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France’s EDF in race to convert Cordemais plant from coal to biomass

The logo of EDF is seen on the French state-controlled utility EDF's headquarters in Paris
FILE PHOTO: The logo of EDF (Electricite de France) is seen on the French state-controlled utility EDF's headquarters in Paris, France, February 15, 2019. REUTERS/Charles Platiau

March 22, 2019

By Bate Felix

CORDEMAIS, France (Reuters) – French utility EDF aims to convert its 1,200-megawatt (MW) Cordemais coal-fired power plant by spring 2022 into one that burns pellet fuel made from discarded wood, giving the unit a new lease of life.

If successful, the process – known as Ecocombust – could be exported and adapted to other coal plants, saving jobs, while Cordemais would boost France’s security of supply in winter.

But EDF must convince the government by autumn that the project is financially and environmentally viable. French grid operator RTE is also expected to determine by April whether the plant is surplus to requirements.

In its long-term energy plan, France has laid out moves to phase out electricity generation from coal by 2022, with the goal of decarbonizing energy production by 2050.

The decision sounded the death knell for the five remaining coal-fired generators in France, with an installed capacity of around 3,000 MW. Three of the generators – Cordemais 4 and 5, and Havre 4 – are operated by state-controlled EDF.

Cordemais in western France was overhauled two years ago to meet new emissions and safety standards at a cost of several million euros, and could keep operating until 2035, EDF says.

France’s two other coal generators, Emile Huchet 6 and Provence 5, with a combined installed capacity of 1,200 MW, are operated by German utility Uniper.

EDF executives said the Ecocombust project, already in an advanced test phase, would burn pellets made from discarded “class B” wood and garden waste, for large-scale power generation. The project is the first of its kind, they say.

Although pellets from wood chips and sawdust are widely used for heating, Eric Bret, EDF’s head of thermal power generation, said the process was different because the company would not cut down any trees.

“The pellets are made from … everyday objects such as beams, doors, window frames and furniture, which until now are mostly recycled or buried in landfill,” he said.

SOURCED LOCALLY

Lionel Olivier, director of the Cordemais and Havre power plants, said the pellets would be 70 percent “class B” wood and 30 percent residue from grass, tree branches and garden waste, all sourced within a radius of 150 km (93 miles).

He said EDF was setting up a supply chain that included municipal waste authorities and companies, but would need state aid.

EDF declined to say what the conversion would cost and how much it had invested in the process.

At capacity, it aims to replace around 1.3 million to 2 million tonnes of coal imported annually from Poland, Australia and the United States, with about 700,000 tonnes of biomass.

Tests carried out in August with 80 percent pellet fuel and 20 percent coal to generate electricity for over four hours were successful, Olivier said.

The pellets have 20 percent less energy or caloric value than coal, which could reduce each generator’s output capacity to 530 MW from 600 MW currently, he added.

Cordemais’ production would focus on periods of peak power demand in winter. After the conversion, output would be reduced to 800 hours annually from 4,000 hours, he said.

“Runtime would be five times less than the current production using coal but it will focus on a period when power prices are higher and more profitable,” Olivier said.

He added that the plant would also use five times less coal and emit five times less carbon dioxide.

(Reporting by Bate Felix; Editing by Dale Hudson)

Source: OANN

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Fed policymakers do not want rate cuts, not even the doves

FILE PHOTO: The Federal Reserve Board building on Constitution Avenue is pictured in Washington
FILE PHOTO: The Federal Reserve Board building on Constitution Avenue is pictured in Washington, U.S., March 27, 2019. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid

March 29, 2019

By Trevor Hunnicutt and Ann Saphir

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Barely a week after the U.S. Federal Reserve called a halt to interest rate hikes, policymakers are now battling a view growing in financial markets, and embraced by the Trump administration, that the Fed will need to cut rates before long.

Larry Kudlow, President Donald Trump’s top economic advisor, said Friday on CBNC that while there is “no emergency,” the Fed should cut rates to protect the U.S. economy from slowing down.

But no fewer than five Fed officials in the past 24 hours have touted the underlying strength of the American economy and argued the recent spate of weak data on business activity is more likely to prove fleeting than lasting.

Even the Fed’s two most dovish policymakers – the presidents of the St. Louis and Minneapolis regional banks – say they are not ready to agitate for the central bank to start reversing three years of rate increases.

On Friday one of the bank’s centrists, Randal Quarles, the Fed Board of Governor’s Vice Chair for Supervision, offered an optimistic view of the U.S. economy and said more rate increases may be needed if recent positive trends in productivity and investment continue.

