OF ANTI-SEMITIC IMAGERY TO PROMOTE ISRAEL APARTHEID WEEK

Although Baylor is a Christian institution, Walsh points out, there are many "Christian-in-name-only" schools, especially when it comes to the culture on campus. He said many are "openly hostile to Christianity."

The Daily Wire contributor was invited to Baylor by the Young Americans for Freedom chapter on campus, and, despite the petition, Baylor officials support Walsh coming to campus.

"While Baylor is a university that supports and encourages free speech, we have an additional...responsibility as a Christian university..to appreciate differing opinions and backgrounds in a respectful and compassionate manner that extends grace as Christ did. We may not always agree, but we are still the Baylor Family," Linda Livingstone, Baylor University president, wrote in a statement. "And we all need to do better."

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Walsh notes that if students are hurt by his presence or words on campus, they don't have to attend the speech.

"I hope that people who disagree come to the speech and, at least, hear me out," Walsh said. "I hope they'll walk away realizing that it's possible to be pro-life, it's possible to be pro-traditional marriage and not hate anyone."

BEN SHAPIRO TO SPEAK AT CHRISTIAN COLLEGE AFTER IT INITIALLY SPURNED HIM, YOUNG AMERICA'S FOUNDATION SAYS

In February, another Christian school, Grand Canyon University, disinvited YAF speaker Ben Shapiro before reversing its decision.

Source: Fox News National

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Mercury’s Spin Reveals Planet’s Solid Core

How do you explore the interior of a planet without ever touching down on it? Start by watching the way the planet spins, then measure how your spacecraft orbits it — very, very carefully. This is exactly what NASA planetary scientists did, using data from the agency’s former mission to Mercury.

It has long been known that Mercury and the Earth have metallic cores. Like Earth, Mercury’s outer core is composed of liquid metal, but there have only been hints that Mercury’s innermost core is solid. Now, in a new study, scientists from NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland have found evidence that Mercury’s inner core is indeed solid and that it is very nearly the same size as Earth’s inner core.

Some scientists compare Mercury to a cannonball because its metal core fills nearly 85 percent of the volume of the planet. This large core — huge compared to the other rocky planets in our solar system — has long been one of the most intriguing mysteries about Mercury. Scientists had also wondered whether Mercury might have a solid inner core.

The findings of Mercury’s solid inner core, described in Geophysical Research Letters, certainly adds to a better understanding of Mercury, but there are larger ramifications. Just how similar, and how different, the cores of the planets are may give us clues about how the solar system formed and how rocky planets change over time.

“Mercury’s interior is still active, due to the molten core that powers the planet’s weak magnetic field, relative to Earth’s,” said Antonio Genova, an assistant professor at the Sapienza University of Rome who led the research while at NASA Goddard. “Mercury’s interior has cooled more rapidly than our planet’s. Mercury may help us predict how Earth’s magnetic field will change as the core cools.”


Alex Jones reveals the truth behind China’s exploration of the dark side of the moon, an adventure that, in all likelihood, has already been carried out by covert, American-run space programs.

To figure out what the core of Mercury is made of, Genova and his colleagues had to get, figuratively, closer. The team used several observations from the MESSENGER (Mercury Surface, Space Environment, GEochemistry and Ranging) mission to probe the interior of Mercury. The researchers looked, most importantly, at the planet’s spin and gravity.

The MESSENGER spacecraft entered orbit around Mercury in March 2011, and spent four years observing this nearest planet to our Sun until it was deliberately brought down to the planet’s surface in April 2015.

Radio observations from MESSENGER were used to determine the gravitational anomalies (areas of local increases or decreases in mass) and the location of its rotational pole, which allowed scientists to understand the orientation of the planet.

Each planet spins on an axis, also known as the pole. Mercury spins much more slowly than Earth, with its day lasting about 58 Earth days. Scientists often use tiny variations in the way an object spins to reveal clues about its internal structure. In 2007, radar observations made from Earth revealed small shifts in the spin of Mercury, called librations, that proved some of Mercury’s core must be liquid-molten metal. But observations of the spin rate alone were not sufficient to give a clear measurement of what the inner core was like. Could there be a solid core lurking underneath, scientists wondered?

Gravity can help answer that question. “Gravity is a powerful tool to look at the deep interior of a planet because it depends on the planet’s density structure,” said Sander Goossens, a Goddard researcher who worked with Genova on this study.

