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Hong Kong Airlines faces more uncertainty as chairman challenges his removal

FILE PHOTO: A Hong Kong Airlines Airbus A330 passenger plane taxies on the tarmac at the Hong Kong Airport
FILE PHOTO: A Hong Kong Airlines Airbus A330-300 passenger plane taxies on the tarmac at the Hong Kong Airport September 11, 2013. REUTERS/Tyrone Siu/File Photo

April 17, 2019

By Jennifer Hughes and Kane Wu

HONG KONG (Reuters) – Hong Kong Airlines, partially owned by China’s HNA Group, was thrown into deeper uncertainty on Wednesday after Hou Wei disputed a decision that removed him as chairman and said he was still in charge of the struggling carrier.

Former Hong Kong Airlines director Zhong Guosong announced on Tuesday he had been appointed chairman after a shareholder meeting where he and Chinese private equity firm Frontier Investment Partner, who together control about 61 percent of the shares, voted in additional board members, including Zhong as chairman.

Hou Wei joined Hong Kong Airlines in September last year, having previously worked for units of HNA’s Hainan Airlines, China’s fourth-largest carrier.

Referring to himself as chairman of the airline, Hou on Wednesday challenged the decision to remove him. In an internal letter sent to employees and shown to Reuters by Hong Kong Airlines, Hou said the board changes were a result of a shareholder dispute and would not have any impact on the company’s operations.

“I will continue to work hand in hand with our leadership team to take concrete actions to secure Hong Kong Airlines’ future,” Hou said.

Hong Kong Airlines Consultation Service Co., which Zhong controls, and Frontier responded by saying that the April 16 meeting was conducted legitimately under proper procedures supported by multiple legal opinions.

“These steps were taken to secure the financial future of Hong Kong Airlines and stop further related party transactions and any embezzlement of company assets amid a period of significant financial stress and reports of serious financial misappropriation,” said the two.

HNA, which holds about 29 percent of the carrier, declined to comment.

The dispute follows another shareholder meeting earlier this month where Hong Kong Airlines executives told investors the company needed to raise at least HK$2 billion ($255.12 million) or risk losing its operating license.

The shareholders reacted angrily, Reuters reported last week, and questioned Hong Kong Airlines’ dealings with other HNA affiliates, demanding the company provide full 2018 financial figures before they would consider providing fresh capital.

Formerly acquisitive HNA – a planes-to-banking Chinese conglomerate – has been working to improve its finances since China cracked down on aggressive debt-fueled foreign dealmaking in mid-2017.

By that point, a $50 billion spree had netted HNA assets including the single largest stake in Deutsche Bank. It has since been reducing its portfolio and last month sold low-cost carrier Hong Kong Express Airways.

On Tuesday, HNA unit CWT International Ltd said it had defaulted on a HK$1.4 billion ($179 million) loan and had less than 24 hours to pay funds due or lose assets pledged as collateral.

(Reporting by Jennifer Hughes, Kane Wu and Julie Zhu; Editing by Muralikumar Anantharaman and Kirsten Donovan)

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Athletics: Lyles drops plans for 100m bid at world championships

American track and field sprinter Noah Lyles trains at the National Training Center in Clermont, Florida
American track and field sprinter Noah Lyles trains at the National Training Center in Clermont, Florida, U.S., February 19, 2019. REUTERS/Phelan Ebenhack

February 20, 2019

CLERMONT, Florida (Reuters) – American sprinter Noah Lyles is dropping plans for a sprint double at September’s world championships in Doha and will focus only on the 200 meters, he told Reuters.

For months Lyles had talked about going for gold in both the 100 and 200 meters in his first world championships.

But the emphasis now will be on his best event, the twice Diamond League 200m champion said in an interview.

“My coach has now come to the conclusion that he believes that I should now gain my first gold (at the world championships) before going into the Olympics and trying to double,” Lyles said.

“And I agree with him. If I get in that final, I know I can win that 200.”

The 21-year-old still left the door slightly ajar for doubling.

“If something happens and we are doing really well and training has proven that I can handle six rounds (three each in the 100 and 200m), then maybe we will,” Lyles said. “But as it stands now, the 200 is the goal.”

The final decision will come before the U.S. trials in late July, his coach, Lance Brauman, told Reuters.

Lyles has not lost a race in the 200m since 2016, but there is work to be done in the 100m, especially on his start where Christian Coleman and Ronnie Baker are America’s fastest.

