Charlottesville remembered: 'A battle for the soul of America'
By Joel Gunter & Roland Hughes
BBC News
9 August 2018
On 12 August, the small, serene city of Charlottesville, Virginia will mark the anniversary of a deadly white nationalist rally that shocked the nation.
The violence that day cost the life of a young counter-protester and scarred Charlottesville. An official report condemned city officials for failing to adequately prepare and police for standing by as confrontation turned to chaos.
In the year since, some residents have attempted to reckon with the legacy of that weekend and the racial inequality that persists in the city. Others have sought to consign the violence of last summer to the past, in an effort to restore to Charlottesville a lost reputation as a peaceful, progressive place - 2014's official Happiest City in America.
Here, in their own words, some of those closest to the events of that weekend tell the story of what happened, why it happened, and what it meant to a city and a nation. You may find some language offensive.
PROLOGUE: 'WE KNEW WE WERE IN FOR A BAD DAY'
Ryan Kelly, photographer, Charlottesville Daily Progress It's important to understand that this didn't happen in a vacuum, it didn't just pop up and surprise everybody. It felt over the course of the summer that things were building up in Charlottesville.
Brennan Gilmore, Charlottesville resident People hadn't quite understood the level of violence or hatred or the numbers of people coming to town, but the town was very much aware. It was like a hurricane was coming.
Jalane Schmidt, University of Virginia professor, Black Lives Matter activist The propaganda that the alt-right had put out was martial in its imagery. It was a march on Charlottesville. It was very militaristic. We felt like we were going to be under siege.
Dr Michael Williams, surgeon, UVA hospital We got a plan in place in anticipation, but I got a fair amount of push-back from my colleagues in surgery. They said "This is going to be a big nothing."
Seth Wispelwey, local minister It felt to me like a profound test. But there was no question about where I belonged and what I wanted to do.
Brenda Brown-Grooms, local minister We'd been monitoring the social media posts of the alt-right and they were detailing their hopes for the weekend, hopes for inciting a race war in the country, so we knew it was going to be dire.
Jalane Schmidt The crazy thing is we tried to warn the city. We had infiltrated chat rooms, taken screenshots. We made six dossiers, presented them to police, the city council, anyone who would listen. We said, "This is not a First Amendment rally. They are literally coming to kill us."
Emily Gorcenski, localactivist There were explicit calls for violence there. We presented them to the city in the hope they would shut the rally down before it began.
Rev Brenda Brown-Grooms The information we gave them fell on deaf ears.
Emily Gorcenski When that failed, we knew we were in for a bad day.
The statue of the Confederate general Robert E Lee in Charlottesville
'NAZIS STARTED COMING OUT OF THE WOODWORK'
How it began - Other cities in America contended with their Confederate monuments and the legacy of slavery, but it would be Charlottesville, near the former capital of the Confederacy, that would bear the brunt of the controversy.
Jalane Schmidt In 2016 a young teenage activist here in Charlottesville started a petition to remove the Confederate monuments. At the same time, we had the Republican primary campaign heating up with Trump winning more and more states. Local white supremacists got upset about the efforts to remove the statues and they were fuelled by the feedback nationally, saying "This is OK, it's open season to be racist."
Zyahna Bryant, teenage activist I had to write a school paper about something I could change and I had been thinking about public spaces in Charlottesville. I thought it was important to draw attention to how Confederate imagery is violent and what it represents for people of colour. Eventually I turned my paper into a petition.
Wes Bellamy, Charlottesville councillor and former deputy mayor When I first started talking about moving the statues, people were livid, they hated hearing about it. I started getting racist abuse - "We're going to get you nigger," that kind of thing.
Zyahna Bryant For me, it's hard because there are no statues in Charlottesville that depict African-American heroes. And so for that reason alone, black people have nothing to look up to in our public spaces. We are not represented.
Jalane Schmidt Those statues were put up in the 1920s in order to edify the white public and they are still there for the edification of white people. And now people are shifting the reason. Now it's because they don't want to forget history?
Charles Weber, Charlottesville lawyer fighting the removal of the statues Our view was that the city didn't have the authority to do what they proposed to do. Aside from being magnificent works of art and places of beauty for the city, the statues are a memorial to war veterans. It's not in America's DNA to deny its own history.
Zyahna Bryant: "Black people have nothing to look up to in our public spaces"
Jalane Schmidt On 29 January 2017, the mayor called a press conference in front of the city hall. And he announced that Charlottesville was now the capital of the resistance. People cheered. That resonated with a lot of people, but it put a target on our backs.
Wes Bellamy The Nazis and Confederates started coming out of the woodwork. Then Jason Kessler came to light.
Jason Kessler, organiser, Unite the Right rally I wasn't really involved in local politics, I didn't find Charlottesville politics or any other politics very interesting. Then I was doing yard work one day for a friend and he happened to bring up the Robert E Lee statue and how the city was trying to tear it down. I thought it was symbolic of a lot of things happening in society.
Claire Gastañaga, executive director, ACLU Virginia Jason Kessler applied for a permit for a rally at Emancipation Park, some time last spring. The way the Charlottesville process works, a permit is granted automatically if there's no negative decision in 10 days.
Jason Kessler Shoot, the moment I put in the application didn't feel that eventful. After 10 days it was approved and I set about calling different people in the alternative media, on the internet. Some describe them as alt-right, some as alt-light.
Charles Weber Jason Kessler and Richard Spencer, both University of Virginia graduates, saw the argument over the statues as a way to promote their own cause. We were horrified by that.
Jalane Schmidt, UVA professor and Black Lives Matter activist
Nikuyah Walker, counter-protester, now Charlottesville mayor People like Kessler and Spencer started to get a little leery of whether white supremacy would be maintained. That's what this was about: "How dare you, a primarily white council, vote to take down our statues?"
Jason Kessler Richard Spencer is a white nationalist. Personally I don't call myself a white nationalist. I consider myself a civil and human rights advocate, focused on the caucasian demographic.
Isaac Smith, former ally of Jason Kessler Kessler's idea was to try to unite the alt-right with the mainstream right, and get regular Republicans to show up.
Jason Kessler The moderate speakers did not want to be on the same stage as Richard Spencer, so it ended up being much more far right than I intended it to be.
Claire Gastañaga, executive director, ACLU Virginia People had been calling all that week for Kessler's permit to be revoked. After a series of closed meetings, Charlottesville council sent him a letter saying it was revoked but they would consider reissuing it if he moved the rally to a different location. He tweeted us at about 2am on the Tuesday before the weekend, asking if we would be interested in giving him legal assistance. There was nothing about his political positions that we agreed with, but there are rules and governments have to follow those rules. We filed a complaint on Thursday and the judge held a hearing on the Friday night, about 9pm, and ruled that the decision to revoke Kessler's permit was an unconstitutional decision based on the content of his speech. So the permit was reissued.
Walt Heinecke, University of Virginia professor We decided to apply for permits for counter-protests. I teach a class in citizenship so I thought it was time for me to put my money where my mouth was. We are in a battle for the soul of America at this point, and I thought it was time for people to step up.
White nationalists gather at the base of the Thomas Jefferson statue on the UVA campus
'SUDDENLY THE FIELD WAS ALIGHT'
Friday night - White nationalist ralliers gather at Nameless Field in Charlottesville and march through the University of Virginia Campus carrying torches and chanting racist slogans. At a statue of Thomas Jefferson, they are met by student activists who link arms around the statue's base.
Emily Gorcenski, local activist We were expecting a torch march at some point. Jason Kessler is a local and we know how he operates. And there's only a few locations something like that could go down. At some point on Friday morning we heard it would be after dark at the university campus.
Walt Heinecke, counter-protest organiser About 9.45pm I was walking over to St Paul's Church, and as I stood on the corner of the park I saw Jason Kessler, Richard Spencer, and a bunch of other people walk by.
Alexis Gravely, UVA student reporter Me and the managing editor had been tipped off that something was going to happen on campus. We went down there and found a lot of people with unlit torches. They were kind of in the shadows and you couldn't tell who was who, but it was shocking to see how many people were there. I turned around to listen to Jason Kessler speak and when I turned back suddenly the field was alight. It was like it had happened in an instant.
Jason Kessler Lighting torches is a protest tactic that has been used by all kinds of different people. To think that the KKK invented marching symbolically with torches is outrageous. The way it was explained to me was that it was a funeral march for the fallen dead of our European ancestors.
Brennan Gilmore, Charlottesville resident There was an interfaith service across the road at St Paul's and my whole family was there. My one-year-old nephew started crying inside so we went outside and fell asleep, and when we woke up there were white nationalists marching past.
Jalane Schmidt, Black Lives Matter activist The preacher came in to the church and said there were Nazis outside with torches, there were hundreds of them and they were marching on the church. There was a lot of confusion. We thought maybe they were coming to the church to torch it. I heard "You will not replace us, Jews will not replace us." Seeing them, by the hundreds, the torches bobbing, it was horrifying.
Jason Kessler at the UVA campus torch march
Dr Michael Williams, UVA surgeon We were made aware that university police were responding to an unexpected assembly, 150-200 people carrying torches.
Rev Brenda Brown-Grooms We were on lockdown at St Paul's, and when I finally got out I was sitting on the brick wall on the corner, and I saw this line of lights coming towards me. I thought "Oh God, these people can't come right up here."
Walt Heinecke, counter-protest organiser An activist came by and said "Your students are surrounded by Nazis." I ran over there with a friend and what I noticed was there was no police presence, and there were 150 or so Nazis, fascists with torches, screaming racial epithets. Student activists were around the Jefferson statue, locking arms peacefully, chanting "Black Lives Matter".
Emily Gorcenski There was a moment when I saw them marching towards us that I would describe as the worst thing I've ever felt in my life. It was absolute terror.
Alexis Gravely, UVA student reporter One of the things that struck me was the organisation - they were calling for men over 200 pounds to stand on the outside for security, things like that. It was loud, it was chaotic, it was booming in your ears.
Rev Brenda Brown-Grooms I could see and smell the torches. And unfortunately, as a person of colour in this country, I don't have to go back far to remember those things, to remember feeling totally unprotected, unheard, unseen, and unwanted.
Wes Bellamy, former deputy mayor There was a sense of anger that these cowards would march with torches and surround 20 college kids and try to intimidate them. That really showed me who those individuals were. And it let me know how serious it was.
Walt Heinecke I waded into the crowd of Nazis with the dean of students and we were assaulted - I got pepper-sprayed, the dean got a torch thrown at him, the students and counter-protesters were being beaten by these guys.
Rev Brenda Brown-Grooms We had been on lockdown in the church. Eventually police arrived over the road at the campus and people began to disperse. We filed out of the back door to avoid the nationalists in the street.
Dr Michael Williams, UVA surgeon That was the first clue that our worst fears might come to pass. My feeling for Saturday was "Oh God, this is really happening."
White nationalists file into Emancipation Park
'WE SAW A WAVE COMING OVER THE HILL'
Saturday morning - Local religious leaders fan out across Charlottesville, some to lead prayer services and some to stand on the front line at Emancipation Park. As the morning progresses and the temperature rises, white nationalists and counter-protesters pour into the streets around the park.
Rev Brenda Brown-Grooms We had a sunrise service at six in the morning, at First Baptist Church, Main. It was hot as blazes, as it is wont to be in Charlottesville in August.
Christian Yingling, Pennsylvania Light Foot Militia We had what I call a pre-op briefing which we have before events, where we lay out the plan for the guys for the day. We were nervous. I could see it in the guys, the way they were gearing up. They knew it wasn't going to be good. When we first got to the park, about 7.30am, it was tense.
Brennan Gilmore, Charlottesville resident As soon as I got downtown I knew Charlottesville had completely transformed.
Rev Seth Wispelwey About 8am, those of us called to the front line - about 50 in all - marched from First Baptist church on Main Street to Emancipation Park. For two and a half hours, we sang, prayed, and tried to diffuse tension. We bore witness as groups of men began to march in and the temperature started to rise.
Ezé Amos, freelance photographer At first, everybody was singing and walking peacefully. As we walked there was a gentleman standing there with a white T-shirt. I knew the uniform and took a few photos and made him look up, and I got a nice clean shot of his face. He turned out to be the driver of the car.
Ryan Kelly, photographer, Daily Progress I got to Emancipation Park at 9am. The rally wasn't scheduled to begin til noon but there were already hundreds of people arriving at the park. There was so much rhetoric around the media, but I'm a white male so I didn't have it that bad. Ezé is from Africa, he was much more of a target.
Ezé Amos I saw the first wave of alt-right guys march up, led by Eli Mosley. They said some things to me, called me a nigger. An alt-right guy in a Hitler and swastika T-shirt punched me in the face in front of the police. They did absolutely nothing.
Rev Seth Wispelwey, centre, locks arms with other clergy members at the entrance to the park
Rev Seth Wispelwey We were linking arms at the entrance to the park, just like John Lewis and his people did in Selma. We saw a wave coming over the hill, and I thought "This is what we prepared for."
Christian Yingling, Pennsylvania Light Foot Militia The alt-right filed in carrying clubs and shields. They had their baseball batting helmets, chanting "White is right", screaming "History not heritage" and things like that.
Rev Seth Wispelwey They battered through the line of clergy. Then about 500 members of the League of the South and the National Socialist Movement - literal Nazis - came over the crest of Market Street.
Christian Yingling Everybody came together at the same point in the street out in front of the park. The city of Charlottesville knew who was coming to town, they did their homework, so why would you funnel group after group, right and left, right through each other? It made no sense.
Ryan Kelly There were barriers in the park to keep people separate but as people went in everyone got mixed up with everyone else. People were throwing bottles, there was pepper spray burning people's eyes.
Claire Gastañaga, ACLU Virginia I was on the corner of Second and Market St. It was clear there was no effort to separate the two sides - there was almost permission to engage in violence.
Brennan Gilmore It was pretty clear to me it was not going to end well. The place was awash with weapons and you didn't know who was legitimate security or who was from a militia.
Christian Yingling Thirty-two guys walking down the street in full body armour with semi-automatic weapons, sure, it's going to intimidate people. Was that our intention? No. We are a really community-minded organisation and we are trying to get out of that stereotype that militias are fat guys hiding out in the woods waiting for the government.
Ryan Kelly, photographer, Daily Progress The militia groups claimed they were just maintaining the peace, but they were all wearing camo and military gear and carrying rifles and handguns. It added to the sense of hostility.
Emily Gorcenski, local activist The militia didn't do anything to keep the peace. I think they wanted to stand there and roleplay.
Christian Yingling, Pennsylvania Light Foot Militia The reason for us to be there had nothing to do with white supremacy - I completely disagree with their message. But they had the right to say whatever they wanted, and the counter-protesters had that right too, and that's why we were there.
Emily Gorcenski When you look at what these militia groups are saying, it's very rarely in the defence of black people, for example. It's very rarely in the defence of liberals or progressives or socialists. It only seems to be in defence of forces in our society that continue to oppress minorities.
Christian Yingling of the Pennsylvania Light Foot Militia, at Emancipation park
Rev Brenda Brown-Grooms I was at the First United Methodist Church. We kept being locked down in the building. There were Nazis shouting outside, Antifa trying to combat them. People in the church were trying to sing over the din. The helicopters were hovering overhead, their rotor blades wapping. We looked at one another and started praying hard.
Dr Michael Williams As the only physician here at UVA who was involved in 9/11 - I was in DC - the feeling of dread I had was exactly the same. That feeling you were being targeted from the outside by people who were outright evil.
Rev Brenda Brown-Grooms There was a narrative that people came to town to stir up trouble, but we have to take that back. Certainly people came to town, but they were also already here. They live here. I see them all the time.
Ryan Kelly There were hundreds, if not thousands, of people around the park at this point. It was tough to keep track.
Rev Seth Wispelwey There were roving groups of men, most in polo shirts, many carrying sticks, bats, all in the street. What was surreal was seeing all the monuments around the city surrounded by hundreds of people intending to cause violence. When we got face to face with these white supremacists, all the slurs were anti-Semitic, homophobic, misogynistic - we didn't hear anything anti-black or anti-Muslim. It was even more primitive.
Christian Yingling Over five and a half hours, we had bricks thrown, people being hurt by clubs, paint and faeces tossed at my people. The majority were from hate groups - they came organised, they had a plan, you could tell by the way they marched. Antifa had their plan too, because they came with coolers full of stuff to throw at people.
Isaac Smith, former Jason Kessler ally Look at who was going to be there, you are putting large radical armed groups - actual Nazis - with actual Communists and you are giving them all guns. That was a recipe for disaster. There were definitely alt-right groups I could see were armed to the teeth. And then you also had the far-left, Redneck Revolt. Most of Charlottesville who were counter-demonstrating were peaceful, but there were a lot of out-of-towners who had wanted to punch a Nazi for their whole lives and finally they had an opportunity.
Ryan Kelly, photographer, Daily Progress It was really strange because it was all happening with this giant police presence around the outer edges of the park.
Claire Gastañaga Nobody predicted that the police would have been as incompetent as they were. It never occurred to us that they wouldn't keep the demonstrators and counter-demonstrators separate.
Nikuyah Walker, counter-protester People were yelling at officers, asking them 'Why didn't you protect us, why didn't you help us?'
Ryan Kelly It got worse and worse until the police finally stepped in and said it was an unlawful assembly, and people started to disperse.
Dr Michael Williams At the hospital we'd had a trickle of people who were faint from the heat, but in the morning we were mainly just watching the TV and listening to the radio communication. Then I heard on the police radio, "Pedestrians struck, multiple victims, potentially as many as 40."
A memorial to Heather Heyer at the place where she died
'TIME JUST SEEMED TO STOP'
Saturday afternoon - At the corner of Water Street and Fourth, a white nationalist rally-goer ploughs into a crowd of peaceful counter-protesters in his car, killing 32-year-old Heather Heyer and injuring 19 others. James A Fields, 20, is later arrested and charged with murder.
Ryan Kelly, photographer, Daily Progress I was taking photos on Fourth Street and it was calm, it was the calmest I'd felt all day. It was at that exact second when a car sped past me down the street. Out of instinct I grabbed my camera.
Susan Bro, Heather Heyer's mother Heather went off with her friends that day to say "This is our town, get out, this is what we believe, if you don't like it, leave" and to stand strong with her friends in the community to say black lives do matter.
Brennan Gilmore, Charlottesville resident I heard the acceleration of a car behind and looked around and saw a vehicle flying down the street. It was immediately apparent what was going on by the manner he was driving. The visual was horrifying, the sound of it was revolting.
Jack Basile, gave CPR to Heather Heyer At first I thought it was an explosion, because all I could see was people flying through the air and people screaming and people running towards me. I have an audio recording and it's hard to listen to.
Rev Brenda Brown-Grooms We were watching the live news inside the building, and we screamed when we saw the car hit. The spit fired in my mouth.
Emily Gorcenski, local activist We had been tracking threats of violence online so I knew right away it was an attack, not an accident. My thought at that moment was that he was going to pop out and start shooting at people. My instinct was to run towards the car, towards the attacker. I briefly drew my gun so I was ready in case he did come out shooting. Thankfully he didn't.
Ryan Kelly took 80 pictures as the car sped past, on his last day as a photographer. He won the Pulitzer Prize for this frame.
Jack Basile I saw the car backing up the street then I saw Heather lying on her side. I reached around Heather's head and realised instantly it was bad. Then time just seemed to stop.
Brennan Gilmore It was a terrible, terrible moment and all hell broke loose. People were lying in various states of distress, a woman collapsed in front of me. It occurred to me I had been filming it. I debated whether or not to share it, and my first instinct was not to.