(Photo by NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Flickr)

As MESSENGER orbited Mercury over the course of its mission, and got closer and closer to the surface, scientists recorded how the spacecraft accelerated under the influence of the planet’s gravity. The density structure of a planet can create subtle changes in a spacecraft’s orbit. In the later parts of the mission, MESSENGER flew about 120 miles above the surface, and less than 65 miles during its last year. The final low-altitude orbits provided the best data yet, and allowed for Genova and his team to make the most accurate measurements about the internal structure of Mercury yet taken.

Genova and his team put data from MESSENGER into a sophisticated computer program that allowed them to adjust parameters and figure out what the interior composition of Mercury must be like to match the way it spins and the way the spacecraft accelerated around it. The results showed that for the best match, Mercury must have a large, solid inner core. They estimated that the solid, iron core is about 1,260 miles (about 2,000 kilometers) wide and makes up about half of Mercury’s entire core (about 2,440 miles, or nearly 4,000 kilometers, wide). In contrast, Earth’s solid core is about 1,500 miles (2,400 kilometers) across, taking up a little more than a third of this planet’s entire core.

“We had to pull together information from many fields: geodesy, geochemistry, orbital mechanics and gravity to find out what Mercury’s internal structure must be,” said Goddard planetary scientist Erwan Mazarico, who also helped Genova reveal Mercury’s solid core.

The fact that scientists needed to get close to Mercury to find out more about its interior highlights the power of sending spacecraft to other worlds. Such accurate measurements of Mercury’s spin and gravity were simply not possible to make from Earth. Additionally, this result used data collected by MESSENGER over several years, information that’s available for all scientists to use. New discoveries about Mercury are practically guaranteed to be waiting in MESSENGER’s archives, with each discovery about our local planetary neighborhood giving us a better understanding of what lies beyond.

“Every new bit of information about our solar system helps us understand the larger universe,” said Genova.


Millie Weaver and Kaitlin Bennett join Alex Jones to discuss his recent appearance on Logan Paul’s podcast.

Source: InfoWars

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Zuma-era officials feature on South Africa’s ANC election list

FILE PHOTO - Finance Minister Malusi Gigaba delivers his budget address at Parliament in Cape Town
FILE PHOTO - Finance Minister Malusi Gigaba delivers his budget address at Parliament in Cape Town, South Africa February 21, 2018. REUTERS/Mike Hutchings

March 15, 2019

By Alexander Winning

JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) – South Africa’s governing African National Congress (ANC) has included two prominent politicians linked to corruption under former President Jacob Zuma in its list of candidates for parliament ahead of an election in May.

The inclusion of figures like former finance minister Malusi Gigaba and ex-mines minister Mosebenzi Zwane calls into question the ANC’s pledge to distance itself from people who have tarnished the reputation of the party, analysts said.

“The ANC list is very revealing,” said political analyst Ralph Mathekga. “It says that despite what went on under Zuma, ANC branch members do not see any crisis. They are rejecting (President Cyril) Ramaphosa’s anti-corruption message by choosing Zuma allies.”

Ramaphosa, whose pledge to tackle corruption is a centerpiece of the ANC’s election campaign, is first on a list of the party’s parliamentary candidates submitted to the country’s election commission. Deputy President David Mabuza and ANC chairman Gwede Mantashe are in second and third places.

Gigaba and Zwane are lower down the list, which shows the candidates the ANC’s branches want to see in parliament and also includes Ramaphosa allies like Finance Minister Tito Mboweni and Public Enterprises Minister Pravin Gordhan.

An ongoing presidential inquiry into state corruption – called “state capture” in South Africa – under Zuma’s tenure has heard evidence that Gigaba and Zwane helped the Gupta family, friends of Zuma, enrich themselves. Gigaba and Zwane deny wrongdoing. They were not available for comment on Friday.

A spokesman for Zuma directed a request for comment to the ANC. The ANC said it had chosen its candidates by a “rigorous, thorough and fair process”.

“There are concerns raised in the media about some of the candidates on our lists. Like all political parties our members are subjected to the law of the land. … The mere public mention of wrongdoing and corruption by an individual does not make that person guilty,” the ANC said in a statement.

A senior ANC source allied to Ramaphosa dismissed concerns that tainted former officials from the parliamentary list would make it into Ramaphosa’s cabinet if the ANC wins in May. The majority of the president’s cabinet is comprised of lawmakers.