(Reporting by Gene Cherry in Clermont, Florida, editing by Pritha Sarkar)

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Lordstown, Ohio, ponders life after General Motors' departure

LORDSTOWN, Ohio -- Turnpike Exit 216 is still marked by large signs that say, “Lordstown Home of the Cruze.” This is where, for decades, General Motors manufactured a series of vehicles, including its popular Chevy Cruze.

Now, the 6.2 million-square-foot General Motor plant sits idle. Lots once filled with workers and inventory are now vacant. Small signs lining the fences read, “Save Our Plant.”

GM closed the Lordstown General Motor plant last week as part of a major company overhaul that will focus on making trucks, SUVs and electric and autonomous vehicles. The Cruze will be discontinued in North America.

Cars sitting outside the GM Lordstown Plant on November 26, 2018, in Lordstown, Ohio. (Photo by Jeff Swensen/Getty Images, File)

Cars sitting outside the GM Lordstown Plant on November 26, 2018, in Lordstown, Ohio. (Photo by Jeff Swensen/Getty Images, File)

The close-knit community has already felt the impact.

“It’s been very slow today,” said Lisa Miller, a server at Nese’s Country Café.

THE LAST CHEVROLET CRUZE TO BE BUILT

Nese's, which is a couple of miles from the plant, is usually packed with workers on their lunch break. But lately, the crowd has been sparse. During lunchtime a recent day, only one table was seated.

“It’s really a sad situation,” Miller said. “I’ve had to say goodbye to a lot of customers who have transferred, or will relocate for work.”

Nese’s Country Cafe, a couple of miles from the General Motors Lordstown plant is struggling after the recent closure announcement.

Nese’s Country Cafe, a couple of miles from the General Motors Lordstown plant is struggling after the recent closure announcement. (Fox News/Talia Kirkland)

For 52 years, families in the small Ohio town lived and breathed cars. Now, the town of 32,000 residents is uncertain about its future. If the plant shuts down for good, hundreds could lose their jobs.

Miller said the end of production at the plant isn’t just bad for business, “it’s a slap in the face,” after taxpayers bailed out car companies a little more than a decade ago. Miller wonders who will help their community.

“Lordstown doesn’t have nothing, it doesn’t even have a grocery store,” said Miller. “So, if you don’t work here, or you don’t live here, you’re probably not coming here.”

Hundreds of workers at the plant now face a painful choice: Take the company's offer to work at another factory — possibly hundreds of miles away — even if that means leaving behind their families, their homes and everything they've built — or stay and risk losing their high-paying jobs.

General Motor’s spokesperson Dan Flores said roughly 400 workers have voluntarily transferred to plants in the Midwest and South. There are still hundreds of others who remain in limbo, either contemplating retirement or hoping that jobs will somehow return to the region. The governor said Wednesday he doubts GM will reopen the plant.

GM CUTS JOBS IN RESPONSE TO PRESENT COSTS, FUTURE INNOVATION

Amanda Weinstein, an economics professor at the University of Akron, said the plant's closure in Lordstown is not only devastating to the region's economy but directly impacts many families as well.

"A lot of times when a plant closes, you will see higher skill workers finding employment a bit faster. However, they too will take a wage hit," said Weinstein, who added the outcome for low skill workers is far less optimistic. "They often won't find a job and will remain unemployed for a very long time which becomes very hard on families."

Weinstein said this type of situation is especially common in rural regions where there is a lack of industry diversity.

"You'll hear about comeback cities like New York, where the textile industry declined but the fashion [industry] was waiting in the wings. Lordstown doesn't have that," Weinstein said.

Kathleen "KC"  Watson owns an antique shop in the neighboring town of North Jackson and could tell by her store’s sales whenever jobs were eliminated at the plant. Just two years ago, the plant had 4,500 employees, but that kept shrinking as shifts were cut.

“A lot of families have come in attempting to sell their items in preparation for their moves,” Watson said. "And I have to turn them away because I don't have any more room."

Antiques & Uniques showcases 19 vendors and is open seven days a week. Watson said business has slowed significantly.

“Oh, I can remember when they cut third shift and the second shift, and now this was the worse January I’ve seen in my three years of business,” said Watson.

Local business owners in the neighboring towns of Lordstown, Ohio are feeling the impact of the recent closure of the General Motor's plant. Kathleen "KC" Watson reviews her January sales, the lowest on record since she opened three years ago.

Local business owners in the neighboring towns of Lordstown, Ohio are feeling the impact of the recent closure of the General Motor's plant. Kathleen "KC" Watson reviews her January sales, the lowest on record since she opened three years ago. (Fox News/Talia Kirkland)

Watson, a transplant from Colorado, moved to Ohio three years ago after retirement and opened her dream antique shop.

