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Florida men imprisoned for murder for 42 years ordered free

An uncle and nephew who had been imprisoned for 42 years for a Florida murder were vindicated Thursday when prosecutors asked a judge to vacate their convictions, saying they no longer believed in the men's guilt.

Clifford Williams, 76, and Hubert Myers, 61, wiped away tears after the judge said she was vacating their convictions. They are the first men cleared since the state attorney's office in Jacksonville started an initiative last year reviewing claims of wrongful conviction, the first effort of its kind in Florida.

"Today, after review and reinvestigation of the case, evidence, and trial, the State of Florida no longer has confidence in the integrity of the convictions or guilt of the accused," the state attorney's office wrote in a report outlining the reasons for vacating the convictions.

The men were convicted and sentenced to life in prison for the 1976 fatal shooting of Jeanette Williams and the attempted murder of her girlfriend, Nina Marshall. The women, who knew the defendants socially, were asleep in bed at the time of the shooting.

Williams died instantly but Marshall was able to flag down a car that drove her to a hospital. She identified Williams and Myers as the shooters.

The men claimed they had been at a birthday party a block from the shooting and other party-goers backed up their alibis.

Their first trial ended in mistrial; the men were convicted at a second trial during which prosecutors contended a drug debt was the motive. Defense attorneys presented no witnesses and entered no evidence but instead attacked Marshall's credibility as a witness.

No physical evidence linked the shootings to the men and the case relied solely on the testimony of Marshall, who said the men had fired their shots from the foot of her bed.

"In fact, the physical and scientific evidence actually contradicts her testimony about what happened," the state attorney's office report said.

Broken glass along with bullet holes in a curtain and an aluminum screen showed the shots came from outside a bedroom window, the report said. Forensics evidence also showed only one gun was fired.

Marshall died in 2001 and investigators re-examining the case were unable to question her.

The report said another man who died in 1994 had claimed responsibility for the slaying and Myers answered questions truthfully during a polygraph test taken as part of the review of innocence.

"The culmination of all the evidence, most of which the jury never heard or saw, leaves no abiding confidence in the convictions or the guilt of the defendants," the report said.

Source: Fox News National

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Fact-checkers vs. hoax peddlers: a fake news battle ahead of Indonesia’s election

FILE PHOTO: Man takes selfie pictures with a cutout of Indonesia's presidential candidate for the upcoming election Prabowo Subianto during a campaign rally in Solo
FILE PHOTO: A man takes selfie pictures with a cutout of Indonesia's presidential candidate for the upcoming election Prabowo Subianto during a campaign rally in Solo, Central Java Province, Indonesia, April 10, 2019. REUTERS/Willy Kurniawan/File Photo

April 10, 2019

By Fanny Potkin and Agustinus Beo Da Costa

JAKARTA (Reuters) – Armed with laptops, three dozen journalists and fact-checkers braced for battle before a live debate between Indonesian President Joko Widodo and his challenger, Prabowo Subianto.

With two giant screens displaying television network feeds in front of them, the keyboard warriors split into six groups, each responsible for fact-checking a segment of the debate.

For nearly three hours, their eyes barely left their screens as they attempted to verify candidates’ comments in real time: allegations about corruption, statistics on the country’s Muslim population, boasts, and even personal anecdotes.

They and other fact-checkers are fighting a running battle against fake news and propaganda ahead of an April 17 election in the world’s third-biggest democracy.

Election monitors are worried that the flow of misinformation stoking ethnic and religious divides could undermine electoral bodies and even raise social tensions.

The Cekfakta (“checkfacts” in Indonesian) initiative brings together the non-profit fact-checking organization Mafindo and 24 news organizations that normally compete fiercely with each other during election campaigns.

“There’s a watchdog now in operation,” Cekfakta co-founder Wahyu Dhyatmika, editor-in-chief of news website Tempo.co, told Reuters. “As a candidate, you cannot throw claims into the air … we will fact-check them.”

Backed financially by Google News Lab, which also helps fund Mafindo, Cekfakta’s volunteers took over the U.S tech giant’s swanky Jakarta office for the debate on March 30.

Dhyatmika wanted to avoid a repeat of the 2014 election, also between Widodo and retired general Prabowo, when reporters were unprepared for the flood of false news that swept across social media.