Emily Gorcenski We decided at that point was to leave the scene, because some of us had guns and the best thing to do in that scenario was to get the guns out of the situation.
Jack Basile We pulled Heather out from underneath another guy and she took a deep breath and relaxed. There was a critical care nurse who had arrived beside me. I couldn't feel a pulse, she couldn't feel a pulse, and she said let's start CPR. She was doing compressions and I was using a one-way valve mask to help Heather breathe. After a few minutes the police finally showed up. Then paramedics arrived and took over. I walked across the street and sat on the corner in a state of complete and utter shock.
Dr Michael Williams We were watching the news and saw the car fly through. When Heather Heyer came in, CPR was in progress and then 14 others came in. We occasionally see blunt force trauma victims, but it's never or rarely intentional. And it's very rare that we'd get 10 at once, from the same incident.
Susan Bro, Heather Heyer's mother Heather's best friend called me to tell me that the hospital was looking for the next of kin and I knew if he called me, there was something wrong because he never calls unless something's wrong.
Dr Michael Williams People were brought in covered in swastikas and other symbols I would equate with hate. But in the moment we were just taking care of the patients. You don't see the swastikas. I'm African-American, and afterwards, you realise you have got a person here who literally would just as sooner see you dead. But you remind yourself of why you got into the profession.
Ryan Kelly, photographer, Daily Progress It wasn't until I looked at the pictures in full size that the gravity of it hit me. There was one photo specifically that I thought was the most telling, and that was the one we have all seen, the one that went viral and won the Pulitzer. We didn't publish it initially. I talked to my editor and the other photographer, they went to the company and the lawyer and they said "Let's publish it."
Brennan Gilmore I thought that showing [what I had filmed] was necessary to tell people in Charlottesville "stay away, stay home, the stakes are fatal." It never entered my mind that I would be targeted for sharing it. It wasn't until a day later that I heard about the conspiracy theory, that everything I had seen was a set-up, a propaganda operation. These far-right boards had listed my family members. I went through a hellish week of being targeted by these conspiracy theorists. I had friends I'd grown up with who were accusing me.
Susan Bro I can't begin to tell you how horrendous that day was. They walked me up to the room and the detective told me that she was pronounced dead. I just put down my head and let out an ungodly sound.
Jack Basile I had a really, really difficult time afterwards and it is still with me. I still have my press pass from that day, in a bag, and it still has blood on it.
Susan Bro After Heather died there was a period of time, probably three months at least, and it still happens occasionally, where I'd be walking through town and someone would come up to me and say "I knew Heather and she touched my life."
Three hours after the attack, a Virginia State Police helicopter which was monitoring the rally crashed outside Charlottesville, killing Lieutenant H Jay Cullen and Trooper-Pilot Berke M M Bates.
A memorial to Heather Heyer in downtown Charlottesville
'THE PRESIDENT KEPT TALKING AND TALKING'
Tuesday afternoon, New York - President Trump has already made two statements on Charlottesville, first stating on Saturday, to the dismay of many watching, that there was violence "on many sides", before delivering prepared remarks on Sunday in which he condemned white nationalism. At a press conference in New York on Tuesday, he makes his third statement on the violence.
Jordan Fabian, White House correspondent, The Hill The press conference was billed as an announcement on infrastructure and we were told he wasn't planning on taking questions. You never know what's going to happen with him, but we weren't expecting him to wade back into this. He started to wrap up and a reporter shouted out a question and he answered it, and it was off to the races.
Jalane Schmidt, Black Lives Matter activist I was watching TV and I heard Trump say there were "good people on both sides".
Jordan Fabian As he made those remarks, the atmosphere at the press conference got more and more heated. I remember, there was a lot of staff in the lobby of Trump Tower. John Kelly, Trump's chief of staff, was off to one side rubbing his temples. I looked at Sarah Huckabee Sanders, his press secretary, and she was standing there silently. They looked shocked at how it was playing out.
Christine Emba, opinion editor, The Washington Post The hope was that surely, surely the President of the United States would say something appropriate. Say "This is not who we are." Or "Racism is bad", perhaps? That we are against white supremacy? The fact that he could not bring himself to do that was a shocking confirmation that we were in a newly bad place.
Zyahna Bryant, Charlottesville high school student I was in Charlottesville near downtown and I was watching him on the TV with some friends and we were all just like, what? Twitter was blowing up, Facebook and Instagram were blowing up.
Jordan Fabian Just judging from the body language, I think a lot of his staff were uncomfortable with what he was saying. Gary Cohn appeared to be gesturing to the president to wrap it up. Of course the president just kept talking and talking.
Jalane Schmidt There was dismay. To have your president say that - it was mortifying that anybody could dare make any moral equivalency between counter-protesters and these white supremacist haters bent on murder. It was just insulting.
Christian Yingling, Pennsylvania Lightfoot Militia I was standing in the kitchen and I remember the moment he said "There are good people on both sides and bad people on both sides", and then he threw in a little nugget about the one good group that was there. That really caught my ear. I looked at my wife, "Did I just get a nod from the president?" "I think you did," she said.
Jason Kessler, organiser, Unite the Right rally In the environment of sensationalism, and blaming only one side, it was good to hear the president mention that we had a permit. People don't know that.
Trump's Tuesday press conference at Trump Tower
Susan Bro, Heather Heyer's mother Trump's office called while I was at the funeral and I had my phone turned off. I turned my phone on at 10pm and I saw that there had been three voicemails from the president's office. They sounded increasingly frantic. I turned on the news and heard him say that there were good people on both sides and I thought, I don't want to talk to him.
Christian Yingling It was really like any other protest - there were good people on both sides. Not all the people who went up to the park that day were white supremacists.
Isaac Smith, former Kessler ally It was relatively clumsy, but not fundamentally incorrect. There are better ways he could have made the same point.. There were people on both sides who energetically participated in violence: it's not as simple as 'one side attacked the other and one side defended themselves'.
Jordan Fabian, White House correspondent, The Hill If you compare to previous administrations, I don't think there would be situation where you would have a soft-pedalling reaction to any kind of white supremacist violence. But the president had said what he said the first time, and sort of taken it back. Then when he doubled down on his first response at that press conference at Trump Tower, in such a vehement way, I think that let a lot of people know that's what he truly felt about the situation.
Christine Emba, Washington Post As an African American person living in America, it felt like a double betrayal. First, he couldn't bring himself to admit that it was not "both sides" - that there's a difference between white supremacists and people pushing back against them. Then we had to wait for him to be reined in by a trained communications professional, but he still couldn't stick to that.In the end, he said what he really wanted to say. He was addressing aid and comfort to the people he wanted to reassure, and that was white supremacists and his more racist supporters. He put himself on the side of an America we had hoped we were leaving behind.
Zyahna Bryant What he said really created a ripple effect. I've heard people all over, even within our community, say we have to pay attention to the violence on both sides.
Jordan Fabian I think that still a year later stands out as one of the lowest moments of President Trump's time in office.
Christine Emba And he hasn't done very much since to make anyone feel better. He went from that to deriding the NFL protesters who took a knee, to calling African nations shithole countries, to calling MS-13 members animals. It hasn't gotten better.
A Confederate battle flag flies over the I-64 highway, outside Charlottesville, August 1, 2018
'AUGUST 12 WAS NOT THE BEGINNING OR END'
Today - Charlottesville has elected Nikuyah Walker, who was among the counter-protesters in August, as the city's first black woman mayor, and many in the city see progress wrought from the wounds of that weekend. Others see a deep racial inequality laid bare but barely changed by what happened. The Confederate statues still stand, and the city has declared a state of emergency ahead of the anniversary.
Rev Brenda Brown-Grooms I was born in Charlottesville in the basement of the University of Virginia, among the lead-dripping pipes, because that's where the coloured babies were born. I could not have been born at Martha Jefferson hospital. Even if my mother had been crowning with me she would not have been allowed in. There is an ugly truth in Charlottesville and in America, and it is the legacy of white supremacy.
Nikuyah Walker, mayor of Charlottesville Charlottesville has always been a pretty segregated area. I grew up like many black families in the community: working-class families, parents working every day, multiple jobs, attempting to make ends meet. It's a very different experience from the Charlottesville in our brochures and the "world-class city" designation we attempt to give ourselves.
Wes Bellamy, former deputy mayor We used to think we were somehow better than the other communities and cities in which you saw overt white supremacy. Ours was always much more covert and underhanded, it wasn't directly in your face.
Nikuyah Walker I know previous generations - my parents' generation, grandparents - learned to stay out of the way, learned to do what you need to do to get by.
Jalane Schmidt Local white folks tend to think of this as a liberal place but black people - and I am African American - we see a lot of contradictions. The police stopping and frisking black people. The gentrification. The lack of affordable housing. The struggle to get living wage.
Zyahna Bryant, student who wrote the original statue petition There are still unspoken boundaries in Charlottesville, places where people of colour are not welcome. The downtown mall is not a very welcoming space.
Susan Bro, Heather Heyer's mother Have things changed in Charlottesville? It depends on who you ask. If you ask a wealthy white person, the town is wonderful and it has always been wonderful. If you ask someone who is not wealthy and not white, you would get a different perspective. August 12 was not the beginning or the end of the situation here.
Susan Bro, mother of Heather Heyer, standing ahead of the anniversary at the place her daughter was killed
Zyahna Bryant August 12 was only a reflection of the history of Charlottesville and how racist it really is. August 12 is every day. A lot of people want us to move into this "August 13" phase where we move past everything, but we are still in this paralysis of August 12. We are still there.
Ezé Amos, photographer Some things have started to change, in the sense that people talk about the racial divide, inequality. More white people are being outspoken about it, which I really appreciate.
Claire Gastañaga, ACLU Virginia What happened provoked a sense that we haven't really had the conversations about race in America that we need to have. There's a great need for that. Whether there's the will for it remains an important question.
Wes Bellamy We just took 120 people from Charlottesville on a pilgrimage to Montgomery, Alabama, to learn about civil rights and the history of lynching. We have finally recognised John Henry James, a man who was lynched here in 1898. We put a lynching marker up and gave him his proper due. Those things would not have happened were it not for what occurred that weekend. The legacy is not just about statues and park names, those are ultimately superficial things. There are things happening on the ground that are changing the landscape of the community.
Ryan Kelly, photographer I love this city, but what happened was a scar on Charlottesville. The fact the whole world now knows this place now because of one attack is depressing.
Rev Seth Wispelwey Outside of town, I feel Charlottesville had a really positive impact. But it's been hard to face here because we are continuing to live under the threat of white supremacist violence.
Susan Bro The hate does not seem to disappear, it just keeps changing forms.
Charlottesville's downtown pedestrian mall, on a recent summer day
Walt Heinecke, counter-protest organiser The community in Charlottesville is pretty much ready for whatever happens on the anniversary.
Susan Bro Jason Kessler says he isn't going to do anything here but I wouldn't count on people not showing up.
Jason Kessler I was originally hoping to do something in Charlottesville but we had to drop those plans. I don't think Charlottesville has a commitment to public safety. I think it's better for me and the citizens of Charlottesville to have parted ways, and they can heal from whatever mental wounds they've had from this sordid affair and I can do the same.
Christine Emba, Washington Post I think people of colour were really affected by Charlottesville, by seeing that historical violence dredged into the present. I think many felt isolated by it. You might be surrounded by white neighbours and friends who say, "I'm so sorry for you, but we should move on," and it's a very isolating feeling.
Zyahna Bryant There are people here who continue to deny that racism is even a thing, or that white supremacy is a thing. But white supremacists keep coming to town. Some of them live right here in Charlottesville. We are at a point where it's time to choose a side: either you are going to be on the right side or the wrong side of history.
Wes Bellamy Yes, we are more open to airing our dirty laundry than before, but I still get abuse every day. You think white supremacists are going to stop calling me nigger because of something that happened one weekend last year? Or because now I have a doctorate? Now they call me doctor nigger.
Charlottesville Police Department, the University of Virginia Police Department, Virginia State Police and Charlottesville City Council either did not respond to requests for comment or declined to comment. Interviews condensed and edited for clarity.
Friday, August 10, 2018
Thursday, August 9, 2018
Dozens dead after school bus carrying children hit by airstrike - CNN
Dozens dead after school bus carrying children hit by airstrike
By Hakim Almasmari and Sarah El Sirgany, CNN
Updated 1107 GMT (1907 HKT) August 9, 2018
The school bus was driving through a market when the strike occurred.
The school bus was driving through a market when the strike occurred.
(CNN)Dozens are dead and wounded after an airstrike hit a bus carrying children in northern Yemen Thursday, according to the International Committee for the Red Cross (ICRC) and eyewitnesses.
The school bus was hit as it was driving through a market in the rebel-held province of Saada, according to the Houthi-run Al-Masirah TV.
"Scores killed, even more injured, most under the age of ten. @ICRC_ye sending additional supplies to hospitals to cope with the influx," Johannes Bruwer, the head of the ICRC delegation in Yemen wrote on Twitter.
The Saudi-led Coalition, which has been conducting a military campaign to oust the Houthi rebels, didn't immediately respond to CNN questions.
Houthi media broadcast gruesome footage appearing to show the dead bodies of children. Other footage showed a young boy carrying a UNICEF backpacks being escorted to a hospital, his face bloodied as medical staff tried to treat his injuries.
Witnesses that CNN spoke to said the attack could be heard from neighboring districts.
Yahya Shaem, head of the Houthi-held health office in Saada, told CNN that the children in the bus were on their way to their summer camps.
By Hakim Almasmari and Sarah El Sirgany, CNN
Updated 1107 GMT (1907 HKT) August 9, 2018
The school bus was driving through a market when the strike occurred.
The school bus was driving through a market when the strike occurred.
(CNN)Dozens are dead and wounded after an airstrike hit a bus carrying children in northern Yemen Thursday, according to the International Committee for the Red Cross (ICRC) and eyewitnesses.
The school bus was hit as it was driving through a market in the rebel-held province of Saada, according to the Houthi-run Al-Masirah TV.
"Scores killed, even more injured, most under the age of ten. @ICRC_ye sending additional supplies to hospitals to cope with the influx," Johannes Bruwer, the head of the ICRC delegation in Yemen wrote on Twitter.
The Saudi-led Coalition, which has been conducting a military campaign to oust the Houthi rebels, didn't immediately respond to CNN questions.
Houthi media broadcast gruesome footage appearing to show the dead bodies of children. Other footage showed a young boy carrying a UNICEF backpacks being escorted to a hospital, his face bloodied as medical staff tried to treat his injuries.
Witnesses that CNN spoke to said the attack could be heard from neighboring districts.
Yahya Shaem, head of the Houthi-held health office in Saada, told CNN that the children in the bus were on their way to their summer camps.
Trump administration to hit Russia with new sanctions for Skripal poisoning - NBC News
Trump administration to hit Russia with new sanctions for Skripal poisoning
The administration has signed off on a determination that Russia violated international law, triggering new U.S. sanctions.
by Josh Lederman / Aug.09.2018 / 5:00 AM ET
President Donald Trump at the White House in Washington on July 30.Susan Walsh / AP file
The Trump administration is hitting Russia with new sanctions punishing President Vladimir Putin's government for using a chemical weapon against an ex-spy in Britain, U.S. officials told NBC News Wednesday.
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo signed off on a determination that Russia violated international law by poisoning the former spy, Sergei Skripal, and his daughter in March, officials said, a decision that was announced Wednesday afternoon by State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert.
Although the United States joined European countries in publicly blaming Moscow within days of the attack, the Trump administration had never issued the formal determination that triggers automatic sanctions under a decades-old U.S. law on chemical weapons.
The decision could bolster President Donald Trump's claim that — despite the noise of special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation into alleged Russian election meddling, which Trump has called a "witch hunt" — his administration has been tough on Moscow in practice and has hit hard when needed.
But Trump had to be nudged by Congress into unleashing the penalties after blowing more than a month past a statutory deadline. The government had two months after a formal congressional request in March for Trump to determine whether Russia had violated international law. After the deadline came and went with no response, Trump was called out in late July by House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Ed Royce, R-Calif., NBC News first reported.
Aug. 2: Sen. Cardin: It'd be nice if Trump endorsed new Russia sanctions
AUG.03.201803:16
It was a rare instance of friendly fire from a fellow Republican, as members of Trump's party grew increasingly frustrated with his handling of Russia after his Helsinki summit with Putin in June. Royce, who faulted Trump for failing to make use of existing sanctions authorities on Russia, had urged Trump to comply by midday Wednesday.
Senior U.S. officials said making the formal determination is a complicated and technical process that can take more time than the deadline allows, particularly to ensure that sanctions don't have unintended consequences for U.S. businesses. Previous administrations also frequently missed the deadline.
Royce responded to the move Wednesday by saying Trump's administration was "rightly acting to uphold international bans" on chemical weapons and to put more pressure on Moscow. He said in a statement that Putin "must know that we will not tolerate his deadly acts, or his ongoing attacks on our democratic process."
The sanctions are structured in two tranches, laid out in a 1991 law, the Chemical and Biological Weapons and Warfare Elimination Act. An initial, immediate round limits exports and financing but may have limited impact, because it largely overlaps with other restrictions already in place, such as on selling arms to Russia.
The biggest impact from the initial sanctions is expected to come from a ban on granting licenses to export sensitive national security goods to Russia, which in the past have included items like electronic devices and components, along with test and calibration equipment for avionics. Before the sanctions, such exports were allowed on a case-by-case basis.
The new prohibition could cut off hundreds of millions of dollars in future exports to Russia, a senior State Department official said.
A second, more painful round kicks in three months later unless Russia provides "reliable assurances" that it won't use chemical weapons in the future and agrees to "on-site inspections" by the United Nations — conditions unlikely to be met. The second round of sanctions could include downgrading diplomatic relations, suspending the state airline Aeroflot's ability to fly to the United States and cutting off nearly all exports and imports.
Trump admin sanctions Russia for poisoning of ex-spy and his daughter
Video shows Nashville police officer fatally shoot man as he runs from traffic stop
The chemical weapons law was most recently used in March when the Trump administration determined that North Korea had used the chemical agent VX to kill leader Kim Jong Un's half-brother in a Malaysian airport. The sanctions on Russia will take effect in 15 days, when they will be published in the Federal Register.
The sanctions come as Trump's national security team is working to counter the persistent perception that the president is unwilling to challenge Putin or acknowledge the egregiousness of Moscow's actions. Trump has insisted repeatedly that "no one has been tougher" on Moscow than him, but Russia hawks in both parties remain alarmed by his continual downplaying of the threat to the United States and his eagerness for a positive relationship with the Russian leader.
Last week, just hours after Trump's top national security officials warned of "pervasive" attempts to interfere in the 2018 election, the president said he had a "great meeting with Putin" in Helsinki and again referred to "the Russian hoax." Still, his administration has slapped sanctions on Russian oligarchs and officials, including for election meddling and human rights violations, and has pushed back on the Kremlin in other ways in Syria and Ukraine.
Skripal, a former Russian military officer convicted of spying for Britain, was poisoned with his daughter, Yulia, in March in Salisbury, England, with the nerve agent Novichok, developed in the former Soviet Union; they survived. In late June, two people miles away were exposed to the same nerve agent in an incident that police believe is linked. One of them died. Moscow has adamantly denied involvement in either incident.
Shortly after the Skripal poisoning, the United States joined Britain, Germany and France in saying it was "highly likely that Russia was responsible" for the Skripal attack. The Trump administration also kicked out dozens of Russian diplomats who it said were spies to punish Moscow for its "use of a military-grade chemical weapon on the soil of the United Kingdom."