“This list says nothing about the next cabinet, that is the prerogative of the president. My sense is the cabinet will be lean and credible,” the source said.

Ramaphosa is trying to reverse a slide in voter support for the ANC, which has won every election since the end of white minority rule in 1994. Analysts predict the ANC will win more than 50 percent of this year’s vote, but they differ over the expected margin of victory.

Investors want to see evidence that Ramaphosa is following through on his pledge to root out corruption, as it hurts business confidence and acts as a brake on economic growth.

“Ramaphosa’s strategy is to turn a blind eye to state capture when it comes to the election list and allow the criminal justice system to take people out after the election,” said Peter Attard Montalto, head of capital markets research at Intellidex. “However such a strategy is high-risk.”

(Reporting by Alexander Winning; Editing by Frances Kerry)

Source: OANN

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Trump surprises by revoking North Korea sanctions immediately after Treasury imposes them

President Trump abruptly announced Friday that he was withdrawing sanctions on North Korea, immediately after his own Treasury Department imposed them.

“It was announced today by the U.S. Treasury that additional large scale Sanctions would be added to those already existing Sanctions on North Korea. I have today ordered the withdrawal of those additional Sanctions!” Trump tweeted Friday afternoon.

This was an apparent reference to sanctions the Treasury Department had announced Thursday on Chinese shipping companies doing business with North Korea. Those sanctions prompted swift pushback from the Chinese and North Korea governments.

TRUMP ADMINISTRATION SLAPS NEW SANCTIONS ON IRAN

When asked about the president’s tweet, White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders said: “President Trump likes Chairman Kim and he doesn’t think these sanctions will be necessary.”

The Treasury Department did not immediately respond to Fox News’ request for comment.

The president's unusual move comes after his second summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, held last month in Hanoi, Vietnam. Trump walked out of that summit after refusing to agree to the North’s demands of lifting all sanctions.

In what had been a move to ratchet up pressure further, the Treasury Department on Thursday had imposed the sanctions on two Chinese-based companies to highlight “the deceptive methods that the North Korean regime uses to circumvent international and U.S. sanctions, as well as the U.S. Government’s commitment to implement existing UN Security Council resolutions.”

“The United States and our like-minded partners remain committed to achieving the final, fully verified denuclearization of North Korea and believe that the full implementation of North Korea-related UN Security Council resolutions is crucial to a successful outcome,” said Treasury Secretary Steven T. Mnuchin said in a statement Thursday. “Treasury will continue to enforce our sanctions, and we are making it explicitly clear that shipping companies employing deceptive tactics to mask illicit trade with North Korea expose themselves to great risk.”

KIM JONG UN WILLING TO SIT DOWN WITH TRUMP AGAIN, NORTH KOREA STATE MEDIA SAYS

On Friday, the Chinese foreign ministry pushed back on the sanctions, saying that they “resolutely oppose any country imposing unilateral sanctions and long-armed jurisdiction over Chinese entities under its own domestic laws.”

“We have made solemn complaints with the U.S. on this matter, urging the U.S. to immediately stop such mistakes, so as not to affect the cooperation between the two sides on relevant issues,” the Chinese Foreign Ministry said, adding that any Chinese enterprises and individuals would be investigated according to China’s laws.

Fox News' Kellianne Jones, Kristin Brown and David Nath contributed to this report. 

Source: Fox News Politics

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Dutch police continue investigation in deadly tram shooting

Dutch police and prosecutors are questioning two suspects as they investigate whether a deadly shooting on a tram in the central city of Utrecht was an act of terror.

Police spokesman Joost Lanshage said Wednesday that officers arrested a 40-year-old man in Utrecht on Tuesday and released two other men detained earlier. The alleged shooter, 37-year-old Gokmen Tanis, remains in custody.

A man opened fire on a tram on Monday, killing two men and a woman and seriously injuring three others.

Prosecutors say they are seriously considering an extremist motive after finding a note in a suspected getaway car after the attack, and because of the nature of the shooting, but have not ruled out other possible motives.

Lanshage says, "we are looking into every lead there is."

Source: Fox News World

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Proposed Hong Kong extradition law changes spark concerns

Business and human rights groups are expressing concern over proposed changes to Hong Kong's extradition law that would allow suspects to be sent to mainland China where they say they could be subject to torture and unfair prosecution.

Hong Kong currently limits such extraditions to jurisdictions with which it has existing extradition agreements or to others on an individual basis under a law passed before the semi-autonomous territory's handover from British to Chinese rule in 1997.

