Category Archives: US News

‘El Chapo’ defense lasts 30 minutes and calls just one witness

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Prosecution case against accused Mexican drug lord had lasted 11 weeks

After a prosecution that spanned 11 weeks and had its share of bombshells, the defense case at the US trial of the alleged Mexican drug lord Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzmán clocked in on Tuesday at a mere 30 minutes.

Attorney Jeffrey Lichtman called one witness and entered one document into evidence before resting the defense’s case. The jury was sent home for the day with closing arguments set to begin on Wednesday.

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Polar vortex blasts US with life-threatening cold

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Warming shelters open in midwest as Chicago area sees temperatures drop to -50F (-46C), with snow possible in southern states

A blast of arctic-chilled air from the polar vortex brought dangerous, record-setting cold to a wide swath of the eastern US on Tuesday, stretching from the Dakotas through Maine, with snow expected as far south as Alabama and Georgia.

Cities in the midwest opened warming shelters as temperatures plummeted well below zero degrees Fahrenheit (-17.8C) . Regional governments closed hundreds of schools and airlines canceled more than 1,000 flights, including many to Atlanta days before the Super Bowl.

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Howard Schultz called ‘billionaire elite’ by heckler in New York – video

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A day after the former Starbucks chief Howard Schultz said he might run independently for US president, a heckler at a book launch in Manhattan shouted at him: 'Don't help elect Trump.' Schultz has faced fierce criticism from Democrats who say his candidacy may help Donald Trump win re-election in 2020. 'Go back to Davos with the rest of the billionaire elite who think they know how to run the world,' the heckler added before being pulled aside by security

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Kendall Jenner and Bella Hadid facing possible subpoenas over Fyre Festival

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Subpoenas for financial information likely include Jenner and firms representing 25 models who starred in promotional video

Supermodels including Kendall Jenner, Bella Hadid, Elsa Hosk and Emily Ratajkowski, are potentially steps away from facing demands to return sizeable payments they received for helping to promote the ill-fated Fyre Festival.

On Monday, a New York bankruptcy judge signed off on subpoenas submitted by the trustee overseeing the bankruptcy of the Bahamas music festival, which collapsed in chaos and discord before it had even got under way last April, requesting “information regarding the [Fyre Media’s] financial affairs from third parties”.

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Polar vortex: how cold will it be and what should the midwest expect?

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Though the region is familiar with bitter winters, record low temperatures may be threatening, forecasters warn

Record low temperatures are descending on the American midwest. The region is long familiar with bitter winters, but this is an exceptional cold snap that forecasters warn could be life-threatening. The extreme chill comes after a snowstorm that hit the area overnight on Monday.

Related: Americans’ climate change concerns surge to record levels, poll shows

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Woman trapped in billionaire’s elevator rescued after three days

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Housekeeper Marites Fortaliza was alone in Warren Stephens’s townhouse when she became trapped on Friday night

A woman was rescued on Monday after being trapped in the elevator of a billionaire’s Manhattan townhouse for an entire weekend. She is now in the hospital in stable condition.

The house is owned by Warren Stephens, the chief executive of the investment bank Stephens. He has an estimated net worth of $2.4bn.

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Quebec mosque attack: two years on, will security trump openness?

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The planned transformation of Quebec’s Grand Mosque is haunted by the deadly attack on the Islamic centre in 2017

Until 29 January 2017, random motorists on the busy Chemin Sainte-Foy would sometimes pull over to the Quebec City Grand Mosque to withdraw some money.

Converted from a Desjardins Bank, it still looks like one, with its rows of rectangular glass panes and a barricaded drive-through. Its only crescent and minaret are in graphic form on a small plastic sign, blocked from the road by trees.

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Trump-Russia investigation almost complete, says acting attorney general – as it happened

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Thanks for staying with us through another eventful day. We’ll see you tomorrow.

The Guardian’s Erin Durkin is at former Starbucks CEO and possible independent 2020 presidential candidate Howard Schultz’s first stop of his book tour, which has turned into a town hall of sorts.

Speaking at a New York Barnes and Noble, he ruled out any possibility that he would run as a Democrat, despite his life-long affiliation with the party.

In 2020, the great likelihood is that an independent would just split the anti-Trump vote and end up re-electing the President. That's a risk I refused to run in 2016 and we can't afford to run it now. https://t.co/SmHM6cYUg7 pic.twitter.com/iQ2CK5o2k6

Howard Schultz doesn’t have the “guts” to run for President! Watched him on @60Minutes last night and I agree with him that he is not the “smartest person.” Besides, America already has that! I only hope that Starbucks is still paying me their rent in Trump Tower!

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Joshua Tree national park ‘may take 300 years to recover’ from shutdown

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National park saw ‘irreparable’ damage including vandalism, ruined trails and trees cut down, says former superintendent

The former superintendent of Joshua Tree national park has said it could take hundreds of years to recover from damage caused by visitors during the longest-ever government shutdown.

“What’s happened to our park in the last 34 days is irreparable for the next 200 to 300 years,” Curt Sauer said at a rally over the weekend, according to a report from the Desert Sun. Sauer retired in 2010 after running the park for seven years.

