Category Archives: US News

Kim Jong-un pledges to support Russia ‘in fight against imperialism’ | First Thing

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North Korea’s ‘first priority’ is its relationship with Moscow, Kim tells Putin during meeting at remote Russian space base. Plus, why is the US addicted to laxatives?

Good morning.

Kim Jong-un has pledged to support all of Russia’s decisions as he met Vladimir Putin at a remote Russian space base during a rare trip outside North Korea.

What has the Kremlin said about the meeting? A Kremlin spokesperson said the relationship between Russia and North Korea is not aimed at other countries, and should not be a worry for third countries. North Korea launched two ballistic missiles into the sea this morning as a demonstration of strength while Kim was out of the country. Japan has protested.

What did the CWA say about the speech? Announcing its Trump speech, the CWA said the multiply accused former president had signed its “presidential promise to American women, pledging to recognise the unique dignity of women”.

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Hurricane Lee heads north with landfall expected in Nova Scotia or Maine

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Storm threatens to affect parts of Bermuda, New England and Atlantic Canada with winds up to 115mph

Hurricane Lee continues to grow larger in size as it moves northward and threatens to affects parts of Bermuda, New England and Atlantic Canada.

Moving at 7mph (11.3km/h) and packing winds of up to 115mph (185km/h), Lee was positioned 380 miles (612km) north of the northern Leeward Islands as well as 600 miles (965km) south of Bermuda, the National Hurricane Center (NHC) said on Monday evening. That track triggered a tropical storm watch for Bermuda.

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Kevin McCarthy endorses Biden impeachment inquiry – live updates

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Speaker directs House committees to open formal impeachment inquiry despite Republicans being unable to substantiate wrongdoing

Former Democratic presidential candidate Andrew Yang remains listed as the co-chair for the Forward Party, which he launched after leaving the Democratic party to become an independent in 2021.

Yang slammed the idea of the 2024 presidential election shaping up to be a Donald Trump vs Joe Biden rematch in the Politico interview, describing the situation as “terribly unrepresentative and borderline ridiculous” and pointing to their ages.

I mean, you’re talking about two guys whose combined age is 160. In a country of 330 million people, you would choose these two gentlemen at this stage? I mean, it makes zero sense.

I’ve had conversations with various folks who are associated with No Labels.

I would not run for president, if I thought that my running would be counterproductive, or if it would increase the chances of someone like Donald Trump becoming president again.

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Women challenge abortion bans in three states after emergency care denied

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The Center for Reproductive Rights has taken legal action on behalf of women denied care in Idaho, Oklahoma and Tennessee

Women who say they were denied abortions in medical emergencies have taken legal action in Idaho, Oklahoma and Tennessee, in the latest attempt to challenge abortion bans that, abortion patients and doctors say, prevent people from getting care even when their health is in danger.

The lawsuits in Idaho and Tennessee, along with a federal complaint against a hospital in Oklahoma, were filed on Tuesday by the Center for Reproductive Rights, which filed a similar lawsuit on behalf of women in Texas earlier this year. Tuesday’s filings were first reported by the Washington Post.

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Andrew Yang has ‘had conversations’ with third-party 2024 election group

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Tech entrepreneur and 2020 Democratic hopeful says he has spoken with No Labels, who are considering launching a candidate

The tech entrepreneur Andrew Yang, who ran for the Democratic presidential nomination in 2020, has “had conversations” with No Labels, a group considering launching a third-party candidate in the 2024 election.

“I’ve had conversations with various folks who are associated with No Labels,” Yang told Politico.

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US to argue Google abused power to monopolize internet search as antitrust trial begins

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Outcome could reshape how public accesses and interacts with the internet, or embolden Google to pursue tighter grip on the market

The watershed antitrust trial pitting the US government against Google begins on Tuesday in a Washington district court, as the government is set to make its case that the tech giant illegally abused its power to monopolize internet search. It is the biggest test of antitrust law in decades, and the first such case against Google to go to trial.

