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NEWS SATURDAY, DECEMBER 10, 2016 NEWS

Louisiana Republican John Kennedy Will Be The New US Senator

Obama Orders Intelligence Community Review Of 2016 Election Hacking
President Obama has ordered his intelligence agencies to conduct a review of hacking during the 2016 presidential election and present their findings before he leaves office, a top adviser said Friday. Obama's counterterrorism adviser Lisa Monaco disclosed the review to reporters in Washington Friday morning. "We maybe have crossed into a new threshold," Monaco said. Monaco did not say if the report would be made public. Fox News

Mika Brzezinski Says Clinton Campaign Wanted Her 'Pulled Off The Air'
It sounds like Hillary Clinton's campaign was not above putting the screws to journalists who were critical of her during her presidential run. During Fridays episode of MSNBCs Morning Joe, co-host Mika Brzezinski claimed that while Clinton and Donald Trump were battling for the White House, the Clinton campaign attempted to get her pulled off the air. Brzezinski said the incident took place after she hinted that Clinton didnt have the presidential election in the bag as many thought. Fox

Below-Freezing Temperatures Set To Sweep The Country
The cold is taking hold of the US weather pattern for the next week. Over the next seven days, 80% of the country will at some point see temperatures below freezing. More than half the continental United States will have below-average temperatures Friday. Temperatures will be 20 to 30 degrees below average in locations stretching from the Montana to South Texas. Dangerous wind chills could yield temperatures as low as 40 degrees below zero in the Northern Plains on Friday. CNN

Tourists Stream Back To Gatlinburg, But Rebuilding Looms
Visitors jammed the main roads and sidewalks in Gatlinburg as the tourism city reopened to the public Friday for the first time since wildfires killed 14 people. While the main drag was left intact, the charred remains of homes, vehicles and businesses on side roads served as a reminder of the cleanup and repairs needed in the days ahead. Officials estimate 2,500 buildings were damaged by the wildfires that spread in high winds out of the Great Smoky Mountains on Nov. 28. Philadelphia Inquirer

Hillary Clintons Losing Campaign Cost A Record $1.2B
Hillary Clinton and her supporters spent a record $1.2 billion for her losing presidential campaign twice as much as the winner, Donald Trump, according to the latest records. The president-elect, who confounded critics during the campaign by saying there was no need to raise or spend $1 billion or more, ended up making do with $600 million. Clintons expensive machine tore through $131.8 million in just the final weeks, finishing with about $839,000 on hand as of Nov. 28. Team Trump spent $94.5 million in the home stretch from Oct. 20 to Nov. 28 and had $7.6 million left. NY Post

Carrier To Ultimately Cut Some Of Jobs Trump Saved
It sounded like great news when Carrier said last week that it would invest millions in the Indiana plant it decided to keep in the U.S. The company's deal with President-elect Donald Trump to keep a furnace plant from moving to Mexico also calls for a $16 million investment in the facility. But that has a big down side for some of the workers in Indianapolis. Most of that money will be invested in automation said to Greg Hayes, CEO of United Technologies, Carrier's corporate parent. And that automation will replace some of the jobs that were just saved. CNN

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U.S.-Led Air War Has Fired 63,061 Weapons At ISISYet Threat To Homeland May Be Growing
The number of weapons the U.S.-led air war has fired against the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria since 2014 (over 63,061) is approximately twice the maximum number of fighters ISIS had in Iraq and Syria as of the beginning of that air war (31,500), according to numbers released separately by the Department of Defense and the Central Intelligence Agency. Yet, if ISIS is denied all of the territory it once controlled in Iraq and Syria, even the Obama administration is not arguing that the terror threat it poses to Europe and the United States will end. In fact, FBI Director James Comey warned Congress in September that the territorial defeat of ISIS in Iraq and Syria will cause killers to flow out of those nations in the hope of murdering people in Western Europe and the United States. CNS News

Sen. Mike Lee: One Proposed Regulation Could Kill 77,000 Mining Jobs
Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah) said Thursday that one-size-fits-all federal regulations need to stop, citing one such regulation that he says could put as many as 77,000 coal miners out of work. Think about that, Lee said at an energy and climate summit in Washington, D.C., hosted by the Heritage Foundation and the Texas Public Policy Foundation. One regulation 77,000 jobs destroyed, eliminated, gone forever, Lee said, noting that an independent analysis of the Interior Departments proposed Stream Protection Rule estimated that between 40,000 and 77,000 jobs could be lost if the rule is finalized. CNS News

