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Boeing unveils 737 MAX software fix after fatal crashes

FILE PHOTO: An aerial photo shows Boeing 737 MAX airplanes parked on the tarmac at the Boeing Factory in Renton
FILE PHOTO: An aerial photo shows Boeing 737 MAX airplanes parked on the tarmac at the Boeing Factory in Renton, Washington, U.S. March 21, 2019. REUTERS/Lindsey Wasson/File Photo/File Photo

March 27, 2019

SEATTLE (Reuters) – Boeing Co said on Wednesday it had reprogrammed software on its 737 MAX to prevent erroneous data from triggering an anti-stall system that is facing mounting scrutiny in the wake of two deadly nose-down crashes in the past five months.

The planemaker said the anti-stall system, which is believed to have repeatedly forced the nose lower in at least one of the accidents, in Indonesia last October, would only do so once per event after sensing a problem, giving pilots more control.

It will also be disabled if two airflow sensors that measure key flight data offer widely different readings, Boeing said, confirming details reported by Reuters on Tuesday.

“We are going to do everything that we can do to ensure that accidents like these never happen again,” Mike Sinnett, Vice President for Product Strategy and Future Airplane Development told reporters on Wednesday at a Boeing facility near Seattle.

(Reporting by Eric M. Johnson, Editing by Tim Hepher)

Source: OANN

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Rand Paul: 'Source' says John Brennan pushed discredited Steele dossier

Citing a "high-level source," Republican Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul charged in a bombshell Twitter post late Wednesday that anti-Trump ex-CIA Director John Brennan "insisted that the unverified and fake Steele dossier" be included in a classified intelligence report -- a decision that lent credibility to the dossier and played a key role in fomenting unfounded fears of Russia collusion for two years.

Paul called on Brennan to testify under oath immediately, as Republicans continue to aggressively seek out the origins of the collusion narrative. Fox News had not independently verified Paul's source, and Brennan has not replied to Fox News' requests for comment.

CNN reported in Jan. 12, 2017, based on anonymous sources, that intelligence officials had briefed Trump with a "synopsis" of the contents of a dossier written by ex-British spy Christopher Steele on Jan. 7, 2017. Among the claims in the discredited dossier were that the Russian government had humiliating and compromising information concerning Trump.

Although the decision to brief Trump, then-FBI Direct James Comey would later testify, was ostensibly intended to make him aware of potential blackmail risks, the nearly immediate leak of the meeting legitimized the dossier's significance and prompted a cascade of unfounded media-driven theories about what purportedly compromising information the Russian government may have on the president.

FOX NEWS EXCLUSIVE: INTERNAL TEXTS SHOW DOJ CONCERNS OVER 'BIAS' OF DOSSIER AUTHOR BEFORE CRUCIAL WARRANT APPLICATION

For example, Vanity Fair article alleged: "The fact that the nation’s top intelligence officials chose to present a summary version of the dossier to both President Obama and President-elect Trump, as CNN reports they did last week, indicates that they may have had a relatively high degree of confidence that at least some of the claims therein were credible, or at least worth investigating further."

Sen. Rand Paul called Monday for President Trump to revoke former CIA director John Brennan's security clearance.

Sen. Rand Paul called Monday for President Trump to revoke former CIA director John Brennan's security clearance. (Reuters)

Shortly afterward the CNN report, BuzzFeed News published the dossier. Steele, whose anti-Trump views are now well-known, was working for Fusion GPS -- a firm hired by the Hillary Clinton campaign and Democratic National Committee.

"BREAKING: A high-level source tells me it was Brennan who insisted that the unverified and fake Steele dossier be included in the Intelligence Report," Paul wrote on Twitter on Wednesday. "Brennan should be asked to testify under oath in Congress ASAP."

Information from the author of the discredited dossier was also used in October 2016 to support a Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) warrant to surveil then-Trump aide Carter Page.

Just nine days before the FBI applied for the warrant to monitor Page, bureau officials were battling with a senior Justice Department official who had "continued concerns" about the "possible bias" of a source pivotal to the application, according to internal text messages obtained last week by Fox News. (Sources tell Fox News the DOJ stonewalled congressional investigators by not releasing those text messages last year.)

Fox News is told the texts were connected to the ultimately successful Page application, which relied in part on information from Steele. In its warrant application, the FBI incorrectly assured the FISA court on numerous occasions that other sources independently corroborated Steele's claims but did not clearly state that Steele worked for a firm hired by Hillary Clinton's campaign.

