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HeadlinesDecember 11, 2019

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Democrats Charge Trump with Two Articles of Impeachment

Dec 11, 2019

House lawmakers have unveiled two articles of impeachment against President Trump, bringing a sitting president to the brink of impeachment for only the fourth time in U.S. history. This is chair of the House Judiciary Committee, Jerry Nadler, announcing the first article of impeachment.

Rep. Jerrold Nadler: “The first article is for abuse of power. It is an impeachable offense for the president to exercise the powers of his public office to obtain an improper personal benefit, while ignoring or injuring the national interest.”

The impeachment inquiry centers on how President Trump withheld military aid from Ukraine to pressure the Ukrainian president to investigate Trump’s political rival Joe Biden and his son Hunter. Democratic lawmakers say Trump then tried to cover up his actions, leading to the second article of impeachment: obstruction of Congress. This is Nadler.

Rep. Jerrold Nadler: “These actions, moreover, are consistent with President Trump’s previous invitations of foreign interference in our 2016 presidential election. And when he was caught, when the House investigated and opened an impeachment inquiry, President Trump engaged in unprecedented, categorical and indiscriminate defiance of the impeachment inquiry. This gives rise to the second article of impeachment for obstruction of Congress.”

The unveiling of the articles of impeachment against President Trump comes as FBI Director Christopher Wray accepted the key finding of the Justice Department inspector general’s report, that the FBI’s probe into Trump’s 2016 campaign officials was not politically motivated. In response, President Trump slammed Wray during a speech in Hershey, Pennsylvania, on Tuesday.

President Donald Trump: “You have great people in the FBI, but not in leadership. You have not good people in leadership you haven’t had.”

During Trump’s speech in Hershey, Pennsylvania, he also encouraged security to rough up a female protester who disrupted his event.

President Donald Trump: “Yeah, get her out! You see that? I’ll tell you, law enforcement is so great. That particular guy wanted to be so politically correct. Oooh! Ooh! We don’t want to be politically correct.”

That was President Trump, flailing his hands, reminiscent of the time he disparagingly mocked a disabled New York Times reporter while on the campaign trail.

Trump Meets with Russian Foreign Minister, Who Denies Russia Meddled in 2016 Election

Dec 11, 2019

President Trump also met with the Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov at the White House Tuesday. During his visit to Washington, the Russian foreign minister again denied that Russia meddled in the 2016 election. He reportedly expressed interest in renewing the New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty, known as New START — the last major arms treaty between the U.S. and Russia. The United States may allow the treaty to expire without being replaced.

Democrats Agree with Trump on New NAFTA

Dec 11, 2019

Democratic lawmakers have signed off on the new NAFTA, the North American Free Trade Agreement. The new trade deal is known as the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement. It includes more environmental protections, especially aimed at protecting marine wildlife from pollution and overfishing. It also includes additional labor protections aimed at making it easier for Mexican workers to unionize. The trade deal also includes new provisions around intellectual property and the digital economy. The original North American Free Trade Agreement took effect in 1994, devastating the livelihood of small farmers across Mexico.

Federal Judge Blocks Trump from Diverting Funds to Border Wall

Dec 11, 2019

A federal judge in Texas has blocked the Trump administration from using billions of dollars in military funding to construct Trump’s border wall. Judge David Briones’s ruling Tuesday is the latest legal blow to Trump’s efforts to divert billions of dollars of funding toward his controversial border wall.

Mass Protests Continue in France Against Macron’s Pensions Plan

Dec 11, 2019

In France, hundreds of thousands of people took to the streets again Tuesday as massive strikes and protests continued for a sixth straight day. Demonstrators are protesting French President Emmanuel Macron’s proposed pension overhaul. Tuesday’s strike again shuttered universities and ground public transportation across France to a halt. Strikers also blockaded the majority of France’s oil refineries.

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British Voters Head to the Polls Thursday

Dec 11, 2019

British voters are preparing to head to the polls tomorrow for a defining national election, which pits Conservative Prime Minister Boris Johnson against Labor Party Leader Jeremy Corbyn. At stake in the election is the future of Britain’s public health system and how to handle Brexit — Britain’s plan to leave the European Union. Click here to see our full interview about Thursday’s British elections with the historian, activist, filmmaker and author Tariq Ali.

