Archived threads in /news/ - Current News - 70. page

>>146490

THE EMAILS PROVIDED so far to the The Intercept show a growing relationship between the United Arab Emirates and the pro-Israel, neoconservative think tank the Foundation for Defense of Democracies (FDD).

On the surface, the alliance should be surprising, as the UAE does not even recognize Israel. But the two countries have worked together in the past against their common adversary, Iran.

On March 10 of this year, FDD CEO Mark Dubowitz authored an e-mail to both the UAE’s Ambassador to the United States, Yousef Al-Otaiba and FDD senior counselor John Hannah — a former deputy national security advisor to Vice President Dick Cheney — with the subject line “Target list of companies investing in Iran, UAE and Saudi Arabia.”

“Dear, Mr. Ambassador,” Dubowitz wrote. “The attached memorandum details companies listed by country which are doing business with Iran and also have business with the UAE and Saudi Arabia. This is a target list for putting these companies to a choice, as we have discussed.”

Dubowitz’s attached memorandum includes a lengthy list of “Non-U.S. businesses with operations in Saudi Arabia or UAE that are looking to invest in Iran.”

The list includes a number of major international firms, including France’s Airbus and Russia’s Lukoil.

Presumably, the companies are being identified so that the UAE and Saudi Arabia can pressure them over investing in Iran, which is seeing an expansion of foreign investment following the 2015 nuclear deal.

cont.

>>146491

Israel and the Gulf monarchies have grown closer in recent years, as both sides fear that Iran is moving closer to normalization with the West and will therefore increase its own influence and power in the region. But admissions of the alliance between the two are still rare in public. One high-level Israeli official, discussing the relationship on background for a previous HuffPost profile of Otaiba, laid out the politics of it. “Israel and the Arabs standing together is the ultimate ace in the hole. Because it takes it out of the politics and the ideology. When Israel and the Arab states are standing together, it’s powerful,” he said.

The hacked emails demonstrate a remarkable level of backchannel cooperation between a leading neoconservative think tank — FDD is funded by pro-Israel billionaire Sheldon Adelson, an ally of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu who is one of the largest political donors in the United States — and a Gulf monarchy.

Hannah and Otaiba are frequently chummy in the exchanges. On August 16 of last year, Hannah sent Otaiba an article claiming that the UAE and FDD were both responsible for the brief military coup in Turkey. “Honored that we’re in your company,” Hannah wrote to Otaiba.

In another email exchange in late April of this year, Hannah complains to Otaiba that Qatar — a rival Gulf government that has clashed with the UAE in recent months over various issues — is hosting a meeting of Hamas at an Emirati-owned hotel. Otaiba responds that it’s not the Emirati government’s fault, and that the real issue is the U.S. military base in Qatar, “How’s this, you move the base then we’ll move the hotel :-).”

cont.

>>146493

The emails detail the proposed agenda of an upcoming meeting between FDD and UAE government officials that is scheduled for June 11-14. Dubowitz and Hannah are listed as attending, as well as Jonathan Schanzer, FDD Vice President for Research. UAE officials requested for meetings include Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed, the crown prince who commands the armed forces.

The agenda includes extensive discussion between the two on Qatar. They are scheduled to discuss, for instance, “Al Jazeera as an instrument of regional instability.” (Al Jazeera is based in Qatar.)

There is also “discussion of possible U.S./UAE policies to positively impact Iranian internal situation”; included among the list of policies are “political, economic, military, intelligence, and cyber tools,” which are also brought up as a possible response to “contain and defeat Iranian aggression.”

FDD has been involved in shaping Mideast policy debate during the Trump administration, so it is likely that the UAE views it as an important conduit to pressure Trump to adopt its more hawkish line on Iran. David Weinberg, a senior fellow at the organization, was quoted last month as saying that the UAE is “ecstatic” about the Trump administration’s approach to the region.

“They have been looking for some time for an American partner to push-back against Iran,” he told Arabianbusiness.com. “They are looking for America to turn rhetoric into action.”