“I’m concerned, but I guess we just have to wait it out,” she said.

"Save our Plant," signs line the roads in Lordstown, Ohio.

"Save our Plant," signs line the roads in Lordstown, Ohio.

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Flores said there are no immediate plans to "retool" or reconfigure the plant for another vehicle, but did confirm that the status of the plant will remain “unallocated” until negotiations can be carried out in the fall with union representatives.

“I think we’ll be OK to live out the duration until another company comes in or production restarts," Watson said. "Or, at least will try.”

Source: Fox News National

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Stone (hat trick), Stastny get five points each as Knights sink Sharks

NHL: Stanley Cup Playoffs-San Jose Sharks at Vegas Golden Knights
Apr 14, 2019; Las Vegas, NV, USA; Vegas Golden Knights players celebrate after defeating the San Jose Sharks in game three of the first round of the 2019 Stanley Cup Playoffs at T-Mobile Arena. Mandatory Credit: Stephen R. Sylvanie-USA TODAY Sports

April 15, 2019

Mark Stone and Paul Stastny each had five points as the Vegas Golden Knights took a 2-1 lead in their first-round Stanley Cup playoff series with a convincing 6-3 victory over the San Jose Sharks on Sunday night in Las Vegas.

Stone notched his first-ever hat trick, while Stastny’s five-point night was the first of his career. Both set a team record for points in a playoff game. Max Pacioretty added a goal and an assist, and Shea Theodore also had three assists for Vegas, which improved to 8-3 all-time in playoff games at T-Mobile Arena.

Marc-Andre Fleury finished with 25 saves for his 77th career playoff victory, moving him into a tie with Mike Vernon for seventh place on the NHL’s all-time list.

Kevin Labanc, Timo Meier and Logan Couture scored for San Jose, which surrendered goals within the first 36 seconds in all three periods. Martin Jones finished with 34 saves.

The Golden Knights wasted little time taking a 1-0 lead, as Stone scored just 16 seconds into the opening period, the fastest goal to start a playoff game in Vegas history. Nate Schmidt hit Stone with a stretch pass down the middle of the ice from the Golden Knights’ blue line, and Stone then beat Jones with a backhand to his glove side.

Pacioretty made it 2-0 with a power-play goal 12 minutes later after Evander Kane was called for a double-minor high-sticking penalty for cutting William Carrier. Five seconds later, Pacioretty fired a wrist shot from the top of the right circle that beat Jones on his glove side.

San Jose cut it to 2-1 near the end of the period when Labanc jammed in Joe Thornton’s pass from behind the goal inside the right post for his first goal of the playoffs.

The Golden Knights extended their lead to 4-1 in the second period behind a pair of goals by Stastny, the first on a rebound from the top left circle just 21 seconds into the period, and the second on a power play when he redirected a crossing pass from Stone past Jones’ stick side.

After Stone made it 5-1 with another backhand goal just 36 seconds into the third period, San Jose cut it to 5-3 with goals by Couture and Meier 54 seconds apart.

Stone, who had five goals in 18 regular-season games with Vegas after coming over in a trade-deadline deal with Ottawa, sealed the win his third goal of the night and sixth in three playoff games when he beat Jones with another backhand at the end of a give-and-go with Stastny.

–Field Level Media

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Oil prices stable amid sanctions and OPEC cuts, but economic concerns drag

FILE PHOTO: Drilling rigs in the Cromarty Firth near Invergordon, Scotland
FILE PHOTO: Drilling rigs are parked up in the Cromarty Firth near Invergordon, Scotland, Britain January 27, 2015. REUTERS/Russell Cheyne

March 15, 2019

By Henning Gloystein

SINGAPORE (Reuters) – Oil prices were steady on Friday amid support from ongoing supply cuts led by OPEC and U.S. sanctions on Venezuela and Iran, but weighed down by concerns that an economic slowdown will soon start denting growth in fuel demand.

International benchmark Brent crude oil futures were at $67.16 per barrel at 0029 GMT, down 7 cents from their last close, but still within a dollar of the $68.14 per barrel 2019-high reached the previous day.

U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil futures were at $58.53 per barrel, down 8 cents from their last settlement, and also not far off their 2019-high of $58.74 from the previous day.

Despite Friday’s dips, crude has gained around a quarter in value since the start of the year.

“Crude oil continues to grind higher … in response to ongoing production cuts from the OPEC+ group of producers as well as another (output) slump from a blacked-out Venezuela,” said Ole Hansen, head of commodity strategy at Denmark’s Saxo Bank.

The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and non-affiliated allies such as Russia – known as the OPEC+ alliance – has pledged to withhold 1.2 million barrels per day (bpd) in crude supply since the start of the year to tighten markets and prop up prices.