The Russian Embassy in Washington repeated that the United States has refused to provide information to substantiate its conclusion.
"We confirmed that we continue to strongly stand for an open and transparent investigation of the crime committed in Salisbury and for bringing the culprits to justice," it said in a statement.
Although Trump is largely allowing the sanctions to move forward, his administration is using waivers to exempt a few activities that would otherwise be banned, officials said. That includes space flight, in which the United States and Russia cooperate closely and in which U.S. astronauts could run into problems without a waiver.
Russian-based entities that are wholly owned subsidiaries of U.S. companies will also be exempt, so as not to unduly punish U.S. businesses. U.S. foreign assistance for Russia — already extremely limited — may still be allowed because it goes not to the Russian government but to nongovernmental groups, such as those that support human rights and the rule of law, officials said.
The administration has signed off on a determination that Russia violated international law, triggering new U.S. sanctions.
by Josh Lederman / Aug.09.2018 / 5:00 AM ET
President Donald Trump at the White House in Washington on July 30.Susan Walsh / AP file
The Trump administration is hitting Russia with new sanctions punishing President Vladimir Putin's government for using a chemical weapon against an ex-spy in Britain, U.S. officials told NBC News Wednesday.
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo signed off on a determination that Russia violated international law by poisoning the former spy, Sergei Skripal, and his daughter in March, officials said, a decision that was announced Wednesday afternoon by State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert.
Although the United States joined European countries in publicly blaming Moscow within days of the attack, the Trump administration had never issued the formal determination that triggers automatic sanctions under a decades-old U.S. law on chemical weapons.
The decision could bolster President Donald Trump's claim that — despite the noise of special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation into alleged Russian election meddling, which Trump has called a "witch hunt" — his administration has been tough on Moscow in practice and has hit hard when needed.
But Trump had to be nudged by Congress into unleashing the penalties after blowing more than a month past a statutory deadline. The government had two months after a formal congressional request in March for Trump to determine whether Russia had violated international law. After the deadline came and went with no response, Trump was called out in late July by House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Ed Royce, R-Calif., NBC News first reported.
Aug. 2: Sen. Cardin: It'd be nice if Trump endorsed new Russia sanctions
AUG.03.201803:16
It was a rare instance of friendly fire from a fellow Republican, as members of Trump's party grew increasingly frustrated with his handling of Russia after his Helsinki summit with Putin in June. Royce, who faulted Trump for failing to make use of existing sanctions authorities on Russia, had urged Trump to comply by midday Wednesday.
Senior U.S. officials said making the formal determination is a complicated and technical process that can take more time than the deadline allows, particularly to ensure that sanctions don't have unintended consequences for U.S. businesses. Previous administrations also frequently missed the deadline.
Royce responded to the move Wednesday by saying Trump's administration was "rightly acting to uphold international bans" on chemical weapons and to put more pressure on Moscow. He said in a statement that Putin "must know that we will not tolerate his deadly acts, or his ongoing attacks on our democratic process."
The sanctions are structured in two tranches, laid out in a 1991 law, the Chemical and Biological Weapons and Warfare Elimination Act. An initial, immediate round limits exports and financing but may have limited impact, because it largely overlaps with other restrictions already in place, such as on selling arms to Russia.
The biggest impact from the initial sanctions is expected to come from a ban on granting licenses to export sensitive national security goods to Russia, which in the past have included items like electronic devices and components, along with test and calibration equipment for avionics. Before the sanctions, such exports were allowed on a case-by-case basis.
The new prohibition could cut off hundreds of millions of dollars in future exports to Russia, a senior State Department official said.
A second, more painful round kicks in three months later unless Russia provides "reliable assurances" that it won't use chemical weapons in the future and agrees to "on-site inspections" by the United Nations — conditions unlikely to be met. The second round of sanctions could include downgrading diplomatic relations, suspending the state airline Aeroflot's ability to fly to the United States and cutting off nearly all exports and imports.
Trump admin sanctions Russia for poisoning of ex-spy and his daughter
Video shows Nashville police officer fatally shoot man as he runs from traffic stop
The chemical weapons law was most recently used in March when the Trump administration determined that North Korea had used the chemical agent VX to kill leader Kim Jong Un's half-brother in a Malaysian airport. The sanctions on Russia will take effect in 15 days, when they will be published in the Federal Register.
The sanctions come as Trump's national security team is working to counter the persistent perception that the president is unwilling to challenge Putin or acknowledge the egregiousness of Moscow's actions. Trump has insisted repeatedly that "no one has been tougher" on Moscow than him, but Russia hawks in both parties remain alarmed by his continual downplaying of the threat to the United States and his eagerness for a positive relationship with the Russian leader.
Last week, just hours after Trump's top national security officials warned of "pervasive" attempts to interfere in the 2018 election, the president said he had a "great meeting with Putin" in Helsinki and again referred to "the Russian hoax." Still, his administration has slapped sanctions on Russian oligarchs and officials, including for election meddling and human rights violations, and has pushed back on the Kremlin in other ways in Syria and Ukraine.
Skripal, a former Russian military officer convicted of spying for Britain, was poisoned with his daughter, Yulia, in March in Salisbury, England, with the nerve agent Novichok, developed in the former Soviet Union; they survived. In late June, two people miles away were exposed to the same nerve agent in an incident that police believe is linked. One of them died. Moscow has adamantly denied involvement in either incident.
Shortly after the Skripal poisoning, the United States joined Britain, Germany and France in saying it was "highly likely that Russia was responsible" for the Skripal attack. The Trump administration also kicked out dozens of Russian diplomats who it said were spies to punish Moscow for its "use of a military-grade chemical weapon on the soil of the United Kingdom."
The Russian Embassy in Washington repeated that the United States has refused to provide information to substantiate its conclusion.
"We confirmed that we continue to strongly stand for an open and transparent investigation of the crime committed in Salisbury and for bringing the culprits to justice," it said in a statement.
Although Trump is largely allowing the sanctions to move forward, his administration is using waivers to exempt a few activities that would otherwise be banned, officials said. That includes space flight, in which the United States and Russia cooperate closely and in which U.S. astronauts could run into problems without a waiver.
Russian-based entities that are wholly owned subsidiaries of U.S. companies will also be exempt, so as not to unduly punish U.S. businesses. U.S. foreign assistance for Russia — already extremely limited — may still be allowed because it goes not to the Russian government but to nongovernmental groups, such as those that support human rights and the rule of law, officials said.
Woman tells police she's 'very clean, thoroughbred, white girl' during drunk driving arrest - NBC News ( source : Associated Press )
Woman tells police she's 'very clean, thoroughbred, white girl' during drunk driving arrest
“I asked what that had to do with anything?” wrote the officer, who also is white. She replied, “You’re a cop, you should know what that means."
by Associated Press / Aug.09.2018 / 8:48 PM ET
A woman seen speeding through a stop sign at 60 mph told officers they shouldn’t arrest her because she’s a “very clean, thoroughbred, white girl,” police said.
Her eyes glassy and bloodshot, Lauren Elizabeth Cutshaw was slurring her words and a Breathalyzer showed her blood-alcohol level at 0.18 percent, according to police in Bluffton, South Carolina.
Cutshaw, 32, told the arresting officer she shouldn’t be jailed because she was a cheerleader, a dancer and a sorority girl who graduated from a “high accredited university.”
Taken to the police station in handcuffs, she described herself as a white “thoroughbred” and “went on to say ‘I’m a white, clean girl,’” the officer wrote in his report.
“I asked what that had to do with anything?” wrote the officer, who also is white.
Image: Lauren Elizabeth CutshawLauren Elizabeth Cutshaw. Beaufort County Detention Center / AP
She replied, “You’re a cop, you should know what that means,” and, “You’re a cop, you should know based on the people that come in this room.”
Also, “she repeatedly stated, 'my partner is a cop,’” and said she’d been trying to get to her boyfriend’s house when she was pulled over early Saturday.
Cutshaw, a real estate agent, told the officer that she’d had two glasses of wine at an upscale restaurant.
The most incredible meteor shower of the year is about to light up the night sky
How full were the wine glasses? “I mean I was celebrating my birthday,” she replied.
After another officer found marijuana and rolling papers in her Ford Fusion, she said she “may have” smoked pot earlier that evening as well, the report said.
Cutshaw was jailed on charges including drunken driving, speeding and marijuana possession, based in part on her own statements.
“Making statements such as these as a means to justify not being arrested are unusual in my experience as a law enforcement officer and I believe further demonstrate the suspect’s level of intoxication,” the officer wrote.
Messages left at the real estate firm she lists as her employer were not immediately returned.
Bluffton is a town of about 21,000 residents about 20 miles northeast of Savannah, Georgia, and near South Carolina’s Hilton Head Island.
“I asked what that had to do with anything?” wrote the officer, who also is white. She replied, “You’re a cop, you should know what that means."
by Associated Press / Aug.09.2018 / 8:48 PM ET
A woman seen speeding through a stop sign at 60 mph told officers they shouldn’t arrest her because she’s a “very clean, thoroughbred, white girl,” police said.
Her eyes glassy and bloodshot, Lauren Elizabeth Cutshaw was slurring her words and a Breathalyzer showed her blood-alcohol level at 0.18 percent, according to police in Bluffton, South Carolina.
Cutshaw, 32, told the arresting officer she shouldn’t be jailed because she was a cheerleader, a dancer and a sorority girl who graduated from a “high accredited university.”
Taken to the police station in handcuffs, she described herself as a white “thoroughbred” and “went on to say ‘I’m a white, clean girl,’” the officer wrote in his report.
“I asked what that had to do with anything?” wrote the officer, who also is white.
Image: Lauren Elizabeth CutshawLauren Elizabeth Cutshaw. Beaufort County Detention Center / AP
She replied, “You’re a cop, you should know what that means,” and, “You’re a cop, you should know based on the people that come in this room.”
Also, “she repeatedly stated, 'my partner is a cop,’” and said she’d been trying to get to her boyfriend’s house when she was pulled over early Saturday.
Cutshaw, a real estate agent, told the officer that she’d had two glasses of wine at an upscale restaurant.
The most incredible meteor shower of the year is about to light up the night sky
How full were the wine glasses? “I mean I was celebrating my birthday,” she replied.
After another officer found marijuana and rolling papers in her Ford Fusion, she said she “may have” smoked pot earlier that evening as well, the report said.
Cutshaw was jailed on charges including drunken driving, speeding and marijuana possession, based in part on her own statements.
“Making statements such as these as a means to justify not being arrested are unusual in my experience as a law enforcement officer and I believe further demonstrate the suspect’s level of intoxication,” the officer wrote.
Messages left at the real estate firm she lists as her employer were not immediately returned.
Bluffton is a town of about 21,000 residents about 20 miles northeast of Savannah, Georgia, and near South Carolina’s Hilton Head Island.
Raising white kids to be racially sensitive -- and proactive - CNN
Raising white kids to be racially sensitive -- and proactive
By Jennifer Harvey
Updated 0749 GMT (1549 HKT) August 9, 2018
Race relations through a child's eyes
Family dialogues about race are crucial to help children process what they're seeing and hearing
White parents must actively work to desegregate our lives
Jennifer Harvey is a writer, speaker and professor at Drake University in Des Moines, Iowa. Her most recent book is "Raising White Kids: Bringing Up Children in a Racially Unjust America."
(CNN)Parenting in the current political climate isn't for the faint of heart. Recently, my 9-year old daughter asked me, "Mama, I know it's really bad they're putting people in jail, but do those people think, 'Well, at least I'm safe from war?' "
My 7-year old daughter quickly followed up with, "Why would someone say Donald Trump is keeping us safe?" Clearly, my two white kids, like all children in the United States, are absorbing the racialized rhetoric about immigration and "others" that's everywhere right now.
Numerous studies have shown the early and negative impact society's racism has on children's development. By the ages of 3 and 4, American children internalize racist stereotypes of self and others. By age 5, they recognize that different groups are treated differently and understand something about the racial social status. Children will never just "unlearn" these things on their own.
These studies were pre-2016. Public displays of racial hostility have since amplified, showing up in such topics as talk about kneeling NFL players, black families' attempts to enjoy a summer swim interrupted by white neighbors calling the police or immigration debates implying that people from south of the border are uniquely dangerous. We can only speculate how much worse the damage will be to children's long-term notions of self and others, and to what a just and peaceful society looks like.
Family dialogues about race are crucial to help children process what they're seeing and hearing and, over time, to develop a strong anti-racist racial identity. Families of color have long engaged in precisely these kinds of conversations, but a strong majority of white families do not.
If white parents want to raise children and youth who play a role in creating a just, inclusive society, we've got to start talking.
Break the silence
White children are growing up in a country in which they can clearly see that race matters but are regularly told by white adults that they're not supposed to notice this (so-called color-blindness). Left to their own devices, children draw their own ill-informed conclusions. They need to know that race is something we should notice and parents want to talk about it.
Parents need to initiate such talk. With young kids, this might mean constantly going out of our way to name differences. With older kids, it means asking about how racial groups get along at school or what they're hearing in the news.
Tell the whole truth
Consider this real-life scenario: A white child at school let classmates smell his bag of Doritos, until a black classmate tried, at which point he snapped the bag shut and said, "You can't smell them! You're black!"
Sharing incidents like this one and asking your child questions like, "How would you handle this?" is as important as working on spelling and math. And we need to tell our kids the whole truth. Vague moral messages like "be kind to everyone" are tempting, but white children must learn explicitly what racism is and means if we expect them to become capable of antiracist behaviors.
Go beyond diversity
It's good to tell our kids that difference is something to celebrate. But they also need to learn about the people -- historical and contemporary -- who have challenged injustice. Kids need to be taught about so many more people of color freedom fighters than the few they hear about at school. Meanwhile, white kids have fewer role models of those who have acted in solidarity with people of color and who are doing so today.
Do an inventory of your life
White parents must actively work to desegregate our lives. What parks and libraries do you go to? At which community centers do you participate? Even young kids who have racially diverse friendship pools tend to self-segregate by middle school. This reflects adult modeling.
If we want white youth to break these larger social dynamics, they need to regularly experience spaces where they aren't in the overwhelming racial majority. In a society as segregated as ours, this requires an active commitment by parents.
Join the conversation on CNN Parenting's Facebook page
See the latest news and share your comments with CNN Parenting on Facebook.
Last week, my heart ached as I responded to my children's questions. But I called it like it is. For many, many years, some people have insisted that people with dark skin, like those coming across the border, are dangerous. I also told them that this is a lie. And I told them we have to tell people that it's a lie based on racism whenever we hear people say it.
These strategies won't change things overnight. We have multigenerational work ahead of us to build a racially just United States. But, as white parents, we can and must commit to joining parents of color -- and their kids -- in creating a society where all of our children can flourish.
By Jennifer Harvey
Updated 0749 GMT (1549 HKT) August 9, 2018
Race relations through a child's eyes
Family dialogues about race are crucial to help children process what they're seeing and hearing
White parents must actively work to desegregate our lives
Jennifer Harvey is a writer, speaker and professor at Drake University in Des Moines, Iowa. Her most recent book is "Raising White Kids: Bringing Up Children in a Racially Unjust America."
(CNN)Parenting in the current political climate isn't for the faint of heart. Recently, my 9-year old daughter asked me, "Mama, I know it's really bad they're putting people in jail, but do those people think, 'Well, at least I'm safe from war?' "
My 7-year old daughter quickly followed up with, "Why would someone say Donald Trump is keeping us safe?" Clearly, my two white kids, like all children in the United States, are absorbing the racialized rhetoric about immigration and "others" that's everywhere right now.
Numerous studies have shown the early and negative impact society's racism has on children's development. By the ages of 3 and 4, American children internalize racist stereotypes of self and others. By age 5, they recognize that different groups are treated differently and understand something about the racial social status. Children will never just "unlearn" these things on their own.
These studies were pre-2016. Public displays of racial hostility have since amplified, showing up in such topics as talk about kneeling NFL players, black families' attempts to enjoy a summer swim interrupted by white neighbors calling the police or immigration debates implying that people from south of the border are uniquely dangerous. We can only speculate how much worse the damage will be to children's long-term notions of self and others, and to what a just and peaceful society looks like.
Family dialogues about race are crucial to help children process what they're seeing and hearing and, over time, to develop a strong anti-racist racial identity. Families of color have long engaged in precisely these kinds of conversations, but a strong majority of white families do not.
If white parents want to raise children and youth who play a role in creating a just, inclusive society, we've got to start talking.
Break the silence
White children are growing up in a country in which they can clearly see that race matters but are regularly told by white adults that they're not supposed to notice this (so-called color-blindness). Left to their own devices, children draw their own ill-informed conclusions. They need to know that race is something we should notice and parents want to talk about it.
Parents need to initiate such talk. With young kids, this might mean constantly going out of our way to name differences. With older kids, it means asking about how racial groups get along at school or what they're hearing in the news.
Tell the whole truth
Consider this real-life scenario: A white child at school let classmates smell his bag of Doritos, until a black classmate tried, at which point he snapped the bag shut and said, "You can't smell them! You're black!"
Sharing incidents like this one and asking your child questions like, "How would you handle this?" is as important as working on spelling and math. And we need to tell our kids the whole truth. Vague moral messages like "be kind to everyone" are tempting, but white children must learn explicitly what racism is and means if we expect them to become capable of antiracist behaviors.
Go beyond diversity
It's good to tell our kids that difference is something to celebrate. But they also need to learn about the people -- historical and contemporary -- who have challenged injustice. Kids need to be taught about so many more people of color freedom fighters than the few they hear about at school. Meanwhile, white kids have fewer role models of those who have acted in solidarity with people of color and who are doing so today.
Do an inventory of your life
White parents must actively work to desegregate our lives. What parks and libraries do you go to? At which community centers do you participate? Even young kids who have racially diverse friendship pools tend to self-segregate by middle school. This reflects adult modeling.
If we want white youth to break these larger social dynamics, they need to regularly experience spaces where they aren't in the overwhelming racial majority. In a society as segregated as ours, this requires an active commitment by parents.
Join the conversation on CNN Parenting's Facebook page
See the latest news and share your comments with CNN Parenting on Facebook.
Last week, my heart ached as I responded to my children's questions. But I called it like it is. For many, many years, some people have insisted that people with dark skin, like those coming across the border, are dangerous. I also told them that this is a lie. And I told them we have to tell people that it's a lie based on racism whenever we hear people say it.
These strategies won't change things overnight. We have multigenerational work ahead of us to build a racially just United States. But, as white parents, we can and must commit to joining parents of color -- and their kids -- in creating a society where all of our children can flourish.
Johnson facing Tory probe over burka comments - BBC News
August 9, 2018.
Johnson facing Tory probe over burka comments
Boris Johnson is facing a possible investigation into breaches of the Conservative Party code of conduct.
The party has received dozens of complaints about the former foreign secretary's comments about women wearing burkas, who he said looked like letter boxes.
The complaints will be looked at by an independent panel.
A Conservative Party spokesman said: "The code of conduct process is strictly confidential."
Mr Johnson has rejected calls to apologise for his remarks, in a Daily Telegraph column in which he also argued against a ban on full-face veils.
Critics have accused him of stoking Islamophobia to boost his Tory leadership ambitions but his supporters have said he was speaking up for "liberal values".
The Conservative Party has also been accused of not doing enough to tackle anti-Muslim prejudice in its ranks, despite an initiative to boost tolerance and diversity.