Quarles is the latest in a series of policymakers insisting the Fed has an option to raise rates even as markets increasingly regard such a move as unlikely. The latest monthly jobs report showed a sharp slowdown in hiring, and recent data shows factory activity, business and consumer confidence and inflation have all weakened.

Indeed, prices on futures contracts tied to the Fed’s policy rate on Friday reflected bets the central bank will need to reduce interest rates by September.

Speaking in New York, Quarles said he is inclined to dismiss the recent data as “a bit odd” and “inconsistent” with underlying strength, wage gains that should be boosting households, and a rise in productivity he feels could be “persistent” and lead to stronger growth down the road.

DOVES AND HAWKS TOGETHER

But it wasn’t just Quarles, who has long tended to be on the more hawkish end of the Fed’s policy spectrum.

Even Minneapolis Federal Reserve Bank President Neel Kashkari, one of the biggest opponents of rate hikes at the central bank, told Reuters on Friday that it is “premature” to think about a cutting rates in response to economic data and market indicators.

Also on Friday, Dallas Federal Reserve President Robert Kaplan said bond markets are pointing to skepticism about future economic growth. But some economic data in the first quarter was distorted by a partial U.S. government shutdown and consumers are in good shape, he said.

Perhaps most telling are remarks by the influential chief of the New York Fed, John Williams, who on Thursday said the U.S. economy is in “a very good place” and described the likelihood of a recession in 2019 or 2020 as “not elevated.”

“I’m not as worried about a recession as some of my colleagues in the private sector,” Williams said. “I still see the probability of a recession this year or next year as being not elevated relative to any year.”

St. Louis Fed President James Bullard late Thursday also said it was premature to discuss any rate cut and felt the economy would likely rebound.

The Fed last week kept its target range for short-term rates at 2.25 percent to 2.5 percent, and projections showed most policymakers do not see any rate hikes this year, a downgrade from December when the median forecast was for rates to rise to 2.9 percent.

That downgrade was followed days later by a market phenomenon known as a yield curve inversion, where short-term rates exceed long-term rates, a pattern in the bond market that historically precedes a recession.

Policymakers have been keen to avoid the perception becoming reality, which may explain some of their pushback in recent days.

With the unemployment rate at 3.8 percent and the economy still growing faster than potential even as it slows, they also are reluctant to abandon the idea that inflation and wages will eventually perk up.

“It’s just taking a longer time than it typically does,” San Francisco Fed President Mary Daly said earlier this week.

(Reporting by Ann Saphir and Trevor Hunnicutt; Editing by Dan Burns and Andrea Ricci)

Source: OANN

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China picks BoCom chief Peng to head sovereign wealth fund CIC: sources

FILE PHOTO: BoCom President Peng Chun attends a news conference on the lender's annual results in Hong Kong
FILE PHOTO: Bank of Communications President Peng Chun attends a news conference on the lender's annual results in Hong Kong, China March 29, 2016. REUTERS/Bobby Yip/File Photo

April 2, 2019

SHANGHAI (Reuters) – China has chosen a new chairman for sovereign wealth fund China Investment Corp (CIC), two sources familiar with the matter said on Tuesday, filling the top role after two years of vacancy.

Peng Chun, chairman of Bank of Communications (BoCom), will become CIC’s chairman, three people with knowledge of the matter told Reuters. BoCom is China’s fifth-biggest lender.

“Chairman Peng has already left for CIC. BoCom will make a public announcement soon,” one of the sources said.

CIC managed $941 billion as of the end of 2017, the most recent year for which a figure is available. It could not immediately be reached for comment. BoCom declined to comment.

Bloomberg reported Peng’s move earlier on Tuesday.

Peng, 57, had a stint at CIC as vice general manager between 2010 and 2013.

Headquartered in Beijing, CIC was founded in 2007 to help China earn a higher return on its foreign exchange reserves.

CIC has invested in overseas companies including online property rental firm Airbnb, Canadian mining company Teck Resources to U.S. private equity house Blackstone.

(Reporting by Li Zheng and Andrew Galbraith; Writing by Samuel Shen; Editing by Tony Munroe & Kim Coghill)

Source: OANN

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U.S. heavy equipment makers feeling pain from tariffs, disputes: report

Caterpillar equipment at a retail site in San Diego California
FILE PHOTO: Caterpillar Inc. equipment is on display for sale at a retail site in San Diego, California, U.S., March 3, 2017. REUTERS/Mike Blake

March 18, 2019

By Timothy Aeppel

(Reuters) – U.S. makers of bulldozers and other heavy equipment are raising prices, losing sales and in some cases beginning to trim workers in response to the Trump administration’s protracted trade disputes with various countries, according to a new report.

