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Trump says in no rush to complete China trade deal

FILE PHOTO: U.S. President Trump participates in an American Workforce Policy Advisory Board meeting in the White House
FILE PHOTO: U.S. President Donald Trump participates in an American Workforce Policy Advisory Board meeting in the White House State Dining Room in Washington, U.S., March 6, 2019. REUTERS/Leah Millis

March 13, 2019

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. President Donald Trump said on Wednesday he was in no rush to complete a trade deal with China that Washington wants to include structural reforms by Beijing, including how it treats U.S. intellectual property.

“I think things are going along very well – we’ll just see what the date is,” Trump told reporters at the White House.

“I’m in no rush. I want the deal to be right. … I am not in a rush whatsoever. It’s got to be the right deal. It’s got to be a good deal for us and if it’s not, we’re not going to make that deal.”

(Reporting by Steve Holland; Writing by Doina Chiacu; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama)

Source: OANN

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Trump Orders Colleges to Back Free Speech or Lose Funding

President Donald Trump signed an executive order Thursday requiring U.S. colleges to protect free speech on their campuses or risk losing federal research funding.

The new order directs federal agencies to ensure that any college or university receiving research grants agrees to promote free inquiry and to follow federal rules and regulations supporting free speech.

"Even as universities have received billions and billions of dollars from taxpayers, many have become increasingly hostile to free speech and to the First Amendment," Trump said at a White House signing ceremony. "These universities have tried to restrict free thought, impose total conformity and shut down the voices of great young Americans."

The order follows a growing chorus of complaints from conservatives who say their voices have been stifled on campuses across the U.S. Joining Trump at the ceremony were students who said they were challenged by their schools while trying to express views against abortion or in support of their faith.

Trump initially proposed the idea during a March 2 speech to conservative activists, highlighting the case of Hayden Williams, an activist who was punched in the face while recruiting for the group Turning Point USA at the University of California, Berkeley. He invoked the case again Thursday, noting that Williams was hit hard "but he didn't go down."

Under the order, colleges would need to agree to protect free speech in order to tap into more than $35 billion a year in research and educational grants.

For public universities, that means vowing to uphold the First Amendment, which they're already required to do. Private universities, which have more flexibility in limiting speech, will be required to commit to their own institutional rules.

"We will not stand idly by to allow public institutions to violate their students' constitutional rights," Trump said. "If a college or university doesn't allow you to speak, we will not give them money. It's very simple."

Enforcement of the order will be left to federal agencies that award grants, but how schools will be monitored and what types of violations could trigger a loss of funding have yet to be seen. White House officials said details about the implementation will be finalized in coming months.

Many colleges have firmly opposed the need for an executive order. Following Trump's speech, Janet Napolitano, president of the University of California, said many schools are "ground zero" for the exchange of ideas.

"We do not need the federal government to mandate what already exists: our longstanding, unequivocal support for freedom of expression," she said. "This executive order will only muddle policies surrounding free speech, while doing nothing to further the aim of the First Amendment."

The American Council on Education, which represents more than 1,700 college presidents, called the order "a solution in search of a problem."

"No matter how this order is implemented, it is neither needed nor desirable, and could lead to unwanted federal micromanagement of the cutting-edge research that is critical to our nation's continued vitality and global leadership," said Ted Mitchell, the organization's president.

Education Secretary Betsy DeVos, who has spoken against a government answer to campus speech issues, issued a statement that only briefly mentioned free speech, and instead largely focused on another part of the order dealing with transparency in college performance data.

Her statement said students "should be empowered to pursue truth through the free exchange of all ideas, especially ideas with which they may not agree. Free inquiry is an essential feature of our democracy, and I applaud the president's continued support for America's students."

The order was supported by conservative groups including Turning Point USA, which has pushed for action on the issue. In Trump's speech, he specifically thanked Charlie Kirk, the group's founder, who has pushed for action on the issue. On Twitter, Kirk called the order "historic," adding that while harassment by campus faculty is not uncommon, "it ends today!"

Several free speech groups opposed the order, including the American Civil Liberties Union, which took issue with "the partisan nature of the administration's rollout of this executive order."