Other newly obtained text messages between former Acting FBI Director Andrew McCabe and bureau lawyer Lisa Page revealed a high-level meeting among senior intelligence officials was held weeks before President Trump’s inauguration – during a critical period for the Russia probe.

WHY BRENNAN, CLAPPER'S HIGH-LEVEL MEETING -- REVEALED BY TEXTS OBTAINED BY FOX NEWS -- WAS SO UNUSUAL

In a Dec. 12, 2016, text reviewed by Fox News, Page wrote to McCabe: "Btw, [Director of National Intelligence James] Clapper told Pete that he was meeting with [CIA Director John] Brennan and Cohen for dinner tonight. Just FYSA [for your situational awareness]."

Brennan was one of the loudest voices to trumpet the Russian collusion theory over the past two years, asserting falsely just weeks ago that Special Counsel Robert Mueller was likely planning to indict members of the Trump administration's family in a scene reminiscent of the "ides of March” and the assassination of Julius Caesar.

Paul had supported the White House's decision to revoke Brennan's security clearance last year. Trump administration officials said Brennan was implying improperly that he had insider information to bolster his outlandish accusations. In the same interview in which he told MSNBC that an "ides of March" redux may soon materialize, MSNBC host Lawrence O'Donnell even remarked at one point, "You have the inside knowledge." Brennan attempted to dismiss that suggestion.

After the news that Mueller found no evidence of Trump-Russia collusion after an exhaustive probe lasting nearly two years, Brennan offered a meek mea culpa.

“I don't know if I received bad information, but I think I suspected there was more than there actually was,” Brennan told MSNBC’s “Morning Joe.”

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He added: “I am relieved that it’s been determined there was not a criminal conspiracy with the Russian government over our election."

Brennan said he was “not all that surprised that the high bar of criminal conspiracy was not met" -- although, according to Attorney General William Barr, Mueller in fact found no evidence of such a conspiracy whatsoever.

Fox News' Catherine Herridge contributed to this report.

Source: Fox News Politics

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Taiwan March export orders seen dropping for fifth straight month: Reuters poll

FILE PHOTO: Shipping containers are seen at Keelung port, northern Taiwan,
FILE PHOTO: Shipping containers are seen at Keelung port, northern Taiwan, March 20, 2016. . REUTERS/Tyrone Siu

April 19, 2019

TAIPEI (Reuters) – Taiwan’s export orders likely declined for a fifth month in March but at a slower pace than in the previous month, a Reuters poll showed, as a prolonged downturn in global tech demand hurts manufacturers in the trade-reliant economy.

The median forecast from the poll of 14 economists was for March export orders to drop 5.45 percent from a year earlier. Forecasts ranged from a decline of 10.3 percent to growth of 3.5 percent.

In February, Taiwan’s export orders fell 10.9 percent, the most in nearly three years due to cautious machinery orders from China as the United States-China trade dispute wears on, pointing to a further slowdown for the island’s economy.

Taiwan export orders are an indicator of demand for Asia’s hi-tech gadgets, and typically lead actual exports by two to three months.

(Poll compiled by Carol Lee; Reporting by Yimou Lee; Editing by Richard Borsuk)

Source: OANN

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Fingerpointing in battle over Mueller report; Schultz predicts Trump victory if Sanders is Dems’ nominee

Welcome to Fox News First. Not signed up yet? Click here.
 
Developing now, Friday, April 5, 2019

MUELLER REPORT UNDER SCRUTINY: The Mueller report - and everyone involved in its handling, from Attorney General William Barr to Special Counsel Robert Mueller and his investigators - are under scrutiny as Democrats demand that Barr release the full, unredacted report ... On Thursday, the attorney general - who is expected to release entire Mueller report, with redactions, by mid-April - defended his handling of the 400-page document, saying it contains sensitive grand jury material.

Meanwhile, amid reports that Mueller's findings were more damaging to President Trump than Barr indicated, Fox News has learned Republican lawmakers had concerns about Mueller's investigators before the probe ended. Sens. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, and Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., alerted Barr to what they described as the "selective" use of emails in Mueller court filings -- as well as potential “improper political influence, misconduct, and mismanagement” in the FBI's original Russia probe.