Advocates of tariffs point to continued job growth and low overall inflation as proof that tariffs are not harming these manufacturers, which include global producers such as Caterpillar Inc, Alamo Group Inc and Terex Corp.

But an economic analysis conducted on behalf the Association of Equipment Manufacturers and set to be released on Monday by IHS Markit, notes that increased costs and the disruption of supply chains will slowly filter through the overall economy, gradually raising prices for finished goods and curbing employment over the next decade.

Scott Hazelton, a co-author of the report, said tariffs will increase the cost of producing off-road equipment in the U.S. between 6 percent to 7 percent over the period.

Caterpillar, a key component of the Dow, has said tariffs cost the company $100 million last year.

The study notes heavy equipment makers are particularly exposed to higher steel prices. Accounting for all steel used – both directly by these manufacturers and the parts they buy from others – the material represents 18.5 percent of the cost of a farm machine and 25.8 percent for mining machines.

“If you’re a domestic producer, you’re caught between eating a cost increase or raising prices and potentially losing business,” Hazelton said.

Gradall Industries Inc is among those getting hit at both ends of their business. The company, a subsidiary of Alamo Group Inc, has seen the price of massive metal castings it imports from China go up by 25 percent due to tariffs, for instance, on top of higher domestic steel prices.

Mike Haberman, president of Gradall, said they raised prices twice last year in response to higher-cost imports and steel.

Meanwhile, “our exports to China are down 30 to 40 percent,” said Haberman, due to retaliatory tariffs China slapped on imports of Gradall’s machines and the economic slowdown in that country.

The Section 232 tariffs imposed by Washington hit most foreign suppliers of metals, which have prompted retaliatory duties from many of those countries.

Haberman said he has not shed workers yet, but stopped hiring last year.

Other companies, however, are beginning to eye job cuts.

John Garrison, chief executive of Terex, said he plans to start reducing headcount in one of his business lines this year, but declined to specify which sector or the number of jobs that might be cut.

The company has three segments – aerial work platforms, cranes and material processing machines.

“I can’t say that it’s all due to tariffs, but the economic uncertainty caused by the trade situation isn’t helping,” Garrison said.

(Reporting by Timothy Aeppel; editing by Joe White and G Crosse)

Source: OANN

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‘Foxx Must Go!’: Chicago Police Union Stages Protest Against Corrupt Smollett Prosecutor

The Chicago police union held a protest against Cook County attorney Kim Foxx over her sudden dismissal of actor Jussie Smollett’s hate hoax case.

Hundreds of members of the Fraternal Order of Police (FOP) held the protest in downtown Chicago in response to her seemingly corrupt handling of Smollett’s case, where she dropped all 16 felony charges against the “Empire” actor at the last minute and had questionable communication with Smollett’s relatives and Michelle Obama’s former Chief of Staff over his case.

Protesters were chanting “Foxx must go! Foxx must go!”

FOP issued a statement Saturday calling for Foxx to step down from her position as district attorney, alleging a pattern of misconduct by her.

Jesse Jackson and his Rainbow Coalition are staging a counter protest in support of Foxx and Smollett, claiming outrage over her handling of his case amounted to “fake news.”

“The outrage over the Jussie Smollett case is misplaced and out of proportion. It is being used from City Hall to the White House to deflect and distract from City Hall to the White House. It is fake news. The voices that are crying out the loudest seem to have only recently found their sense of righteous indignation,” Jackson said Monday.

FOP president Kevin Graham criticized Jackson’s counter protest and said Smollett’s case should have “stood trial.”

“I think many of these people who are having this counter protest, that’s what they’ve been looking for in Chicago — justice,” Graham told Fox News. “And they should be standing behind the police and the F.O.P.”

“This case should have stood trial,” he added.


Twitter: 

Chicago police as well as Chicago mayor Rahm Emanuel have made clear their shock and disappointment that charges, for staging a hate crime hoax, against Jussie Smollett have been dropped. Alex points out this is a perfect example of corruption on the left.

Source: InfoWars

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Chancellor Angela Merkel’s mother has died at age 90

Chancellor Angela Merkel's office says the German leader's mother, Herlind Kasner, has died. She was 90.

Merkel's office confirmed the death in a short statement Thursday and asked that the "privacy of the chancellor and her family" be respected.