‘WE’RE IN A WAR’

The fact checkers’ adversaries, fake news peddlers, sit at screens too, pumping out misinformation disguised as fact that often exploits ethnic or religious divides.

“We’re in a war for content … people are doing anything they want,” said one fake news creator, who has written stories depicting Indonesian officials as paid off by Beijing. The person declined to be identified because such work is illegal.

Indonesia’s population of 269 million has a youthful median age of just over 30 years, according to the World Population Review.

With more than 100 million accounts, the country is Facebook’s third-largest market and a top-five market globally for its platforms WhatsApp and Instagram, as well as rival Twitter.

Fake news in Indonesia can rack up thousands of views in hours, despite laws against creating and spreading such content.

Mafindo’s head of fact-checking, Aribowo Sasmito, compares it to the drug trade.

“There are the factories, the dealers, and the victims. Most of the people who end up arrested are victims … They read hoaxes and believed them to be true.”

Since December, Mafindo has documented a surge in political fake news using ethnicity and religion to target both candidates.

The organization finds most worrisome the dozens of stories that paint electoral bodies as corrupt. This will be only Indonesia’s fourth democratic presidential election.

Sasmito considers it a good result if fact-checked posts can reach even a small fraction of the audience the originals did.

Mafindo’s work has made it some enemies. The group has received enough threats that it keeps its office address secret; Cefakta’s website was hacked after a previous debate.

A Reuters investigation in March found that both the Prabowo and Widodo campaigns were funding sophisticated social media operations to spread propaganda and disinformation through fake accounts on behalf of the candidates. [L3N20Z2EH]

Both campaigns said they did not use such teams.

FAKE NEWS CREATORS

One journalist said he was hired by Prabowo campaign advisers to write positive stories about Prabawo and negative ones on Widodo, to be posted on Facebook and WhatsApp. He said he was not motivated by money but believes the mainstream media is biased in favor of Widodo.

Fearing government retaliation, the man declined to be named, but he showed Reuters communications that suggested he was he in contact with Prabowo advisers.

He said he wrote only “true” negative stories, and cited as an example a post that 2,000 Chinese workers on Indonesia’s Sulawesi island were secretly part of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army.

“We have evidence from government contacts and we can see they are soldiers from the way they look,” he said, declining to share such evidence.

Prabowo campaign spokesman Andre Rosiadi denied any advisers had hired journalists to write “positive or negative content” and “especially not fake news.”

Asked about the Sulawesi allegation, a spokeswoman for the Chinese Embassy in Indonesia replied to Reuters in a text: “fake news.”

But such claims also make it onto the campaign trail. A Prabowo campaign volunteer in West Java told Reuters last week that millions of Chinese workers had been secretly relocated to Sulawesi.

“It’s not hoax, it’s fact,” said volunteer Cecep Abdul Halim.

Reuters found that the creator of the Sulawesi claim had also written stories in 2016 falsely depicting former Jakarta governor Basuki Tjaha Purnama as a Communist stooge of China.

Purnama, a Christian ethnic-Chinese Indonesian ally of Widodo, recently completed a two-year prison sentence for blasphemy against Islam based on a video doctored to make him seem he was insulting the Koran.

The man convicted of making the video, a former journalist, worked for Prabowo’s media team until he was sent to prison last month. A campaign spokesman confirmed he had worked for the media team, but did not comment further.

Social media data gathered by Mafindo as well as Indonesian big-data consultancy Drone Emprit shows that allegations using China as a bogeyman are widespread in Indonesia, where suspicions about the wealth of the ethnic-Chinese community and the influence of Beijing run deep.

A disproven video that went viral in January claimed to show seven shipping containers from China at Jakarta’s port filled with millions of ballots punctured in favor of Widodo.

Common misinformation themes against Widodo portray him alternatively as a member of Indonesia’s banned Communist party, a Chinese plant, or anti-Islam.

Prabowo, meanwhile, has been depicted as both impious and planning to create a caliphate, while his running mate has been portrayed inaccurately as gay.

All are inflammatory accusations in the world’s largest Muslim-majority country, which rights groups say recently has seen increased prejudice against religious and LGBT minorities.

