ECM WORLD WATCH: NATIONAL AND GLOBAL NEWS

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October 24, 2018 (San Diego’s East County) --- East County Magazine's World Watch helps you be an informed citizen on important issues globally and nationally. As part of our commitment to reflect all voices and views, we include links to a  variety of news sources representing a broad spectrum of political, religious, and social views. Top world and U.S. headlines include:

U.S.

WORLD

For excerpts and links to full stories, click “read more” and scroll down.

U.S.

Trump: US to 'begin cutting off' aid to countries associated with migrant caravan (The Hill)

President Trump on Monday said that the U.S. will begin to cut off or reduce aid to Honduras, Guatemala and El Salvador as citizens of those countries flee for the U.S. as part of a so-called caravan of migrants. In a trio of tweets, the president escalated his rhetoric surrounding the group of migrants, declaring a national emergency as they approach the border and claiming that "unknown Middle Easterners" had joined the group. Trump, in the tweets, did not offer any evidence for the charge that people from the Middle East were among those crossing the border.

Explosive devices sent to Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama, and CNN (Boston Globe)

The U.S. Secret Service has intercepted a bomb that was addressed to Hillary Clinton and also discovered a possible explosive that was sent to former President Barack Obama.  Also Wednesday, a police bomb squad was sent to CNN’s offices in New York City and the newsroom was evacuated because of a suspicious package believed to be a pipe bomb. 

Trump proposes tax cut; GOP lawmakers privately skeptical (Washington Post)

 The president’s announcement of a new tax cut comes barely two weeks ahead of midterm elections that will decide control of Congress.

Trump administration widens Obamacare escape hatch for red states (Politico)

The Trump administration said Monday it will give states significant new ability to opt out of Obamacare requirements, a move that could boost cheaper health plans with fewer protections for pre-existing conditions. Many health insurance experts warn the move could essentially create two health insurance markets — one for healthy people who opt for the cheaper plans and another for sicker patients who will face spiraling costs.

US named world's most competitive economy for the first time in 10 years (Jewish World Review)

The World Economic Forum on Wednesday released its latest global competitiveness report, which looked at 140 economies based on 98 wide-ranging social, political and economic factors…Countries were given scores out of 100.  The U.S. took the top slot with a score of 85.6, buoyed by its capacity for innovation, evident in its high scores in business dynamism and entrepreneurial culture. The report also highlighted the nation's strong labor market and financial system.  But authors warned the U.S. economy is under threat from a "weakening social fabric," corruption and security and IT issues. It also pointed out that the United States is far behind most advanced economies in health, with life expectancy six years behind competitors Singapore and Japan.

Has Trump Met the Burden of Proof for Ripping Up an Arms Deal With Russia? (Time)

Citing classified intelligence information, President Donald Trump revealed the U.S. government’s intention to withdraw from a landmark arms control treaty with Russia that has kept mid-range nuclear-tipped missiles off the European continent for three decades.

U.S. CMS says 75,000 individuals' files accessed in data breach (Reuters)

The U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) said on Friday it was responding to a data breach that exposed the files of about 75,000 individuals.

Your state-by-state guide to GOP voter suppression(Paste)

Last week, I detailed how the Republican Party is echoing the Jim Crow era in order to suppress the votes of minorities. Florida and Georgia are having a litany of “issues” registering people to vote, and Georgia is also kicking people off the voter rolls (the man running for governor, Brian Kemp, is Georgia’s Secretary of State, and his office has control over all these shenanigans). In Indiana, over 400,000 people—equivalent to a little more than 10% of registered voters in the 2014 midterms—have been kicked off the rolls, and North Dakota is stripping Native Americans of the right to vote because the U.S. Postal Service won’t give some of them an address, and Republican legislators have passed a law requiring a physical address in order to vote. Here is an update…

Fury erupts over reported Trump administration plan to redefine gender and target civil rights protections for transgender people (San Diego Union-Tribune)

LGBTQ leaders across the U.S. reacted with fury Monday to a report that the Trump administration is considering adoption of a new definition of gender that would effectively deny federal recognition and civil rights protections to transgender Americans.

South Carolina is lobbying to allow discrimination against Jewish parents (The Intercept)

The Trump administration is considering whether to grant a South Carolina request that would effectively allow faith-based foster care agencies in the state the ability to deny Jewish parents from fostering children in its network. The argument, from the state and from the agency, is that the federal Religious Freedom Restoration Act should not force a Protestant group to work with Jewish people if it violates a tenet of their faith.

WORLD

Flights canceled, cruise ships diverted as powerful Hurricane Willa threatens Mexico's coastal resorts, from San Blas to Mazatlan (San Diego Union Tribune)

Hurricane Willa intensified to a potentially catastrophic Category 5 hurricane that’s expected to slam Mexico’s southwestern coast as early as Tuesday afternoon and evening.

How the man in Khashoggi murder ran killing via Skype (Reuters) 

He ran social media for Saudi Arabia's crown prince. He masterminded the arrest of hundreds of his country's elite. He detained a Lebanese prime minister. And, according to two sources, he ran journalist Jamal Khashoggi's brutal killing by giving orders over Skype…A Turkish intelligence source relayed that at one point Qahtani told his men to dispose of Khashoggi. “Bring me the head of the dog”, the Turkish intelligence source says Qahtani instructed.

Trump condemns Khashoggi death and aftermath as 'the worst cover up ever' (CNN)

President Donald Trump offered his most stinging indictment yet of a Saudi effort to silence a dissident journalist, calling the series of events that led to Jamal Khashoggi's death "the worst cover up ever."… Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said the US will be revoking the visas of those who murdered the Washington Post journalist, and said that the administration has "identified at least some of the individuals responsible.” 

 

Khashoggi Case: 'Body Double' Reportedly Seen After Killing (NBC)

Saudi Arabia's claim that Jamal Khashoggi died in a "fistfight" was met with international skepticism and allegations of a cover-up to absolve the 33-year-old crown prince of direct responsibility…CNN aired surveillance footage on Monday showing the man in Khashoggi's dress shirt, suit jacket and pants. It cited a Turkish official as describing the man as a "body double" and a member of the Saudi team sent to Istanbul to target the writer…

Report: Saudi Journalist Khashoggi's Remains Found (Haaretz)

Khashoggi's body was found in the garden of the Saudi consul general's home, according to Sky News.

10,000 rioters at Gaza border, in tense IDF-Hamas standoff (Jerusalem Post)

On Friday, 10,000 Palestinians protested along the border. The protesters burned tires and hurled stones and Molotov cocktails at IDF troops. There were three attempted infiltrations, in which Palestinians crossed into Israel and then went back to Gaza, the IDF said. About 130 Palestinians were injured in the day’s events.  The protest was relatively small – some of the previous gatherings included 30,000 people – a sign tensions from the past few days may be easing…. Israel and Hamas appeared Wednesday to be on the brink of renewed war, after Palestinians in Gaza launched two powerful Grad rockets, one of which destroyed a home in Beersheba and the other reached the center of the country…


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