North America

Biden’s new endorsement reflects battle for Latino support

USA (AP) --- Joe Biden’s presidential bid got a boost Monday from one of the leading Latinos in Congress, with the chairman of the Hispanic Caucus’ political arm endorsing the former vice president as Democrats’ best hope to defeat President Donald Trump.

“People realize it’s a matter of life and death for certain communities,” Rep. Tony Cárdenas, D-Calif., told The Associated Press in an interview, explaining the necessity of halting Trump’s populist nationalism, hard-line immigration policies and xenophobic rhetoric that the California congressman called cruel.

Roberts will tap his inner umpire in impeachment trial

WASHINGTON (AP) — America’s last prolonged look at Chief Justice John Roberts came 14 years ago, when he told senators during his Supreme Court confirmation hearing that judges should be like baseball umpires, impartially calling balls and strikes.

“Nobody ever went to a ballgame to see the umpire,” Roberts said.

OIC calls for ensuring safety of Indian Muslims, protection of their holy places

UNITED NATIONS, Dec 23 (APP): The Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) has voiced its concern over India’s controversial citizenship law affecting the country’s Muslims, and called for ensuring their safety as the Indian security forces use strong-arm methods to quell protests.

Boeing CEO ousted as 737 MAX crisis deepens

(Reuters) - Boeing Co (BA.N) has ousted Chief Executive Officer Dennis Muilenburg, following a year of intense scrutiny and industrial setbacks set off by twin fatal crashes of its 737 MAX jetliner.

The departure comes as the world’s largest planemaker struggles to win regulatory approvals for its grounded best-selling jetliner while trying to repair trust with passengers and airline customers.

Another 18 prisoners dead in new Honduras jail clash

Tegucigalpa, Dec 23 (AFP/PTI) Eighteen people were killed in Sunday afternoon violence between prisoners at a jail in central Honduras, less than two days after another 18 died in violence at a separate facility, a military spokesman told local media.

The spokesman for the combined national security force known as Fusina released a list of names of the 18 dead and two injured, saying that "firearms, knives and machetes" were used in the clash in El Porvenir prison north of the capital Tegucigalpa.

13 wounded in shooting at Chicago memorial for slain person

CHICAGO (AP) — One person has been charged in connection with a shooting early Sunday at a house party that left 13 people wounded, four of them critically, Chicago police said.

The shooting stemmed from a dispute at the memorial party, Chief of Patrol Fred Waller said at a news conference. He said shots were first fired just after 12:30 a.m. The party was being held in honor of someone who was killed in April.

Police: 69-vehicle pileup in Virginia leaves dozens injured

WILLIAMSBURG, Va. (AP) — A pileup involving more than 60 cars on a major interstate in Virginia on Sunday morning injured dozens of people, according to state police.

The crash happened just before 8 a.m. Sunday on westbound Interstate 64 in York County near Williamsburg, Virginia State Police Sgt. Michelle Anaya said. No fatalities were reported, but it took crews several hours to clear the roadway and reopen all lanes of traffic.

Authorities do not yet know the cause of the crash, but fog and icy road conditions were contributing factors, Anaya said.

Evangelical tussling over anti-Trump editorial escalates

USA (AP) --- As the political clamor caused by a top Christian magazine’s call to remove President Donald Trump from office continues to reverberate, more than 100 conservative evangelicals closed ranks further around Trump on Sunday.

In a letter to the president of Christianity Today magazine, the group of evangelicals chided Editor-in-Chief Mark Galli for penning an anti-Trump editorial, published Thursday, that they portrayed as a dig at their characters as well as the president’s.

Inside impeachment: How an ‘urgent’ tip became ‘high crimes’

WASHINGTON (AP) — The night before the whistleblower complaint that launched President Donald Trump’s impeachment was made public, Democrats and Republicans on the House Intelligence Committee crammed into the same room to get a first look at the document.

For Democrats, it was an instant bombshell, a “jaw-hit-the-floor sort of moment,” one lawmaker said. Another described sneaking peeks at Republican colleagues to see whether they were having a similar reaction.

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