Otaiba has also developed a close relationship with President Trump son-in-law and adviser Jared Kushner. The two first met last June at the behest of Thomas Barrack, a billionaire investor and Trump backer. A Politico article last February described Kushner as “in almost constant phone and email contact” with the ambassador.

cont.

https://twitter.com/20committee/status/870710751446433793

>If Trump's dumb enough to block Comey's testimony, DC fireworks -- and truly YUGE leaks -- will commence at once.

>>146226
Do it. We on /pol/ will back you.

Frankly if he does, he all but openly admits Comey's right. If he testified and says something daming, then Trump's screwed.
BUT if Trump blocks his testimony before he can speak, obviously he's got something worth hiding.

>Those tax cuts would overwhelmingly benefit the highest-income Americans, the Tax Policy Center, a Washington think tank, reported on Wednesday.

>The increase in the number of uninsured is also slightly lower than in the CBO's initial estimate. That report estimated that 24 million fewer would be insured in 2026 if this bill were to become law, putting the uninsured rate at around 18.6 percent. This revised bill would reduce that by around 1 million — a difference of less than half a percentage point.

>In contrast, the uninsured rate in 2026 would be around 10 percent under Obamacare, the CBO reports.

>More than half of that increase in the uninsured — 14 million — would come from reduced Medicaid enrollment.

>The CBO also notes that the AHCA could mean some Americans would buy policies that don't cover "major medical risks." Because of those policies' skimpy coverage, the CBO doesn't count those people as insured in this report.

>The Trump administration responded by saying it believes the CBO's numbers are unreliable.

>"History has proven the CBO to be totally incapable of accurately predicting how healthcare legislation will impact health insurance coverage," the White House said in a statement.

>The CBO did indeed far overestimate the number of people who would sign up for the Obamacare exchanges, as FactCheck.org's Brooks Jackson wrote in March. Likewise, it undershot on the number of Medicaid enrollees. (That said, Jackson added, the CBO predicted the uninsured rate relatively closely.)

Difficulties for some addicted, pregnant or sick Americans

>The act could make obtaining health care coverage prohibitively expensive for some sicker Americans, the CBO found.

>That's because under the AHCA, states could get waivers exempting them from some Obamacare provisions, including what are called essential health benefits — a list of basics like mental health and prescription drugs that the Affordable Care Act required plans to cover. States could also get waivers that allow insurers to charge more for people with pre-existing conditions.

>One challenge the CBO faced in creating these estimates was figuring out how many states would get those waivers, and the report acknowledges that this creates some uncertainty in the estimates. In the end, it estimated that around one-sixth of the population lives in states that would seek both of those waivers. Around half of Americans live in states that would seek no waivers, meanwhile, and the remainder live in states that would make "moderate" changes.

>In states that obtained both of those waivers, it would mean lower premiums for people buying individual insurance. But less healthy Americans in those states could face "extremely high premiums," the report said.

>"Over time, it would become more difficult for less healthy people (including people with preexisting medical conditions) in those states to purchase insurance because their premiums would continue to increase rapidly," the CBO wrote.

>Waiving essential health benefits could also make medical care much more expensive for people who are pregnant, addicted or have other mental health issues and who live in those states that waive those benefits.

>"In particular, out-of-pocket spending on maternity care and mental health and substance abuse services could increase by thousands of dollars in a given year for the nongroup enrollees who would use those services," the report says of people living in those states.

>Under current law, the CBO wrote, the markets will be "stable in most areas" because lower-income Americans buying individual insurance will be shielded from rising Obamacare premiums, thanks to subsidies.

>However, the report acknowledges that insurers have reduced their participation in the exchanges, leaving some Americans with no options for buying insurance. "The Affordable Care Act doesn't have a back-up plan for this situation," as Vox's Sarah Kliff and Sarah Frostenson reported Wednesday, so it's not clear how this could play out.

Cuts to Medicaid

>Medicaid accounts for by far the biggest spending reductions under the American Health Care Act. The bill would roll back the Medicaid expansion instituted under the Affordable Care Act, which extended the program to cover some Americans with incomes up to 133 percent of the poverty line. That expansion increased enrollment by 10 million, as NPR's Alison Kodjak previously reported. Rolling back that expansion would limit future enrollments.

