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Florida firefighters buy microwave for member of ‘the greatest generation,’ department says

A Florida fire department took to Facebook on Thursday to highlight an act of kindness carried out by some of their firefighters for a “member of ‘The Greatest Generation.’”

High Springs firefighters arrived to a residence around 5:40 p.m. after a Life Alert alarm was triggered, the department posted. There wound up being no emergency, as the alarm was set off inadvertently, officials said.

FLORIDA COPS SURPRISE MAN WITH NEW BIKE AFTER HIS ‘OWN MODE OF TRANSPORTATION’ WAS STOLEN

But firefighters noticed something that they apparently took issue with.

“You see, this member of ‘The Greatest Generation’ lives alone and receives meals from the Meals on Wheels program, many of them frozen. That problem we noticed? Her microwave doesn't work."

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The Squad 29 crew quickly took action to help remedy the situation by going to a Lowe’s Home Improvement location, the department said. Not only did they pick up a new appliance for her, but they also “installed it, and cooked her dinner.”

“In Small Town USA, neighbors help neighbors,” the fire department wrote.

Source: Fox News National

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Sri Lanka’s leader calls for officials’ firings as Easter suicide bombers revealed to be ‘well-educated people’ who studied abroad

Sri Lanka's president has called for the resignations of the country’s defense secretary and national police chief Wednesday after officials admitted to suffering a “major lapse” in communications in the lead-up to the Easter Sunday bombings, which have left more than 350 people dead.

The announcement comes as officials also revealed that the nine suicide bombers responsible for the attacks were “quite well-educated people” who are believed to have studied abroad and obtained degrees in places like the U.K. and Australia before returning to their homeland. Two of those bombers, they added, were a husband and wife duo.

"It was a major lapse in the sharing of information," deputy defense minister Ruwan Wijewardene told reporters Wednesday, according to AFP, just minutes before news broke that his boss may be on the way out. "The government has to take responsibility."

It wasn’t immediately clear who would replace the two key officials, but President Maithripala Sirisena said during a televised speech Tuesday that he planned to change the head of the defense forces within 24 hours.

CLERIC 'MASTERMIND' BEHIND SRI LANKA ATTACKS KNOWN FOR HATE-FILLED SERMONS, POSSIBLE ISIS LINKS

A priest conducts religious rituals during a mass burial for Easter Sunday bomb blast victims in Negombo, Sri Lanka, on Wednesday.

A priest conducts religious rituals during a mass burial for Easter Sunday bomb blast victims in Negombo, Sri Lanka, on Wednesday. (AP)

The looming shakeup in Sri Lanka’s leadership follows widespread criticism directed at its government for failing to act on warnings it received about the bombers in the days leading up to the attacks. The official death toll on Wednesday rose to 359 and ISIS – through propaganda videos and statements -- has claimed responsibility for the bombings, despite not providing any evidence of their connection.

“We believe that one of the suicide bombers studied in the U.K. and later did his postgraduate in Australia before coming back and settling in Sri Lanka,” the Guardian quoted Wijewardene as saying Wednesday.

“This group of suicide bombers, most of them are well-educated and come from middle or upper-middle class, so they are financially quite independent and their families are quite stable financially, that is a worrying factor in this,” he added. “Some of them have I think studied in various other countries, they hold degrees, LLMs [law degrees], they’re quite well-educated people.”

Investigators also told the AFP that two of the bombers were sons of a wealthy spice trader in Colombo – Sri Lanka’s capital and site of many of the attacks. Two others, according to police spokesman Ruwan Gunasekara, were a husband and wife duo.

That woman, two children and three policemen are said to have died in an explosion as authorities closed in on her late Sunday, hours after attacks were launched against three churches and three hotels.

A view of St. Sebastian's Church damaged in suicide blast in Negombo, north of Colombo, Sri Lanka.