Wisconsin Judge Rejects Trump Group Bid To Stop Vote Recount
A U.S. judge on Friday rejected a request by supporters of President-elect Donald Trump to stop a vote recount in Wisconsin, where the Republican won by more than 27,200 votes in the Nov. 8 election, according to court documents. Wisconsin is one of three states where Green Party candidate Jill Stein, who finished fourth in the presidential poll, sought recounts. Even if recounts in Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin were all to go ahead, they would be extremely unlikely to change the outcome of Trump's win over Democrat Hillary Clinton. Great America political action committee and Stop Hillary PAC had both gone to court last week to halt the recount, which is more than 88 percent complete, according to the Wisconsin Elections Commission. Reuters

Congress Passes At Least $120M In Funding For Flint Water
In some of its last votes of the year, the U.S. Senate finally approved legislation that will be worth more than $120 million to Flint, Mich., and its effort to respond to an ongoing public health crisis linked to high lead levels in its tap water. In a series of votes late Friday night and early this morning, the Senate passed a so-called continuing resolution to fund government through April 28 of next year and national water infrastructure legislation, two bills that together included provisions to authorize and pay for long-sought funding for Flint and provide $170 million or more to help address concerns of lead in drinking water. USA Today

Good For The Economy?: Inflation Is Finally Perking Up
Since the recession, the Federal Reserve has been trying to do something that may seem counterintuitive: push inflation higher. Sure, flat to modest price increases are better for consumers, leaving them more money for discretionary purchases. But little or no inflation over a prolonged period is a sign of a weak economy and gives shoppers little reason to buy stuff today since they know it won't be much more expensive in the months ahead. That can hurt consumer spending. USA Today

Massachusetts Pot Law Poised To Take Effect Next Week
It appears the states new recreational marijuana law can take effect next week after all. A spokesman for Secretary of State William Galvin says his office plans to deliver the official results of the Nov. 8 ballot question to the Governors Council for certification on Wednesday. Assuming the results are officially certified by the council, the law will take effect as scheduled the following day. While there was never a doubt that voters had approved the marijuana question, Galvin had previously said his office might not complete its official tally in time for certification by Dec. 15. When the law takes effect it will be legal for adults 21 and older to possess limited quantities of marijuana for recreational purposes and grow up to a dozen pot plants per household. Boston Globe

Health Agencies Say Miami Beach NoLonger Zika Transmission Zone
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Florida Department of Health said on Friday that the Miami Beach area was no longer considered an active Zika transmission zone. The CDC said there had been no new cases of local Zika virus transmission identified in South Miami Beach for more than 45 days, suggesting that the risk of infection was no longer greater than in the rest of Miami-Dade County. "Florida no longer has any identified areas with active Zika transmission," Governor Rick Scott said in a statement. Reuters

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Donald Trump Gives Million-Dollar Donors Plum Postings
The full version of this story was originally published by The Center for Public Integrity, a nonprofit, nonpartisan investigative news organization in Washington, D.C. Donald Trump routinely blasts his political foes for "pay-to-play" politics and "crony capitalism and corruption." But Trump is now rewarding some of his biggest campaign bankrollers with unparalleled access, influence, prestige and power in his presidential administration-in-waiting, according to a Center for Public Integrity analysis of new campaign finance disclosures filed with the Federal Election Commission. In all, 18 ultra-wealthy Americans the majority are billionaires whose fortunes are greatly affected by government decisions contributed at least $1 million to the Republican's presidential campaign and political efforts supporting Trump's bid, the Center for Public Integrity's analysis shows. MSNBC

Heroin Deaths Surpass Gun Homicides In U.S.
More than 50,000 Americans died from drug overdoses last year, the most ever. The disastrous tally has been pushed to new heights by soaring abuse of heroin and prescription painkillers, a class of drugs known as opioids. Heroin deaths rose 23 percent in one year, to 12,989, slightly higher than the number of gun homicides, according to government data released Thursday. Deaths from synthetic opioids, including illicit fentanyl, rose 73 percent to 9,580. And prescription painkillers took the highest toll, but posted the smallest increase. Abuse of drugs like Oxycontin and Vicodin killed 17,536, an increase of 4 percent. MSNBC

Megyn Kelly Says Its Dangerous That Americans Arent Listening To The Press
Fox News Megyn Kelly thinks America is in a dangerous place right now due to the publics heightened distrust of the mainstream media. NPR sat down with Ms. Kelly on Wednesday for a wide-ranging interview on everything from charges of sexual harassment against former Fox News chairman Roger Ailes to the challenges reporters will face covering a Trump administration over the next four years. The Kelly File star said at one point during the 45-minute interview that she was worried about the divide between the American public and media outlets providing them with news. Washington Times