The top Republican on the Senate education committee, Sen. Lamar Alexander, said he supports the push for free speech but raised concerns about Trump's approach.

"I don't want to see Congress or the president or the department of anything creating speech codes to define what you can say on campus," said Alexander, R-Tenn. "The U.S. Constitution guarantees free speech. Federal courts define and enforce it. The Department of Justice can weigh in."

Debate over campus free speech has flared in recent years following a string of high-profile cases in which protesters shut down or heckled conservative speakers, including at UC Berkeley and Middlebury College in Vermont. Republicans called hearings on the issue when they controlled both chambers, but proposed legislation backing campus speech never made it through committee.

Some colleges leaders have said they worry the order could backfire. If a speaking event threatens to turn violent, for example, some say they might have to choose between canceling the event for safety and allowing it to continue to preserve federal funding. Some say it could force religious universities to host speakers with views that conflict with the universities' values.

Still, the order has gained support from some religious institutions including Liberty University, a Christian school in Virginia whose leaders say they denounce censorship of either the left or right.

Separate from the free speech requirement, the order also calls for several measures meant to promote transparency in the student loan industry and in how well colleges prepare students.

By January 2020, Trump is directing the Education Department to create a website where borrowers can find better information about their loans and repayment options, and he's calling on the agency to expand its College Scorecard website to include data on the graduates of individual college programs, including their median earnings, loan debt and their default rates.

Trump, a Republican, also is asking the Education Department to prepare a policy that would make sure colleges "share the financial risk" that students and the federal government take on with federal student loans.

Follow Collin Binkley on Twitter at https://twitter.com/cbinkley

Source: NewsMax America

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2020 Democratic candidates address accusations of misconduct against Biden

A number of Democratic presidential candidates weighed in on Sunday on the allegations made by a former Nevada political candidate that former Vice President Joe Biden kissed her on the back of the head in 2014.

Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., told ABC's “This Week” that she has no reason not to believe the allegations made by Lucky Flores that Biden kissed the former Nevada state assemblywoman on the back of her head during a 2014 campaign rally supporting her bid for lieutenant governor.

“I have no reason not to believe her,” Klobuchar said. “I think we know from campaigns and politics that people raise issues and they have to address them, and that’s what he will have to do with the voters if he gets into the race.”

Flores made the accusations in a piece in New York magazine in which she accused the former vice president of approaching her from behind, putting his hands on her shoulders, sniffing her hair and kissing her on the back of the head.

BIDEN REPORTEDLY DEBATES TAPPING STACEY ABRAMS AS RUNNING MATE FROM THE START – COULD IT BACKFIRE?

"The vice president of the United States of America had just touched me in an intimate way reserved for close friends, family, or romantic partners — and I felt powerless to do anything about it," she wrote.

Flores also addressed the allegations on Sunday during an interview with CNN’s “State of the Union,” saying that while she is glad that Biden has addressed the claims, she wants him to “acknowledge that it was wrong.”

"If he is saying he never believed that was inappropriate, then frankly I believe that's a little bit of a disconnection. And ... a sense of not being aware," Flores said. "I want him to change his behavior and I want him to acknowledge that it was wrong.”

Biden – who is expected to soon launch his 2020 presidential bid – has denied ever acting inappropriately toward Flores.

"In my many years on the campaign trail and in public life, I have offered countless handshakes, hugs, expressions of affection, support and comfort," Biden said in his own statement Sunday. "And not once -- never -- did I believe I acted inappropriately.  If it is suggested I did so, I will listen respectfully. But it was never my intention."

Biden added: "I may not recall these moments the same way, and I may be surprised at what I hear. But we have arrived at an important time when women feel they can and should relate their experiences, and men should pay attention. And I will.”

Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., who is running for the Democratic nomination, said during an interview with CBS' "Face the Nation” that while he has no reason not to believe Flores, he doesn’t believe that “one incident alone” would disqualify Biden from running for the White House.

“That’s a decision for the vice president to make," Sanders said. "I’m not sure that one incident alone disqualifies anybody."