The party's code of conduct states that Tory officials and elected representatives must "lead by example to encourage and foster respect and tolerance" and not "use their position to bully, abuse, victimise, harass or unlawfully discriminate against others".
The independent panel will decide whether to refer Mr Johnson to the party's board. Possible action includes suspension of membership or expulsion from the party among other things.
Johnson facing Tory probe over burka comments
Boris Johnson is facing a possible investigation into breaches of the Conservative Party code of conduct.
The party has received dozens of complaints about the former foreign secretary's comments about women wearing burkas, who he said looked like letter boxes.
The complaints will be looked at by an independent panel.
A Conservative Party spokesman said: "The code of conduct process is strictly confidential."
Mr Johnson has rejected calls to apologise for his remarks, in a Daily Telegraph column in which he also argued against a ban on full-face veils.
Critics have accused him of stoking Islamophobia to boost his Tory leadership ambitions but his supporters have said he was speaking up for "liberal values".
The Conservative Party has also been accused of not doing enough to tackle anti-Muslim prejudice in its ranks, despite an initiative to boost tolerance and diversity.
The party's code of conduct states that Tory officials and elected representatives must "lead by example to encourage and foster respect and tolerance" and not "use their position to bully, abuse, victimise, harass or unlawfully discriminate against others".
The independent panel will decide whether to refer Mr Johnson to the party's board. Possible action includes suspension of membership or expulsion from the party among other things.
Wednesday, August 8, 2018
White House can't -- or won't -- explain Trump's wildfire tweets - CNN
White House can't -- or won't -- explain Trump's wildfire tweets
Jeremy Diamond 2017Kevin Liptak-Profile-Image
By Jeremy Diamond and Kevin Liptak, CNN
Updated 0122 GMT (0922 HKT) August 8, 2018
WH won't explain Trump's wildfire tweets
The Carr Fire tears through Shasta, Calif., Thursday, July 26, 2018. Fueled by high temperatures, wind and low humidity, the blaze destroyed multiple homes and at least one historic building.
Bulldozer driver killed in California wildfire
firenadoes weather explainer graphic norman nr vpx_00005624
How do 'firenadoes' form?
goleta california wildfire sidner lklv nr vpx_00001506
Heatwave, winds fuel deadly fast-moving fires
Fast-moving wildfire kills 1 in California
Wildfires are turning California skies orange
Man rescues wild rabbit from blaze
Thomas Fire burns a hillside in Ojai, California, December 7, 2017.
California wildfire burns homes, kills horses
epaselect epa06372496 A Los Angeles County Fire helicopter flies over during the 'Skirball Fire' which began early morning in Bel-Air, California, USA, 06 December 2017. An outbreak of several fires North of Los Angeles has occurred as one of the strongest Santa Ana winds forecast of the season is ongoing and expected to last several days. EPA-EFE/JOHN CETRINO
Wildfires devastate Southern California
A firefighter runs while trying to save a home as a wildfire tears through Lakeport, Calif., Tuesday, July 31, 2018. The residence eventually burned. Firefighters pressed their battle against a pair of fires across Mendocino and Lake counties. In all, roughly 19,000 people have been warned to flee and 10,000 homes remain under threat. Noah Berger/AP
WH won't explain Trump's wildfire tweets
A firefighter runs while trying to save a home as a wildfire tears through Lakeport, Calif., Tuesday, July 31, 2018. The residence eventually burned. Firefighters pressed their battle against a pair of fires across Mendocino and Lake counties. In all, roughly 19,000 people have been warned to flee and 10,000 homes remain under threat. Noah Berger/AP
Mendocino Fire is largest in California history
Man 'wanted to comfort' grandson during fire
In this Friday, July 27, 2018 photo, a firefighting helicopter makes a water drop as the sun sets over a ridge burning near Redding, Calif., in efforts against the Carr Fire. Scorching heat, winds and dry conditions complicated firefighting efforts. (Hector Amezcua/The Sacramento Bee/ AP
California fires leave devastation in their wake
neil-diamond-firefighters.
Legendary singer surprises firefighters
An historic schoolhouse burns as the Carr Fire tears through Shasta, Calif., Thursday, July 26, 2018. Fueled by high temperatures, wind and low humidity, the blaze destroyed multiple homes and at least one historic building.
Family: Kids, great-grandmother killed in fire
Carr Fire widower describes emotional phone call
2 killed, thousands evacuated in wildfire
The Carr Fire tears through Shasta, Calif., Thursday, July 26, 2018. Fueled by high temperatures, wind and low humidity, the blaze destroyed multiple homes and at least one historic building. (AP Photo/Noah Berger)
Bulldozer driver killed in California wildfire
firenadoes weather explainer graphic norman nr vpx_00005624
How do 'firenadoes' form?
goleta california wildfire sidner lklv nr vpx_00001506
Heatwave, winds fuel deadly fast-moving fires
Fast-moving wildfire kills 1 in California
Inmate firefighters work as flames from the County Fire climb a hillside in Guinda, California, on July 1, 2018. - Californian authorities have issued red flag weather warnings and mandatory evacuation orders after a series of wildfires fanned by high winds and hot temperatures ripped through thousands of acres. The latest blaze, the County Fire sparked in Yolo County on June 30, had by July 1 afternoon spread across 22,000 acres (9,000 hectares) with zero percent containment, according to Cal Fire. (Photo by JOSH EDELSON / AFP) (Photo credit should read JOSH EDELSON/AFP/Getty Images)
Wildfires are turning California skies orange
Man rescues wild rabbit from blaze
Thomas Fire burns a hillside in Ojai, California, December 7, 2017.
Local emergency officials warned of powerful winds on Thursday that will feed wildfires raging in Los Angeles, threatening multi-million dollar mansions with blazes that have already forced more than 200,000 people to flee.
California wildfire burns homes, kills horses
epaselect epa06372496 A Los Angeles County Fire helicopter flies over during the 'Skirball Fire' which began early morning in Bel-Air, California, USA, 06 December 2017. An outbreak of several fires North of Los Angeles has occurred as one of the strongest Santa Ana winds forecast of the season is ongoing and expected to last several days. EPA-EFE/JOHN CETRINO
Wildfires devastate Southern California
A firefighter runs while trying to save a home as a wildfire tears through Lakeport, Calif., Tuesday, July 31, 2018. The residence eventually burned. Firefighters pressed their battle against a pair of fires across Mendocino and Lake counties. In all, roughly 19,000 people have been warned to flee and 10,000 homes remain under threat. Noah Berger/AP
WH won't explain Trump's wildfire tweets
A firefighter runs while trying to save a home as a wildfire tears through Lakeport, Calif., Tuesday, July 31, 2018. The residence eventually burned. Firefighters pressed their battle against a pair of fires across Mendocino and Lake counties. In all, roughly 19,000 people have been warned to flee and 10,000 homes remain under threat. Noah Berger/AP
Mendocino Fire is largest in California history
Man 'wanted to comfort' grandson during fire
In this Friday, July 27, 2018 photo, a firefighting helicopter makes a water drop as the sun sets over a ridge burning near Redding, Calif., in efforts against the Carr Fire. Scorching heat, winds and dry conditions complicated firefighting efforts. (Hector Amezcua/The Sacramento Bee/ AP
California fires leave devastation in their wake
neil-diamond-firefighters.
Legendary singer surprises firefighters
An historic schoolhouse burns as the Carr Fire tears through Shasta, Calif., Thursday, July 26, 2018. Fueled by high temperatures, wind and low humidity, the blaze destroyed multiple homes and at least one historic building. (AP Photo/Noah Berger)
Family: Kids, great-grandmother killed in fire
Carr Fire widower describes emotional phone call
TOPSHOT - A burning home is reflected in a pool during the Carr fire in Redding, California on July 27, 2018. - One firefighter has died and at least two others have been injured as wind-whipped flames tore through the region.
2 killed, thousands evacuated in wildfire
(CNN)Even the White House can't explain President Donald Trump's tweets suggesting California environmental laws have worsened wildfires raging in that state.
On Tuesday, administration officials declined to offer any clarity on Trump's series of tweets claiming environmental laws and water regulations in California are hampering the state's ability to fight the wildfires. Wildfire experts and local officials say the President's claims simply don't hold up.
Instead, some White House officials admitted to being slightly perplexed at where Trump may have gotten the notion that California's long-running water crisis and a debate over how to divide limited supplies are somehow related to the out of control fires.
California fire explodes in size, is now largest in state history
California fire explodes in size, is now largest in state history
While Trump's tweets can sometimes be linked to segments on Fox News, there have been no correlating segments linking the two issues in recent days on the channel that frequently serves as presidential inspiration. White House officials also couldn't say whether Trump had discussed the issue with California lawmakers involved in the water debate.
What Trump said
Trump launched his unfounded suggestions in a tweet on Sunday claiming: "California wildfires are being magnified & made so much worse by the bad environmental laws which aren't allowing massive amount of readily available water to be properly utilized."
Donald J. Trump
✔
@realDonaldTrump
California wildfires are being magnified & made so much worse by the bad environmental laws which aren’t allowing massive amounts of readily available water to be properly utilized. It is being diverted into the Pacific Ocean. Must also tree clear to stop fire from spreading!
7:53 AM - Aug 7, 2018
He then claimed that the water is "being diverted into the Pacific Ocean."
He reiterated those claims on Monday, calling on Democratic California Gov. Jerry Brown to "allow the Free Flow of the vast amounts of water coming from the North and foolishly being diverted into the Pacific Ocean. Can be used for fires, farming and everything else."
Donald J. Trump
✔
@realDonaldTrump
Governor Jerry Brown must allow the Free Flow of the vast amounts of water coming from the North and foolishly being diverted into the Pacific Ocean. Can be used for fires, farming and everything else. Think of California with plenty of Water - Nice! Fast Federal govt. approvals.
3:43 AM - Aug 7, 2018
Trump's claims are false, according to California officials and wildfire experts.
Trump said Tuesday at a dinner with business leaders that a "very tough situation" is underway in California, where wildfires are raging.
"It's been a very tough situation taking place in California for a number of years and we're going to have to have some meetings about it," Trump said from his Bedminster, New Jersey, golf club.
Trump said there are "things you can do to mitigate" the damage, but did not expand upon his remarks.
He said he was "deeply grateful to firefighters and first responders" combating the flames, and said that his administration would do "everything in our power to protect those in harm's way."
He did not repeat his earlier claims, made on Twitter, that a water shortage was affecting impacting the state's ability to fight the fires.
What officials and experts have said
Local officials have made clear they have not had any difficulty accessing enough water to fight the fires. A FEMA official also told CNN there is no water shortage or problem with access to water hindering firefighting efforts in California.
Interior Department spokeswoman Heather Swift declined to comment on Trump's tweets: "We don't weigh in on the President's tweets. We let those statements speak for themselves."
As for water "being diverted into the Pacific Ocean," while there is a debate raging in California about how much water should be diverted to coastal communities versus farmers in the central part of the state, water is not being intentionally flushed into the ocean.
"I was stunned when I read this this morning," Henri Grissino-Mayer, a climatologist and biogeographer at the University of Tennessee, told CNN in an email. "California does NOT divert water to the ocean. Ridiculous."
Grissino-Mayer noted that water "is diverted to the coastal cities for a constant water supply but all such water is used by the coastal communities."
What's the context?
Trump's tweet comes after California water officials ignited a debate this summer by proposing a plan to limit the amount of water that can be drawn from the San Joaquin River for use in cities and farmlands.
The proposal has pitted farmers against fisheries and environmentalists, but Trump's attempt to connect the debate to wildfires doesn't pass muster.
Instead of environmental laws and water regulations, local officials and experts have said scorching heat and dry conditions have led to several of the worst wildfires California has ever seen.
Experts say those conditions are being driven by climate change, which Trump has previously dismissed as a hoax.
CNN's Brandon Miller, Judson Jones, Greg Wallace and Rene Marsh contributed to this report.
Jeremy Diamond 2017Kevin Liptak-Profile-Image
By Jeremy Diamond and Kevin Liptak, CNN
Updated 0122 GMT (0922 HKT) August 8, 2018
WH won't explain Trump's wildfire tweets
The Carr Fire tears through Shasta, Calif., Thursday, July 26, 2018. Fueled by high temperatures, wind and low humidity, the blaze destroyed multiple homes and at least one historic building.
Bulldozer driver killed in California wildfire
firenadoes weather explainer graphic norman nr vpx_00005624
How do 'firenadoes' form?
goleta california wildfire sidner lklv nr vpx_00001506
Heatwave, winds fuel deadly fast-moving fires
Fast-moving wildfire kills 1 in California
Wildfires are turning California skies orange
Man rescues wild rabbit from blaze
Thomas Fire burns a hillside in Ojai, California, December 7, 2017.
California wildfire burns homes, kills horses
epaselect epa06372496 A Los Angeles County Fire helicopter flies over during the 'Skirball Fire' which began early morning in Bel-Air, California, USA, 06 December 2017. An outbreak of several fires North of Los Angeles has occurred as one of the strongest Santa Ana winds forecast of the season is ongoing and expected to last several days. EPA-EFE/JOHN CETRINO
Wildfires devastate Southern California
A firefighter runs while trying to save a home as a wildfire tears through Lakeport, Calif., Tuesday, July 31, 2018. The residence eventually burned. Firefighters pressed their battle against a pair of fires across Mendocino and Lake counties. In all, roughly 19,000 people have been warned to flee and 10,000 homes remain under threat. Noah Berger/AP
WH won't explain Trump's wildfire tweets
A firefighter runs while trying to save a home as a wildfire tears through Lakeport, Calif., Tuesday, July 31, 2018. The residence eventually burned. Firefighters pressed their battle against a pair of fires across Mendocino and Lake counties. In all, roughly 19,000 people have been warned to flee and 10,000 homes remain under threat. Noah Berger/AP
Mendocino Fire is largest in California history
Man 'wanted to comfort' grandson during fire
In this Friday, July 27, 2018 photo, a firefighting helicopter makes a water drop as the sun sets over a ridge burning near Redding, Calif., in efforts against the Carr Fire. Scorching heat, winds and dry conditions complicated firefighting efforts. (Hector Amezcua/The Sacramento Bee/ AP
California fires leave devastation in their wake
neil-diamond-firefighters.
Legendary singer surprises firefighters
An historic schoolhouse burns as the Carr Fire tears through Shasta, Calif., Thursday, July 26, 2018. Fueled by high temperatures, wind and low humidity, the blaze destroyed multiple homes and at least one historic building.
Family: Kids, great-grandmother killed in fire
Carr Fire widower describes emotional phone call
2 killed, thousands evacuated in wildfire
The Carr Fire tears through Shasta, Calif., Thursday, July 26, 2018. Fueled by high temperatures, wind and low humidity, the blaze destroyed multiple homes and at least one historic building. (AP Photo/Noah Berger)
Bulldozer driver killed in California wildfire
firenadoes weather explainer graphic norman nr vpx_00005624
How do 'firenadoes' form?
goleta california wildfire sidner lklv nr vpx_00001506
Heatwave, winds fuel deadly fast-moving fires
Fast-moving wildfire kills 1 in California
Inmate firefighters work as flames from the County Fire climb a hillside in Guinda, California, on July 1, 2018. - Californian authorities have issued red flag weather warnings and mandatory evacuation orders after a series of wildfires fanned by high winds and hot temperatures ripped through thousands of acres. The latest blaze, the County Fire sparked in Yolo County on June 30, had by July 1 afternoon spread across 22,000 acres (9,000 hectares) with zero percent containment, according to Cal Fire. (Photo by JOSH EDELSON / AFP) (Photo credit should read JOSH EDELSON/AFP/Getty Images)
Wildfires are turning California skies orange
Man rescues wild rabbit from blaze
Thomas Fire burns a hillside in Ojai, California, December 7, 2017.
Local emergency officials warned of powerful winds on Thursday that will feed wildfires raging in Los Angeles, threatening multi-million dollar mansions with blazes that have already forced more than 200,000 people to flee.
California wildfire burns homes, kills horses
epaselect epa06372496 A Los Angeles County Fire helicopter flies over during the 'Skirball Fire' which began early morning in Bel-Air, California, USA, 06 December 2017. An outbreak of several fires North of Los Angeles has occurred as one of the strongest Santa Ana winds forecast of the season is ongoing and expected to last several days. EPA-EFE/JOHN CETRINO
Wildfires devastate Southern California
A firefighter runs while trying to save a home as a wildfire tears through Lakeport, Calif., Tuesday, July 31, 2018. The residence eventually burned. Firefighters pressed their battle against a pair of fires across Mendocino and Lake counties. In all, roughly 19,000 people have been warned to flee and 10,000 homes remain under threat. Noah Berger/AP
WH won't explain Trump's wildfire tweets
A firefighter runs while trying to save a home as a wildfire tears through Lakeport, Calif., Tuesday, July 31, 2018. The residence eventually burned. Firefighters pressed their battle against a pair of fires across Mendocino and Lake counties. In all, roughly 19,000 people have been warned to flee and 10,000 homes remain under threat. Noah Berger/AP
Mendocino Fire is largest in California history
Man 'wanted to comfort' grandson during fire
In this Friday, July 27, 2018 photo, a firefighting helicopter makes a water drop as the sun sets over a ridge burning near Redding, Calif., in efforts against the Carr Fire. Scorching heat, winds and dry conditions complicated firefighting efforts. (Hector Amezcua/The Sacramento Bee/ AP
California fires leave devastation in their wake
neil-diamond-firefighters.
Legendary singer surprises firefighters
An historic schoolhouse burns as the Carr Fire tears through Shasta, Calif., Thursday, July 26, 2018. Fueled by high temperatures, wind and low humidity, the blaze destroyed multiple homes and at least one historic building. (AP Photo/Noah Berger)
Family: Kids, great-grandmother killed in fire
Carr Fire widower describes emotional phone call
TOPSHOT - A burning home is reflected in a pool during the Carr fire in Redding, California on July 27, 2018. - One firefighter has died and at least two others have been injured as wind-whipped flames tore through the region.
2 killed, thousands evacuated in wildfire
(CNN)Even the White House can't explain President Donald Trump's tweets suggesting California environmental laws have worsened wildfires raging in that state.
On Tuesday, administration officials declined to offer any clarity on Trump's series of tweets claiming environmental laws and water regulations in California are hampering the state's ability to fight the wildfires. Wildfire experts and local officials say the President's claims simply don't hold up.
Instead, some White House officials admitted to being slightly perplexed at where Trump may have gotten the notion that California's long-running water crisis and a debate over how to divide limited supplies are somehow related to the out of control fires.
California fire explodes in size, is now largest in state history
California fire explodes in size, is now largest in state history
While Trump's tweets can sometimes be linked to segments on Fox News, there have been no correlating segments linking the two issues in recent days on the channel that frequently serves as presidential inspiration. White House officials also couldn't say whether Trump had discussed the issue with California lawmakers involved in the water debate.
What Trump said
Trump launched his unfounded suggestions in a tweet on Sunday claiming: "California wildfires are being magnified & made so much worse by the bad environmental laws which aren't allowing massive amount of readily available water to be properly utilized."
Donald J. Trump
✔
@realDonaldTrump
California wildfires are being magnified & made so much worse by the bad environmental laws which aren’t allowing massive amounts of readily available water to be properly utilized. It is being diverted into the Pacific Ocean. Must also tree clear to stop fire from spreading!
7:53 AM - Aug 7, 2018
He then claimed that the water is "being diverted into the Pacific Ocean."