China was excluded because of concerns over its poor record on legal independence and human rights.

However, changes to the Fugitive Offenders Ordinance and the Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters Ordinance would expand the scope for the transfer of criminal suspects to China and remove the legislature's right to scrutinize individual extradition decisions.

Source: Fox News World

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Police secure the area where the body of a woman was discovered near the village of Orounta
Police secure the area where the body of a woman was discovered near the village of Orounta, Cyprus, April 25, 2019. REUTERS/Stefanos Kouratzis

April 26, 2019

NICOSIA (Reuters) – Cypriot police searched on Friday for more victims of a suspected serial killer, in a case which has shocked the Mediterranean island and exposed the authorities to charges of “criminal indifference” because the dead women were foreigners.

The main opposition party, the left-wing AKEL, called for the resignation of Cyprus’s justice minister and police chief.

Police were combing three different locations west of the capital Nicosia for victims of the suspected killer, a 35-year-old army officer who has been in detention for a week.

The bodies of three women, including two thought to be from the Philippines, have been recovered. Police sources said the suspect had indicated the location of the third body, found on Thursday, and had said the person was “either Indian or Nepali”.

Police said they were searching for a further four people, including two children, based on the suspect’s testimony.

“These women came here to earn a living, to help their families. They lived away from their families. And the earth swallowed them, nobody was interested,” AKEL lawmaker Irene Charalambides told Reuters.

“This killer will be judged by the court but the other big question is the criminal indifference shown by the others when the reports first surfaced. I believe, as does my party, that the justice minister and the police chief should resign. They are irrevocably exposed.”

Police have said they will investigate any perceived shortcomings in their handling of the case.

One person who did attempt to alert the authorities over the disappearances, a 70-year-old Cypriot citizen, said his motives were questioned by police.

The bodies of the two Filipino women reported missing in May and August 2018 were found in an abandoned mine shaft this month. Police discovered the body of the third woman at an army firing range about 14 km (9 miles) from the mine shaft.

Police are now searching for the six-year-old daughter of the first victim found, a Romanian mother who disappeared with her eight-year-old child in 2016, and a woman from the Phillipines who vanished in Dec. 2017.

The suspect has not been publicly named, in line with Cypriot legal practice.

A public vigil for the missing was planned later on Friday.

(Reporting By Michele Kambas; Editing by Gareth Jones)

Source: OANN

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An employee looks up at goods at the Miniclipper Logistics warehouse in Leighton Buzzard
FILE PHOTO: An employee looks up at goods at the Miniclipper Logistics warehouse in Leighton Buzzard, Britain December 3, 2018. REUTERS/Simon Dawson

April 26, 2019

LONDON, April 26 – British factories stockpiled raw materials and goods ahead of Brexit at the fastest pace since records began in the 1950s, and they were increasingly downbeat about their prospects, a survey showed on Friday.

The Confederation of British Industry’s (CBI) quarterly survey of the manufacturing industry showed expectations for export orders in the next three months fell to their lowest level since mid-2009, when Britain was reeling from the global financial crisis.

The record pace of stockpiling recorded by the CBI was mirrored by the closely-watched IHS Markit/CIPS purchasing managers’ index published earlier this month.

(Reporting by Andy Bruce, editing by David Milliken)

Source: OANN

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Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad speaks at the opening ceremony for the second Belt and Road Forum in Beijing
Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad speaks at the opening ceremony for the second Belt and Road Forum in Beijing, China April 26, 2019. REUTERS/Florence Lo

April 26, 2019

KUALA LUMPUR (Reuters) – Fewer than half of Malaysians approve of Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad, an opinion poll showed on Friday, as concerns over rising costs and racial matters plague his administration nearly a year after taking office.

The survey, conducted in March by independent pollster Merdeka Center, showed that only 46 percent of voters surveyed were satisfied with Mahathir, a sharp drop from the 71 percent approval rating he received in August 2018.

Mahathir’s Pakatan Harapan coalition won a stunning election victory in May 2018, ending the previous government’s more than 60-year rule.

But his administration has since been criticized for failing to deliver on promised reforms and protecting the rights of majority ethnic Malay Muslims.

Of 1,204 survey respondents, 46 percent felt that the “country was headed in the wrong direction”, up from 24 percent in August 2018, the Merdeka Center said in a statement. Just 39 percent said they approved of the ruling government.