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On NBC’s “Meet The Press, former Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper – who is also running for president – called the allegations against Biden “very disconcerting.”

“Certainly, I think it’s very disconcerting and I think that women have to be heard and we should start by believing them,” Hickenlooper said.

He added: “I think the more important issue to recognize is that we're at an inflection point, really a moment of transformation of the entire country where women, in many cases for the first time, are having the courage to come forward and speak about things that happened to them that make them intensely uncomfortable.

Earlier in the weekend, while speaking to reporters in Iowa, two other Democratic candidates – Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., and former Housing and Urban Development Secretary Julian Castro said they believed Flores.

Warren and Castro said it's up to Biden to decide whether he should join the race.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Source: Fox News Politics

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Hungarians protest against PM Orban’s academic overhaul

People take part in a protest against government's plans to overhaul the Hungarian Academy of Sciences, on the Chain Bridge in Budapest.
People take part in a protest against government's plans to overhaul the Hungarian Academy of Sciences, on the Chain Bridge in Budapest, Hungary, March 21, 2019. The banner reads "Free academy". REUTERS/Tamas Kaszas

March 21, 2019

By Gergely Szakacs

BUDAPEST (Reuters) – Around 1,000 people rallied outside the Hungarian Academy of Science (HAS) on Thursday to protest against government moves to overhaul the institution, which scientists say is the latest threat to academic independence.

Prime Minister Viktor Orban, who took power in 2010, has tightened controls over Hungarian public life, including the courts, the media and the economy, as well as education and now scientific research.

The European Parliament’s main center-right bloc voted on Wednesday to suspend Orban’s Fidesz party amid concerns it has violated European Union principles on the rule of law.

Some of the protesters on Thursday carried EU flags and waved banners saying “Thinking does not harm your health”.

“The Hungarian Academy of Science is a trustee of the preservation and development of Hungarian culture and science,” the Forum of Academy Workers, a movement founded by HAS research staff, said on its Facebook page.

“Yet, our nearly 200-year-old national institution is left fighting for its survival.”

OVERHAUL

The second protest against Orban’s reforms in as many months followed an accord between the ministry overseeing the overhaul and leaders of the academy to separate the science research network from the academy’s teaching institutions.

The research arm would be run by a new management body, with members selected by the government and the academy, according to a joint letter of intent signed early this month.

But HAS staff said the accord, reached as a result of what they called government “blackmail”, was unacceptable.

The academy is solely funded by the government but self-managing, with a network of scientific research bodies employing about 5,000 people.

The rally was due to march to the Innovations and Technology Ministry to wave red cards at minister Laszlo Palkovics, architect of the reform, which is due to take effect at the start of next year.

Orban’s government says the aim of the reform is to reap more economic benefits from scientific research.

“My actions are driven solely by the desire to make the Academy and the entire Hungarian research ecosystem more efficient,” Palkovics told private broadcaster atv.hu.

The demonstrators rejected that argument.

“This is a pretty dangerous tendency when we talk about the need for science to turn a profit immediately and manage scientific life solely according to economic interests,” said 19-year-old student Milan Szabo.

Concerns over the erosion of academic freedom and other democratic rights in Hungary have triggered several anti-government demonstrations in recent months.

(Reporting by Gergely Szakacs; Editing by Gareth Jones)

Source: OANN

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Trump Challenger Weld: Release Almost All of Mueller Report

Almost all of special counsel Robert Mueller's report should be made public, former Massachusetts Gov. William Weld, who is campaigning against President Donald Trump for the 2020 Republican nomination, said Wednesday.

"The truth is, the whole damn thing should be made public, except for classified information," Weld told CNN's "New Day."  "I think it is okay to take out some of the derogatory stuff, but I find it telling that the dominant emotion in Washington appears to be fear of the president's wrath."

Meanwhile, Weld served as Mueller's boss as U.S. Attorney for the district of Manhattan, and said Wednesday Mueller is the "straightest guy I have ever met...very, very thorough as a prosecutor."