Facebook Glitch Leads To Old Photos Being Posted Without User Permission
Facebook's annual "Year In Review" feature recaps moments that users shared on the social media site during the past year, but PC Magazine reported Friday that a glitch that might be related to the feature is concerning to some. The glitch resurfaces months-old photos on friend's news feeds. PC Magazine writer Stephanie Mlot first saw the issue on her own Facebook feed and noted that some users posted about the issue on the Facebook help community. The Wall Street Journal reported that Facebook has a feature called "On This Day," which allows users to choose whether or not to share older photos that have previously been posted to Facebook. The reported glitch posts older photos to friends' news feed without the user's permission. According to the Wall Street Journal, the photos look as if they have been posted for the first time, with a current timestamp and no reactions or comments. Atlanta Journal

Fisher-Price 'Happy Hour' Playset Is Fake, Company Says
It's another reminder not to believe everything you see on the internet. A photo of an alcohol-themed Fisher-Price playset has been circulating online and drawing attention. It shows a toddler-size bar, with play bar stools, beer bottles and a pretend bar, CBS News reported. Today.com reported that the photo, which was originated by brandng agency owner Adam Padilla, went viral after comedian Amiri King reposted it on Facebook. CNet reported that some angry parents complained on Fisher-Price's Facebook and Twitter page and the company had to repeatedly reassure them that the toy was not real. Atlanta Journal

Syria: Kerry, Diplomats Seek Help For Aleppo's Opposition
U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and leading diplomats pleaded Saturday for safe passage for civilians and respect for Syria's crippled opposition, as Syrian government forces neared victory over rebels in Aleppo after a devastating blitz. With tens of thousands fleeing and prospects increasingly grim for the Western-backed opposition, Kerry insisted that even if Syrian President Bashar Assad's forces conquer Aleppo, "war will not end," because its underlying causes remain unresolved. Houston Chronicle

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NYT Executive Editor: We Dont Get The Role Of Religion In Peoples Lives
The New York Times executive editor said that his newspaper and media powerhouses across the nation do not understand what motivates devoutly religious Americans. Dean Baquet sat down Thursday with NPR for an extended interview on the media landscape following Donald Trumps presidential election win on Nov. 8. Host Terry Gross essentially engaged in an after-action review in terms of what media outlets can learn from the election cycle. When Mr. Baquet was asked whether he is wrestling with how to cover President-elect Trump, he used the question to pivot to ways to reach religious readers. Washington Times

Obama Authorizes Larger Federal Pay Raise
President Obama on Thursday authorized a higher pay increase than expected for civilian federal employees. The move to authorize an average pay raise of 2.1 percent for 2017 was announced in letters to the House and Senate. This comes after the president submitted a 1.6 percent raise in August. However, in light of the decision of Congress to provide a 2.1 percent pay increase for military personnel in 2017 and reconsideration of current and projected economic conditions, I have concluded it would be appropriate to revise my original alternative plan for locality payments so that the total combined cost of the 1.0 percent across-the-board base pay increase and varying locality payments will be 2.1 percent of basic payroll, the letter said. CBS

Official Warns N. Korea Could Launch Nuke, But Not Likely Control It
North Korea now has the capability to launch a nuclear weapon, a senior U.S. military official said Thursday, adding that while the U.S. believes Pyongyang can mount a warhead on a missile, its not clear that it can hit a target. The official said it appears that North Korea can mount a nuclear warhead on a missile, but may not have the re-entry capabilities for a strategic strike. That would include the ability of the weapon to get back through the atmosphere without burning up and the ability to hit the intended target. The official said North Korea continues to try and overcome those limitations. CBS

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GOP's 'Obamacare' Repeal Path Worries Health Care Industry
One by one, key health care industry groups are telling the incoming Republican administration and Congress that it's not a good idea to repeal the 2010 health care law without clear plans to address the consequences. Hospitals, insurers and actuaries bean-counters who make long-range economic estimates weighed in recently, and more interest groups are expected to make their views known soon. Representing patients, the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network reminded lawmakers that lives are at stake. ABC

Gov't: Takata Air Bag Recalls To Cover 42M Cars When Done
The U.S. government says automakers will end up recalling 42 million vehicles with potentially deadly air bag inflators made by Takata Corp. The National Highway Safety Administration released a schedule for further recalls on Friday as it tries to get automakers to move faster on the fixes. Eventually, about 69 million inflators that can potentially explode with too much force and spew shrapnel into people will be recalled. Some cars will have both the driver side and passenger side air bags replaced. ABC