Big tech companies and regulators are closely watching the trial, which could force a shift in how the industry is allowed to operate. Its outcome could reshape how the public accesses and interacts with the internet, or embolden Google to pursue an even tighter grip on the market.

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Drew Barrymore faces criticism for restarting talkshow amid writers’ strike

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Demonstrators picket outside CBS Studios in New York to protest decision to resume production without unionized writers

Protesters slammed host Drew Barrymore for restarting her daytime talkshow without its unionized writers amid the Writers Guild of America (WGA) strike.

Chanting slogans such as “shut it down”, at least a dozen demonstrators picketed in front of CBS Studios in New York on Monday to protest against Barrymore’s decision to resume production of her talkshow’s fourth season.

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Trump White House officials feel as if they are facing prison, ally Navarro says

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Ex-Trump aide says his contempt of Congress conviction makes ex-colleagues fear ‘massive legal bills … and prison time’

Peter Navarro’s contempt of Congress conviction has “everybody in that frigging White House” feeling as if they are grappling with “massive legal bills and … prison time”, the ex-Donald Trump administration official said on Monday.

Navarro’s remarks came in an interview with the far-right media outlet Newsmax in which he used the term “SOBs” – short for sons of bitches – to refer to the US justice department prosecutors who secured a guilty verdict against him last week.

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US agrees to release $6bn in Iran funds as part of deal to free detained Americans

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Sanctions waiver will allow transfer of $6bn in frozen Iranian assets from South Korea to Qatar, in effort to win release of quintet

The Biden administration has issued a waiver to allow the transfer of $6bn in frozen Iranian funds from South Korea to Qatar as part of a deal to free five Americans detained in Iran.

The waiver was a necessary step towards advancing a previously announced deal, which also involves the freeing of five Iranian citizens imprisoned in the US, mostly for sanctions-busting offenses.

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Updated Covid vaccines approved by US medical regulator – live

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FDA approval makes way for vaccines targeting XBB.1.5 sub-variant to be rolled out

Joe Biden’s national security tour of south-east Asia reached Hanoi, Vietnam, on Sunday, where the president called for stability in the US-China relationship against an increasingly complex diplomatic picture in the region for his country.

“I don’t want to contain China,” Biden said.

I just want to make sure that we have a relationship with China that is on the up and up, squared away, everybody knows what it’s all about.

On the one hand, we’ve got to pass a continuing resolution. We also have the impeachment issue. And we also have members of the House, led by my good friend, Chip Roy, who are concerned about policy issues. They want riders in the appropriations bills, amendments in the appropriations bills that guarantee some type of security on our Southern border.

There is not a strong connection at this point between the evidence on Hunter Biden and any evidence connecting the president.

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FDA approves new Covid boosters as cases rise around US

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Moderna and Pfizer shots approved with vaccinations potentially beginning as soon as this week

The US has approved a series of Covid-19 booster vaccines amid rising cases of coronavirus around the country, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said on Monday.

The FDA said it had approved Moderna and Pfizer-BioNTech vaccines, which can be administered even to people who never previously received a Covid-19 vaccination.

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US scientists who used scissors to kill lab rats must be fired, activists say

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Tulane university researchers accused of ‘serious’ violations that breached international protocol over animal deaths

An animal rights group is demanding the firing of researchers at a Louisiana university who killed laboratory rats with scissors and a blunt blade – and used out-of-date anesthetics for pain relief.

The episodes are detailed in separate, self-reported notices of violation to the federal Office of Laboratory Animal Welfare (Olaw), which were sent by Tulane University in New Orleans and obtained by the Stop Animal Exploitation Now advocacy group.

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Demolition of Marilyn Monroe’s house halted after widespread outrage

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Los Angeles officials intervened to block the tearing down of the property and are considering it for historic preservation

The final home of Marilyn Monroe – and the only residence she ever owned independently – will remain standing for now after Los Angeles officials intervened to block the property’s demolition.

The news that the new owners of 12305 Fifth Helena Drive, where Monroe died at age 36, filed for demolition permits had attracted widespread outrage. Los Angeles city councilwoman Traci Park said she received hundreds of calls urging her to save the Spanish colonial-style house in the city’s Brentwood neighborhood.