However, he said he thinks the release Mueller's report on Trump and Russia collusion will be a "non-event," as whatever life was there "will have been squeezed out of it by the time it is released" Thursday.

Weld also said he thinks challenging Trump is important because of history concerning people who have challenged incumbents.

"The last five primary challengers to a sitting president running for re-election, those presidents all lost," said Weld. "When there were no challengers, those presidents won. That's a data point. Politically, if you want the nuts and bolts, my strategy would be focus initially on the six New England states with particular emphasis on New Hampshire because if I can show well, that has a domino effect on other primaries around the country."

Weld also said he does not think Trump is an "economic conservative," but he himself was once voted the "most fiscally conservative governor" in the country.

Source: NewsMax Politics

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Ilhan Omar claims US forces killed ‘thousands’ of Somalis during ‘Black Hawk Down’ mission, resurfaced tweet shows

A resurfaced tweet from Rep. Ilhan Omar saw the Minnesota Democrat claim U.S. forces killed “thousands” of Somalis during the 1993 “Black Hawk Down” mission -- despite multiple analysts concluding the number was much smaller.

In the October 2017 tweet discovered by journalist John Rossomando, Omar was responding to a Twitter user who'd highlighted that more than a dozen U.S. soldiers were killed and another 73 were wounded in the Battle of Mogadishu, saying it was the “worst terrorist attack in Somalia history.”

Omar, a Somali refugee who was then a Minnesota state representative, refuted the tweet, insisting that “thousands” of Somalis were killed by American forces.

“In his selective memory, he forgets to also mention the thousands of Somalis killed by the American forces that day,” Omar tweeted.

She also included the hashtag, “NotTodaySatan.”

The number of Somali casualties in the Battle of Mogadishu is widely disputed. A representative of the Somali National Alliance estimated that only 133 militiamen were killed during a 2001 interview while “Black Hawk Down: A Story of Modern War” author Mark Bowden estimated roughly 500 Somalis were killed. As the Investigative Project on Terrorism also noted, the Rand Corporation reported that about 300 civilians were killed while others estimated nearly 1,000.

OMAR CALLS WHITE HOUSE ADVISER STEPHEN MILLER A 'WHITE NATIONALIST'

Critics went after Omar after her tweet resurfaced.

Omar’s office did not immediately respond to Fox News' request for comment.

This was just the latest controversy surrounding the freshman congresswoman. Omar was condemned by congressional colleagues on both sides of the aisle for various tweets that were considered anti-Semitic.

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

More recently, she took heat — including from President Trump — for a line in a speech she gave to the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR). She said, in her defense of the organization, that CAIR was founded after Sept. 11, 2001, “because they recognized that some people did something and that all of us were starting to lose access to our civil liberties.” CAIR formed in 1994.

Critics said her line “some people did something” was insulting to victims of the terrorist attacks.

Source: Fox News Politics

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Top Republicans speak out on Mueller report findings

Top Republicans cheered the key findings of Special Counsel Robert Mueller's Russia investigation, which indicated Mueller did not find proof President Trump colluded with Russia to sway the 2016 election.

Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Lindsay Graham, R-S.C., called it a “good day for the rule of law. Great day for President Trump and his team. No collusion and no obstruction. The cloud hanging over President Trump has been removed by this report.”

He continued, “Bad day for those hoping the Mueller investigation would take President Trump down.”

House Judiciary Committee Ranking Member Doug Collins, R-Ga., wrote: “For two years, Special Counsel Mueller conducted his investigation with every available Justice Department resource at his disposal, and today’s principal conclusions assure every American there was no collusion between Russia and Donald Trump or his campaign. Russia is a bad actor with dark intentions, but there is no evidence that they compromised a presidential nominee. The special counsel’s investigation was long, thorough and conclusive: There was no collusion. There is no constitutional crisis.”

READ THE LETTER: ATTORNEY GENERAL BARR'S KEY FINDINGS FROM MUELLER PROBE

Collins also took a jab at the panel's own investigation being led by Chairman Jerry Nadler, D-N.Y. “Chairman Nadler has the chance to rethink his sprawling investigation, which retreads ground already covered by the special counsel and is already a matter of public record. I hope he recognizes that what may be political fodder for Democrats may not be good for our country.”