OPECs Historic Deal Wont Be Enough To Drain Oil Stockpiles
OPEC is likely to bring the oil market into balance by the middle of next year, but its production cut looks set to fall short of its stated goal of draining the stockpiles that are depressing prices. The oil market will rebalance toward the middle of next year," according to Nigerias Minister of State for Petroleum Emmanuel Kachikwu, bringing an end to more than three years when supply exceeded demand. However, Bloomberg News calculations based on OPEC data show that across the whole of 2017 there will be little overall reduction in record oil inventories -- even if the group convinces non-members to join supply curbs at a meeting on Saturday. Bloomberg

Thousands Flee Syria's Aleppo As Assad Nears Victory
Some 50,000 civilians have fled eastern Aleppo over the past two days in a "constant stream," Russia said Saturday, as Syrian government forces close in on the last pocket of opposition control in the northern city. Russian Defense Ministry spokesman Maj. Gen. Igor Konashenkov said that Syrian troops have suspended their offensive to allow for the evacuation of civilians, but the activist-run Syrian Observatory for Human Rights says heavy clashes are still underway. Konashenkov said that on Saturday alone more than 20,000 civilians left rebel-controlled Aleppo districts through humanitarian corridors. The military is live streaming images from drones showing the exit. Backed by Russia and other allies, Syrian President Bashar Assad's forces have driven the rebels from nearly all of eastern Aleppo, which was captured by the opposition in 2012. Houston Chronicle

Air Traffic Controllers Take A Nap And Grab A Snack While Pilots Calls Go Unanswered
Police officers who entered the Boise Airport air traffic control tower after pilots could not reach controllers by radio Nov. 19 found one controller had fallen asleep and a second one had left the tower and smelled of marijuana, according to reports released Friday afternoon by the Boise Police Department. Two Air St. Lukes helicopter pilots were unable to get ahold of anyone on the tower radio frequencies between 2:30 a.m. and 2:40 a.m. One of the helicopters was coming to the airport from the Downtown Boise hospital, and the other was departing from the airport. The pilots initiated alternative procedures, which led them to announce their movements over the radio to alert other aircraft that might be flying overhead. Charlotte Observer

Russia Is Spending $30 Million On An Obscure Sport Called Acrobatic Rock'n'Roll
According to Reuters, Moscow has approved the construction of a complex devoted entirely to the niche sport at the cost of 1.9 billion roubles, or more than $30 million. It will be the first center of its kind in the world, the sports governing body, the World Rock'n'Roll Confederation told Reuters. But why is Russia spending tens of millions of dollars on a sport that just 9,000 Russians compete in? According to an official statement from Moscow, where the facility will be constructed, its just part of the citys devotion to athletics. Moscow attaches great importance to building sports facilities. Over the past five years in Moscow the number of new sports facilities being brought on-stream has effectively doubled, the statement read. Charlotte Obsever

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U.S. Stocks Add To Rally As Crude Oil Advances; Dollar Climbs
The S&P 500 extended its rally to the longest since June 2014 as benchmark indexes added to all-time highs, with health-care shares and consumer staples taking a turn pacing gains. Oil powered above $51 a barrel on signs producers are following through with agreed production cuts.The post-election rally in American equities plowed ahead even as the Federal Reserves looks certain to raise interest rates next week. Makers of household products led gains Friday after lagging behind for much of the post-election rally thats added more than $1 trillion to the value of U.S. equities. Bank shares pushed gains in the past month to 18 percent.U.S. crude rose before OPEC meets in Vienna with non-member representatives. The dollar headed toward an 18-month high, supported by wagers on higher rates. Bloomberg

Trump Expected To Tap Goldman Banker For Economic Post
President-elect Donald Trump is expected to name Goldman Sachs president Gary Cohn to an influential White House economic post, two people informed of the decision said Friday. Cohn, 56, would lead the White House National Economic Council, a posting that would require him to leave his $21 million a year job as president and chief operating officer at Goldman Sachs Group Inc. Trump repeatedly vilified the prestigious Wall Street bank on the campaign trail, yet with the selection of Cohn, he has now chosen three of its alumni to key positions in his upcoming administration. Steven Mnuchin, the Treasury secretary nominee, and Steve Bannon, Trump's chief strategist and senior counselor, also worked at Goldman Sachs. Las Vegas Sun