EX-TRUMP FIXER MAKES LAST-MINUTE PLEA TO DEMS: With a little more than a month to go until he is slated to report to prison, former Trump fixer Michael Cohen is asking House Democrats to help keep him out of the big house ... In a letter sent to lawmakers Thursday, Cohen's legal team said he was still sorting through documents in his personal files that might be of interest to House Democrats investigating President Trump, including emails, voice recordings, images and other documents on a hard drive. The letter was sent to a who's-who of Trump opponents in the Democratic Party, including Reps. Adam Schiff of California, Jerry Nadler of New York, Maxine Waters of California and Elijah Cummings of Maryland.

HOWARD SCHULTZ: TRUMP WINS RE-ELECTION IF SANDERS IS HIS OPPONENT - Potential independent 2020 White House contender Howard Schultz predicted outright that President Trump will win re-election if Democrats nominate a self-described socialist like Bernie Sanders, during Fox News' "America's Election HQ" Town Hall Thursday night in Kansas City, Mo. ... At the town hall event, co-hosted by Fox News' Bret Baier and Martha MacCallum, Schultz separately denied he would play a "spoiler" in the race -- and suggested instead that someone like Sanders could unwittingly play that role. He addressed a variety of topics, such as the immigration crisis at the U.S-Mexico border, allegations of inappropriate conduction leveled by seven women against Joe Biden, Trump's withdrawal from the Iran nuclear deal and more. (Click on the video above for a highlight from the Schultz townhall.)

FILE - In this March 26, 2019, file photo, actor Jussie Smollett smiles and waves to supporters before leaving Cook County Court after his charges were dropped in Chicago. (AP Photo/Paul Beaty, File)

FILE - In this March 26, 2019, file photo, actor Jussie Smollett smiles and waves to supporters before leaving Cook County Court after his charges were dropped in Chicago. (AP Photo/Paul Beaty, File)

CHICAGO VERSUS SMOLLETT: Chicago is vowing a civil suit against Jussie Smollett after the "Empire" actor "refused to reimburse" the city for the cost of investigating his controversial case ... In a statement obtained by Fox News, the city's law department said that Smollett, 36, "has refused to reimburse the City of Chicago for the cost of police overtime spent investigating his false police report on Jan. 29, 2019." The statement said that the law department "is now drafting a civil complaint that will be filed in the Circuit Court of Cook County."

SUSPECT ARRESTED IN QUADRUPLE SLAYINGS: A "person of interest" who was detained Thursday in connection with four workplace murders in North Dakota earlier this week has now been arrested and charged with the killings, authorities said ... Four people were found shot and stabbed Monday inside family-owned company RJR Maintenance and Management. The suspect, identified as Chad Isaak, 44, of Washburn, N.D., lived in a trailer park managed by RJR Maintenance and Management. Police did not speculate on a motive.

THE SOUNDBITE

'TRUMP IS RIGHT' - "The issue that we have to recognize is this: President Trump is correct, and the Republican leadership is correct that we need fierce, strict levels of control on that border to keep bad people from coming in; illegal immigrants should not come in." – Howard Schultz, addressing the illegal immigration crisis, at Fox News' "America's Election HQ" Town Hall. (Click the image above to watch the full video.)

TODAY'S MUST-READS
Trump reacts to Barbara Bush criticism: 'Look what I did to her sons.'
Report: Court papers show Gillibrand’s father worked for sex cult.
Lawrence Jones responds to critics who mocked him for wearing bulletproof vest at U.S.-Mexico border.

MINDING YOUR BUSINESS
March jobs report: What to expect.
Trump expected to nominate Herman Cain to Federal Reserve.
Jeff Bezos, MacKenzie Bezos finalize their divorce: What to know.

STAY TUNED

On Fox News:

Fox & Friends, 6 a.m. ET: Special guests include: Actor Dean Cain on how Hollywood elites are threatening to boycott Georgia over its "heartbeat" abortion bill. Fox Nation host Tomi Lahren gives the inside story on her new book. And country music star John Rich unveils his new whiskey.

Your World with Neil Cavuto, 4 p.m. ET: Guests include: Ken Starr, former Whitewater independent counsel; Manuel Padilla, director of the Department of Homeland Security's Border Emergency Response unit.

Special Report with Bret Baier, 6 p.m. ET: An interview with Jens Stoltenberg, secretary general of NATO.

On Fox Business:

Mornings with Maria, 6 a.m. ET: Tune in for live coverage and analysis of the new jobs report.
Varney & Co., 9 a.m. ET: Karry Kudlow, director of the National Economic Council.
Countdown to the Closing Bell with Liz Claman, 3 p.m. ET: Tom Vilsack, former U.S. secretary of agriculture.