And the stories work. Although Widodo enjoys a double-digit lead over Prabowo, three surveys found that a minority of the population believes that he is either a communist or a Christian.

According to a December poll, as many as 42 percent of Prabowo supporters believed this about Widodo, while 65 percent of Widodo supporters believed Prabowo kidnapped democracy activists while in the military, a claim he strenuously denies.

Experts say such polarization is dangerous for Indonesia and could stoke anger against minorities.

“This kind of fake news gains traction because they’re the seeds of intolerance in our society,” said Cefakta’s Dhyatmika. “And it’s not being addressed.”

(Reporting by Fanny Potkin in JAKARTA and Agustinus Beo Da Costa in GARUT. Additional reporting by Yerica Lai. Editing by John Chalmers and Gerry Doyle)

Source: OANN

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Stacey Abrams Nixes VP Spot: 'You Don't Run for Second'

Stacey Abrams, whose name has been mentioned as a potential running mate for Joe Biden should he enter the Democratic primary race, threw cold water on that idea, saying Wednesday she is "just as capable" of becoming president as anyone else running for the nomination.

The Georgia Democrat, who became national news during her failed bid in her state's governor's race, told "CBS This Morning" that she has held meetings with nearly everyone, including the former vice-president, but that talks about her being his running mate "were not the core issue."

Later in the morning, Abrams told ABC's "The View" that she is keeping her options open, and dismissed the reports she will be part of Biden's ticket.

"I think you don't run for second place," she said. "'If I'm going to enter a primary, then I'm going to enter a primary. And if I don't enter the primary, my job is to make sure the best Democrat becomes the nominee and to make sure whoever we select gets elected president."

Abrams told CBS she is "deeply appreciative" of people urging her to run for the White House or other offices, but she wants to be sure she is running "for the right reasons and at the right time."

She had commented at the South By Southwest festival earlier this month that at one time she had considered 2028 to be the earliest time she would seek a presidential race, but later she tweeted "2020 is definitely on the table."

Source: NewsMax Politics

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Pompeo: U.S. looking ‘very closely’ at Qatar-Air Italy deal

FILE PHOTO: A Qatar Airways Boeing 787 airplane is pictured at Leonardo da Vinci-Fiumicino Airport in Rome
FILE PHOTO: A Qatar Airways Boeing 7878 Dreamliner airplane is pictured at Leonardo da Vinci-Fiumicino Airport in Rome, Italy, March 30, 2019. REUTERS/Alberto Lingria/File Photo

April 10, 2019

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said on Wednesday that the State Department was looking closely at Qatar Airways’ acquisition of a 49 percent stake in Air Italy.

Questioned repeatedly about the deal during a U.S. Senate hearing, Pompeo said, “We’re looking very closely at this recent decision by Qatar to take on 49 percent of this airline.”

Both Republicans and Democrats at the Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing said they were concerned that the deal with the Italian carrier violated an agreement Qatar Airways’ reached with the United States in early 2018.

(Reporting by Patricia Zengerle and Lesley Wroughton; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama)

Source: OANN

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We need to protect the border, we need to stop drugs from stumbling upon the border

Trump: We need to protect the border, we need to stop drugs from coming across the border Jan. 03, 2019 – 8:04 – President Trump, border patrol experts address the press in the White House briefing room. Watch the latest video at foxnews.com I want a wall on our southern border and so does the […]

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Bank of Canada could resume hikes if data proves slowdown temporary: governor

FILE PHOTO: FILE PHOTO: Bank of Canada Governor Stephen Poloz speaks during a news conference in Ottawa
FILE PHOTO: Bank of Canada Governor Stephen Poloz speaks during a news conference in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, January 9, 2019. REUTERS/Chris Wattie

April 26, 2019

OTTAWA (Reuters) – The Bank of Canada could start hiking rates again “sometime down the road,” although such a move will depend on whether upcoming economic data backs up its assessment that a current slowdown is only a temporary detour, the central bank’s head said on Thursday.

The Bank of Canada has raised interest rates five times since July 2017, although it has stayed on the sidelines in recent decisions as global trade concerns, the slumping oil sector and a weaker housing sector have weighed on the Canadian economy.

The bank again held rates steady on Wednesday but took a more dovish stance than in recent releases, removing wording around the need for “future hikes,” while lowering its growth forecasts for 2019.