A view of St. Sebastian's Church damaged in suicide blast in Negombo, north of Colombo, Sri Lanka. (AP)

OCASIO-CORTEZ CALLED OUT FOR SOCIAL MEDIA SILENCE IN WAKE OF SRI LANKA ATTACKS

Gunasekara said 60 people have been arrested so far, while U.S. Ambassador Alaina Teplitz confirmed that a team of FBI agents and U.S. military officials are helping in the investigation.

Teplitz told reporters Wednesday that "clearly there was some failure in the system," but said the U.S. had no prior knowledge of a threat before the attacks, the worst violence in the South Asian island nation since its civil war ended a decade ago. She described the breakdown in communication amongst Sri Lankan officials as "incredibly tragic."

Sources close to the investigation told The Guardian that up to nine people linked to the bombings could still be at large. Among those arrested so far are six Pakistani refugees, including two women and two children. A police official says security footage and telephone records indicated that the refugees may have been in contact with one of the alleged church bombers, it added.

Over the past three years, radical Islamic cleric Zahran Hashim, alternately known as Mohammed Zahran, amassed an online following of thousands for hate-filled online sermons – sometimes delivered before a banner depicting the enkindled Twin Towers – and composed of impassioned calls for “all non-Muslims be eliminated.” 

Over the past three years, radical Islamic cleric Zahran Hashim, alternately known as Mohammed Zahran, amassed an online following of thousands for hate-filled online sermons – sometimes delivered before a banner depicting the enkindled Twin Towers – and composed of impassioned calls for “all non-Muslims be eliminated.”  (YouTube)

Sri Lankan authorities had earlier blamed a local extremist group, National Towheed Jamaar, whose leader, alternately named Mohammed Zahran or Zahran Hashmi, became known to Muslim leaders three years ago for his incendiary online speeches. On Wednesday, Wijewardene said the attackers had broken away from National Towheed Jamaar and another group, which he identified only as "JMI."

Teplitz declined to discuss whether U.S. officials knew about National Towheed Jamaar or its leader before the attack. "If we had heard something, we would have tried to do something about this," Teplitz said.

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Wijewardene also edged away from comments he made Tuesday that the bombings were retaliation for the March 15 mosque shootings by a white supremacist in Christchurch, New Zealand, that killed 50 people. He told reporters Wednesday that the mosque attack may have been a motivation for the bombings, but that there was no direct evidence of that.

New Zealand's Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said Wednesday she hasn't received any official advice from Sri Lanka or seen any intelligence reports to corroborate the claims.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Source: Fox News World

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Georgia Fowler Goes Braless In Shocking Instagram Photo

Georgia Fowler torched down Instagram with a recent snap.

Fowler, who has nearly 900,000 followers, posted a photo of herself braless in a white shirt for her fans to see. (SLIDESHOW: These Women On Instagram Hate Wearing Clothes)

This snap is about as crazy as you can expect to get on Instagram these days, and that’s saying a whole lot. (SLIDESHOW: 142 Times Josephine Skriver Barely Wore Anything)

Give it a glance below. I think you’re going to like what you see. (SLIDESHOW: 71 Times Samantha Hoopes Stripped Down)

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by GEORGIA FOWLER (@georgiafowler) on

To be honest with all of you, I didn’t know a ton about Fowler a few months back. I was a shade late to the party. (SLIDESHOW: This Blonde Bombshell Might Be The Hottest Model On The Internet) 

However, I’m all in now, and it’s great content. Here are a few more times she tore it up on Instagram. (SLIDESHOW: 60 Times Abigail Ratchford Wore Almost Nothing)

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by GEORGIA FOWLER (@georgiafowler) on

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by GEORGIA FOWLER (@georgiafowler) on

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A post shared by GEORGIA FOWLER (@georgiafowler) on

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A post shared by GEORGIA FOWLER (@georgiafowler) on

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Source: The Daily Caller

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Ukraine drops Eurovision singer over Russia row

FILE PHOTO: Grand Final of Eurovision Song Contest 2018 in Lisbon
FILE PHOTO: General view of the stage before the start of the Grand Final of Eurovision Song Contest 2018 at the Altice Arena hall in Lisbon, Portugal, May 12, 2018. REUTERS/Pedro Nunes - RC18D76B2E40

February 26, 2019

KIEV (Reuters) – Ukraine’s national broadcaster has dropped the singer who was meant to represent the country at the Eurovision Song Contest due to apparent political differences over Russia.