On Fox News Radio:

The Fox News Rundown podcast: "Ethiopian Crash Report Met with Criticism" - Judge Andrew Napolitano, Fox News senior judicial analyst, weighs in on Democrats' request to the IRS to release six years of President Trump's personal and business tax records. Fox News' Doug McKelway and Jim Hall, former NTSB chairman, discuss the Ethiopian government's preliminary report on the Boeing 737 Max plane crash that killed 157 people and grounded Boeing planes worldwide. Don't miss the good news with Fox News' Anna Eliopoulos. Plus, commentary by Fox News Medical Analyst Dr. Marc Siegel.

Want the Fox News Rundown sent straight to your mobile device? Subscribe through Apple Podcasts, Google Play, and Stitcher.

The Brian Kilmeade Show, 9 a.m. ET: U.S. Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La., on the latest in the battles over the Mueller report, health care and the illegal immigration crisis; Adm. James Stavridis, operating executive with the Carlyle Group, on Congress passing a historic resolution to end U.S. support for Saudi-led war in Yemen. Plus, the latest on U.S. talks with Venezuela, China and Russia. Geraldo Rivera, Fox News roaming correspondent-at-large, takes on the top headlines of the day. Gianni Russo discusses his new book, "Hollywood Godfather: My Life in the Movies and the Mob."

On Fox News Weekend:

Cavuto Live, Saturday, 10 a.m. ET: National Border Patrol Council President Brandon Judd weighs in on President Trump giving Mexico one year’s notice before he shuts down part of the border. The latest on House Democrats ramping up investigations into President Trump. And a look at new privacy concerns for Facebook and the legal trouble the social media giant could potentially face.

Fox News Sunday, Sunday, 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. ET: Special guest: Rep. Ben Ray Luján, D-N.M., assistant speaker of the House.

Life, Liberty & Levin, Sunday, 10 p.m. ET: Mark Levin sits down with former CBS correspondent Lara Logan to talk about her time in Afghanistan and Iraq, reporting on Benghazi, and the state of today’s media.

#TheFlashback
1974: Stephen King's first published novel, "Carrie," is released by Doubleday
1964: Army Gen. Douglas MacArthur dies in Washington, D.C., at age 84.
1955: British Prime Minister Winston Churchill resigns for health reasons.

Fox News First is compiled by Fox News' Bryan Robinson. Thank you for joining us! Have a good day and weekend! We'll see you in your inbox first thing Monday morning.

Source: Fox News National

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Departures from Rome’s Ciampino airport blocked by tiny fire

Passengers who were evacuated due to a fire at Ciampino Airport in Rome, Italy, February 19, 2019 gather outside the teminal building
Passengers who were evacuated due to a fire at Ciampino Airport in Rome, Italy, February 19, 2019 gather outside the teminal building. REUTERS/Yara Nardi

February 19, 2019

ROME (Reuters) – Departures from Rome’s Ciampino airport, which is used by budget airlines Ryanair and Wizz Air, were blocked for much of Tuesday after a small fire broke out in the terminal basement, airport authorities said.

Aeroporti di Roma (ADR), which manages the site, said the early morning fire was put out “in less than a minute” and photographs from the scene suggested that only some cardboard had been burnt, with no significant damage reported.

While the arrivals hall was swiftly reopened, the departures area remained sealed off hours after the event, causing an unspecified number of flights to be canceled.

A source at ADR, who declined to be named, said that the smell of smoke was lingering in the building and that the local health authority had not yet ruled that the air was safe.

Passengers were evacuated to a nearby carpark, with many left there for hours awaiting news of their trips. Some flights were diverted to Rome’s main airport Fiumicino.

ADR said they believed the fire had been started deliberately, adding that they had filed a complaint with local magistrates.

(Reporting by Stefano Bernabei; editing by John Stonestreet and Crispian Balmer)

Source: OANN

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Nissan’s Infiniti to exit western Europe early next year

Logo of Infiniti, Nissan Motor's premium brand, is seen at its Global Design Center in Atsugi
FILE PHOTO: The logo of Infiniti, Nissan Motor's premium brand, is seen at its Global Design Center in Atsugi, Japan, April 18, 2018. Picture taken April 18, 2018. REUTERS/Toru Hanai

March 12, 2019

By Norihiko Shirouzu

BEIJING (Reuters) – Nissan Motor Co’s premium brand Infiniti said on Friday it will exit western Europe early next year, as it restructures its global operations and turns its attention to sales in the world’s top two auto markets.