Biden Urges Canada To Fight ClimateCchange Despite Trump
Outgoing U.S. Vice President Joe Biden urged Canadian leaders Friday to continue to treat efforts to combat climate change urgently despite the incoming administration of Donald Trump. Biden told Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Canada's provincial premiers that whatever uncertainty exists surrounding Trump's policies, he is confident America will continue to make progress on a low-carbon future. He said that's because many of the trends are market driven and have already taken hold and because states and cities are taking action. Trump has called global warming a "hoax" and says he plans to abandon the U.S. commitment to reduce carbon emissions as part of the international agreement signed last year in Paris. Las Vegas Sun

U.S. Army to begin Armored Multi-Purpose Vehicle testing
The U.S. Army is set to begin testing its first Armored Multi-Purpose Vehicle as it continues its M113 replacement program. The branch expects its first delivery from BAE Systems on Dec. 15. The new vehicle will roll out from the company's plant in York, Penn. BAE Systems has been contracted to provide at least 29 of the next-generation infantry vehicles. Once delivered, the units will undergo 52 months of engineering and manufacturing. The Armored Multi-Purpose Vehicle, or AMPV is part of the U.S. Army's effort to replace its Vietnam War-era M113 family of armored vehicles. Designed to operate alongside M1 Abrams tanks and M2 Bradley fighting vehicles, the AMPV will feature improved protection, mobility and interoperability. UPI

Clinton Won As Many Votes As Obama In 2012 Just Not In The States Where She Needed Them Most
The final results of the 2016 presidential election look like this: Hillary Clinton got roughly the same number of votes that President Obama received four years ago en route to his reelection, but she nonetheless lost the presidency to Donald Trump, who came in at least 2.8 million votes behind her. Thats a highly unusual outcome the biggest gap between the popular vote and the electoral college in almost a century and a half. Only now, with almost all the nations ballots counted, have analysts begun to flesh out what led to that result and what implications it has for the nations deep political divisions. Start with California, where Clinton beat Trump by almost 2 to 1, amassing a margin of more than 4.2 million votes. Thats a victory more impressive even than Obamas in 2012, and it included a win in Orange County, which had sided with the Republican in every presidential election back to 1936. San Diego Union

Trump Blasts Obamas Call For Deep Dive Into Russia Election Role
Using language conveying contempt, President-elect Donald Trumps office late Friday dismissed any move to look into alleged Russian meddling in the November election, hours after the White House said it had ordered intelligence agencies to take a deep dive into the matter. These are the same people that said Saddam Hussein had weapons of mass destruction, a statement from Trumps transition office said. The election ended a long time ago in one of the biggest Electoral College victories in history, it went on. Its now time to move on and Make America Great Again. Trumps statement was released as the Washington Post reported that the Central Intelligence Agency has told key senators that Russia wasnt just trying to undermine confidence in the election but was actually moving to favor Trump. Kansas City Star

Powerful Anti-Embargo Cuban Americasn Split Over How Close Is Too Close To Castro Regime
An alliance of powerful anti-embargo Cuban-American businessmen frayed earlier this year after its prominent chairman, former U.S. Commerce Secretary Carlos Gutierrez, returned from Cuba with a simple request: work more closely with Raúl Castros communist government. Behind Gutierrezs ask was an indication that the Cuban government was eager to negotiate directly with major American corporations and less enthused by U.S. efforts to assist small-time entrepreneurs on the island. Miami Herald

The DEA Refuted Its Own Misconceptions About Pot, Group Says
Defending the governments classification of marijuana as one of the most dangerous drugs, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration declares on its website that pot causes mental illness and lung cancer and leads youths to heroin and cocaine. But an advocacy group says the DEA, in a legal filing in August, said it found no evidence to support any of those conclusions. The group, Americans for Safe Access, has asked the agency to remove discredited claims from its web page. We have taken this action to stop the DEAs relentless campaign of misinformation about the health risks of medical cannabis, said Menlo Park attorney Vickie Feeman, who represents Americans for Safe Access. She said the agencys public statements, and its refusal to ... acknowledge the scientifically proven benefits of medical cannabis, are harming patients around the country. SF Gate