High living costs remained the top most concern among Malaysians, with just 40 percent satisfied with the government’s management of the economy, the survey showed.

It also showed mixed responses to Pakatan Harapan’s proposed reforms.

Some 69 percent opposed plans to abolish the death penalty, while respondents were sharply divided over proposals to lower the minimum voting age to 18, or to implement a sugar tax.

“In our opinion, the results appear to indicate a public that favors the status quo, and thus requires a robust and coordinated advocacy efforts in order to garner their acceptance of new measures,” Merdeka Center said.

The survey also found 23 percent of Malaysians were concerned over ethnic and religious matters.

Some groups representing Malays have expressed fear that affirmative-action policies favoring them in business, education and housing could be taken away and criticized the appointments of non-Muslims to key government posts.

Last November, the government reversed its pledge to ratify a UN convention against racial discrimination, after a backlash from Malay groups.

Earlier this month, Pakatan Harapan suffered its third successive loss in local elections since taking power, which has been seen as a further sign of waning public support.

Despite the decline, most Malaysians – 67 percent – agreed that Mahathir’s government should be given more time to fulfill its election promises, Merdeka Center said.

This included a majority of Malay voters who were largely more critical of the new administration, it added.

(Reporting by Rozanna Latiff; Editing by Nick Macfie)

Source: OANN

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The German share price index DAX graph at the stock exchange in Frankfurt
The German share price index DAX graph is pictured at the stock exchange in Frankfurt, Germany, April 25, 2019. REUTERS/Staff

April 26, 2019

By Medha Singh and Agamoni Ghosh

(Reuters) – European shares slipped on Friday after losses in heavyweight banks and Glencore outweighed gains in healthcare and auto stocks, while investors remained on the sidelines ahead of U.S. economic data for the first quarter.

The pan-European STOXX 600 index was down 0.1 percent by 0935 GMT, eyeing a modest loss at the end of a holiday-shortened week. Banks-heavy Italian and Spanish indices were laggards.

The banking index fell for a fourth day, at the end of a heavy earnings week for lenders.

Britain’s Royal Bank of Scotland tumbled after posting lower first quarter profit, hurt by intensifying competition and Brexit uncertainty, while its investment bank also registered poor returns.

Weakness in investment banking also dented Deutsche Bank’s quarterly trading revenue and sent its shares lower a day after the German bank abandoned merger talks with smaller rival Commerzbank.

“The current interest rate environment makes it challenging for banks to make proper earnings because of their intermediary function,” said Teeuwe Mevissen, senior market economist eurozone, at Rabobank.

Since the start of April, all country indexes were on pace to rise between 1.8 percent and 3.4 percent, their fourth month of gains, while Germany was strongly outperforming with 6 percent growth.

“For now the current sentiment is very cautious as markets wait for the first estimates of the U.S. GDP growth which could see a surprise,” Mevissen said.

U.S. economic data for the first-quarter is due at 1230 GMT. Growth worries outside the United States resurfaced this week after South Korea’s economy unexpectedly contracted at the start of the year and weak German business sentiment data for April also disappointed.

Among the biggest drags on the benchmark index in Europe were the basic resources sector and the oil and gas sector, weighed down by Britain’s Glencore and France’s Total, respectively.

Glencore dropped after reports that U.S authorities were investigating whether the company and its subsidiaries violated certain provisions of the commodity exchange act.

Energy major Total said its net profit for the first three months of the year fell compared with a year ago due to volatile oil prices and debt costs.

Chip stocks in the region including Siltronic, Ams and STMicroelectronics lost more than 1 percent after Intel Corp reduced its full-year revenue forecast, adding to concerns that an industry-wide slowdown could persist until the end of 2019.

Meanwhile, healthcare, which is also seen as a defensive sector, was a bright spot. It was helped by French drugmaker Sanofi after it returned to growth with higher profits and revenues for the first-quarter.

Luxembourg-based satellite operator SES led media stocks higher after it maintained its full-year outlook on the back of the company’s Networks division.

Automakers in the region rose 0.4 percent, led by Valeo’s 6 percent jump as the French parts maker said its performance would improve in the second half of the year.

Continental AG advanced after it backed its outlook for the year despite reporting a fall in first-quarter earnings.

Renault rose more than 3 percent as it clung to full-year targets and pursues merger talks with its Japanese partner Nissan.