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Outcry as Atlanta refuses to handle petitions over ‘Cop City’ police campus

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City condemned for controversial move after activists and protesters deliver signatures to clerk’s office at city hall

The city of Atlanta has refused to begin counting and verifying petitions signed by about 116,000 registered voters to put on the ballot the question of whether a controversial police and fire department training center known as “Cop City” should be built.

The move was backed by a legal memo from lawyers hired by the city, citing an active court case, after dozens of activists and Atlanta residents delivered the petitions to the clerk’s office at city hall on Monday.

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Protesters arrested for occupying Kevin McCarthy’s office over Aids funding

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Program caught in a partisan fight over abortion and is under threat amid Congress’s negotiations over government shutdown

Several people were arrested after entering the office of Kevin McCarthy, the speaker of the House, during a protest for HIV/Aids funding on Monday.

The US President’s Emergency Plan for Aids Relief (Pepfar), a widely bipartisan program, has since been reauthorized three times, and Joe Biden earlier this year indicated that he would work with Congress to extend it a fourth.

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Pit bull puppy saved by California police after possible fentanyl exposure

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The pup’s owners were arrested in a Walmart parking lot on suspicion of animal cruelty and possession of narcotics

California police administered an overdose-reversing drug to a pit bull puppy in attempts to save it from a potential fentanyl overdose.

On Friday, the Irvine police department announced that it administered a dose of Narcan to the puppy after it was exposed to fentanyl in a car and began to “show signs of an overdose”.

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Phoenix sets record in hellishly hot summer – but relief is in sight

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The Arizona capital reached 55th day above 110F this year, but forecast says that cooler temps – even rain – are on the horizon

Residents in Phoenix, Arizona, are set to experience some relief from the blistering heatwave following the city’s record of the most days at or above 110F (43.3C) this year despite reaching 112F (44.4C) on Sunday, according to the National Weather Service (NWS).

On Sunday, the NWS announced that temperatures in Arizona’s largest city will finally begin to retreat “closer to the seasonal normal” with highs expected to range between 102F (38.9C) and 104F (40C) between Monday and Friday. Sunday’s temperature broke the daily high record of 111F (43.9C) set in 1990.

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Gun rights group sues New Mexico governor over emergency firearm ban

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Michelle Lujan Grisham announced open and concealed carry restrictions on Friday after the deaths of three children

A pro-gun group is suing the New Mexico governor, Michelle Lujan Grisham, in an effort to block a 30-day emergency order suspending the right to carry firearms in public in Albuquerque’s Bernalillo county issued last week after a spate of shootings.

The governor announced open and concealed carry restrictions on Friday in a public health order relating to gun violence after the fatal shootings of an 11-year-old boy on his way home from a minor league baseball game last week, as well as the fatal shooting of a four-year-old girl in her bed in a motor home and a 13-year-old girl in Taos county in August.

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Joe Biden calls for stable US-China relationship during south-east Asia tour

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The US president’s remarks came after after meeting in Vietnam with Communist party official to secure global supply chain

Joe Biden’s national security tour of south-east Asia reached Hanoi, Vietnam, on Sunday, where the president called for stability in the US-China relationship against an increasingly complex diplomatic picture in the region for his country.

“I don’t want to contain China,” Biden said. “I just want to make sure that we have a relationship with China that is on the up and up, squared away, everybody knows what it’s all about.”

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Kamala Harris says she’s prepared to serve as president ‘if necessary’

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Vice-president dismisses opponents’ attacks that president is too old to seek out a second term and says ‘he’s going to be fine’

Kamala Harris on Sunday declared herself ready to assume the presidency if it ever behooved her to do so – but she also made it a point to dismiss opponents’ political attacks that Joe Biden is too old to seek out a second term in the Oval Office.

Asked on CBS’s Face the Nation whether she was prepared to serve as commander-in-chief in case Biden became unable to carry out his duties, Harris said: “Yes, I am, if necessary.”

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