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What happened to the deal – and the refugees – surviving Australian and US politics? | Anne Richard

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I signed the agreement to resettle some of Australia’s refugees from Nauru and Manus Island in the US. I wanted to see how they are faring now

Two years ago, Australia’s then prime minister Malcolm Turnbull called to congratulate Donald Trump on his inauguration, and to elicit the new president’s support for continuing an agreement between Australia and the US. Australia had stopped thousands of asylum seekers from reaching its shores and had arranged to detain them on islands in the South Pacific; the US had agreed to resettle some in America. The transcript of the phone conversation makes clear that the deal was a top priority for Turnbull and an unwelcome surprise for Trump, who called it “a rotten deal”.

Related: US believed Australia would take more refugees in exchange for Nauru and Manus deal

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Trump steps up Maduro pressure with sanctions against Venezuelan oil giant

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  • Sanctions on $7bn in assets intended to boost Guaidó
  • John Bolton keen to counter ‘penetration’ from Cuba and Iran

The Trump administration has tightened the screws on Venezuela’s embattled president, Nicolás Maduro, announcing sanctions against the country’s state-owned oil giant PDVSA in what the US national security adviser admitted was partly an attempt to counter strategic threats from Cuba and Iran.

Related: Juan Guaidó: Venezuela has chance to leave chaos behind

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Huawei: US charges Chinese telecoms giant with stealing trade secrets

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  • Grand juries indict company, affiliates and CFO on 23 charges
  • Attorney general says offending went ‘all the way to the top’

Huawei, the Chinese telecommunications giant, was charged with a series of crimes by the US on Monday, in an escalation of hostilities between the world’s biggest economic powers.

Related: State of the Union: Pelosi invites Trump to deliver address again – live

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Bear in mind: lost boy’s tale of ursine guardian ‘likely to be fantasy’

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Three-year-old Casey Hathaway said a bear helped him survive two nights in the woods but animal experts say it would be a first

The story of a three-year-old boy who said he survived two nights alone in the woods due to the assistance of a friendly bear should not encourage people to seek out their own relationships with bears, a leading ursine expert has warned.

Related: Three-year-old boy missing in woods for two days says friendly bear kept him safe

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US framework deal with Taliban raises hope of Afghan peace

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US troops would withdraw from Afghanistan within 18 months of full agreement

US and Taliban officials have agreed in principle to the framework of a deal that could pave the way for peace talks in Kabul and ultimately the withdrawal of American troops from Afghanistan, raising hopes of a breakthrough in the country’s 17-year conflict.

Under the terms of the draft framework, the insurgents would promise to stop Afghan territory being used by terrorists. The US special envoy, Zalmay Khalilzad, confirmed the existence of the draft in an interview with the New York Times (NYT).

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UN court judge quits The Hague citing political interference

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Christoph Flügge warns over ‘shocking’ moves by Trump administration and Turkey

A senior judge has resigned from one of the UN’s international courts in The Hague citing “shocking” political interference from the White House and Turkey.

Christoph Flügge, a German judge, claimed the US had threatened judges after moves were made to examine the conduct of US soldiers in Afghanistan.

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Kamala Harris kicks off 2020 US presidential campaign – video

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Kamala Harris drew a bigger crowd at her presidential campaign launch in Oakland than Barack Obama did when he launched his run for president in Illinois in 2007. At least 20,000 people turned up to hear the California senator outline her plan for winning the White House in 2020, according to an estimate from local police. She would be the first African American woman and first South Asian American to be chosen as a presidential nominee

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Three-year-old boy missing in woods for two days says friendly bear kept him safe

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Casey Hathaway from North Carolina hailed ‘a survivor’ by police after becoming lost in sub-zero temperatures

A three-year-old boy who survived two nights alone in the woods in freezing conditions has told police and family he was helped out by a friendly bear that was with him the whole time.

Rescuers responding to reports of a baby crying found Casey Hathaway tangled up in thorny bushes, cold and soaked but safe on Thursday night. He had gone missing on Tuesday in conditions so bad the subsequent search had to be called off.

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Kamala Harris kicks off 2020 campaign with hometown Oakland rally

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If estimates are correct, Kamala Harris drew a bigger crowd at her presidential campaign launch in Oakland than Barack Obama did when he announced his run for president in Illinois in 2007.

Harris, the second African-American woman elected to the US senate, has drawn comparisons to Obama since early in her political career. And on Sunday, at least 20,000 people flooded the streets of downtown Oakland to hear the California senator outline her plan for winning the White House in 2020, according to an estimate from local police. Obama’s 2007 campaign launch attracted an estimated 15,000 people.

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Trump lifts sanctions on firms linked to Russian oligarch Oleg Deripaska

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  • Democrats in Congress opposed move to lift restrictions
  • Deripaska is ally of Russian president Vladimir Putin

The Trump administration has lifted sanctions on three companies, including the aluminum giant Rusal, linked to Russian oligarch Oleg Deripaska. Democrats had led a push in Congress to continue the restrictions.

Related: 'Sex trainer' who said she could prove Russia meddled in US election freed

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Will the 35-day shutdown lead to privatizing government functions?

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For one ideological constituency, the government shutdown may hold the seeds to privatizing functions such as air traffic control and airport security

The US government is open again. For now.

For many liberals, it will read as the spoils of Nancy Pelosi’s finest hour and proof of her superior bargaining acumen. For disappointed conservatives pundits, evidence that Trump is a proper “wimp” in his act of capitulation.

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