For his part, Nadler tweeted that the Justice Department seemed to be “putting matters squarely in Congress’ court.”

“The Special Counsel’s conclusions confirm the President’s account that there was no effort by his campaign to conspire or coordinate with Russia in its efforts to influence the 2016 presidential election,” Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., said. “However, Russia’s ongoing efforts to interfere with our democracy are dangerous and disturbing, and I welcome the Special Counsel's contributions to our efforts to understand better Russia's activities in this regard.”

House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., reacted: “Our country welcomes this long-overdue conclusion. After two years, two congressional investigations, and now the closure of a Special Counsel investigation with unfettered authority to investigate ‘any links or coordination between the Russian government and individuals associated with the Campaign of President Donald Trump,’ it is abundantly clear, without a shadow of a doubt, there was no collusion. Furthermore, the nearly unlimited scope, resources, and subpoena power of the Special Counsel has allowed his team to fully pursue any matters that arose or may arise directly from the investigation. This case is closed.”

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

House Minority Whip Steve Scalise, R-La., said: "I am glad that the special counsel’s investigation has finally drawn to a close and we can put this outrageous chapter behind us. Rather than focus on the issues that affect the lives of everyday Americans, like jobs, health care, and border security, Democrats and their allies in the media have chosen to spend the last 674 days perpetuating conspiracy theories and lies in a shameless effort to discredit a President whose election they still are trying to overturn.”

And, Senate Intelligence Committee Chairman Richard Burr, R-N.C., wrote: “I appreciate the Attorney General’s quick turnaround in sharing his summary of the Special Counsel’s report. The Attorney General should release as much of the report as possible, without jeopardizing U.S. intelligence sources and methods or ongoing Department of Justice prosecutions.”

Source: Fox News Politics

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

April 26, 2019

By Ben Blanchard

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

(Writing by Michael Holden; Editing by Mark Heinrich)

Source: OANN

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Park Yoo-chun, a K-pop idol singer, arrives at the Suwon district court in Suwon
Park Yoo-chun, a K-pop idol singer, arrives at the Suwon district court in Suwon, South Korea, April 26, 2019. REUTERS/Kim Hong-Ji

April 26, 2019

SEOUL (Reuters) – K-pop and drama star Park Yu-chun was arrested on Friday on charges of buying and using illegal drugs, a court said, the latest in a series of scandals to hit the South Korean entertainment business.

Suwon District Court approved the arrest warrant for Park, 32, due to concerns over possible destruction of evidence and flight risk, a court spokesman told Reuters.

Park is suspected of having bought about 1.5 grams of methamphetamine with his former girlfriend earlier this year and using the drug around five times, an official at the Gyeonggi Nambu Provincial Police Agency said.

Park has denied wrongdoing, saying he had never taken drugs, and he again denied the charges in court, Yonhap news agency said.

Park’s contract with his management agency had been canceled and he would leave the entertainment industry, Park’s management agency, C-JeS Entertainment, said on Wednesday.

Park was a member of boyband TVXQ between 2003 and 2009 before leaving the group with two other members, forming the group JYJ.

A scandal involving sex tapes, prostitutes and secret chat about rape led at least four other K-pop stars to quit the industry earlier this year.

The cases sparked a nationwide drugs bust and investigations into tax evasion and police collusion at night clubs and other nightlife spots.

(Reporting by Joyce Lee; Additional reporting by Heekyong Yang; Editing by Nick Macfie)

Source: OANN

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FILE PHOTO: An American Airlines Boeing 737 MAX 8 flight taxis after landing at Reagan National Airport in Washington
FILE PHOTO: An American Airlines Boeing 737 MAX 8 flight from Los Angeles taxis after landing at Reagan National Airport shortly after an announcement was made by the FAA that the planes were being grounded by the United States over safety issues in Washington, U.S. March 13, 2019. REUTERS/Joshua Roberts/File Photo

April 26, 2019

(Reuters) – American Airlines Group Inc cut its 2019 profit forecast on Friday, saying it expected to take a $350 million hit from the grounding of Boeing’s 737 MAX planes after cancelling 1,200 flights in the first quarter.