Anna Korsun, 27, who goes by the stage name Maruv, was selected by a public vote on Saturday to sing at the contest in Israel in May.

But she said the state broadcaster had tried to impose contractual obligations on her, including requiring her not to perform in Russia, that would have made her a propagandist for the government.

“I am a citizen of Ukraine, pay taxes and sincerely love Ukraine. But I am not ready to come up with slogans and turn my participation in the contest into a promotional activity for our politicians,” Maruv wrote on Facebook.

“I am a musician, not a puppet for the political arena.”

Ahead of Saturday’s televised national final, several senior officials said Ukraine’s Eurovision candidate could not be someone who performed in Russia, which annexed Crimea in 2014, sparking a pro-Russian insurgency in the eastern Donbass region.

Zurab Alasania, the head of the National Public Broadcasting Company of Ukraine (UA:PBC), said on Facebook:

“The selection revealed another major social problem … the concert activity of many artists in the aggressor country. And this caused a negative resonance in parts of society.” He confirmed that the winning singer was required to refuse to play in Russia as a condition of signing the contract.

Maruv said she was ready to cancel a tour of Russia but did not want to be used for political purposes.

UA:PBC said it was looking for a replacement singer to send to the contest, an annual international music battle whose results are often influenced by geo-political bias.

Reflecting the political importance of the issue, Deputy Prime Minister Vyacheslav Kyrylenko tweeted: “The story with the participant from Ukraine is far from over.”

(Reporting by Pavel Polityuk; Editing by Robin Pomeroy)

Source: OANN

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Court tosses military panel proceedings against suspected USS Cole attack mastermind

A federal appeals court in Washington on Tuesday rejected yearslong proceedings against the accused mastermind of the October 2000 bombing of the USS Cole. The proceedings were conducted by a military commission at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

The three-judge panel unanimously ruled that the military judge in the terrorism case against Abd al-Rahim al-Nashiri improperly presided over the trial at the same time he was seeking a job with the Justice Department (DOJ) as an immigration judge. In the panel's ruling, Judge David Tatel wrote that retired Air Force Col. Vance Spath's application for the DOJ position "created a disqualifying appearance of partiality" and vacated all orders issued by Spath in the case after he applied for the job in 2015.

"We cannot permit an appearance of partiality to infect a system of justice that requires the most scrupulous conduct from its adjudicators," said Tatel, who was joined in the ruling by Judges Judith Rogers and Thomas Griffith.

Abd al-Rahim al-Nashiri has been in U.S. custody since 2002.

Abd al-Rahim al-Nashiri has been in U.S. custody since 2002. (AP)

In a further twist, Col. Shelly Schools, who'd briefly replaced Spath, was also removed after it was revealed that she also sought to become an immigration judge.

The ruling likely means that the prosecution of al-Nashiri in the Cole bombing, which killed 17 American sailors and wounded 37 more while the vessel was being refueled in Yemen's Aden harbor, will have to begin anew. Al-Nashiri has been in U.S. custody since 2002 but was not arraigned in the Cole bombing until 2011, and the case has been delayed several times over various legal and logistical issues

Spath himself called a halt to proceedings last year following the discovery of microphones in a room where al-Nashiri met with his lawyers, and the lawyers' subsequent decision to resign from the case for ethical reasons.

The USS Cole bombing killed 17 sailors and injured 37 others in October 2000.  (AP Photo/Dimitri Messinis, file)

The USS Cole bombing killed 17 sailors and injured 37 others in October 2000.  (AP Photo/Dimitri Messinis, file) (The Associated Press)

Spath touted his role as the presiding judge over al-Nashiri's case in his employment application, including submitting an order he had issued as a writing sample, the appeals court said. He was hired as an immigration judge last year.