Meanwhile, a political and economic crisis in Venezuela combined with U.S. sanctions against Venezuela as well as Iran, have further tightened oil markets.

Holding crude back crude prices from rising further have been concerns that a global economic slowdown that has gripped large parts of Asia and Europe, and which is showing signs of spilling into North America, will soon dent growth in demand for oil.

“(But), worries about growth and future demand for crude oil remain just worries at this stage,” said Saxo Bank’s Hansen.

Crude oil use by China’s refineries in the first two months of 2019 rose 6.1 percent from a year earlier to a record 12.68 million bpd, official data showed this week.

(Reporting by Henning Gloystein; Editing by Joseph Radford)

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The Latest: Man sentenced to life for murder of Muslim teen

The Latest on the sentencing of man convicted in killing of Muslim teenager in Virginia (all times local):

10:45 a.m.

A man has been sentenced to life in prison for raping and killing a Muslim teenager as she walked back to a mosque with friends for pre-dawn religious services.

The life sentence without possibility of parole imposed Thursday on Darwin Martinez-Torres of Sterling was a formality after his guilty plea last year in the June 2017 slaying of 17-year-old Nabra Hassanen of Reston. That plea bargain required a life sentence but eliminated a potential death penalty.

Hassanen's death received widespread attention amid concerns her slaying was motivated by anti-Muslim sentiment. But prosecutors say Martinez-Torres attacked her after he got out of his car to chase Nabra's group of friends in a road-rage confrontation.

Martinez-Torres is an El Salvador native; immigration authorities say he was in the country illegally.

___

A northern Virginia man is expected to receive a life sentence for raping and killing a Muslim teenager as she walked back to a mosque with friends for pre-dawn religious services.

Darwin Martinez-Torres of Sterling struck a plea bargain last year in the June 2017 slaying of 17-year-old Nabra Hassanen of Reston. That plea bargain requires the judge to impose a sentence of life without parole, in exchange for eliminating a potential death sentence.

Hassanen's death received widespread attention amid concerns her slaying was motivated by anti-Muslim sentiment. Prosecutors, though, say Martinez-Torres attacked her after he got out of his car to chase Nabra's group of friends in a road-rage confrontation.

Martinez-Torres is a native of El Salvador; immigration authorities say he was in the country illegally.

Source: Fox News National

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Senior U.N. official meets Taliban negotiators in Qatar

FILE PHOTO: United Nations Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Afghanistan Tadamichi Yamamoto delivers a speech during the UN conference on Afghanistan in Geneva
FILE PHOTO: United Nations Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Afghanistan Tadamichi Yamamoto delivers a speech during the UN conference on Afghanistan on November 28, 2018 at the UN Office in Geneva, Switzerland. Fabrice COFFRINI/File Photo

April 25, 2019

KABUL (Reuters) – The United Nations’ top official in Afghanistan met the Taiban’s chief negotiator in Qatar on Thursday, the movement’s chief spokesman said, as moves continue to try to start full peace negotiations to end more than 17 years of war.

The head of the U.N. Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) Tadamichi Yamamoto met Mullah Baradar Akhund and other members of the Taliban’s negotiating team in the Qatari capital Doha, the movement’s spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said.

Discussions centered on “the ongoing peace process, civilian casualties and humanitarian aid in areas of the Islamic Emirate,” he said in a statement.

UNAMA noted that it has frequent meetings with all parties to the conflict as part of efforts to help bring an end to the war and has had regular meetings with the Taliban in Doha.

“It has on multiple occasions made public statements that such meetings take place but, in keeping with UNAMA’s good offices mandate, does not comment further,” a spokesman said in an emailed statement.

The Doha meeting took place as officials from Russia and China were due to meet the special U.S. envoy for peace in Afghanistan, Zalmay Khalilzad, in Moscow to look for ways to persuade the Taliban to open talks with the government in Kabul.

The Taliban have held several meetings with U.S. diplomats and their representatives have also met officials from neighboring countries and others with an interest in Afghanistan.

But it has so far refused to talk to the internationally recognized Afghan government, which it describes as a foreign-appointed “puppet” regime.

The Doha meeting comes a day after the latest UNAMA report on civilian casualties showed a marked fall in deaths and injuries in the first three months of the year after a big decline in suicide attacks on civilian targets.

The report said that for the first time, more civilians were killed by Afghan security forces and their U.S. allies than by groups fighting the Kabul government.

(Reporting by James Mackenzie, Editing by William Maclean)

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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)

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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)

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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)

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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)

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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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