He reiterated those claims on Monday, calling on Democratic California Gov. Jerry Brown to "allow the Free Flow of the vast amounts of water coming from the North and foolishly being diverted into the Pacific Ocean. Can be used for fires, farming and everything else."
Donald J. Trump
✔
@realDonaldTrump
Governor Jerry Brown must allow the Free Flow of the vast amounts of water coming from the North and foolishly being diverted into the Pacific Ocean. Can be used for fires, farming and everything else. Think of California with plenty of Water - Nice! Fast Federal govt. approvals.
3:43 AM - Aug 7, 2018
Trump's claims are false, according to California officials and wildfire experts.
Trump said Tuesday at a dinner with business leaders that a "very tough situation" is underway in California, where wildfires are raging.
"It's been a very tough situation taking place in California for a number of years and we're going to have to have some meetings about it," Trump said from his Bedminster, New Jersey, golf club.
Trump said there are "things you can do to mitigate" the damage, but did not expand upon his remarks.
He said he was "deeply grateful to firefighters and first responders" combating the flames, and said that his administration would do "everything in our power to protect those in harm's way."
He did not repeat his earlier claims, made on Twitter, that a water shortage was affecting impacting the state's ability to fight the fires.
What officials and experts have said
Local officials have made clear they have not had any difficulty accessing enough water to fight the fires. A FEMA official also told CNN there is no water shortage or problem with access to water hindering firefighting efforts in California.
Interior Department spokeswoman Heather Swift declined to comment on Trump's tweets: "We don't weigh in on the President's tweets. We let those statements speak for themselves."
As for water "being diverted into the Pacific Ocean," while there is a debate raging in California about how much water should be diverted to coastal communities versus farmers in the central part of the state, water is not being intentionally flushed into the ocean.
"I was stunned when I read this this morning," Henri Grissino-Mayer, a climatologist and biogeographer at the University of Tennessee, told CNN in an email. "California does NOT divert water to the ocean. Ridiculous."
Grissino-Mayer noted that water "is diverted to the coastal cities for a constant water supply but all such water is used by the coastal communities."
What's the context?
Trump's tweet comes after California water officials ignited a debate this summer by proposing a plan to limit the amount of water that can be drawn from the San Joaquin River for use in cities and farmlands.
The proposal has pitted farmers against fisheries and environmentalists, but Trump's attempt to connect the debate to wildfires doesn't pass muster.
Instead of environmental laws and water regulations, local officials and experts have said scorching heat and dry conditions have led to several of the worst wildfires California has ever seen.
Experts say those conditions are being driven by climate change, which Trump has previously dismissed as a hoax.
CNN's Brandon Miller, Judson Jones, Greg Wallace and Rene Marsh contributed to this report.
Kansas man sentenced to life for killing Indian engineer in a bar - NBC News
Kansas man sentenced to life for killing Indian engineer in a bar
Adam Purinton shot and killed Srinivas Kuchibhotla, 32, after yelling, "Get out of my country." He also wounded another Indian man and a good Samaritan.
by Chris Fuchs / Aug.08.2018 / 3:19 AM ET
A Kansas man was sentenced to life in prison Tuesday for fatally shooting an engineer from India after calling him a “terrorist" and yelling, "Get out of my country!" in a bar confrontation last year. The victim's companion, also from India, and a bar patron who intervened were wounded.
Adam Purinton, 53, was sentenced to three consecutive life sentences without the possibility of parole after pleading guilty in May to three federal counts, including hate crime and firearm charges.
Image: Adam Purinton appearing via video conference from jail during his initial court appearance in OlatheAdam Purinton appears via video conference from jail during his initial court appearance in Olathe, Kansas, on Feb. 27, 2017.Jill Toyoshiba / Reuters pool file
Purinton admitted to killing Srinivas Kuchibhotla, 32, and wounding his friend Alok Madasani and a good Samaritan, Ian Gillot, at Austins Bar and Grill in Olathe, Kansas, in February 2017.
Purinton poked Kuchibhotla in the chest and called him an epithet against people of Middle Eastern descent, according to the Justice Department.
Image: Srinivas Kuchibhotla, left, poses for photo with Alok Madasani and his wife Sunayana Dumala in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.Srinivas Kuchibhotla, left, with Alok Madasani and Kuchibhotla's wife, Sunayana Dumala, in an undated photo.AP
He then drove home, got a gun and returned to the bar.
“The crimes at issue in this case are detestable," Attorney General Jeff Sessions said a statement Tuesday. "The defendant acted with clear premeditation in murdering one man, and attempting to murder a second man, simply because of their race, religion and national origin. As a result, a promising young life has been tragically cut short, and other lives have been filled with suffering.”
Purinton’s federal defense attorneys did not immediately respond to emails seeking comment.
Kuchibhotla was an aviation systems engineer and programs manager at the GPS maker Garmin. A spokesperson for his wife, Sunayana Dumala, said she would not attend Tuesday’s sentencing.
In her victim-impact statement, Dumala described Kuchibhotla as kind, caring and always respectful of others.
“If you could have kept your anger inside and spoke to my husband softly, Srinu would have been more than happy to share his background and help you understand that not every brown-skinned person is suspicious or evil, but kind, smart and contributing to America,” Dumala said. “Instead you chose to rage and bully in anger and when you were stopped, you decided to take their lives.”
Purinton’s sentencing on the federal indictment came a little more than three months after he was sentenced to life, 50 years without the possibility of parole, on a state charge of premeditated first-degree murder.
Kansas man pleads guilty to killing one in alleged hate crime
MAR.07.201801:22
A few weeks before the Feb. 22, 2017, shooting, Purinton was sitting alone at Austins Bar and Grill when he spotted Kuchibhotla and Madasani having a drink. In his plea agreement, he admitted saying to another patron, “Did you see the terrorists on the patio?”
On the night of the shooting, Purinton, again by himself, confronted Kuchibhotla and Madasani, demanding to know where they were from and how they got into the country.
Many crimes may look motivated by hate. Proving it can be a different story.
Purinton was escorted out of the bar, but drove home to get a 9 mm semi-automatic pistol. He had also changed his shirt and put on a blue-and-white scarf to disguise his identity, prosecutors said.
After shooting Kuchibhotla and Madasani, Purinton fled the bar, turning to shoot Grillot, who had given chase.
Hours later, Purinton told a friend over the phone, and later a bartender in person, that “he had just killed some Iranians,” according to prosecutors.
Purinton admitted that he had tried to kill Kuchibhotla and Madasani “because of their race, color, religion and national origin.”
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GUNS IN AMERICA
Gun control group targets firearms owners with new ads, seeks common ground
Gun regulation group coins a new term, 'family fire,' to describe the unintentional shooting of children in homes where guns are stored improperly.
by Dennis Romero / Aug.08.2018 / 11:03 PM ET
'End Family Fire' campaign targets gun owners
AUG.08.201802:14
The Brady Center to Prevent Gun Violence, the group behind federal background checks for firearms purchasers, is launching a new ad campaign that is an effort to find common ground in a country divided on the issue of gun control.
The campaign launching Wednesday, finds its way to television via public service announcements facilitated by the Ad Council, and aims to make the term "family fire" a household word as it describes accidental shootings of children and other family members in homes across the nation.
"Rather than mudslinging and name calling, we’re focusing on how can we act to keep our kids alive," said Kyleanne Hunter, a Brady Center vice president. "And that might open the door to more discussion about how to end gun violence."
This foot-in-the-door strategy is composed of at least a year's worth of "End Family Fire" TV, digital and online ads that center on a conversation between an elementary-school aged boy and his father.
Ghost and the machine: Why officials across the country fear a new era of untraceable firearms
The boy asks if a firearm is in the house, but he soon reveals that he knows where it's kept and that he could use it to confront a bully. "But it is our gun," the boy says. "In our home. Happens all the time."
The full-length spot concludes with the words, "8 kids a day are accidentally killed or injured by FAMILY FIRE. FAMILY FIRE is a shooting involving an improperly stored gun."
The Brady Center, citing U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data, states that 4.6 million children live in homes with unlocked and loaded guns; three in four know where the guns are stored.
So far, gun-owners' rights groups don't appear to be open to the Family Fire campaign. The National Rifle Association didn't immediately respond to a request for comment from NBC News.
But Jordan Stein, director of communications for the organization Gun Owners of America said via email that locking up firearms is not a panacea for keeping children away from danger.
"Every death is tragic, but statistically speaking, more young children die choking on hotdogs than are killed accidentally by firearms," he said, supporting his argument with recent data from the CDC. "So forcing every home to have their guns locked up will only make gun owners less safe. After all, when a criminal breaks into a person’s home, he’s not going to wait for the gun owner to unlock his firearm."
New "End Family Fire" Campaign Promotes Safer Gun Storage to Save LivesThe Brady Center to Prevent Gun Violence, the Ad Council, and Droga5 introduce new phrase and national PSAs to reduce the number of deaths and injuries resulting from unsecured or misused guns in the home.The Brady Campaign
The timing of the ad blitz — there still has been no federal legislative action following the school shooting in Parkland, Florida Feb. 14 and following the Las Vegas massacre Oct. 1 — could also be seen by anti-gun activists as odd.
Advocates for stricter rules for firearms owners are also grappling with hi-tech weapons, such as 3D printed guns and "ghost guns" made of untracable parts, that exist under the radar of law enforcement in most states.
But Brady Center officials say the need to find compromise with the gun owners' rights contingent is urgent: without it, a fix for easy access to firearms on the part of criminals and mass shooters might never be addressed.
"In the gun violence conversation, gun owners were largely missing," Hunter said. Added Kris Brown, co-president of the organization, "People are frustrated by the stalemate we have on both sides."
Keeping children away from guns should be a no-brainer, they argue, that everyone can get behind (even as comedian Sacha Baron Cohen trolled some Republicans to admit they embrace the idea that kids should be trained to use firearms).
"This is completely outside the realm of politics," Brown said. "It's not red state, blue state — it’s families who want to do what’s best to protect the most vulnerable."
In fact the Family Fire campaign officially recommends simply that gun owners with firearms stored in homes where children live keep them "secure" and separate from ammunition. "A simple gun lock can make a major difference," the campaign states on its website.
Hunter said the campaign, which is supported by the groups Droga5, National Parent Teacher Association, Doctors for America, the DC Police Foundation and others, is "in some ways" akin to the harm reduction movement for drug users: if nothing can stop it, society might as well make it as safe as possible.
"We have to find a way to foster a more rich and common understanding about guns in this country that don’t cause people to go to the other side of the divide," Brown said.
Adam Purinton shot and killed Srinivas Kuchibhotla, 32, after yelling, "Get out of my country." He also wounded another Indian man and a good Samaritan.
by Chris Fuchs / Aug.08.2018 / 3:19 AM ET
A Kansas man was sentenced to life in prison Tuesday for fatally shooting an engineer from India after calling him a “terrorist" and yelling, "Get out of my country!" in a bar confrontation last year. The victim's companion, also from India, and a bar patron who intervened were wounded.
Adam Purinton, 53, was sentenced to three consecutive life sentences without the possibility of parole after pleading guilty in May to three federal counts, including hate crime and firearm charges.
Image: Adam Purinton appearing via video conference from jail during his initial court appearance in OlatheAdam Purinton appears via video conference from jail during his initial court appearance in Olathe, Kansas, on Feb. 27, 2017.Jill Toyoshiba / Reuters pool file
Purinton admitted to killing Srinivas Kuchibhotla, 32, and wounding his friend Alok Madasani and a good Samaritan, Ian Gillot, at Austins Bar and Grill in Olathe, Kansas, in February 2017.
Purinton poked Kuchibhotla in the chest and called him an epithet against people of Middle Eastern descent, according to the Justice Department.
Image: Srinivas Kuchibhotla, left, poses for photo with Alok Madasani and his wife Sunayana Dumala in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.Srinivas Kuchibhotla, left, with Alok Madasani and Kuchibhotla's wife, Sunayana Dumala, in an undated photo.AP
He then drove home, got a gun and returned to the bar.
“The crimes at issue in this case are detestable," Attorney General Jeff Sessions said a statement Tuesday. "The defendant acted with clear premeditation in murdering one man, and attempting to murder a second man, simply because of their race, religion and national origin. As a result, a promising young life has been tragically cut short, and other lives have been filled with suffering.”
Purinton’s federal defense attorneys did not immediately respond to emails seeking comment.
Kuchibhotla was an aviation systems engineer and programs manager at the GPS maker Garmin. A spokesperson for his wife, Sunayana Dumala, said she would not attend Tuesday’s sentencing.
In her victim-impact statement, Dumala described Kuchibhotla as kind, caring and always respectful of others.
“If you could have kept your anger inside and spoke to my husband softly, Srinu would have been more than happy to share his background and help you understand that not every brown-skinned person is suspicious or evil, but kind, smart and contributing to America,” Dumala said. “Instead you chose to rage and bully in anger and when you were stopped, you decided to take their lives.”
Purinton’s sentencing on the federal indictment came a little more than three months after he was sentenced to life, 50 years without the possibility of parole, on a state charge of premeditated first-degree murder.
Kansas man pleads guilty to killing one in alleged hate crime
MAR.07.201801:22
A few weeks before the Feb. 22, 2017, shooting, Purinton was sitting alone at Austins Bar and Grill when he spotted Kuchibhotla and Madasani having a drink. In his plea agreement, he admitted saying to another patron, “Did you see the terrorists on the patio?”
On the night of the shooting, Purinton, again by himself, confronted Kuchibhotla and Madasani, demanding to know where they were from and how they got into the country.
Many crimes may look motivated by hate. Proving it can be a different story.
Purinton was escorted out of the bar, but drove home to get a 9 mm semi-automatic pistol. He had also changed his shirt and put on a blue-and-white scarf to disguise his identity, prosecutors said.
After shooting Kuchibhotla and Madasani, Purinton fled the bar, turning to shoot Grillot, who had given chase.
Hours later, Purinton told a friend over the phone, and later a bartender in person, that “he had just killed some Iranians,” according to prosecutors.
Purinton admitted that he had tried to kill Kuchibhotla and Madasani “because of their race, color, religion and national origin.”
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GUNS IN AMERICA
Gun control group targets firearms owners with new ads, seeks common ground
Gun regulation group coins a new term, 'family fire,' to describe the unintentional shooting of children in homes where guns are stored improperly.
by Dennis Romero / Aug.08.2018 / 11:03 PM ET
'End Family Fire' campaign targets gun owners
AUG.08.201802:14
The Brady Center to Prevent Gun Violence, the group behind federal background checks for firearms purchasers, is launching a new ad campaign that is an effort to find common ground in a country divided on the issue of gun control.
The campaign launching Wednesday, finds its way to television via public service announcements facilitated by the Ad Council, and aims to make the term "family fire" a household word as it describes accidental shootings of children and other family members in homes across the nation.
"Rather than mudslinging and name calling, we’re focusing on how can we act to keep our kids alive," said Kyleanne Hunter, a Brady Center vice president. "And that might open the door to more discussion about how to end gun violence."
This foot-in-the-door strategy is composed of at least a year's worth of "End Family Fire" TV, digital and online ads that center on a conversation between an elementary-school aged boy and his father.
Ghost and the machine: Why officials across the country fear a new era of untraceable firearms
The boy asks if a firearm is in the house, but he soon reveals that he knows where it's kept and that he could use it to confront a bully. "But it is our gun," the boy says. "In our home. Happens all the time."
The full-length spot concludes with the words, "8 kids a day are accidentally killed or injured by FAMILY FIRE. FAMILY FIRE is a shooting involving an improperly stored gun."
The Brady Center, citing U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data, states that 4.6 million children live in homes with unlocked and loaded guns; three in four know where the guns are stored.
So far, gun-owners' rights groups don't appear to be open to the Family Fire campaign. The National Rifle Association didn't immediately respond to a request for comment from NBC News.
But Jordan Stein, director of communications for the organization Gun Owners of America said via email that locking up firearms is not a panacea for keeping children away from danger.
"Every death is tragic, but statistically speaking, more young children die choking on hotdogs than are killed accidentally by firearms," he said, supporting his argument with recent data from the CDC. "So forcing every home to have their guns locked up will only make gun owners less safe. After all, when a criminal breaks into a person’s home, he’s not going to wait for the gun owner to unlock his firearm."
New "End Family Fire" Campaign Promotes Safer Gun Storage to Save LivesThe Brady Center to Prevent Gun Violence, the Ad Council, and Droga5 introduce new phrase and national PSAs to reduce the number of deaths and injuries resulting from unsecured or misused guns in the home.The Brady Campaign
The timing of the ad blitz — there still has been no federal legislative action following the school shooting in Parkland, Florida Feb. 14 and following the Las Vegas massacre Oct. 1 — could also be seen by anti-gun activists as odd.
Advocates for stricter rules for firearms owners are also grappling with hi-tech weapons, such as 3D printed guns and "ghost guns" made of untracable parts, that exist under the radar of law enforcement in most states.
But Brady Center officials say the need to find compromise with the gun owners' rights contingent is urgent: without it, a fix for easy access to firearms on the part of criminals and mass shooters might never be addressed.
"In the gun violence conversation, gun owners were largely missing," Hunter said. Added Kris Brown, co-president of the organization, "People are frustrated by the stalemate we have on both sides."
Keeping children away from guns should be a no-brainer, they argue, that everyone can get behind (even as comedian Sacha Baron Cohen trolled some Republicans to admit they embrace the idea that kids should be trained to use firearms).
"This is completely outside the realm of politics," Brown said. "It's not red state, blue state — it’s families who want to do what’s best to protect the most vulnerable."
In fact the Family Fire campaign officially recommends simply that gun owners with firearms stored in homes where children live keep them "secure" and separate from ammunition. "A simple gun lock can make a major difference," the campaign states on its website.
Hunter said the campaign, which is supported by the groups Droga5, National Parent Teacher Association, Doctors for America, the DC Police Foundation and others, is "in some ways" akin to the harm reduction movement for drug users: if nothing can stop it, society might as well make it as safe as possible.
"We have to find a way to foster a more rich and common understanding about guns in this country that don’t cause people to go to the other side of the divide," Brown said.
Malaysia’s Ex-Leader Najib Razak Is Charged With Money Laundering - New York Times
Malaysia’s Ex-Leader Najib Razak Is Charged With Money Laundering
Najib Razak in July. The former Malaysian prime minister faced new charges Wednesday stemming from the scandal over a state investment fund that led to his election defeat.CreditLai Seng Sin/Reuters
By Mike Ives
Aug. 8, 2018
HONG KONG — The Malaysian authorities charged Najib Razak, the former prime minister, with three counts of money laundering on Wednesday, the latest escalation in an inquiry involving billions of dollars diverted from a state investment fund.
The charges came a day after Malaysia’s attorney general announced that a $250 million yacht, which prosecutors say was bought with money stolen from the fund, had been returned to Malaysia from Indonesia, where it was seized in February.
The new charges are linked to three electronic transfers worth a total of $10 million from a onetime unit of the investment fund, 1Malaysia Development Berhad, that prosecutors say were made into Mr. Najib’s bank accounts.
That is only a small fraction of the fraud alleged to have been carried out. United States prosecutors have said that at least $4.5 billion from the fund, known as 1MDB, was laundered through American financial institutions and misspent by Mr. Najib, his family and associates.
Mr. Najib, who was ousted in a May election, pleaded not guilty to all three new charges, the local news media reported. Reuters reported that each charge carries a jail sentence of up to 15 years, plus fines of at least $1.2 million.
Mr. Najib, 65, also pleaded not guilty last month to three counts of criminal breach of trust and one count of corruption in connection with the scandal surrounding the state investment fund.