>The AHCA would also give states a choice: Receive Medicaid funding via either a block grant or a per capita amount per enrollee.

>Together, these changes would create major cuts in enrollment for the program: 14 million fewer people by 2026, and $834 billion in spending cuts over a decade.

Older, lower-income Americans get higher premiums

>Average premiums would be lower in 2026 than they would be under Obamacare, both in states that do and that don't seek waivers. But it's impossible to make a meaningful blanket statement about how premiums would change under this bill, as those changes differ vastly for different groups of people.

>For example, older Americans who make little money and buy individual insurance would see their premiums climb far beyond what they would be under Obamacare. A 64-year-old making $26,500 would pay $1,700 in premiums annually under Obamacare. In a state making those "moderate" changes to its market, that 64-year-old would pay $13,600, and in a state with no waivers, the cost would be $16,100. That's more than nine times that person's premium under the Affordable Care Act.

why the hell is he still there. he dosnt care

>>146483
Did you know our old air force base there has been occupied by IS and training is taking place there?

You won't find links to that specific part about the airbase but, private defense contractors are on the scene. Along with a U.S. destroyer and a UK frigate. Both of which have fired at positions where rpgs and rockets have been fired at aviation assets

Trinidad and Tobago are in way over their heads.

Lock. Her. Up.

>>146248
Does this surprise anyone?

>>146248
The laziness, and stupidity always surprises me.

>>143969
People grieve differently. Maybe they think being mad at an insane person (who technically executed himself already) is illogical. What are they gonna do, request the ziplock baggie of his remains and kill him again?

>>143975
>grieve

they aren't grieving anon. If you had an absolute cunt for a son like pic related why would you grieve for them?

>>143969
They're just trying to take the high road. I'm sure they're angry that the event happened, but they're trying to say that the attacker was misled and a victim of radicalization. I dunno, that just seems like the response you more often see after events like these than, "FINALLY my son is dead."

One of the parents of a victim of the Orlando shooting said something similar, and he was pretty proud of his son. I wouldn't jump to conclusions about these bereaved parents, even if you don't like them or their son.

>“One of the things the intelligence investigators have been looking at is points of contact and persons involved,” one source said. “If you triangulate Russia, WikiLeaks, Assange and Trump associates the person who comes up with the most hits is Nigel Farage.

>“He’s right in the middle of these relationships. He turns up over and over again. There’s a lot of attention being paid to him.”

>The source mentioned Farage’s links with Roger Stone, Trump’s long-time political adviser who has admitted being in contact with Guccifer 2.0, a hacker whom US intelligence agencies believe to be a Kremlin agent.

>Farage’s spokesman said he had never worked with Russian officials, and described the Guardian’s questions about Farage’s activities as “verging on the hysterical”.

>“Nigel has never been to Russia, let alone worked with their authorities,” the spokesman said. But he did not respond to questions about whether Farage was aware of the FBI inquiry; had hired a lawyer in connection to the matter; or when Farage first met Trump.

>The spokesman also declined to comment on whether Farage had received compensation from the Russian state-backed media group RT for his media appearances. RT, which has featured Farage about three times over the last 18 months, also declined to comment, citing confidentiality.

>On Thursday Farage dismissed the story as “fake news”. He said he visited Assange at the Ecuadorian embassy in March at the behest of LBC Radio “with a view to conducting an interview”.
...

>He added: “I consider it extremely doubtful that I could be a person of interest to the FBI as I have no connections to Russia.”

>Farage has said he only met Assange once has but declined to say how long the two have known each other.

>The FBI’s national press office said it had no comment on Farage.

>The former Ukip leader has voiced his support for the Russian president, calling Vladimir Putin the leader he most admired, in a 2014 interview. Ukip also has history with Assange: Gerard Batten, a Ukip member of the European parliament (MEP), defended the Wikileaks founder in a speech in the European parliament in 2011.

>One source familiar with the US investigation told the Guardian that the examination of Farage’s activities was considered especially delicate given his role as an MEP.