Protesters at COP25 Continue Demands for Urgent Action: “You Can’t Drink Oil, Keep It in the Soil!”

Dec 11, 2019

Here at COP25 in Madrid, protesters are continuing to demand urgent action on climate change. Today, youth protesters with Fridays for Future took over the main plenary stage, chanting “You can’t drink oil, keep it in the soil!” and “Respect indigenous rights, so we can win this fight!”

Protesters: “Respect indigenous rights, so we can win this fight! Respect indigenous rights, so we can win this fight!”

Thousands Protest Australian Government’s Inaction as Smoke from Wildfires Blankets Sydney

Dec 11, 2019

The youth protests at COP25 in Madrid, Spain, come as thousands of people have taken to the streets in Australia to demand urgent action on climate change, as Sydney is blanketed in thick black toxic smoke from the more than 100 wildfires burning across the country. Smoke alarms have been going off across Sydney as the air quality reaches record hazardous levels. This year is the worst wildfire season in Australia’s history.

At Least 6 Dead, 3 Missing, After Volcano Erupts in New Zealand

Dec 11, 2019

In New Zealand, at least six people are dead, and at least three more are missing, after a volcano erupted on the White Island. Rescue efforts have been called off today as scientists warned the volcano may erupt again.

Ethiopia’s Abiy Ahmed Receives Nobel Peace Prize, Refuses to Hold Customary News Conference

Dec 11, 2019

Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed received the Nobel Peace Prize in a ceremony in Oslo Tuesday.

Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed: “I accept this award on behalf of Ethiopians and Eritreans, especially those who made the ultimate sacrifice in the cause of peace. Likewise, I accept this award on behalf of my partner and comrade in peace, President Isaias Afwerki, whose goodwill, trust — whose goodwill, trust and commitment were vital in ending the two-decade deadlock between our countries.”

Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed won the award for ending the two-decade “state of war” between Ethiopia and Eritrea. But the prime minister is now facing increasing opposition at home, including over the security forces’ deadly crackdown against protests in October. Abiy Ahmed refused to hold the customary news conference as part of the Nobel Peace Prize ceremonies.

Meanwhile, in Sweden, the Nobel Prize for Literature was also awarded Tuesday to Austrian author Peter Handke and Polish novelist Olga Tokarczuk. Awarding the prize to Peter Handke has sparked widespread controversy over the writer’s close ties to former Serbian leader Slobodan Milosevic, who was charged with genocide and crimes against humanity. Handke delivered a eulogy at his funeral. Nearly 60,000 people have called for the award to be revoked, and Turkey, Albania and Kosovo all boycotted Tuesday’s ceremony.

Protesters in San Diego Decry Denial of Medical Care to Migrants in ICE Custody

Dec 11, 2019

In San Diego, California, six people were arrested outside the U.S. Customs and Border Protection building to protest the denial of medical care, including flu vaccinations, to families detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement or Border Patrol. Tuesday’s protest on International Human Rights Day came after doctors were barred from providing flu vaccines to migrants detained inside the Chula Vista Border Patrol Station. Hundreds of protesters in Rhode Island also blocked the driveways to the Wyatt Detention Center, while in Kansas City, Missouri, seven people were arrested protesting outside of UMB Bank, which represents the bondholders of the Wyatt Detention Facility.

Former Fed Chair Paul Volcker, Known for “Shock Therapy” to Economy, Dies at 92

Dec 11, 2019

The former chair of the Federal Reserve, Paul Volcker, has died at the age of 92. He is best known for waging war on inflation during the 1980s — delivering a “shock therapy” that drove the economy into a deep recession and created widespread unemployment. Volcker’s dramatic increase in interest rates also created a debt crisis that devastated Latin America. Volcker later went on to serve as the chair of President Obama’s Economic Recovery Advisory Board, convincing lawmakers to impose minor restrictions on big banks — a measure known as the “Volcker Rule.” Leading Democratic presidential candidate Elizabeth Warren tweeted out condolences after his death, writing: “Few people have had more impact on our modern financial system than the great Paul Volcker.”

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