But "while Spath made sure to tell the Justice Department about his assignment to al-Nashiri's commission, he was not so forthcoming with al-Nashiri. At no point in the two-plus years after submitting his application did Spath disclose his efforts to secure employment" as an immigration judge, Tatel wrote.

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The court was also critical of prosecutors, the Justice Department and the Court of Military Commission Review, which upheld many of Spath's orders.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Source: Fox News National

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Near Kim hotel, North Korean defectors wish for peace

Two North Korean defectors have flown to Vietnam to wish for progress during a second summit between North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and President Donald Trump.

They were among the crowd of people and journalists gathered near a Hanoi hotel where Kim was staying following his arrival Tuesday.

One of the defectors, Shin Eun Ha, said she hopes the Kim-Trump summit would help achieve peace so that she's allowed to return her hometown in the North's northeastern town of Musan, which she fled in 2003.

"For defectors, North Korea isn't a country of hatred but a place that we are desperate to go back even in our dreams," Shin told The Associated Press. "I hope to see a day when we can go back to North Korea by taking a train that Kim Jong Un used to come here."

She and her fellow defector came as part of a popular South Korean TV program featuring North Korean defectors. Shin, a 30-year nurse in Seoul, has been a regular guest on the program, titled "Now On My Way to Meet You."

About 30,000 North Koreans have fled to South Korea since the end of the 1950-53 Korean War to avoid political oppression and economic difficulties. Shin said she left the North with her parents, who feared heavy punishment after they were caught making money from missionaries by passing out cassette tapes containing religious sermons and hymns to fellow North Koreans.

When Shin left, Kim's father, Kim Jong Il, was North Korea's leader, the second in a dynastic line that started with Kim Jong Un's grandfather, Kim Il Sung, who is the country's founder.

Shin said both Kim Jong Il and Kim Il Sung were "god-like figures" that she couldn't even dare to publicly call their names when she was in North Korea. She said Tuesday was the first time for her to be in the same neighborhood with a North Korean leader.

Nam Hee Seok, a popular South Korean comedian who works on the TV program, said North Korean defectors appearing on the show hope to see peace established on the Korean Peninsula so that they can exchange letters with their relatives left in the North.

He said Vietnam is one the countries that some of the defectors had gone through before reaching South Korea.

Source: Fox News World

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Green ‘swamp creatures’ crash Trump nominee’s Senate confirmation hearing

Silent protesters donning green masks and one that resembled the character in the horror film "Creature from the Black Lagoon" popped up at Interior Secretary nominee David Bernhardt's Senate confirmation hearing on Thursday.

Images of the spooky swamp creatures quickly circulated online late Thursday afternoon — as Greenpeace USA shared a GIF of a demonstrater pulling the mask over her head while Bernhardt was questioned by committee members. At least one green creature appeared in the frame (just above Bernhardt's shoulder) of photos and videos throughout the hearing.

"So why did we bring these swamp creatures to David Bernhardt's confirmation hearing for Interior Secretary this morning? Well... Bernhardt is a former oil and gas lobbyist who previously worked to help corporate polluters get their hands on public lands," the environmental nonprofit organization wrote in a tweet, which has received hundreds of likes.

ILLINOIS REP BLASTS 'BOGUS' JUSSIE SMOLLETT CASE, ROLLS OUT BILL TO NIX FILM TAX CREDIT FOR HIS EMPLOYERS

Greenpeace said it was intended to be a spoof of President Trump's popular campaign saying: "Drain the swamp," referring to corruption and greed in Washington, D.C.

The organization claimed Bernhardt is a "walking conflict of interest."

The environmental advocacy group Clean Water Action also enlisted "swamp creatures" to sit in on the hearing. Some wore masks of Bernhardt's face.

The protesters were removed from the hearing room by Capitol Police after about two hours, the police spokeswoman confirmed to The Washington Post, declining to elaborate.

Bernhardt appeared before the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, which was considering his nomination as Interior secretary. Bernhardt, a Washington veteran who has worked previously at Interior and more recently as a lobbyist, has been serving as the department's acting secretary since Ryan Zinke resigned in December amid ethics allegations.