According to German media reports, Kasner, who lived in the town of Templin, about 75 kilometers (50 miles) north of Berlin, died earlier this month.

Merkel was known to be close to her mother, who was present in parliament when Merkel was sworn in for her fourth term last year. The chancellor, who rarely comments on her private life, has made no public comment on her death.

Kasner was a retired English and Latin teacher in Templin, where Merkel's father, who died in 2011, was a protestant minister.

Source: Fox News World

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Huawei says launches ‘world’s first’ 5G communications hardware for autos

FILE PHOTO: Small toy figures are seen in front of a displayed Huawei and 5G network logo in this illustration picture
FILE PHOTO: Small toy figures are seen in front of a displayed Huawei and 5G network logo in this illustration picture, March 30, 2019. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration

April 22, 2019

BEIJING (Reuters) – China’s Huawei Technologies launched on Monday what it said was the world’s first 5G communications hardware for the automotive industry, in a sign of its growing ambitions to become a key supplier to the sector for self-driving technology.

Huawei said in a statement that the so-called MH5000 module is based on the Balong 5000 5G chip which it launched in January. “Based on this chip, Huawei has developed the world’s first 5G car module with high speed and high quality,” it said.

It launched the module at the Shanghai Autoshow, which began last week and runs until Thursday.

“As an important communication product for future intelligent car transportation, this 5G car module will promote the automotive industry to move towards the 5G era,” Huawei said.

It said the module will aid its plans to start commercializing 5G network technology for the automotive sector in the second half of this year.

Huawei has in recent years been testing technology for intelligent connected cars in Chinese cities such as Shanghai, Shenzhen and Wuxi and has signed cooperation deals with a swathe of car makers including FAW, Dongfeng and Changan.

The company, which is also the world’s biggest telecoms equipment maker, is striving to lead the global race for next-generation 5G networks but has come under increasing scrutiny from Washington which alleges that its equipment could be used for espionage. Huawei has repeatedly denied the allegations.

(Reporting by Yilei Sun in Beijing and Brenda Goh in Shanghai; Editing by Muralikumar Anantharaman)

Source: OANN

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“Outdated laws” need fixing to deal with the surge in illegal immigrant families crossing the U.S. border with Mexico, a top Border Patrol official said Friday.

Migrant families face no consequences if apprehended trying to cross the border illegally under present law, Border Patrol chief of Operations Brian Hastings claimed during an appearance on “Fox & Friends.”

“We need a change in the current outdated laws that we’re dealing with for this current demographic and this crisis that we have,” he said.

Hastings said as of Thursday there have been 440,000 apprehensions along the southwest border. There were 396,000 apprehensions all of last year.

SOUTHERN BORDER AT ‘BREAKING POINT’ AFTER MORE THAN 76,000 ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS TRIED CROSSING IN FEBRUARY, OFFICIALS SAY

And those numbers continue to rise, he said.

Historically 70 to 90 percent of apprehensions at the border were quickly returned to Mexico, Hastings said.

Now, 83 percent of those apprehended have come from the Central American northern triangle which includes Guatemala, El Salvador, and Honduras, and of those 63 percent are “family units” and children who cannot be returned, he said.

“There are no consequences that we can apply to this group currently,” Hastings said. “We’re overwhelmed. If you look at agents there doing a tremendous job trying to deal with the flow.”

The law dictates children have to be released after 20 days of detention.

FLORIDA SHERIFF ON BORDER CRISIS AFTER MAJOR DRUG BUST: ‘IT MAKES ME ABSOLUTELY CRAZY’

Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., says that has forced immigration officials to release entire families because “you don’t want to separate families.”

Recently, he said he is drafting legislation that would allow children to be detained for more than 20 days.

Hastings said agents are frustrated with the situation but are doing the best they can with the resources they have.

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“Up to 40 percent of our agents are processing at any given time,” he said. “That should say that in and of itself is pulling from those border security resources.”

Source: Fox News National

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President Trump on Friday blasted liberal billionaire activist Tom Steyer for his continued push to impeach Trump — with Trump claiming Steyer is “trying to remain relevant” and doesn’t have the “guts” to run for the White House himself.

“Weirdo Tom Steyer, who didn’t have the ‘guts’ or money to run for President, is still trying to remain relevant by putting himself on ads begging for impeachment,” the president tweeted. “He doesn’t mention the fact that mine is perhaps the most successful first 2 year presidency in history & NO C OR O! [Collusion or Obstruction]”

TRUMP IMPEACHMENT BACKERS NOT GIVING UP AFTER MUELLER REPORT

Trump and his allies have pointed to Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s Russia report’s conclusions that there was no evidence of collusion between Russia and the Trump campaign and its decision not to make a conclusion on obstruction of justice as a vindication for the president.