>Neither Farage nor Trump have made a secret of their admiration for one another. They emerged as unlikely winners last year in contests that have reshaped the world order: Britain’s vote to leave the EU and Trump’s surprise ascendency to the White House.

>Both men credited their ability to tap into the worries of struggling and neglected citizens for their victories. But at the heart of the US investigation lies a deeper question: whether Trump campaign officials and people close to the former reality TV star sought to work with state players in Russia to try to influence the US election result.

>Last July, Farage attended the Republican national convention in Cleveland, Ohio, when Trump became the party’s nominee.
...

>According to an account by the Ukip donor Arron Banks, Farage first met Trump at a campaign stop in Mississippi in August, where he spoke at a Trump campaign event.

>But Farage’s relationships with people close to the US president began years earlier. Farage first met Steve Bannon, Trump’s strategist and former campaign chief executive, in the summer of 2012, when Bannon, who was interested in rightwing movements in Europe, invited the then Ukip leader to spend a few days in New York and Washington, according to an account in the New Yorker magazine.

>There Farage was introduced to, among others, the staff of the then senator Jeff Sessions, who is now the US attorney general. Speaking of his longtime admiration for Bannon, Farage told the New Yorker last year: “I have got a very, very high regard for that man’s brain.”

>Two years later, in 2014, Breitbart News, of which Bannon was executive chair, opened an office in London. A top editor, Raheem Kassam, later went on to work as Farage’s chief of staff.

>In 2015, Breitbart News arranged a dinner in Farage’s honour at “the embassy”, the nickname for the house the news group rented in Washington. According to a report in Bloomberg, attendees were “blown away” by Farage’s speech at the event, which was also attended by Sessions.

>Then, on 24 June last year, the day after the UK voted to leave the EU, Farage thanked Bannon during an interview for Breitbart News’s coverage of the leave campaign. Bannon, in turn, congratulated Farage on his victory, saying he had led an extraordinary “David v Goliath” campaign.

>Farage’s ties to Stone are also under scrutiny, it is understood. Stone has frequently publicised his relationship with Assange and described him on Twitter as “my hero”.
...

>>146379
This past election was full of lulz and epic memes, and now the political climate has become the most boring "Red Scare" that America has ever experienced.

>>146381
>What amounts to a Greek Tragedy as written by John Le Carre.
>Boring
LMAO

>>146379
Why did she refuse to testify? Seems fishy left and right

>>142648
How terrible that women can't even order a cab without worrying about rape. And people say there is no rape culture SMH...
A similar thing happened 2 years ago with a different driver when a woman fell asleep. It just so happened men me re have to worry about any of this.

>>144279
I think a UN report finds Canada to be the worst nation in the west for rape and sexual assault. Regardless, what isn't being talked about is the high numbers of cabbies (all east-Indians etc) recently who are raping women (all so far are caucasian). I guess admitting the disaster that is forced Multiculturalism by Justin's dad wouldn't go over too well. :-/

Anyways, if he's convicted & a landed immigrant he'll get the boot.

>>145096
It's not about races who does it. At the end of the day, men as a group are raping/ objectifying women. If not this one race of men then whites or another. Disrespect towards women is promoted in many different cultures including the west and that is the problems. Conservatives need to stop trying to distract from this majority male on female rape problem.

>1:35 p.m.

>Sen. Lindsey Graham says U.S. intelligence agencies tell him that a conversation he had with a foreign individual was picked up in surveillance and that an unknown U.S. official or officials asked to know his identity as a party in the conversation.

>Graham says he doesn’t know if intelligence agencies actually revealed his name. But he’s sent a letter to the FBI, CIA and the National Security Agency seeking information on any incidental collection of his communications with foreign targets.

>Graham says he wants to know if Obama administration officials sought the unmasking of Americans in foreign intelligence reports for political reasons.

>Graham, R-S.C., spoke Friday on Fox News Channel’s “America’s Newsroom.”

>1:35 p.m.

>The Senate intelligence committee has invited top spy and law enforcement officials to testify Wednesday at a hearing about the federal law governing foreign intelligence collection.