But in a televised interview with Maclean’s magazine on Thursday, Governor Stephen Poloz said the central bank believed the slowdown would be temporary, lasting “a couple of quarters,” and implied the worst was already over.

“What we have to do then is wait and see if the data proves to us that we were right about that,” he said. “Assuming we are, then sometime down the road we’ll be able to say: ‘OK, now it’s time to start normalizing again,’ but that remains to be seen.”

He repeated that any move would be data-dependent.

The Bank of Canada estimates its neutral range is between 2.25 and 3.25 percent. The overnight interest rate is currently at 1.75 percent.

Poloz also said there was nothing to signal that Canada was on the verge of recession, but when asked if U.S. President Donald Trump’s protectionist trade policies could provoke a new global recession, he said: “Certainly.”

“When you think about the gains in income and living standards that have been created by trade liberalization in a postwar period, to erase even a portion of those would be to risk causing a recession globally,” Poloz said.

(Reporting by Julie Gordon and David Ljunggren in Ottawa; Editing by Peter Cooney)

Source: OANN

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Vultures circle Berlusconi’s Forza Italia as support ebbs away

Forza Italia leader Berlusconi speaks following a talk with Italian President Sergio Mattarella at the Quirinale palace in Rome
FILE PHOTO: Forza Italia leader Silvio Berlusconi speaks following a talk with Italian President Sergio Mattarella at the Quirinale palace in Rome, Italy, April 12, 2018. REUTERS/Max Rossi

April 14, 2019

By Angelo Amante and Crispian Balmer

ROME (Reuters) – Former Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi could suffer mass defections from his Forza Italia group if it performs badly in next month’s EU elections, putting the very future of the group at risk, party politicians said.

Any fragmentation of Forza Italia would reinforce the position of Deputy Prime Minister Matteo Salvini, who heads the rightist League, as undisputed leader of Italy’s conservative bloc, and potentially strengthen the government in parliament.

It would also almost certainly trigger Berlusconi’s retreat from frontline politics and open the way for a new leadership to try to rebuild the once dominant moderate, center-right, now under siege from eurosceptic nationalist groups.

Berlusconi’s political obituary has been written repeatedly in the past, only for the 82-year-old media tycoon to defy the naysayers and reclaim a central role in Italian public life.

But with his party’s polling numbers in a prolonged decline and with his once-junior partner, the League, now Italy’s most popular party, Forza Italia veterans are growing anxious.

“For our future it’s very important that we get at least 10 percent at the European election,” said a senior Forza Italia lawmaker and former minister who asked not to be named.

“Below that psychological threshold people will jump ship and try to join up with the League. It’s Newton’s rule of gravity, larger forces pull in little ones,” he told Reuters.

Opinion polls since the start of April have put the party at anywhere between 8.7 and 12.1 percent, down from 14 percent it took in the 2018 national election and compared to a 30.5-35.7 percent banding for the League.

“If Forza Italy is unable to redefine its leadership and its agenda, it runs big risks,” Roberto Weber, head of the Ixe polling institute, told Reuters.

DESERTERS

Although the League and Forza Italia ran together in last year’s ballot, their relationship has soured since Salvini abandoned his allies and formed a coalition with the anti-establishment 5-Star Movement — Berlusconi’s bete noire.

The two groups still stand united in local elections, but the League has suggested it might not tie the knot again at a national level, worried that being associated with the elderly, out-of-mode Berlusconi would dent its newfound popularity.

“The longer we govern with 5-Star, the more it enters the public conscience and it would be hard to understand why the League would run with the center-right,” said Riccardo Molinari, the League’s parliamentary party leader in the lower house.

That League might nonetheless be interested in signing up disenchanted Forza Italia politicians, especially in the south where it is looking to extend its reach. The nationalist Brothers of Italy, another longtime Berlusconi ally, also appears eager to cannibalize its partner.

Italian politicians have a long tradition of switching parties — in the last legislature almost 350 of the 945 parliamentarians changed sides for various reasons. They also have a habit of abandoning sinking ships.

Molinari laughed when asked if the League might be tempted to try to lure away Forza Italia lawmakers, particularly in the Senate where the coalition majority is in single digits.