But some Democrats and left-wing activists have pointed to the instances of possible obstruction of justice that the investigation looked into as proof of the need for more investigations or even impeachment proceedings.

ELIZABETH WARREN DOUBLES DOWN ON TRUMP IMPEACHMENT PUSH, SAYS IT’S ‘BIGGER THAN POLITICS’

Steyer has been one of the leaders backing a push to impeach Trump and founded “Need to Impeach” and has kept up that push since the report’s release. He announced on Thursday that he was calling on Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., to support impeachment proceedings.

On Friday he responded to Trump’s tweet, calling him “angry and scared.”

“I know you want it all to go away. But for the sake of the country you must face your transgressions. Rage away, but that anger doesn’t matter,” he said in a tweet. The truth and the people will prevail.”

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

Impeachment hearings have been backed by a number of House Democrats, as well as 2020 presidential hopefuls Sens. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., and Kamala Harris, D-Calif. However, Pelosi has long been skeptical of impeachment proceedings against Trump.

“I’m not for impeachment,” Pelosi told The Washington Post in an interview last month. “Impeachment is so divisive to the country that unless there’s something so compelling and overwhelming and bipartisan, I don’t think we should go down that path, because it divides the country. And he’s just not worth it.”

Source: Fox News Politics

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A Florida measure that would ban sanctuary cities is set for a vote Friday in the state’s Senate after clearing its first hurdle earlier this week.

The bill would effectively make it against the law for Florida’s police departments to refuse to cooperate with federal immigration officials.

“The Governor may initiate judicial proceedings in the name of the state against such officers to enforce compliance,” a draft version of the Senate bill reads.

A House version of the bill, which passed by a 69-47 vote Wednesday, adds that non-complying officials could be suspended or removed from office and face fines of up to $5,000 per day. Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis is expected to sign off on the measure, although it’s not clear which version.

FLORIDA MAY SEND A BIG MESSAGE TO SANCTUARY CITIES

Florida Rep. Carlos Guillermo Smith (D-Orlando), during a press conference at the Florida Capitol in Tallahassee, speaks out against bills in the House and Senate that would ban sanctuary cities in the state.

Florida Rep. Carlos Guillermo Smith (D-Orlando), during a press conference at the Florida Capitol in Tallahassee, speaks out against bills in the House and Senate that would ban sanctuary cities in the state. (AP)

LAWRENCE JONES: NEEDLES, DRUG USE AND HUMAN WASTE ARE THE NEW NORMAL IN SAN FRANCISCO

Florida is home to 775,000 illegal immigrants out of 10.7 million present in the United States, ranking the state third among all states.

Nine states — Alabama, Arizona, Georgia, Iowa, North Carolina, Mississippi, Missouri, Tennessee and Texas — already have enacted state laws requiring law enforcement to comply with Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

Florida doesn’t have sanctuary cities like the ones in California and other states. But Republican lawmakers say a handful of their municipalities — including Orlando and West Palm Beach – are acting as “pseudo-sanctuary” cities, because they prevent law enforcement officials from asking about immigration status when they make arrests.

“There are still people here in the state of Florida, police chiefs that are just refusing to contact ICE, refusing to detain somebody that they know is here illegally,” Florida Republican Rep. Blaise Ingoglia said earlier this month. “So while the actual county municipality doesn’t have an actual adopted policy, they still have people in power within their sheriff’s department or police department that refuse to do it anyway.”

Florida’s Democratic Party has blasted the anti-Sanctuary measures, while the Miami-Dade Police Department says it should be up to federal authorities to handle immigration-related matters.

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

“House Republicans today sold out their communities to Donald Trump and Ron DeSantis by passing this xenophobic and discriminatory bill,” the state’s Democratic Party said Wednesday after the House passed their version of the bill. “It’s abhorrent that Republican members who represent immigrant communities are now turning their backs on their constituents and jeopardizing their safety.

“Florida has long stood as a beacon for immigrant communities — and today Republicans did the best they could to destroy that reputation,” they added.

Fox News’ Elina Shirazi contributed to this report.