Infiniti said it will discontinue the Q30 sedan and the QX30 sport-utility vehicle (SUV) and cease their production by the middle of 2019 at Nissan’s manufacturing factory in Sunderland. Both models are sold globally but produced only in Britain.

The move comes as Infiniti seeks to divert its resources to markets with bigger opportunities, such as China and the United States, from a region where non-European premium brands are struggling to compete against local players such as Audi, BMW and Mercedes-Benz.

Nissan also recently scrapped plans to build its new X-Trail SUV in Britain amid the uncertainty surrounding Brexit, saying it had taken the decision to optimize its investments by building the next generation model in Japan.

“Western Europe remains the most challenging and competitive region for premium cars,” Infiniti’s chief spokesman, Trevor Hale, told Reuters. Infiniti’s sales in western Europe almost halved last year to 5,800 vehicles.

In addition to the tough competition, the Japanese premium brand, headquartered in Hong Kong since 2012, has struggled to effectively meet emissions and other regulatory requirements in the region, Hale said, referring to stringent Euro 6 emissions requirements and other regulatory challenges.

“The commercial reality for Infiniti in western Europe is that there is simply no visibility of a viable and sustainable business, especially given the regulatory challenges,” he said.

Infiniti said an exit from western Europe will allow it to focus on its initiative to “electrify” a good portion of its product portfolio from 2021 and discontinue diesel offerings.

The brand plans to focus more on its SUV lineup in North America, bring five new or significantly-redesigned vehicles to China over the next five years, improve quality of sales and residual value and realize more synergies with Nissan.

“This is all part of Infiniti’s vision to become a top challenger brand in the premium segment,” it said.

As it prepares to withdraw from western Europe, Infiniti said it is working to find alternative opportunities for employees who would be affected, consulting with employee representatives where necessary and identifying opportunities for transition and training support where appropriate.

Infiniti has 51 employees in its western Europe operations. There are 55 Infiniti retail stores in western Europe.

(Reporting By Norihiko Shirouzu; Editing by Himani Sarkar)

Source: OANN

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Golf: Kupcho makes history as first woman to win at Augusta

Jennifer Kupcho of the U.S. celebrates a birdie putt on the 18th hole to win the inaugural Augusta National Women's Amateur championship at Augusta National Golf Club in Augusta
Jennifer Kupcho of the U.S. celebrates a birdie putt on the 18th hole to win the inaugural Augusta National Women's Amateur championship at Augusta National Golf Club in Augusta, Georgia, U.S., April 6, 2019. REUTERS/Brian Snyder

April 6, 2019

By Steve Keating

AUGUSTA, Georgia (Reuters) – Jennifer Kupcho struck a blow for gender equality on Saturday when she was crowned Augusta National Women’s Amateur champion by firing a final round five-under 67 to claim a four shot victory over Mexico’s Maria Fassi.

Following the first women’s competitive round played at Augusta National, it was a double celebration for Kupcho as she hoisted the silver and gold Tiffany-designed cup at a club that just seven years ago did not have a single woman member.

With Augusta National set to host the Masters next week, Fassi and Kupcho proved that women can also produce nerve-jangling drama with a back nine battle worthy of any major.

History dictates the Masters does not begin until the back nine on Sunday and that held true for the women who played their final round on Saturday, as Kupcho, the world’s top ranked amateur, exited Amen Corner erasing Fassi’s two shot lead with a brilliant eagle on the par five 13th.

The seesaw battle escalated with Fassi dropping a birdie at 14 and Kupcho again answering at 15.

The American turned up the pressure another notch with a birdie at 16 as Fassi blinked taking a bogey, her first since the opening hole, to hand Kupcho a two shot advantage with two to play.

After pars at 17, Kupcho would close out the historic round in style by rolling in a long range birdie putt at the last to seal a comfortable victory.

(Editing by Pritha Sarkar)

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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FILE PHOTO: Funeral of journalist Lyra McKee in Belfast
FILE PHOTO: Pallbearers carry the coffin of journalist Lyra McKee at her funeral at St. Anne’s Cathedral in Belfast, Northern Ireland, April 24, 2019. REUTERS/Clodagh Kilcoyne/File Photo

April 26, 2019

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Source: OANN

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