>The hearing is being held because the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act is expiring at the end of the year. But lawmakers are expected also to ask questions about the committee’s investigation into Russian activities during the presidential election.

>Democrats will likely ask in either the open or closed session about reports that President Donald Trump wanted Director of National Intelligence Dan Coats and National Security Agency Director Adm. Mike Rogers to say publicly that there was no collusion between the Russians and the Trump campaign.

>Acting FBI Director Andrew McCabe and deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein also are expected to testify.

>1:30 p.m.

>House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi is objecting to subpoenas issued by the intelligence committee’s Republican chairman on the Russia probe.

>Pelosi says Rep. Devin Nunes should not be issuing subpoenas because he stepped aside from the investigation after being criticized for being too close to the White House. She says she shared her objection with House Speaker Paul Ryan.

>Nunes sent subpoenas to the CIA, FBI and National Security Agency. They seek information about Obama administration requests to unmask the identities of Americans named in foreign intelligence reports. Republicans say Nunes is still chairman and still responsible for making sure the identities of Americans are not unmasked for political purposes.

It's been very windy lately in Russia.

>>146176
You really think news about some little tornado in bumfuck Russia belongs on /news/?

>>146210
Only Yank news right?

We can have a story about a man who bit a dog in flyover state, but don't you dare bring local stories from your own country.

Reminds me of China's cultural revolution.

>>Weinstein
>>white
pick one

So a professor being literally as un-racist as possible is now labeled as racists by liberals. Charming, really charming. But remember, just ignore them, never speak out against them and they will go away, they have no real power yada yada and should you be so inconsiderate to call them out prepare to lose your job and have your life ruined. So progressive!

>>146185
Read the sticky. 2 days old or newer.

>>146191
yes this, let's keep this board current as the sticky says.

>>146191
Sorry but Trump hasn't raped anyone in the last 2 days.
Not that has been reported.

Have some more recent rape jokes instead.

http://news.sky.com/story/rodrigo-dutertes-foul-mouthed-chelsea-clinton-tirade-after-rape-joke-10900476

>As part of an ongoing, two-year investigation into abuse of Word of Faith Fellowship congregants by church leaders, The Associated Press interviewed four former church members who say they witnessed Fenner being attacked.

>Based on interviews with 43 former members, documents and secretly made recordings, the AP reported in February that Word of Faith Fellowship congregants were regularly punched, smacked, choked, slammed to the floor or thrown through walls in a violent form of deliverance meant to "purify" sinners by beating out devils.

>The church has scores of strict rules to control congregants' lives, including whether they can marry or have children. Failure to comply often triggers a humiliating rebuke from the pulpit or, worse, physical punishment, according to numerous former members interviewed by AP. Members can't watch television, go to the movies, read newspapers or eat in restaurants that play music or serve alcohol. If church leaders believe a congregant has sexual or dirty thoughts, they can be accused of being "unclean" and be punished, the former members said.

>Fenner said he joined the sect with his mother and brother in 2010. He fled after he said he was attacked.

>The defense had filed requests to move the trial out of Rutherford County, located in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains midway between Charlotte and Asheville, due to years of negative publicity about the church's practices. As an alternative, the defense asked to have a jury brought in from another area.

>Superior Court Judge Gary Gavenus denied those requests.

>The AP's investigation also revealed that congregants were ordered by church leaders to lie to authorities investigating reports of abuse and that two assistant district attorneys and a veteran social worker were among those who coached congregants and their children on what to say to investigators. After the AP report, the prosecutors, including one who is a son-in-law of a church founder, left their jobs, and the social worker resigned.

>The sect was founded in 1979 by Jane Whaley, a former math teacher, and her husband, Sam, a former used car salesman. Under Jane Whaley's leadership, Word of Faith Fellowship grew from a handful of followers to a 750-member congregation in North Carolina, and another nearly 2,000 members in churches in Brazil and Ghana. It also has affiliations in other countries.

>>145858
But only Muslims are bad!

>>143432
The majority also doesn't know the real definition of the phrase "fake news."

>>143441
News that's untrue?

>>143432
inb4 the rise of state news