(Reporting by Medha Singh and Agamoni Ghosh in Bengaluru; Editing by Gareth Jones and Elaine Hardcastle)

Source: OANN

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U.S. President Donald Trump hosts Take Our Daughters and Sons to Work Day at the White House in Washington
U.S. President Donald Trump gives a thumbs up to his audience as he hosts Take Our Daughters and Sons to Work Day at the White House in Washington, U.S., April 25, 2019. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque

April 26, 2019

By Jan Wolfe and Richard Cowan

(Reuters) – The “i word” – impeachment – is swirling around the U.S. Congress since the release of Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s redacted Russia report, which painted a picture of lies, threats and confusion in Donald Trump’s White House.

Some Democrats say trying to remove Trump from office would be a waste of time because his fellow Republicans still have majority control of the Senate. Other Democrats argue they have a moral obligation at least to try to impeach, even though Mueller did not charge Trump with conspiring with Russia in the 2016 U.S. election or with obstruction of justice.

Whether or not the Democrats decide to go down this risky path, here is how the impeachment process works.

WHAT ARE GROUNDS FOR IMPEACHMENT?

The U.S. Constitution says the president can be removed from office by Congress for “treason, bribery, or other high crimes and misdemeanors.” Exactly what that means is unclear.

Before he became president in 1974, replacing Republican Richard Nixon who resigned over the Watergate scandal, Gerald Ford said: “An impeachable offense is whatever a majority of the House of Representatives considers it to be at a given moment in history.”

Frank Bowman, a University of Missouri law professor and author of a forthcoming book on the history of impeachment, said Congress could look beyond criminal laws in defining “high crimes and misdemeanors.” Historically, it can encompass corruption and other abuses, including trying to obstruct judicial proceedings.

HOW DOES IMPEACHMENT PLAY OUT?

The term impeachment is often interpreted as simply removing a president from office, but that is not strictly accurate.

Impeachment technically refers to the 435-member House of Representatives approving formal charges against a president.

The House effectively acts as accuser – voting on whether to bring specific charges. An impeachment resolution, known as “articles of impeachment,” is like an indictment in a criminal case. A simple majority vote is needed in the House to impeach.

The Senate then conducts a trial. House members act as the prosecutors, with senators as the jurors. The chief justice of the U.S. Supreme Court presides over the trial. A two-thirds majority vote is required in the 100-member Senate to convict and remove a president from office.

No president has ever been removed from office as a direct result of an impeachment and conviction by Congress.

Nixon quit in 1974 rather than face impeachment. Presidents Andrew Johnson in 1868 and Bill Clinton in 1998 were impeached by the House, but both stayed in office after the Senate acquitted them.

Obstruction of justice was one charge against Clinton, who faced allegations of lying under oath about his relationship with White House intern Monica Lewinsky. Obstruction was also included in the articles of impeachment against Nixon.

CAN THE SUPREME COURT OVERTURN?

No.

Trump said on Twitter on Wednesday that he would ask the Supreme Court to intervene if Democrats tried to impeach him. But America’s founders explicitly rejected making a Senate conviction appealable to the federal judiciary, Bowman said.

“They quite plainly decided this is a political process and it is ultimately a political judgment,” Bowman said.

“So when Trump suggests there is any judicial remedy for impeachment, he is just wrong.”

PROOF OF WRONGDOING?

In a typical criminal court case, jurors are told to convict only if there is “proof beyond a reasonable doubt,” a fairly stringent standard.

Impeachment proceedings are different. The House and Senate “can decide on whatever burden of proof they want,” Bowman said. “There is no agreement on what the burden should be.”

PARTY BREAKDOWN IN CONGRESS?

Right now, there are 235 Democrats, 197 Republicans and three vacancies in the House. As a result, the Democratic majority could vote to impeach Trump without any Republican votes.

In 1998, when Republicans had a House majority, the chamber voted largely along party lines to impeach Clinton, a Democrat.

The Senate now has 53 Republicans, 45 Democrats and two independents who usually vote with Democrats. Conviction and removal of a president would requires 67 votes. So that means for Trump to be impeached, at least 20 Republicans and all the Democrats and independents would have to vote against him.

WHO BECOMES PRESIDENT IF TRUMP IS REMOVED?

A Senate conviction removing Trump from office would elevate Vice President Mike Pence to the presidency to fill out Trump’s term, which ends on Jan. 20, 2021.

(Reporting by Jan Wolfe and Richard Cowan; Editing by Kevin Drawbaugh and Peter Cooney)

Source: OANN

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