“I think they might be tempted to join us. It is clear that there are lots of elected politicians from lots of parties that want to join the League,” he said.

A Forza Italia senator, who declined to be named, agreed: “Lawmakers have to deal with their survival instinct,” he said.

DISAFFECTED

Brothers of Italy leader Giorgia Meloni is already poaching Forza Italia members and will put forward four ex-Berlusconi men as candidates for her own party in the May 26 EU vote.

“Berlusconi’s political project has come to an end,” said Stefano Maullu, a member of the European parliament, who had been a member of Forza Italia for 24 years before switching to Brothers of Italy last November.

Meloni is working with one of Forza Italia’s best known faces, Giovanni Toti, the governor of the northern region of Liguria, with an eye to creating a newlook party after the European elections, political sources said.

Brothers of Italy is on around 5 percent in the polls but hopes to boost this number by siphoning away disaffected Berlusconi stalwarts and thereby broaden its voter base.

A newly minted group would be allied to the League in future elections, but would not join the coalition because 5-Star did not want to broaden the ruling alliance, sources said.

Another source in Forza Italia, who declined to be named, said she expected Berlusconi would finally take a step back if next month’s vote went badly, with model-turned-politician Mara Carfagna a leading contender to take the reins.

Berlusconi created Forza Italia 25 years ago and despite repeated legal woes and health alarms, he has never shown any sign of wanting to relinquish control or retire from politics.

Although he is standing in next month’s European election, there are nonetheless signs that the end of an era is nearing.

Last month Il Giornale newspaper, which is controlled by the Berlusconi family, announced it was closing its newsroom in Rome — the epicenter of Italian politics — and refocusing on the business capital Milan.

Berlusconi told reporters this month that he was looking into the matter and had no other comment to make.

“When Berlusconi was strong something like this would never have happened,” said a journalist with the paper, who declined to be named because of ongoing union negotiations.

(Additional reporting by Gavin Jones; editing by Anna Willard)

Source: OANN

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Multiple people died Thursday when a semitrailer plowed into stationary traffic that resulted in explosions and flames on a Colorado freeway, authorities said.

The incident occurred just before 5 p.m. in the Denver suburb of Lakewood when a truck driver lost control while traveling east on Interstate 70, according to a preliminary investigation. The collision started a chain reaction and a diesel fuel spill, Lakewood police spokesman Ty Countryman told the Denver Post.

“This is looking to be one of the worst accidents we’ve had here in Lakewood,” he said.

The driver of the runaway truck survived. At least one truck was carrying lumber, another was hauling gravel and the third may have been carrying mattresses, KDVR-TV reported.

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Lakewood police tweeted there were multiple fatalities but did not give a specific number. Six people were taken to a hospital. Their conditions were not released, according to the paper.

Lanes in both directions were closed and expected to remain so into Friday morning.

Source: Fox News National

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President Trump will address members and leaders of the National Rifle Association on Friday at the group’s annual convention in Indiana.

Around 80,000 gun enthusiasts and more than 800 exhibitors are expected to pack the Indiana Convention Center in Indianapolis for the three-day event, the Indianapolis Star reported. It will mark the third straight year that Trump will deliver the keynote address, where he is expected to champion the rights of gun owners.

“Donald Trump is the most enthusiastic supporter of the Second Amendment to occupy the Oval Office in our lifetimes,” Chris Cox, executive director of the NRA’s Institute for Legislative Action (ILA), said in a statement. “President Trump’s Supreme Court appointments ensure that the Second Amendment will be respected for generations to come. Our members are excited to hear him speak and thank him for his support for our Right to Keep and Bear Arms.”

“Donald Trump is the most enthusiastic supporter of the Second Amendment to occupy the Oval Office in our lifetimes.”

— Chris Cox, executive director, NRA’s Institute for Legislative Action

COLORADO ENACTS ‘RED FLAG’ LAW TO SEIZE GUNS FROM THOSE DEEMED DANGEROUS, PROMPTING BACKLASH

President Donald Trump speaks at the National Rifle Association annual convention in Dallas last year. (Associated Press)

President Donald Trump speaks at the National Rifle Association annual convention in Dallas last year. (Associated Press)

Trump and Vice President Mike Pence spoke at last year’s convention in Dallas. During his speech, Trump assured gun owners that he would protect their Second Amendment rights, according to the paper.