The company said it now expects its 2019 adjusted profit to be between $4.00 per share and $6.00 per share.

Analysts on average had expected 2019 earnings of $5.63 per share, according to Refinitiv data.

The No. 1 U.S. airline by passenger traffic said net income rose to $185 million, or 41 cents per share, in the first quarter ended March 31, from $159 million, or 34 cents per share, a year earlier.

Total operating revenue rose 2 percent to $10.58 billion.

(Reporting by Sanjana Shivdas in Bengaluru)

Source: OANN

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2020 Democratic presidential candidate Pete Buttigieg speaks at a campaign event in Des Moines, Iowa
2020 Democratic presidential candidate Pete Buttigieg speaks at a campaign event in Des Moines, Iowa, U.S., April 16, 2019. REUTERS/Elijah Nouvelage

April 26, 2019

By James Oliphant

MARSHALLTOWN, Iowa (Reuters) – Four years ago, Donald Trump campaigned in small towns like Marshalltown, Iowa, vowing to restore economic prosperity to the U.S. heartland.

In his bid to replace Trump in the White House, Pete Buttigieg is taking a similar tack. The difference, he says, is that he can point to a model of success: South Bend, Indiana, the revitalized city where he has been mayor since 2012.

The Democratic presidential contender has vaulted to the congested field’s top tier in recent weeks, drawing media and donor attention for his youth, history-making status as the first openly gay major presidential candidate and a resume that includes military service in Afghanistan.

But Buttigieg’s main argument for his candidacy is that he is a turnaround artist in the mold of Trump, although the Democrat does not expressly invoke the comparison with the Republican president.

“I’m not going around saying we’ve fixed every problem we’ve got,” Buttigieg, 37, said after a house party with voters in Marshalltown. “But I’m proud of what we have done together, and I think it’s a very powerful story.”

Critics argue improving the fortunes of a Midwestern city of 100,000 people does not qualify Buttigieg, who has never held national office, for the presidency of a country of 330 million. Others say South Bend still has pockets of despair and that minorities, in particular, have failed to benefit from its growth.

Buttigieg has told crowds in Iowa and elsewhere that his experience in reviving a struggling Rust Belt community allows him to make a case to voters that other Democratic candidates cannot. That may give him the means to win back some of the disaffected Democratic voters who turned their backs on Hillary Clinton in 2016 to vote for Trump.

Watching Buttigieg at a union hall in Des Moines last week, Rick Ryan, 45, a member of the United Steelworkers, lamented how many of his fellow union workers voted for Trump. The president turned in the best performance by a Republican among union households since Ronald Reagan in 1984.

Ryan said he hoped someone like Buttigieg could return them to the Democratic fold.

“He’s aware of the decline in the labor force in America, not just in Indiana or Des Moines or anywhere else,” Ryan said. “Jobs are going overseas. We need a find to way to bring that back.”

Randy Tucker, 56, of Pleasant Hill, Iowa, a member of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, said Trump appealed to union members “desperate for somebody to reach out to them, to help them, to listen to their voice.”

Buttigieg could do the same, he said. “In my heart right now, he’s No. 1.”

PAST VS. FUTURE

Buttigieg stresses a key difference in his and Trump’s approaches.

Trump, he tells crowds, is mired in the past, promising to rebuild the 20th century industrial economy. Buttigieg argues the pledge is misleading and unrealistic.

Buttigieg says his focus is on the future, and he often talks about what the country might look like decades from now.

“The only way that we can cultivate what makes America great is to look to the future and not be afraid of it,” Buttigieg said in Marshalltown.

Buttigieg knows his sexual preference may be a barrier to winning some blue-collar voters. But he notes that after he came out as gay in 2015, he won a second term as mayor with 80 percent of the vote in conservative Indiana.

Earlier this month, he announced his presidential bid at the hulking plant in South Bend that stopped making Studebaker autos more than 50 years ago. After lying dormant for decades, the building is being transformed into a high-tech hub after Buttigieg and other city leaders realized it would never again attract a large-scale industrial company.