ON OFFENSE IN RUSSIA PROBE, TRUMP URGED TO CONSIDER NEW SPECIAL COUNSEL, CRIMINAL REFERRALS

Some Democrats argued that Bernhardt's past lobbying work for clients in energy, agriculture and other businesses made it impossible for the nominee to impartially decide a host of regulatory matters dealing with the public resources under Interior's control.

But Bernhardt touted his "particular skill set" and stressed that he realizes the importance of the Department of the Interior's duties.

A clean water action activist attends a Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee nomination hearing for former energy lobbyist David Bernhardt to be Interior secretary, on Capitol Hill.

A clean water action activist attends a Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee nomination hearing for former energy lobbyist David Bernhardt to be Interior secretary, on Capitol Hill. (REUTERS/Yuri Gripas)

Sen. Cory Gardner, a Colorado Republican, defended Bernhardt during the heating, arguing that his past work for industries and previous stints as a senior staffer at Interior gave him valuable experience.

Committee Chairwoman Lisa Murkowski, too, said government ethics officials had approved Bernhardt's plans for handling any conflicts of interest.

"He has proven his ability to head the department," said Murkowski, R-Alaska.

While announcing his nomination in February, Trump praised Bernhardt's work.

"David has done a fantastic job from the day he arrived, and we look forward to having his nomination officially confirmed!" he tweeted at the time.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Source: Fox News Politics

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FILE PHOTO: The Huawei logo is pictured outside its Huawei's factory campus in Dongguan, Guangdong province
FILE PHOTO: The Huawei logo is pictured outside its Huawei’s factory campus in Dongguan, Guangdong province, China, March 25, 2019. REUTERS/Tyrone Siu/File Photo

April 26, 2019

By Ben Blanchard

BEIJING (Reuters) – Britain must get to the bottom of the leak of confidential discussions during a top-level security meeting about the role of China’s Huawei Technologies in 5G network supply chains, British finance minister Philip Hammond said on Friday.

News that Britain’s National Security Council, attended by senior ministers and spy chiefs, had agreed on Tuesday to bar Huawei from all core parts of the country’s 5G network and restrict its access to non-core elements was leaked to a national newspaper.

The leak of secret discussions has sparked anger in parliament and amongst Britain’s intelligence community. Britain’s most senior civil servant Mark Sedwill has launched an inquiry and written to ministers who were at the meeting.

“My understanding from London (is) that an investigation has been announced into apparent leaks from the NSC meeting earlier this week,” said Hammond, speaking on the sidelines of a summit on China’s Belt and Road initiative in Beijing.

“To my knowledge there has never been a leak from a National Security Council meeting before and therefore I think it is very important that we get to the bottom of what happened here,” he told Reuters in a pooled interview.

British culture minister Jeremy Wright said on Thursday he could not rule out a criminal investigation. The majority of the ministers at the NSC meeting have said they were not involved, according to media reports.

Hammond said he was unaware of any previous leak from a meeting of the NSC.

“It’s not about the substance of what was apparently leaked. It’s not earth-shattering information. But it is important that we protect the principle that nothing that goes on in national security council meetings must ever be repeated outside the room.”

Allowing Huawei a reduced role in building its 5G network puts Britain at odds with the United States which has told allies not to use its technology at all because of fears it could be a vehicle for Chinese spying. Huawei has categorically denied this.

There have been concerns that the NSC’s conclusion, which sources confirmed to Reuters, could upset other allies in the world’s leading intelligence-sharing network – the Five Eyes alliance of the United States, Britain, Australia, Canada and New Zealand.

However, British ministers and intelligence officials have said any final decision on 5G would not put critical national infrastructure at risk. Ciaran Martin, head of the cyber center of Britain’s main eavesdropping agency, GCHQ, played down any threat of a rift in the Five Eyes alliance.

(Writing by Michael Holden; Editing by Mark Heinrich)

Source: OANN

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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

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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

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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

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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

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