“Your Second Amendment rights are under siege,” Trump told the cheering audience in Dallas. “But they will never, ever be under siege as long as I am your president.”

Trump has supported some gun control measures in the past. Last year, his administration imposed a ban on bump stocks, attachments that enable semiautomatic rifles to fire in rapid bursts. Although, he most recently threatened to veto two Democratic gun control bills.

This year’s convention comes as the NRA faces outside pressure and internal problems. The group has seen its legislative agenda stall amid a series of mass shootings — including a massacre at a Parkland, Fla., high school in February 2018 that left 17 dead and launched a youth movement against gun violence.

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It’s also grappling with infighting in its ranks, money problems and investigations into whether Russian agents courted officials and funneled money through the group.

“I’ve never seen the NRA this vulnerable,” said John Feinblatt, president of Everytown for Gun Safety, a nonprofit that advocates for gun control measure.

The convention will run through the weekend and conclude Sunday.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Source: Fox News Politics

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FILE PHOTO: Shoppers walk past the Debenhams department store on Oxford Street in London
FILE PHOTO: Shoppers walk past the Debenhams department store on Oxford Street in London, Britain December 15, 2018. REUTERS/Simon Dawson

April 26, 2019

(Reuters) – Ailing British retailer Debenhams said two proposed company voluntary arrangements (CVA) could see all its stores remaining open during 2019, with 22 closures planned for next year, putting about 1,200 jobs at risk.

Debenhams’ lenders took control of the retailer earlier this month in a process designed to keep its shops open at the expense of shareholders.

(Reporting by Noor Zainab Hussain in Bengaluru; editing by Gopakumar Warrier)

Source: OANN

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FILE PHOTO: Xiaomi branding is seen on a carrier bag at a UK launch event in London
FILE PHOTO: Xiaomi branding is seen on a carrier bag at a UK launch event in London, Britain, November 8, 2018. REUTERS/Toby Melville

April 26, 2019

BENGALURU (Reuters) – Chinese brands controlled a record 66 percent of Indian smartphone market in the first quarter, led by Xiaomi Corp, a report showed, with volumes rising 20 percent on the back of popularity for brands like Vivo, RealMe and Oppo.

Xiaomi’s India shipments fell by 2 percent over last year, but the Beijing-based company was still the biggest smartphone brand in the country, followed by Samsung Electronics Co Ltd, according to Hong-Kong based Counterpoint Research.

Shipment volumes for Vivo jumped 119 percent, while those of Oppo rose 28 percent.

“Vivo’s expanding portfolio in the mid-tier range ($100 to $180) drove its growth along with aggressive Indian Premier League cricket campaign,” Counterpoint analysts said.

India is the world’s fastest growing market for smartphones, where affordable pricing coupled with features like “selfie” cameras and big screens have popularized Chinese brands.

Video streaming services like Netflix Inc and Hotstar, as well as heavy usage of messaging apps like Facebook Inc’s WhatsApp have further spurred demand.

“Data consumption is on the rise and users are upgrading their phones faster as compared to other regions,” Counterpoint’s Tarun Pathak said.

“As a result of this, the premium specs are now diffusing faster into the mid-tier price brands. We estimate this trend to continue leading to a competitive mid-tier segment in coming quarters.”

(Reporting By Arnab Paul in Bengaluru; Editing by Subhranshu Sahu)

Source: OANN

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Good morning and welcome to Fox News First. Here’s a look at what you need to know today …

EXCLUSIVE: Trump says ‘Sleepy Joe’ Biden doesn’t have what it takes

President Trump, in a wide-ranging, exclusive phone interview with Fox News’ Sean Hannity, dismissed the launch of former Vice President Joe Biden’s presidential campaign, nicknaming him “Sleepy Joe” and saying he’s “not the brightest bulb.” Biden, the president said, has name recognition but he won’t “be able to do the job.” When asked about Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., Trump criticized his record, saying Sanders had “misguided energy” and asserted that Sanders “talks a lot” but hasn’t accomplished anything. The president referred to former U.S. Rep. Beto O’Rourke of Texas as “a fluke” who had lost much momentum and outright dismissed Sen. Kamala Harris, D-Calif., and South Bend, Ind., Mayor Pete Buttigieg — although he said he was “rooting” for Buttigieg. (Trump could address Biden and the other Democratic presidential candidates when he speaks today before the National Rifle Association.)