Court documents show that the first of the three wire transfers to Mr. Najib’s accounts from SRC International, the onetime unit of the state investment fund, occurred in 2014, two years after SRC was placed under the Finance Ministry’s jurisdiction.
On Wednesday, Mr. Najib’s lawyer, Muhammad Shafee Abdullah, told reporters that the money-laundering charges had “nothing to do” with 1MDB because SRC was not part of the fund when the transfers were made.
“I hope they are not arranging the coincidence of the yacht arriving in Klang with the sudden decision to charge my client today,” Mr. Abdullah added, referring to Port Klang, where the yacht has been impounded.
N. Surendran, a former lawmaker who advises Lawyers for Liberty, a Malaysian advocacy group, said that the earlier breach of trust charges against Mr. Najib were related to the same money transfers cited in the charges brought Wednesday. “It is almost certain there will be more charges looking at the large amounts and various transactions involving 1MDB monies,” he said.
Image
Prosecutors say this yacht, known as Equanimity, was bought with $250 million stolen from the state investment fund. It was seized in Indonesia in February and taken to Malaysia this week.CreditAgence France-Presse — Getty Images
Mr. Najib set up the investment fund in 2009, the year he became prime minister, to promote economic development.
With corruption accusations swirling around the fund in recent years, Mr. Najib’s onetime mentor, Mahathir Mohamad, successfully ran against him in the May election, promising to bring him to justice.
Since Mr. Mahathir became prime minister, Malaysian officials have blocked Mr. Najib and his wife from leaving the country; seized cash and other valuables worth as much as $273 million from the couple’s properties; and arrested Mr. Najib in connection with the investigation into SRC International.
A spokesman for Mr. Najib has called the arrest “politically motivated and the result of political vengeance” by Mr. Mahathir and his governing coalition, many of whose leaders spent decades in the opposition.
American prosecutors have accused Mr. Najib of diverting $731 million from 1MDB into his account. They say the money was spent on a parade of luxury items, including a $27.3 million pink diamond necklace, luxury real estate in the United States and paintings by Monet, Warhol, Van Gogh and others worth over $200 million.
Prosecutors say $250 million more was used to buy Equanimity, the yacht that Malaysia’s attorney general, Tommy Thomas, said Tuesday had been returned to Malaysia.
Equanimity, which has a helicopter pad and a private movie theater, was initially seized in Indonesia in February. Its owners, who are based in the Cayman Islands, have called the handover of the yacht to Malaysia “unlawful and extrajudicial” in a court filing in the United States, Reuters reported.
The United States Department of Justice alleges that the yacht was purchased with 1MDB funds by Jho Low, a Malaysian financier who is a friend of Mr. Najib’s stepson, Riza Aziz. Mr. Low’s Malaysian passport has been revoked, but as of Wednesday, his whereabouts was unknown.
Mr. Thomas said Tuesday in a statement that the Indonesian authorities had seized the yacht at the request of the United States Department of Justice, “which asserted ownership of the yacht on behalf of Malaysia and 1MDB because monies belonging to us were used to purchase it.”
On Friday, a judge was scheduled to rule on whether to uphold an interim court order restricting what the Malaysian news media can report about the case. A judge issued the order last month after Mr. Shafee, Mr. Najib’s lawyer, argued that it was necessary for a fair trial, but Mr. Thomas has said it violates Malaysian laws on free speech.
Federal prosecutors in the United States are looking at the potential culpability of Goldman Sachs in the case, according to people familiar with the investigation. Goldman helped 1MDB sell billions of dollars in bonds to investors, earning about $600 million in fees. The investment bank has said that it is cooperating with the inquiry and that it had been unaware of how money from the fund was being used.
Sharon Tan contributed reporting from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
Najib Razak in July. The former Malaysian prime minister faced new charges Wednesday stemming from the scandal over a state investment fund that led to his election defeat.CreditLai Seng Sin/Reuters
By Mike Ives
Aug. 8, 2018
HONG KONG — The Malaysian authorities charged Najib Razak, the former prime minister, with three counts of money laundering on Wednesday, the latest escalation in an inquiry involving billions of dollars diverted from a state investment fund.
The charges came a day after Malaysia’s attorney general announced that a $250 million yacht, which prosecutors say was bought with money stolen from the fund, had been returned to Malaysia from Indonesia, where it was seized in February.
The new charges are linked to three electronic transfers worth a total of $10 million from a onetime unit of the investment fund, 1Malaysia Development Berhad, that prosecutors say were made into Mr. Najib’s bank accounts.
That is only a small fraction of the fraud alleged to have been carried out. United States prosecutors have said that at least $4.5 billion from the fund, known as 1MDB, was laundered through American financial institutions and misspent by Mr. Najib, his family and associates.
Mr. Najib, who was ousted in a May election, pleaded not guilty to all three new charges, the local news media reported. Reuters reported that each charge carries a jail sentence of up to 15 years, plus fines of at least $1.2 million.
Mr. Najib, 65, also pleaded not guilty last month to three counts of criminal breach of trust and one count of corruption in connection with the scandal surrounding the state investment fund.
Court documents show that the first of the three wire transfers to Mr. Najib’s accounts from SRC International, the onetime unit of the state investment fund, occurred in 2014, two years after SRC was placed under the Finance Ministry’s jurisdiction.
On Wednesday, Mr. Najib’s lawyer, Muhammad Shafee Abdullah, told reporters that the money-laundering charges had “nothing to do” with 1MDB because SRC was not part of the fund when the transfers were made.
“I hope they are not arranging the coincidence of the yacht arriving in Klang with the sudden decision to charge my client today,” Mr. Abdullah added, referring to Port Klang, where the yacht has been impounded.
N. Surendran, a former lawmaker who advises Lawyers for Liberty, a Malaysian advocacy group, said that the earlier breach of trust charges against Mr. Najib were related to the same money transfers cited in the charges brought Wednesday. “It is almost certain there will be more charges looking at the large amounts and various transactions involving 1MDB monies,” he said.
Image
Prosecutors say this yacht, known as Equanimity, was bought with $250 million stolen from the state investment fund. It was seized in Indonesia in February and taken to Malaysia this week.CreditAgence France-Presse — Getty Images
Mr. Najib set up the investment fund in 2009, the year he became prime minister, to promote economic development.
With corruption accusations swirling around the fund in recent years, Mr. Najib’s onetime mentor, Mahathir Mohamad, successfully ran against him in the May election, promising to bring him to justice.
Since Mr. Mahathir became prime minister, Malaysian officials have blocked Mr. Najib and his wife from leaving the country; seized cash and other valuables worth as much as $273 million from the couple’s properties; and arrested Mr. Najib in connection with the investigation into SRC International.
A spokesman for Mr. Najib has called the arrest “politically motivated and the result of political vengeance” by Mr. Mahathir and his governing coalition, many of whose leaders spent decades in the opposition.
American prosecutors have accused Mr. Najib of diverting $731 million from 1MDB into his account. They say the money was spent on a parade of luxury items, including a $27.3 million pink diamond necklace, luxury real estate in the United States and paintings by Monet, Warhol, Van Gogh and others worth over $200 million.
Prosecutors say $250 million more was used to buy Equanimity, the yacht that Malaysia’s attorney general, Tommy Thomas, said Tuesday had been returned to Malaysia.
Equanimity, which has a helicopter pad and a private movie theater, was initially seized in Indonesia in February. Its owners, who are based in the Cayman Islands, have called the handover of the yacht to Malaysia “unlawful and extrajudicial” in a court filing in the United States, Reuters reported.
The United States Department of Justice alleges that the yacht was purchased with 1MDB funds by Jho Low, a Malaysian financier who is a friend of Mr. Najib’s stepson, Riza Aziz. Mr. Low’s Malaysian passport has been revoked, but as of Wednesday, his whereabouts was unknown.
Mr. Thomas said Tuesday in a statement that the Indonesian authorities had seized the yacht at the request of the United States Department of Justice, “which asserted ownership of the yacht on behalf of Malaysia and 1MDB because monies belonging to us were used to purchase it.”
On Friday, a judge was scheduled to rule on whether to uphold an interim court order restricting what the Malaysian news media can report about the case. A judge issued the order last month after Mr. Shafee, Mr. Najib’s lawyer, argued that it was necessary for a fair trial, but Mr. Thomas has said it violates Malaysian laws on free speech.
Federal prosecutors in the United States are looking at the potential culpability of Goldman Sachs in the case, according to people familiar with the investigation. Goldman helped 1MDB sell billions of dollars in bonds to investors, earning about $600 million in fees. The investment bank has said that it is cooperating with the inquiry and that it had been unaware of how money from the fund was being used.
Sharon Tan contributed reporting from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
Trump ally Kobach holds narrow lead in Kansas gubernatorial primary - Reuters
AUGUST 8, 2018 / 10:59 PM / UPDATED 11 MINUTES AGO
Trump ally Kobach holds narrow lead in Kansas gubernatorial primary
Reuters Staff
(Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump’s first choice as governor of Kansas, Kris Kobach, held a narrow, 200-vote lead in the Republican primary over the current governor with nearly all votes counted, according to the Kansas Secretary of State web site.
FILE PHOTO: U.S. President-elect Donald Trump stands with Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach before their meeting at Trump National Golf Club in Bedminster, New Jersey, U.S., on November 20, 2016. REUTERS/Mike Segar/File Photo
As of 8:45 a.m. EST (1245 GMT), Kobach and incumbent Jeff Colyer both had about 41 percent of the vote. Kobach, a staunch ally of Trump, was endorsed by the president in the waning days of the hard-fought primary.
Reporting By David Gaffen; Editing by Bernadette Baum
Trump ally Kobach holds narrow lead in Kansas gubernatorial primary
Reuters Staff
(Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump’s first choice as governor of Kansas, Kris Kobach, held a narrow, 200-vote lead in the Republican primary over the current governor with nearly all votes counted, according to the Kansas Secretary of State web site.
FILE PHOTO: U.S. President-elect Donald Trump stands with Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach before their meeting at Trump National Golf Club in Bedminster, New Jersey, U.S., on November 20, 2016. REUTERS/Mike Segar/File Photo
As of 8:45 a.m. EST (1245 GMT), Kobach and incumbent Jeff Colyer both had about 41 percent of the vote. Kobach, a staunch ally of Trump, was endorsed by the president in the waning days of the hard-fought primary.
Reporting By David Gaffen; Editing by Bernadette Baum
Ivanka Trump: Celebrities Instagram plea over family separation - BBC News
August 8, 2018.
Ivanka Trump: Celebrities Instagram plea over family separation
Ivanka Trump is often seen as a route to her father's ear
Ivanka Trump has been inundated with an appeal from celebrities on Instagram, begging her to take action on the separation of migrant families at the border.
It comes after US officials separated more than 2,500 children from undocumented adults at the border with Mexico earlier this year, in a "zero tolerance" crackdown on illegal immigration.
The policy was suspended by Ms Trump's father, President Donald Trump, last month after a fierce backlash.
However, hundreds of children remain separated from their parents - the focus of the posts.
So what does the appeal say?
The post reportedly originated with three women: Sarah Sophie Flicker, Paola Mendoza, and Alyssa Klein - described as "women's march alums [alumni]" by website Bustle .
It didn't take long for people like comedian Amy Schumer, television presenter Alexa Chung and GirlBoss founder Sophia Moruso - all of whom are followed by the "first daughter" - to pick up the baton and try to get Ms Trump's attention.
The post addresses Ms Trump directly but what else does it say? Let's break it down.
You said family separation was a "low point" for you. The low point is for the separated families. You spoke in past tense. This crisis is ongoing.
Ms Trump addressed the issue during an interview with the Axios news site last Thursday - the first time she had addressed the crisis in anything more than a tweet.
"That was a low point for me as well," she said, according to CNN.
"I felt very strongly about that and I am very vehemently against family separation and the separation of parents and children so I would agree with that sentiment."
Migrant boys detained in a former Walmart in Texas
So Ms Trump did address it as a past-tense issue. But while her father signed an executive order on 21 June which promised to "keep families together" in migrant detentions, the issue is still affecting hundreds of families.
As of now 572 children have not been reunited.... Approximately 400 parents have been deported without their children.
The order did not address those families already separated by the policy.
The Instagram post uses the government's own figures, released the same day Ms Trump spoke, to illustrate how it is an ongoing issue.
...A child has died after separation... There have been multiple claims of sexual and physical abuse in detention. There have been psychotropic drugs administered to children in detention without parental consent.
Reports a child had died shortly after leaving an immigration detention facility in Texas emerged last week. However, it is unclear what exactly happened, news agency Associated Press reported.
There have also been reports of abuse taking place at the shelters caring for the children, although some of it is historic. A lawsuit alleging children were forcibly injected at one of the centres is currently going through the courts, according to The Texas Tribune.
But what has this got to do with Ivanka Trump?
Well, Ms Trump does act as a "special advisor" to her father, but does not have any special role regarding immigration.
Ms Trump is known to be close to her father
However, it is widely believed Ms Trump is one of the few people who can influence her father.
In this case, those sharing the post want her to use that influence to ask him to fire Kirstjen Nielsen, who heads up homeland security - the department responsible for the policy.
Is the appeal likely to work?
Ms Trump did not immediately respond to the appeal on Instagram and it is unclear if she will have even seen the posts. Ms Trump follows 1,146 people on Instagram. What's more, despite the page saying it is "personal", there is a chance she might not even run it herself.
A similar push on social media in 2017 - this time focusing on protecting the "Dreamers", young immigrants brought to the US illegally - also failed to reap any tangible rewards.
Far more likely to get her attention are the reams of newspaper headlines the campaign has generated.
Ivanka Trump: Celebrities Instagram plea over family separation
Ivanka Trump is often seen as a route to her father's ear
Ivanka Trump has been inundated with an appeal from celebrities on Instagram, begging her to take action on the separation of migrant families at the border.
It comes after US officials separated more than 2,500 children from undocumented adults at the border with Mexico earlier this year, in a "zero tolerance" crackdown on illegal immigration.
The policy was suspended by Ms Trump's father, President Donald Trump, last month after a fierce backlash.
However, hundreds of children remain separated from their parents - the focus of the posts.
So what does the appeal say?
The post reportedly originated with three women: Sarah Sophie Flicker, Paola Mendoza, and Alyssa Klein - described as "women's march alums [alumni]" by website Bustle .
It didn't take long for people like comedian Amy Schumer, television presenter Alexa Chung and GirlBoss founder Sophia Moruso - all of whom are followed by the "first daughter" - to pick up the baton and try to get Ms Trump's attention.
The post addresses Ms Trump directly but what else does it say? Let's break it down.
You said family separation was a "low point" for you. The low point is for the separated families. You spoke in past tense. This crisis is ongoing.
Ms Trump addressed the issue during an interview with the Axios news site last Thursday - the first time she had addressed the crisis in anything more than a tweet.
"That was a low point for me as well," she said, according to CNN.
"I felt very strongly about that and I am very vehemently against family separation and the separation of parents and children so I would agree with that sentiment."
Migrant boys detained in a former Walmart in Texas
So Ms Trump did address it as a past-tense issue. But while her father signed an executive order on 21 June which promised to "keep families together" in migrant detentions, the issue is still affecting hundreds of families.
As of now 572 children have not been reunited.... Approximately 400 parents have been deported without their children.
The order did not address those families already separated by the policy.
The Instagram post uses the government's own figures, released the same day Ms Trump spoke, to illustrate how it is an ongoing issue.
...A child has died after separation... There have been multiple claims of sexual and physical abuse in detention. There have been psychotropic drugs administered to children in detention without parental consent.
Reports a child had died shortly after leaving an immigration detention facility in Texas emerged last week. However, it is unclear what exactly happened, news agency Associated Press reported.
There have also been reports of abuse taking place at the shelters caring for the children, although some of it is historic. A lawsuit alleging children were forcibly injected at one of the centres is currently going through the courts, according to The Texas Tribune.
But what has this got to do with Ivanka Trump?
Well, Ms Trump does act as a "special advisor" to her father, but does not have any special role regarding immigration.
Ms Trump is known to be close to her father
However, it is widely believed Ms Trump is one of the few people who can influence her father.
In this case, those sharing the post want her to use that influence to ask him to fire Kirstjen Nielsen, who heads up homeland security - the department responsible for the policy.
Is the appeal likely to work?
Ms Trump did not immediately respond to the appeal on Instagram and it is unclear if she will have even seen the posts. Ms Trump follows 1,146 people on Instagram. What's more, despite the page saying it is "personal", there is a chance she might not even run it herself.
A similar push on social media in 2017 - this time focusing on protecting the "Dreamers", young immigrants brought to the US illegally - also failed to reap any tangible rewards.
Far more likely to get her attention are the reams of newspaper headlines the campaign has generated.
US mid-term elections: Women break records for nominations - BBC News
US mid-term elections: Women break records for nominations
8 August 2018
L-R Democrat Gretchen Whitmer, Republican Susan Hutchison and Democrat Rashida Tlaib, who is almost certain to be the first Muslim woman in Congress
More women candidates than ever will contest US governorships and House seats in November's mid-term elections.
After Tuesday's primaries across four states, there are now 11 female nominees for governor and at least 173 so far for the House.
The results were hailed as a continuing success story by activists for women in politics.
There was also a key election for a House seat in Ohio, in which President Donald Trump claimed victory.
But US media said the race was still too close to call, in a safe Republican seat held by them since 1983. The outcome could indicate whether Democrats have a chance to overturn the Republican majority in the House in November.
First black female nominee for governor
US mid-terms: Can we tell now if Democrats will win?
A breakthrough for women
After polling closed in the four states holding primaries on Tuesday - Kansas, Michigan, Missouri and Washington - it became clear women had broken records for gubernatorial and House nominations.
Victories for Gretchen Whitmer (Michigan) and Laura Kelly (Kansas) in Democratic primaries mean 11 women will contest governorships in November - one more than the previous 1994 record.
At least 173 female major party nominees will run for the House, beating the record of 167 from 2016.
It's official. With polls closed in KS, MI, MO, we've broken the record for women major party nominees for U.S. House in any year.
The previous record was 167. With 5 women candidates unopposed and one all-female primary, we've hit 168 tonight with possibly more to come. pic.twitter.com/KGwEm18AIq
— CAWP (@CAWP_RU) August 8, 2018
Debbie Walsh, director of the Center for American Women and Politics (CAWP) said: "This has been an election season of records for women candidates, and tonight continues that story."
Ms Whitmer will in fact lead a four-strong, all-women ticket for the Democrats at state level in Michigan.
And one of the candidates for the House in the state is certain to become the first Muslim woman in Congress. Rashida Tlaib won a Democratic nomination and will not be opposed by the Republicans in November. She will also be the first Palestinian-American congresswoman.
Media captionThe "Pink Wave": How women are shaping the 2018 US elections
There will be two all-female races in Washington state. Democrat Lisa Brown faces Cathy McMorris Rodgers for a House seat, while Republican Susan Hutchison will take on incumbent Senator Maria Cantwell.
Democratic women could outnumber their white male colleagues in the House after November, a recent study suggested.
What has happened in Ohio?
Republican candidate Troy Balderson has been taking on Democrat Danny O'Connor for a seat in the House of Representatives. Ohio is one of the key battleground states in the mid-terms.
Mr Trump tweeted "Congratulations to Troy Balderson on a great win in Ohio. A very special and important race!"