“That building sat as a powerful reminder. We hoped we would get back that major employer that would fix our economy,” said Jeff Rea, president of the regional Chamber of Commerce.

Buttigieg is praised locally for spurring more than $100 million in downtown investment. During his two terms, unemployment has fallen to 4.1 percent from 11.8 percent.

But a study released in 2017 by the nonprofit group Prosperity Now said not all of the city’s residents had shared in its rebound. The median income for African-Americans remained half that of whites, while the unemployment rate for blacks was double.

Regina Williams-Preston, a city councilor running to replace Buttigieg as mayor, credits him for the revitalized downtown. But she said he had a “blind spot” when it came to focusing on troubled neighborhoods like the one she represents and only grew more engaged after community pressure.

“He understands it now,” she said. “The next step is figuring out how to open the doors of opportunity for everyone.”

‘ONE OF US’

Trump touts the fact that the United States added almost 300,000 manufacturing jobs last year as evidence he made good on his promise to restore the industrial sector. But that growth still left the country with fewer manufacturing jobs than in 2008.

The robust U.S. economy is likely the president’s greatest asset in his re-election bid, particularly in states he carried in 2016 such as Iowa, Wisconsin, Michigan and Pennsylvania. He won Buttigieg’s home state by 19 points over Clinton in 2016.

Sean Bagniewski, chairman of the Democratic Party in Polk County, Iowa, said Buttigieg would be well positioned to compete with Trump in the Midwest.

“People love the fact that he’s a mayor,” said Bagniewski, who has not endorsed a candidate in the nominating contest. “If you can talk about a positive future, and if you actually have experience that can do it, that’s a compelling vision in Iowa.”

Nan Whaley, the mayor of Dayton, Ohio, which faces many of the same challenges as South Bend, agreed.

“He’s one of us,” Whaley said. “That helps.”

(Reporting by James Oliphant; Editing by Colleen Jenkins and Peter Cooney)

Source: OANN

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A man looks out at a flooded residential area in Gatineau
A man looks out at a flooded residential area in Gatineau, Quebec, Canada, April 24, 2019. REUTERS/Chris Wattie

April 26, 2019

MONTREAL/OTTAWA (Reuters) – Rising waters were prompting further evacuations in central Canada on Thursday, with the mayor of the country’s capital, Ottawa, declaring a state of emergency and Quebec authorities warning that a hydroelectric dam was at risk of breaking.

Ottawa Mayor Jim Watson declared the emergency in response to rising water levels along the Ottawa River and weather forecasts that called for significant rainfall on Friday.

In a statement on Twitter, Watson asked for help from the Ontario provincial government and the country’s military.

He warned that “flood levels are currently forecasted to exceed the levels that caused significant damage to numerous properties in the city of Ottawa in 2017.”

Spring flooding had killed one person and forced more than 900 people from their homes in Canada’s Quebec province as of 1 p.m. on Thursday, according to a government website.

Ottawa has received 80 requests for service related to potential flooding such as sandbagging, a city spokeswoman said.

The prospect of more rain over the next 24 to 48 hours triggered concerns on Thursday that the hydroelectric dam at Bell Falls in the western part of Quebec could be at risk of failing because of rising water levels.

Quebec’s provincial police said 250 people were protectively removed from homes in the area as of late afternoon in case the dam on the Rouge River breaks.

The dam is now at its full flow capacity of 980 cubic meters per second of water, said Francis Labbé, a spokesman for the province’s state-owned utility, Hydro Quebec. He said Hydro Quebec expected the flow could rise to 1,200 cubic meters per second of water over the next two days.

“We have to take the worst-case scenario into consideration, since we`re already at the maximum capacity,” Labbé said by phone.

The dam is part of a power station that no longer produces electricity, but is regularly inspected by Hydro Quebec, he said.

(Reporting by Allison Lampert in Montreal and David Ljunggren and Julie Gordon in Ottawa; Editing by James Dalgleish and Peter Cooney)

Source: OANN

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