The Democratic Party’s youth movement: Biden’s biggest challenge?
Former Democratic National Committee (DNC) chair Howard Dean warned Joe Biden about the troubles he may face in his presidential campaign, especially from the “35-year-olds” who Dean says have been running the party — a clear nod to Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., and fellow freshmen Democrats. “This is a very different party than even the party Joe Biden ran in in 2012. Very different,” Dean continued. “A lot of people could win this race. There’s 20 people in there. I think it’s going to take $20 million to get to the starting line. If you can’t raise $20 million, you’re gone, and I think that’s going to take care of about six or eight of these folks. … But it is not the same party that it was five years ago.” A progressive political group that boosted Ocasio-Cortez’s bid for Congress last year vowed to oppose Biden and blasted him as part of the “old guard.”

More tales from the FBI texts
Text messages between former FBI officials Peter Strzok and Lisa Page indicate they discussed using briefings to the Trump team after the 2016 election to identify people they could “develop for potential relationships,” track lines of questioning and “assess” changes in “demeanor” – language one GOP lawmaker called “more evidence” of irregular conduct in the original Russia probe. Fox News has learned the texts, initially released in 2018 by a Senate committee, are under renewed scrutiny, with GOP Sen. Chuck Grassley and Homeland Security Committee chair Ron Johnson sending a letter Thursday night to Attorney General Bill Barr pushing for more information on the matter. President Trump, speaking on Fox News’ “Hannity” Thursday night, responded to this report by accusing Strzok and Page of an attempted “coup.” “They were trying to infiltrate the administration,” he said.

Kim accuses US of acting in ‘bad faith’
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, fresh off his summit with  Russian President Vladimir Putin, said the U.S. has been acting in “bad faith” since his Hanoi meeting with President Trump over the stalemated issue of North Korean denuclearization. The North Korean leader told the Korean Central News Agency that, “the situation on the Korean Peninsula and the region is now at a standstill and has reached a critical point,” the Straits Times of Singapore reported. Kim warned that the situation “may return to its original state as the U.S. took a unilateral attitude in bad faith at the recent second DPRK-US summit talks,” the Korean Central News Agency added.

NFL Draft 2019: It’s all about defense
The first round of the 2019 NFL Draft saw a run on defensive players, with eight of the top 12 picks in Nashville coming from that side of the ball. After Oklahoma quarterback Kyler Murray was taken first overall by the Arizona Cardinals, the San Francisco 49ers started a run of four straight front-seven players by taking Ohio State defensive end Nick Bosa with the second overall pick — the highest draft slot for any Buckeye since left tackle Orlando Pace went No. 1 overall to the St. Louis Rams in 1997.

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TODAY’S MUST-READS
Fox News’ Ed Henry recalls spending time with Celtics great John Havlicek.
Massachusetts judge accused of helping illegal immigrant evade ICE pleads not guilty.
Rosenstein slams Obama administration for choosing ‘not to publicize full story’ of Russia hacking.
F.H. Buckley: What Democrats have forgotten about citizenship.

MINDING YOUR BUSINESS
Amazon crushes earnings expectations, but revenue growth slows.
Low-tax states among best places to make a living in 2019.
Construction job market booming: These states are hiring.

#TheFlashback
2018: Bill Cosby is convicted of drugging and molesting Temple University employee Andrea Constand at his suburban Philadelphia mansion in 2004; it is the first big celebrity trial of the #MeToo era.
1986: An explosion and fire at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant in Ukraine causes radioactive fallout to spew into the atmosphere. (Dozens of people are killed in the immediate aftermath of the disaster while the long-term death toll from radiation poisoning is believed to number in the thousands.)
1977: Notorious nightclub Studio 54 opens in New York.

SOME PARTING WORDS

Watch the “Special Report” panel take a look at former Vice President Joe Biden’s decision to run for president a third time and the battle for the “soul” of America.

Not signed up yet for Fox News First? Click here to find out what you’re missing.

CLICK HERE to find out what’s on Fox News programming today and over the weekend!

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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