Despite this, US news outlets have not called the contest yet. The New York Times gave Mr Balderson 50.2%, a lead of 1,754 votes in the 12th Congressional District race, with all precincts reporting. But thousands of absentee and provisional ballots are still outstanding, which could lead Mr O'Connor to force a recount. He said: "We're not stopping now."
A provisional ballot is used to record a vote when there are questions about a voter's eligibility. Absentee ballots are cast by those unable to attend polling stations.
Image caption
Donald Trump travelled to Ohio to support Troy Balderson
Democrat House representative Ben Ray Luján said the seat should have been a "slam dunk" for the Republicans and the closeness of the contest was an "ominous sign" for them in November.
Mr Trump won the 12th Congressional District in 2016 by more than 11 percentage points.
Mr Balderson and Mr O'Connor will have to fight the seat again in November.
Anything else from the primaries?
It appears Donald Trump has had success in getting the candidates he endorsed nominated.
The battle for the soul of the Democratic Party
Why US mid-term elections matter
They include John James, an African-American Republican, who won the Senate race nomination in Michigan, and key ally Bill Schuette, who will take on Ms Whitmer for governor in the same state.
Skip Twitter post by @realDonaldTrump
Congratulations to a future STAR of the Republican Party, future Senator John James. A big and bold victory tonight in the Great State of Michigan - the first of many. November can’t come fast enough!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 8, 2018
Report
End of Twitter post by @realDonaldTrump
The Kansas gubernatorial election has been rancorous for Republicans. The New York Times says it appears Mr Trump's pick, the hard-right Kris Kobach, may have upset incumbent Jeff Colyer but it's still too close to call.
Estes vs Estes
And one interesting sidebar: Ron Estes has beaten Ron Estes in a Kansas Republican primary.
The victorious incumbent congressman had to fund a campaign to spell out which candidate was which. The beaten candidate was Ron M Estes - his opponent said the M stood for misleading.
The beaten man's campaign was described by some analysts as "not serious".
The winning Ron Estes took about 80% of the vote and will face Democrat James Thompson, a supporter of Bernie Sanders in November.
What's up for election in November?
All 435 House seats, 35 of the 100 Senate seats and 36 of 50 governor races are to be fought.
Media captionWhy are US election campaigns never-ending? Ask America has the answer
The Democrats need to pick up 23 seats in the House to gain a majority.
With dozens of Republican lawmakers retiring this year, the minority party has a decent chance of taking over the House.
The place that tells you everything about US politics
In the Senate they need just two seats to take control. But the Republicans are tipped to retain their majority and perhaps even consolidate it.
A general opinion poll of voting intentions last Friday suggested Democrats were 6.1 percentage points ahead of Republicans.
8 August 2018
L-R Democrat Gretchen Whitmer, Republican Susan Hutchison and Democrat Rashida Tlaib, who is almost certain to be the first Muslim woman in Congress
More women candidates than ever will contest US governorships and House seats in November's mid-term elections.
After Tuesday's primaries across four states, there are now 11 female nominees for governor and at least 173 so far for the House.
The results were hailed as a continuing success story by activists for women in politics.
There was also a key election for a House seat in Ohio, in which President Donald Trump claimed victory.
But US media said the race was still too close to call, in a safe Republican seat held by them since 1983. The outcome could indicate whether Democrats have a chance to overturn the Republican majority in the House in November.
First black female nominee for governor
US mid-terms: Can we tell now if Democrats will win?
A breakthrough for women
After polling closed in the four states holding primaries on Tuesday - Kansas, Michigan, Missouri and Washington - it became clear women had broken records for gubernatorial and House nominations.
Victories for Gretchen Whitmer (Michigan) and Laura Kelly (Kansas) in Democratic primaries mean 11 women will contest governorships in November - one more than the previous 1994 record.
At least 173 female major party nominees will run for the House, beating the record of 167 from 2016.
It's official. With polls closed in KS, MI, MO, we've broken the record for women major party nominees for U.S. House in any year.
The previous record was 167. With 5 women candidates unopposed and one all-female primary, we've hit 168 tonight with possibly more to come. pic.twitter.com/KGwEm18AIq
— CAWP (@CAWP_RU) August 8, 2018
Debbie Walsh, director of the Center for American Women and Politics (CAWP) said: "This has been an election season of records for women candidates, and tonight continues that story."
Ms Whitmer will in fact lead a four-strong, all-women ticket for the Democrats at state level in Michigan.
And one of the candidates for the House in the state is certain to become the first Muslim woman in Congress. Rashida Tlaib won a Democratic nomination and will not be opposed by the Republicans in November. She will also be the first Palestinian-American congresswoman.
Media captionThe "Pink Wave": How women are shaping the 2018 US elections
There will be two all-female races in Washington state. Democrat Lisa Brown faces Cathy McMorris Rodgers for a House seat, while Republican Susan Hutchison will take on incumbent Senator Maria Cantwell.
Democratic women could outnumber their white male colleagues in the House after November, a recent study suggested.
What has happened in Ohio?
Republican candidate Troy Balderson has been taking on Democrat Danny O'Connor for a seat in the House of Representatives. Ohio is one of the key battleground states in the mid-terms.
Mr Trump tweeted "Congratulations to Troy Balderson on a great win in Ohio. A very special and important race!"
Despite this, US news outlets have not called the contest yet. The New York Times gave Mr Balderson 50.2%, a lead of 1,754 votes in the 12th Congressional District race, with all precincts reporting. But thousands of absentee and provisional ballots are still outstanding, which could lead Mr O'Connor to force a recount. He said: "We're not stopping now."
A provisional ballot is used to record a vote when there are questions about a voter's eligibility. Absentee ballots are cast by those unable to attend polling stations.
Image caption
Donald Trump travelled to Ohio to support Troy Balderson
Democrat House representative Ben Ray Luján said the seat should have been a "slam dunk" for the Republicans and the closeness of the contest was an "ominous sign" for them in November.
Mr Trump won the 12th Congressional District in 2016 by more than 11 percentage points.
Mr Balderson and Mr O'Connor will have to fight the seat again in November.
Anything else from the primaries?
It appears Donald Trump has had success in getting the candidates he endorsed nominated.
The battle for the soul of the Democratic Party
Why US mid-term elections matter
They include John James, an African-American Republican, who won the Senate race nomination in Michigan, and key ally Bill Schuette, who will take on Ms Whitmer for governor in the same state.
Skip Twitter post by @realDonaldTrump
Congratulations to a future STAR of the Republican Party, future Senator John James. A big and bold victory tonight in the Great State of Michigan - the first of many. November can’t come fast enough!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 8, 2018
Report
End of Twitter post by @realDonaldTrump
The Kansas gubernatorial election has been rancorous for Republicans. The New York Times says it appears Mr Trump's pick, the hard-right Kris Kobach, may have upset incumbent Jeff Colyer but it's still too close to call.
Estes vs Estes
And one interesting sidebar: Ron Estes has beaten Ron Estes in a Kansas Republican primary.
The victorious incumbent congressman had to fund a campaign to spell out which candidate was which. The beaten candidate was Ron M Estes - his opponent said the M stood for misleading.
The beaten man's campaign was described by some analysts as "not serious".
The winning Ron Estes took about 80% of the vote and will face Democrat James Thompson, a supporter of Bernie Sanders in November.
What's up for election in November?
All 435 House seats, 35 of the 100 Senate seats and 36 of 50 governor races are to be fought.
Media captionWhy are US election campaigns never-ending? Ask America has the answer
The Democrats need to pick up 23 seats in the House to gain a majority.
With dozens of Republican lawmakers retiring this year, the minority party has a decent chance of taking over the House.
The place that tells you everything about US politics
In the Senate they need just two seats to take control. But the Republicans are tipped to retain their majority and perhaps even consolidate it.
A general opinion poll of voting intentions last Friday suggested Democrats were 6.1 percentage points ahead of Republicans.
Tuesday, August 7, 2018
Ohio special election on knife edge as Republicans fight to keep control - Guardian
Ohio special election on knife edge as Republicans fight to keep control
Troy Balderson takes on Democrat Danny O’Connor in polarising race over healthcare, immigration and Trump
Ben Jacobs in Zanesville, Ohio
@Bencjacobs
Tue 7 Aug 2018 18.00 AEST Last modified on Tue 7 Aug 2018 18.01 AEST
Ohio’s Twelfth Congressional District is a traditionally Republican area that has only elected a Democrat once since the Roosevelt Administration and it is a tossup in Tuesday’s special election.
The race, which is a dead heat in public polling, pits Republican Troy Balderson, a state senator from the rural eastern edge of the district, against Democrat Danny O’Connor, who is an elected official in Franklin County, which is the largest county in the state. The special election was prompted by the resignation of longtime incumbent Republican Pat Tiberi to take a private sector job.
The district centers on the prosperous, traditionally conservative suburbs of Columbus, the home base of Governor John Kasich. It was one of the few parts of Ohio to swing towards Hillary Clinton in 2016 as many well-educated Republican voters looked askance at Trump.
Democrats look for balancing act to win key Ohio district from Republicans
Read more
Balderson ended the race in an unusual manner: standing on a flatbed truck and speaking to a crowd in his parochial hometown of Zanesville, he cast aspersions on much of the rest of the district. “My opponent is from Franklin County and Franklin County has been challenging for us,” Balderson told the crowd. “We don’t want somebody from Franklin County representing us.”
Franklin County makes up roughly a third of the district.
In addition, when talking about his primary win, he described it in geographic terms. “We beat Franklin County. We beat Delaware County.”
Delaware County is the second largest county in the district and is considered the swing county in Tuesday.
The event was not advertised to the national media, which was deliberate. Balderson bragged “we were trying to keep the national media out of it because the national media doesn’t always understand what it’s like to be in the 12th congressional district so they come in here for a week or so, kind of see and get a pulse of what the communities are doing and they leave.”
Balderson’s aversion to talking to national outlets has been so pronounced that he only did his first interview with Fox News on Sunday, 48 hours before polls closed with a reporter who happened to be in the state.
In contrast, at an event in a crowded campaign office on Monday afternoon, O’Connor hailed the grassroots volunteers who would be knocking on doors from him.
After an introduction from actress Kathryn Hahn, the Democrat gave a familiar stump speech about being “part of a grassroots movement that is going to change the way politics work” and pledged he would “fight to protect to access to health care and fight against cuts to earned benefits to social security”.
Democratic congressional candidate Danny O’Connor helps two young girls skip rope during a campaign stop on 5 August in Mansfield, Ohio.
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Democratic congressional candidate Danny O’Connor helps two young girls skip rope during a campaign stop on 5 August in Mansfield, Ohio. Photograph: Scott Olson/Getty Images
O’Connor, an affable 31-year-old who invariably campaigned in shorts, seemed perpetually open to everyone – media, voters or passersby. The Democrat positioned himself as a moderate who tried to appeal to the voters who long backed Kasich. He insisted that he would not support Nancy Pelosi for speaker and focused his campaign on his support for social security and Medicare.
Despite O’Connor’s insistence that he would not support Pelosi, Republicans have long used the unpopular Democratic leader as an attack line. This was helped when O’Connor, after being repeatedly pressed in television interview, said that he would vote for “whoever the Democratic Party puts forward”.
This served as additional ammunition for the Congressional Leadership Fund (CLF), the outside superPAC that has carried much of the burden for Balderson, who has been a weak fundraiser and run what Republican observers have considered a lackluster campaign. CLF has spent over $2.7m on television advertising alone in the race and has knocked over 500,000 doors in the district
In a statement, Courtney Alexander, the group’s press secretary, said: “Danny O’Connor has spent the entire campaign lying about his support for Nancy Pelosi and her extreme, liberal agenda. The only thing O’Connor has proven to Ohioans is that he’ll do or say anything to get elected. Ohio families deserve a leader like Troy Balderson who will put Ohio families first, not Nancy Pelosi.”
‘It’s pretty lonely out here’: why John Kasich is willing to criticize Trump
Read more
While Pelosi has proved a flashpoint in the district, so has President Donald Trump.
Balderson initially raised eyebrows when he could not name a single area of disagreement with Trump. The statement caused the traditionally conservative Columbus Dispatch to endorse O’Connor and kept Kasich, the popular never-Trump governor, on the sidelines.
Kasich eventually endorsed Balderson after the Republican came out against Trump’s trade policy and the practice of family separation at the border. However, the relationship became awkward again on Sunday. A day after Trump appeared at a rally in the district for Balderson, Kasich said in an interview with ABC’s George Stephanopoulos that Trump had not been invited to campaign. The Balderson campaign has yet to address that claim.
However, the Republican enthused about his experience with Trump on Monday. He seemed giddy to recount “on Saturday, I had the opportunity to stand with, not only the President of the United States, but Donald J. Trump.” Balderson added: “I kept pinching myself.”
A win in the district for Democrats would be a major boost in their efforts to take the House in November. Republicans are clinging to a 23-seat majority and the fact that they are on the defense in such a traditionally conservative seat is an bad omen, even if Balderson pulls out a victory. As Kasich said in his interview Sunday, the tight race “really doesn’t bode well for the Republican Party because this should be -- shouldn’t even be contested.”
Is Winnie-the-Pooh Unwelcome in China? Christopher Robin Blocked From World's 2nd Biggest Film Market - TIME
Is Winnie-the-Pooh Unwelcome in China? Christopher Robin Blocked From World's 2nd Biggest Film Market
By ELI MEIXLER August 6, 2018
A representative of Walt Disney has confirmed that Christopher Robin, the new live-action Winnie-the-Pooh film, has been denied a release in China, the Associated Press reports.
No reason was given for blocking the release of the film from China, the world’s second largest film market.
The film, which grossed $25 million over its opening weekend, stars Ewan McGregor as an adult Christopher Robin, reunited with childhood friends Winnie the Pooh, Tigger, Piglet, and the rest of the gang from the Hundred Acre Wood.
Cathleen Taff, Disney’s head of distribution, confirmed the embargo, first reported by The Hollywood Reporter, to the AP.
Financial Times
✔
@FT
A bear, however hard he tries, Falls foul of Chinese censors' eyes http://on.ft.com/2tYUlPd
6:32 AM - Jul 17, 2017
While it’s unclear exactly why the film will not be shown in China, the honey-seeking bear has become a frequent target of Chinese censors and a favorite meme of Chinese social media users, who joke the character bears resemblance to President Xi Jinping.
In June, Chinese authorities blocked access to HBO after an episode of John Oliver’s Last Week Tonight broadcast a segment criticizing China’s censorship regime, also likenimg Xi to the portly bear.
By ELI MEIXLER August 6, 2018
A representative of Walt Disney has confirmed that Christopher Robin, the new live-action Winnie-the-Pooh film, has been denied a release in China, the Associated Press reports.
No reason was given for blocking the release of the film from China, the world’s second largest film market.
The film, which grossed $25 million over its opening weekend, stars Ewan McGregor as an adult Christopher Robin, reunited with childhood friends Winnie the Pooh, Tigger, Piglet, and the rest of the gang from the Hundred Acre Wood.
Cathleen Taff, Disney’s head of distribution, confirmed the embargo, first reported by The Hollywood Reporter, to the AP.
Financial Times
✔
@FT
A bear, however hard he tries, Falls foul of Chinese censors' eyes http://on.ft.com/2tYUlPd
6:32 AM - Jul 17, 2017
While it’s unclear exactly why the film will not be shown in China, the honey-seeking bear has become a frequent target of Chinese censors and a favorite meme of Chinese social media users, who joke the character bears resemblance to President Xi Jinping.
In June, Chinese authorities blocked access to HBO after an episode of John Oliver’s Last Week Tonight broadcast a segment criticizing China’s censorship regime, also likenimg Xi to the portly bear.
Trump foe Rosie O'Donnell predicts big November turnout: 'People have just really had enough' - CNN
Trump foe Rosie O'Donnell predicts big November turnout: 'People have just really had enough'
By Eli Watkins, CNN
Updated 0204 GMT (1004 HKT) August 7, 2018
rosie o'donnell trump feud activism sot cpt vpx_00001305
Former Sex and the City star Cynthia Nixon speaks to people at the Bethesda Healing Center in Brooklyn, New York on March 20, 2018 at her first event since announcing that shes running for governor of New York.
Cynthia Nixon, the US actress who shot to fame as workaholic lawyer Miranda on "Sex and the City," jumped into the race for New York governor March 19, 2018, unveiling a progressive platform championing economic equality and eschewing big business.The 51-year-old declared her candidacy with a two-minute campaign video posted on Twitter that showed her at home with her wife and children, riding the subway, taking one of her children to school and speaking at liberal political causes.
Roseanne Barr: My character voted for Trump
Tom Hanks
Tom Hanks calls political climate 'hellacious'
Oprah reacts to Trump calling her 'insecure'
LOS ANGELES, CA - AUGUST 25: Actress Stacey Dash attends the FOX, 20th Century FOX Television, FX Networks and National Geographic Channel's 2014 Emmy Award Nominee Celebration at Vibiana on August 25, 2014 in Los Angeles, California. (Michael Buckner/Getty Images for FOX)
'Clueless' star drops congressional bid
Former NBA basketball player Dennis Rodman arrives at Beijing Capital International Airport in Beijing, Tuesday, June 13, 2017. North Korea is expecting another visit by former NBA bad boy Rodman on Tuesday in what would be his first to the country since President Donald Trump took office. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)
Rodman takes some credit for Warmbier release
Tina Fey shares a laugh with Jimmy Fallon on "The Tonight Show" on March 3.
Tina Fey mocks Trump at fundraiser
rosie o'donnell trump feud activism sot cpt vpx_00001305
Rosie O'Donnell: Trump is loathed in America
lebron james escuela lakers ohio eeuu deportes pkg cnnee_00011517.jpg
First lady praises LeBron James
lebron james 2
LeBron James: Trump is dividing us
Comedian Sacha Baron Cohen pranks politicians
Kim Kardashian meeting with Trump officials
Originally from Chicago's South Side, Chance the Rapper's latest album, "Acid Rap," earned him Spin Magazine's "rapper of the year" distinction for 2013.
Chance the Rapper rejects Trump 'thank you'
"Law & Order" star Sam Waterston is in a new video calling for people to protest the potential firing of Rod Rosenstein
'Law & Order' star: Don't fire Rosenstein
Former Sex and the City star Cynthia Nixon speaks to people at the Bethesda Healing Center in Brooklyn, New York on March 20, 2018 at her first event since announcing that shes running for governor of New York.
Cynthia Nixon, the US actress who shot to fame as workaholic lawyer Miranda on "Sex and the City," jumped into the race for New York governor March 19, 2018, unveiling a progressive platform championing economic equality and eschewing big business.The 51-year-old declared her candidacy with a two-minute campaign video posted on Twitter that showed her at home with her wife and children, riding the subway, taking one of her children to school and speaking at liberal political causes.
Six things you may not know about Cynthia Nixon
Former Disney star joins the White House
Roseanne Barr: My character voted for Trump
Tom Hanks
Tom Hanks calls political climate 'hellacious'
Oprah reacts to Trump calling her 'insecure'
'Clueless' star drops congressional bid
Rodman takes some credit for Warmbier release
Tina Fey shares a laugh with Jimmy Fallon on "The Tonight Show" on March 3.