Source: Fox News National

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FILE PHOTO: Supporters of the Spain's far-right party VOX wave Spanish flags as they attend an electoral rally ahead of general elections in the Andalusian capital of Seville
FILE PHOTO: Supporters of the Spain’s far-right party VOX wave Spanish flags as they attend an electoral rally ahead of general elections in the Andalusian capital of Seville, Spain April 24, 2019. REUTERS/Marcelo del Pozo/File Photo

April 26, 2019

By John Stonestreet and Belén Carreño

MADRID (Reuters) – Spain’s Vox party, aligned to a broader far-right movement emerging across Europe, has become the focus of speculation about last minute shifts in voting intentions since official polling for Sunday’s national election ended four days ago.

No single party is anywhere near securing a majority, and chances of a deadlocked parliament and a second election are high.

Leaders of the five parties vying for a role in government get final chances to pitch for power at rallies on Friday evening, before a campaign characterized by appeals to voters’ hearts rather than wallets ends at midnight.

By tradition, the final day before a Spanish election is politics-free.

Two main prizes are still up for grabs in the home straight. One concerns which of the two rival left and right multi-party blocs gets more votes.

The other is whether Vox could challenge the mainstream conservative PP for leadership of the latter bloc, which media outlets with access to unofficial soundings taken since Monday suggest could be starting to happen.

The right’s loose three-party alliance is led by the PP, the traditional conservative party that has alternated in office with outgoing Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez’s Socialists since Spain’s return to democracy in the 1970s.

The PP stands at around 20 percent, with center-right Ciudadanos near 14 percent and Vox around 11 percent, according to a final poll of polls in daily El Pais published on Monday.

Since then, however, interest in Vox – which will become the first far-right party to sit in parliament since 1982 – has snowballed.

It was founded in 2013, part of a broader anti-establishment, far-right movement that has also spread across – among others – Italy, France and Germany.

While it is careful to distance itself from the ideology of late dictator Francisco Franco, Vox’s signature policies include repealing laws banning Franco-era symbols and on gender-based violence, and shifting power away from Spain’s regional governments.

TRENDING

According to a Google trends graphic, Vox has generated more than three times more search inquiries than any other Spanish political party in the past week.

Reasons could include a groundswell of vocal activist support at Vox rallies in Madrid and Valencia, and its exclusion from two televised debates between the main party leaders, on the grounds of it having no deputies yet in parliament.

Conservative daily La Vanguardia called its enforced absence from Monday’s and Tuesday’s debates “a gift from heaven”, while left-wing Eldiario.es suggested the PP was haemorrhaging votes to Vox in rural areas.

Ignacio Jurado, politics lecturer at the University of York, agreed the main source of additional Vox votes would be disaffected PP supporters, and called the debate ban – whose impact he said was unclear – wrong.

“This is a party polling over 10 percent and there are people interested in what it says. So we lose more than we win in not having them (in the debates),” he said

For Jose Fernandez-Albertos, political scientist at Spanish National Research Council CSIC, Vox is enjoying the novelty effect that propelled then new, left-wing arrival Podemos to 20 percent of the vote in 2015.

“While it’s unclear how to interpret the (Google) data, what we do know is that it’s better to be popular and to be a newcomer, and that Vox will benefit in some form,” he said.

For now, the chances of Vox taking a major role in government remain slim, however.

The El Pais survey put the Socialists on around 30 percent, making them the frontrunners and likely to form a leftist bloc with Podemos, back down at around 14 percent.

The unofficial soundings suggest little change in the two parties’ combined vote, or the total vote of the rightist bloc.

That makes it unlikely that either bloc will win a majority on Sunday, triggering horse-trading with smaller parties favoring Catalan independence – the single most polarizing issues during campaigning – that could easily collapse into fresh elections.

(Election graphic: https://tmsnrt.rs/2ENugtw)

(Reporting by John Stonestreet and Belen Carreno, Editing by William Maclean)

Source: OANN

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The Amish population in Pennsylvania’s Lancaster County is continuing to grow each year, despite the encroachment of urban sprawl on their communities.

The U.S. Census Bureau says the county added about 2,500 people in 2018. LNP reports that about 1,000 of them were Amish.

Elizabethtown College researchers say Lancaster County’s Amish population reached 33,143 in 2018, up 3.2% from the previous year.

The Amish accounted for about 41% of the county’s overall population growth last year.

Some experts are concerned that a planned 75-acre (30-hectare) housing and commercial project will make it more difficult for the county to accommodate the Amish.

Donald Kraybill, an authority on Amish culture, told Manheim Township commissioners this week that some in the community are worried about the development and the increased traffic it would bring.

___

Information from: LNP, http://lancasteronline.com

Source: Fox News National

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