Tina Fey mocks Trump at fundraiser
rosie o'donnell trump feud activism sot cpt vpx_00001305
Rosie O'Donnell: Trump is loathed in America
lebron james escuela lakers ohio eeuu deportes pkg cnnee_00011517.jpg
First lady praises LeBron James
lebron james 2
LeBron James: Trump is dividing us
Comedian Sacha Baron Cohen pranks politicians
NEW YORK, NY - SEPTEMBER 27: (EXCLUSIVE ACCESS, SPECIAL RATES APPLY) Kim Kardashian-West speaks at The Girls' Lounge dinner, giving visibility to women at Advertising Week 2016, at Pier 60 on September 27, 2016 in New York City. (Photo by Slaven Vlasic/Getty Images for The Girls' Lounge)
Kim Kardashian meeting with Trump officials
Originally from Chicago's South Side, Chance the Rapper's latest album, "Acid Rap," earned him Spin Magazine's "rapper of the year" distinction for 2013.
Chance the Rapper rejects Trump 'thank you'
"Law & Order" star Sam Waterston is in a new video calling for people to protest the potential firing of Rod Rosenstein
'Law & Order' star: Don't fire Rosenstein
Former Sex and the City star Cynthia Nixon speaks to people at the Bethesda Healing Center in Brooklyn, New York on March 20, 2018 at her first event since announcing that shes running for governor of New York.
Cynthia Nixon, the US actress who shot to fame as workaholic lawyer Miranda on "Sex and the City," jumped into the race for New York governor March 19, 2018, unveiling a progressive platform championing economic equality and eschewing big business.The 51-year-old declared her candidacy with a two-minute campaign video posted on Twitter that showed her at home with her wife and children, riding the subway, taking one of her children to school and speaking at liberal political causes.
Six things you may not know about Cynthia Nixon
Washington (CNN)Rosie O'Donnell, a longtime foe of President Donald Trump, said on Monday that "most of America" agreed with her that Trump should be out of office, and she predicted success for her side in November.
"I think that on Election Day, we are going to show up in a huge way, in a way that we haven't ever seen before in the United States, and people have just really had enough," O'Donnell said on CNN's "Cuomo Prime Time."
She added, "I believe that Trump is loathed in America, that people are embarrassed and ashamed of who he is."
Earlier on Monday, O'Donnell had gone to a protest in front of the White House to voice her opposition.
"All we have to do is encourage people to show up, to protest, to use their voice, to save democracy," O'Donnell told Chris Cuomo. "We've got just a couple months till November, and till then we have to fight with everything we got."
In the interview, O'Donnell also claimed the 2016 election had been "rigged" by Russia at Trump's request, although there is no public evidence to substantiate that, and the US intelligence community did not conclude that the Russian efforts in 2016 included changing any vote counts.
O'Donnell's and Trump's disdain for each other predates his presidential run, and it has continued since he took office. O'Donnell protested Trump outside the White House just weeks into his tenure, and after he fired FBI Director James Comey last year Trump quoted a tweet from O'Donnell calling for Comey's firing in December 2016, adding, "We finally agree on something Rosie."
Donald J. Trump
✔
@realDonaldTrump
We finally agree on something Rosie.
ROSIE
✔
@Rosie
Replying to @pricklyeater @brianefallon
- FIRE COMEY
5:55 AM - May 12, 2017
By Eli Watkins, CNN
Updated 0204 GMT (1004 HKT) August 7, 2018
rosie o'donnell trump feud activism sot cpt vpx_00001305
Former Sex and the City star Cynthia Nixon speaks to people at the Bethesda Healing Center in Brooklyn, New York on March 20, 2018 at her first event since announcing that shes running for governor of New York.
Cynthia Nixon, the US actress who shot to fame as workaholic lawyer Miranda on "Sex and the City," jumped into the race for New York governor March 19, 2018, unveiling a progressive platform championing economic equality and eschewing big business.The 51-year-old declared her candidacy with a two-minute campaign video posted on Twitter that showed her at home with her wife and children, riding the subway, taking one of her children to school and speaking at liberal political causes.
Roseanne Barr: My character voted for Trump
Tom Hanks
Tom Hanks calls political climate 'hellacious'
Oprah reacts to Trump calling her 'insecure'
LOS ANGELES, CA - AUGUST 25: Actress Stacey Dash attends the FOX, 20th Century FOX Television, FX Networks and National Geographic Channel's 2014 Emmy Award Nominee Celebration at Vibiana on August 25, 2014 in Los Angeles, California. (Michael Buckner/Getty Images for FOX)
'Clueless' star drops congressional bid
Former NBA basketball player Dennis Rodman arrives at Beijing Capital International Airport in Beijing, Tuesday, June 13, 2017. North Korea is expecting another visit by former NBA bad boy Rodman on Tuesday in what would be his first to the country since President Donald Trump took office. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)
Rodman takes some credit for Warmbier release
Tina Fey shares a laugh with Jimmy Fallon on "The Tonight Show" on March 3.
Tina Fey mocks Trump at fundraiser
rosie o'donnell trump feud activism sot cpt vpx_00001305
Rosie O'Donnell: Trump is loathed in America
lebron james escuela lakers ohio eeuu deportes pkg cnnee_00011517.jpg
First lady praises LeBron James
lebron james 2
LeBron James: Trump is dividing us
Comedian Sacha Baron Cohen pranks politicians
Kim Kardashian meeting with Trump officials
Originally from Chicago's South Side, Chance the Rapper's latest album, "Acid Rap," earned him Spin Magazine's "rapper of the year" distinction for 2013.
Chance the Rapper rejects Trump 'thank you'
"Law & Order" star Sam Waterston is in a new video calling for people to protest the potential firing of Rod Rosenstein
'Law & Order' star: Don't fire Rosenstein
Former Sex and the City star Cynthia Nixon speaks to people at the Bethesda Healing Center in Brooklyn, New York on March 20, 2018 at her first event since announcing that shes running for governor of New York.
Cynthia Nixon, the US actress who shot to fame as workaholic lawyer Miranda on "Sex and the City," jumped into the race for New York governor March 19, 2018, unveiling a progressive platform championing economic equality and eschewing big business.The 51-year-old declared her candidacy with a two-minute campaign video posted on Twitter that showed her at home with her wife and children, riding the subway, taking one of her children to school and speaking at liberal political causes.
Six things you may not know about Cynthia Nixon
Former Disney star joins the White House
Roseanne Barr: My character voted for Trump
Tom Hanks
Tom Hanks calls political climate 'hellacious'
Oprah reacts to Trump calling her 'insecure'
'Clueless' star drops congressional bid
Rodman takes some credit for Warmbier release
Tina Fey shares a laugh with Jimmy Fallon on "The Tonight Show" on March 3.
Tina Fey mocks Trump at fundraiser
rosie o'donnell trump feud activism sot cpt vpx_00001305
Rosie O'Donnell: Trump is loathed in America
lebron james escuela lakers ohio eeuu deportes pkg cnnee_00011517.jpg
First lady praises LeBron James
lebron james 2
LeBron James: Trump is dividing us
Comedian Sacha Baron Cohen pranks politicians
NEW YORK, NY - SEPTEMBER 27: (EXCLUSIVE ACCESS, SPECIAL RATES APPLY) Kim Kardashian-West speaks at The Girls' Lounge dinner, giving visibility to women at Advertising Week 2016, at Pier 60 on September 27, 2016 in New York City. (Photo by Slaven Vlasic/Getty Images for The Girls' Lounge)
Kim Kardashian meeting with Trump officials
Originally from Chicago's South Side, Chance the Rapper's latest album, "Acid Rap," earned him Spin Magazine's "rapper of the year" distinction for 2013.
Chance the Rapper rejects Trump 'thank you'
"Law & Order" star Sam Waterston is in a new video calling for people to protest the potential firing of Rod Rosenstein
'Law & Order' star: Don't fire Rosenstein
Former Sex and the City star Cynthia Nixon speaks to people at the Bethesda Healing Center in Brooklyn, New York on March 20, 2018 at her first event since announcing that shes running for governor of New York.
Cynthia Nixon, the US actress who shot to fame as workaholic lawyer Miranda on "Sex and the City," jumped into the race for New York governor March 19, 2018, unveiling a progressive platform championing economic equality and eschewing big business.The 51-year-old declared her candidacy with a two-minute campaign video posted on Twitter that showed her at home with her wife and children, riding the subway, taking one of her children to school and speaking at liberal political causes.
Six things you may not know about Cynthia Nixon
Washington (CNN)Rosie O'Donnell, a longtime foe of President Donald Trump, said on Monday that "most of America" agreed with her that Trump should be out of office, and she predicted success for her side in November.
"I think that on Election Day, we are going to show up in a huge way, in a way that we haven't ever seen before in the United States, and people have just really had enough," O'Donnell said on CNN's "Cuomo Prime Time."
She added, "I believe that Trump is loathed in America, that people are embarrassed and ashamed of who he is."
Earlier on Monday, O'Donnell had gone to a protest in front of the White House to voice her opposition.
"All we have to do is encourage people to show up, to protest, to use their voice, to save democracy," O'Donnell told Chris Cuomo. "We've got just a couple months till November, and till then we have to fight with everything we got."
In the interview, O'Donnell also claimed the 2016 election had been "rigged" by Russia at Trump's request, although there is no public evidence to substantiate that, and the US intelligence community did not conclude that the Russian efforts in 2016 included changing any vote counts.
O'Donnell's and Trump's disdain for each other predates his presidential run, and it has continued since he took office. O'Donnell protested Trump outside the White House just weeks into his tenure, and after he fired FBI Director James Comey last year Trump quoted a tweet from O'Donnell calling for Comey's firing in December 2016, adding, "We finally agree on something Rosie."
Donald J. Trump
✔
@realDonaldTrump
We finally agree on something Rosie.
ROSIE
✔
@Rosie
Replying to @pricklyeater @brianefallon
- FIRE COMEY
5:55 AM - May 12, 2017
Saudi Arabia suspends Toronto flights in row with Canada - BBC News
Saudi Arabia suspends Toronto flights in row with Canada
6 August 2018
Samar Badawi - a prominent human rights campaigner whose brother is serving a 10-year sentence - was arrested last week
Saudi Arabia's state airline has suspended its direct flights to Toronto after Canada called for the release of detained activists for civil society and women's rights.
The Middle Eastern country has also frozen all trade and expelled Canada's ambassador over the "interference".
Canada has responded by saying it "will continue to advocate for human rights".
Those held include the Saudi-American human rights campaigner Samar Badawi, sister of jailed blogger Raif Badawi.
Canada's Foreign Affairs Minister Chrystia Freeland said she was "deeply concerned" by the diplomat's expulsion, but added: "Canada will always stand up for the protection of human rights, including women's rights and freedom of expression around the world.
"We will never hesitate to promote these values and we believe that this dialogue is critical to international diplomacy."
Saudi Arabia widens crackdown on women's rights activists
Have executions doubled in Saudi Arabia?
Who is Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed?
Her Saudi counterpart, Adel al-Jubeir, had earlier tweeted that Canada's position was based on "misleading information", adding that anyone arrested was "subject to Saudi laws that guarantee their rights".
The leading Saudi women's rights campaigner Manal al-Sharif thanked Canada for "speaking up" and asked when other Western powers would do the same.
Manal al-Sharif
✔
@manal_alsharif
Thank you, Canada for speaking up. When are we going to hear from the US, the UK, and the EU about these arrests? #HumanRights #ReleaseSaudiDetainees #Saudi #Canada
Foreign Policy CAN
✔
@CanadaFP
Canada is gravely concerned about additional arrests of civil society and women’s rights activists in #SaudiArabia, including Samar Badawi. We urge the Saudi authorities to immediately release them and all other peaceful #humanrights activists.
6:12 PM - Aug 6, 2018
In what appeared to be a further sign of deteriorating relations between the two countries, a verified Twitter account, which is reportedly linked to Saudi authorities, shared an image of a plane flying towards Toronto's famed CN Tower.
The image was overlaid with text, including a quote which read "he who with what doesn't concern him finds what doesn't please him".
Skip Twitter post by @AlexInAir
View image on TwitterView image on Twitter
Alex Macheras
✔
@AlexInAir
More very concerning rhetoric emerging from #SaudiArabia, once again involving aviation.
In Saudi’s latest rift, now with #Canada — an account connected to the Saudi Royal Court has published images with text of an @AirCanada Boeing 767 descending towards CN Tower in Toronto 😳
11:50 PM - Aug 6, 2018
People on social media have been quick to point out the similarities between the image and images of 9/11.
The account has since been deleted, but cached versions of the tweet are circulating online.
Who is being held?
Last Tuesday, the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights said at least 15 human rights defenders and women's rights activists critical of the Saudi government had been arrested or detained arbitrarily since 15 May.
Eight of them are believed to have been released pending "procedural reviews", but the whereabouts of several others are unknown.
Several of those detained have been accused of serious crimes, including "suspicious contact with foreign parties", and could face up to 20 years in prison.
Human rights groups reported that Ms Badawi was also detained last week, along with fellow women's rights campaigner Nassima al-Sadah.
Ms Badawi was given the US International Women of Courage Award in 2012 and is known for challenging Saudi Arabia's male guardianship system.
Her brother Raif was sentenced to 10 years in prison and 1,000 lashes for "insulting Islam" online back in 2014, while his wife, Ensaf Haidar, lives in Canada and recently became a Canadian citizen.
What did Canada say?
Chrystia Freeland called for the release of Samar Badawi and her brother Raif
Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland wrote on Twitter on Thursday that she was "very alarmed" to learn that Ms Badawi had been detained.
The next day, the Canadian foreign ministry called for the activist's "immediate release".
Foreign Policy CAN
✔
@CanadaFP
Canada is gravely concerned about additional arrests of civil society and women’s rights activists in #SaudiArabia, including Samar Badawi. We urge the Saudi authorities to immediately release them and all other peaceful #humanrights activists.
12:10 AM - Aug 4, 2018
How did Saudi Arabia react?
The Saudi foreign ministry statement expressed "disbelief [at] this negative unfounded comment which was not based [on] any accurate or true information".
It insisted the activists were being detained lawfully and that the Canadian statements represented "blatant interference in the kingdom's domestic affairs".
Foreign Ministry 🇸🇦
✔
@KSAmofaEN
Replying to @KSAmofaEN
#Statement | Using the phrase (immediately release) in the Canadian statement is very unfortunate, reprehensible, and unacceptable in relations between States.
8:59 AM - Aug 6, 2018
The ministry recalled its ambassador to Canada for consultations and declared the Canadian ambassador persona non grata, giving him 24 hours to leave.
Saudi Arabia would also "put on hold all new business and investment transactions with Canada while retaining its right to take further action", it said. Trade between the two countries was worth $3bn (£2.3bn) in 2016.
All scholarships enabling Saudi students to study in Canada were also suspended, while students already in the country will be relocated.
It is unclear how many people this will affect. The Vancouver Sun said in 2015 that about 5,000 new students arrive from Saudi Arabia each year.
6 August 2018
Samar Badawi - a prominent human rights campaigner whose brother is serving a 10-year sentence - was arrested last week
Saudi Arabia's state airline has suspended its direct flights to Toronto after Canada called for the release of detained activists for civil society and women's rights.
The Middle Eastern country has also frozen all trade and expelled Canada's ambassador over the "interference".
Canada has responded by saying it "will continue to advocate for human rights".
Those held include the Saudi-American human rights campaigner Samar Badawi, sister of jailed blogger Raif Badawi.
Canada's Foreign Affairs Minister Chrystia Freeland said she was "deeply concerned" by the diplomat's expulsion, but added: "Canada will always stand up for the protection of human rights, including women's rights and freedom of expression around the world.
"We will never hesitate to promote these values and we believe that this dialogue is critical to international diplomacy."
Saudi Arabia widens crackdown on women's rights activists
Have executions doubled in Saudi Arabia?
Who is Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed?
Her Saudi counterpart, Adel al-Jubeir, had earlier tweeted that Canada's position was based on "misleading information", adding that anyone arrested was "subject to Saudi laws that guarantee their rights".
The leading Saudi women's rights campaigner Manal al-Sharif thanked Canada for "speaking up" and asked when other Western powers would do the same.
Manal al-Sharif
✔
@manal_alsharif
Thank you, Canada for speaking up. When are we going to hear from the US, the UK, and the EU about these arrests? #HumanRights #ReleaseSaudiDetainees #Saudi #Canada
Foreign Policy CAN
✔
@CanadaFP
Canada is gravely concerned about additional arrests of civil society and women’s rights activists in #SaudiArabia, including Samar Badawi. We urge the Saudi authorities to immediately release them and all other peaceful #humanrights activists.
6:12 PM - Aug 6, 2018
In what appeared to be a further sign of deteriorating relations between the two countries, a verified Twitter account, which is reportedly linked to Saudi authorities, shared an image of a plane flying towards Toronto's famed CN Tower.
The image was overlaid with text, including a quote which read "he who with what doesn't concern him finds what doesn't please him".
Skip Twitter post by @AlexInAir
View image on TwitterView image on Twitter
Alex Macheras
✔
@AlexInAir
More very concerning rhetoric emerging from #SaudiArabia, once again involving aviation.
In Saudi’s latest rift, now with #Canada — an account connected to the Saudi Royal Court has published images with text of an @AirCanada Boeing 767 descending towards CN Tower in Toronto 😳
11:50 PM - Aug 6, 2018
People on social media have been quick to point out the similarities between the image and images of 9/11.
The account has since been deleted, but cached versions of the tweet are circulating online.
Who is being held?
Last Tuesday, the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights said at least 15 human rights defenders and women's rights activists critical of the Saudi government had been arrested or detained arbitrarily since 15 May.
Eight of them are believed to have been released pending "procedural reviews", but the whereabouts of several others are unknown.
Several of those detained have been accused of serious crimes, including "suspicious contact with foreign parties", and could face up to 20 years in prison.
Human rights groups reported that Ms Badawi was also detained last week, along with fellow women's rights campaigner Nassima al-Sadah.
Ms Badawi was given the US International Women of Courage Award in 2012 and is known for challenging Saudi Arabia's male guardianship system.
Her brother Raif was sentenced to 10 years in prison and 1,000 lashes for "insulting Islam" online back in 2014, while his wife, Ensaf Haidar, lives in Canada and recently became a Canadian citizen.
What did Canada say?
Chrystia Freeland called for the release of Samar Badawi and her brother Raif
Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland wrote on Twitter on Thursday that she was "very alarmed" to learn that Ms Badawi had been detained.
The next day, the Canadian foreign ministry called for the activist's "immediate release".
Foreign Policy CAN
✔
@CanadaFP
Canada is gravely concerned about additional arrests of civil society and women’s rights activists in #SaudiArabia, including Samar Badawi. We urge the Saudi authorities to immediately release them and all other peaceful #humanrights activists.
12:10 AM - Aug 4, 2018
How did Saudi Arabia react?
The Saudi foreign ministry statement expressed "disbelief [at] this negative unfounded comment which was not based [on] any accurate or true information".
It insisted the activists were being detained lawfully and that the Canadian statements represented "blatant interference in the kingdom's domestic affairs".
Foreign Ministry 🇸🇦
✔
@KSAmofaEN
Replying to @KSAmofaEN
#Statement | Using the phrase (immediately release) in the Canadian statement is very unfortunate, reprehensible, and unacceptable in relations between States.
8:59 AM - Aug 6, 2018
The ministry recalled its ambassador to Canada for consultations and declared the Canadian ambassador persona non grata, giving him 24 hours to leave.
Saudi Arabia would also "put on hold all new business and investment transactions with Canada while retaining its right to take further action", it said. Trade between the two countries was worth $3bn (£2.3bn) in 2016.
All scholarships enabling Saudi students to study in Canada were also suspended, while students already in the country will be relocated.
It is unclear how many people this will affect. The Vancouver Sun said in 2015 that about 5,000 new students arrive from Saudi Arabia each year.
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