Inside Kirk Douglas's Intimate 100th Birthday Celebration
Kirk Douglas knows how to make an entrance. With boxing gloves in every centerpiece and the theme from "Rocky" blaring over the speakers, Douglas, one of the golden age of Hollywood's last living legends, walked confidently into the Sunset Room at the Beverly Hills Hotel Friday afternoon to celebrate his 100th birthday at an intimate gathering of friends and family. Flanked by Anne Douglas, his wife of over 62 years, his son Michael Douglas, his daughter-in-law Catherine Zeta-Jones and his grandchildren, Kirk Douglas looked out over the crowd of about 150 people, including Don Rickles, Jeffrey Katzenberg, his Rabbi and many of his closest friends and smiled. Not only was he surrounded by friendly faces, he knew, as promised by his doctor years ago, that if he lived to 100, he would get to have a glass of vodka. SF Gate

Study: 'American Dream' Fades By 42 Percent Since 1940s Due To Income Inequality
A new study suggests the "American Dream" is fading, citing research that shows 50 percent of people born in the 1980s make more income than their parents, compared to 92 percent of children who were born in the 1940s. That is, if you consider the definition of "American Dream" to be a person making more than his or her parents made. In The Fading American Dream: Trends in Absolute Income Mobility Since 1940 study conducted by Stanford University, Harvard University and the University of California-Berkeley, researchers said absolute income mobility, a rate used to determine the number of children who earn more income than their parents, has "fallen sharply over the past half century." UPI

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Hezbollah Says 'Promised Victory' Imminent In Aleppo
Lebanese Islamic militant group Hezbollah said on Friday a "promised" victory was imminent for Syrian government forces and their allies in the city of Aleppo. "There are great events taking place now in our region ... (such as) what is happening in Aleppo, and the ramifications of the promised and coming victory for the whole battle in Syria and the region," Hezbollah's leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah said in a speech broadcast live by the group's Al Manar TV. Jerusalem Post

Hillary Clinton Warns Of 'Fake News Epidemic'
Losing US Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton has called for urgent action to stop the proliferation of "fake news". Mrs Clinton said it was an epidemic with "real world consequences" that threatened America's democracy. She urged the private and public sector to combat the numerous false reports, propaganda and malicious stories that had been spread over the past year. She herself has been the target of fake news, including the "pizzagate" story. It wrongly stated during the election campaign that a paedophilia ring involving people at the highest levels of the Democratic Party was operating out of a Washington pizza restaurant. BBC

Syria War: IS Edge Closer To Palmyra Again
Fighters with the Islamic State group (IS) have seized more territory close to the ancient Syrian city of Palmyra, a monitoring group says. IS held Palmyra and its nearby ruins for 10 months before it was recaptured by Syrian government forces in March. But the group launched an offensive earlier this week, and has captured land on several fronts. The UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said IS had killed 49 Syrian troops near Palmyra on Friday. Meanwhile, the US-led coalition fighting IS says it has destroyed 168 oil tankers belonging to the group near Palmyra, in the largest raid of its kind so far. The assault on Thursday led to some $2m (£1.6m) of losses to the group. BBC

US Government Scrambles To Respond To Surge Of Migrants At Mexico Border
In another context you might guess the giant marquees are being set up for a grand wedding. But this is the Texas border with Mexico, and the white tents are rising as the federal governments latest response to a sharp rise in migrant numbers that is drawing parallels with the influx of 2014. Supply trucks arrived every few minutes as workers set up the Border Patrol holding facility in a field next to the Donna International Bridge, a few hundred metres from a rust-coloured metal border fence. With a capacity of 500, it will hold unaccompanied children and families. In far west Texas, 750 miles away, a similar centre opened near El Paso last month after a dramatic spike of unauthorised crossings in a previously quiet sector. Guardian

Ohio 'Heartbeat' Abortion Bill Could Be Test Case For Overturning Roe v Wade
The Ohio state legislature threw down the gauntlet this week to the supreme court, passing a new anti-abortion heartbeat bill that would ban terminations from as early as six weeks, the most severe restrictions in the country. Ohio politicians say they were motivated to push through the bill by Donald Trumps win, believing they might find a more friendly US supreme court that would uphold the law. If passed by Governor John Kasich, the bill could serve as a test case for the limits of constitutional protections of abortion, and even for overturning the landmark decision Roe v Wade, which enshrines a womans right to choose abortion until the fetus is viable (between 24 and 28 weeks gestation). But activists on both sides of the issue doubt that strategy is likely to succeed, and say it could do more to harm the legal movement than help it. Guardian

David Cameron On Brexit, Donald Trump And Why He Does Not Regret Calling A Referendum
David Cameron has used his first major speech since resigning in June to explain why he felt people voted for Brexit and defend his decision to hold the referendum.Mr Cameron, speaking at DePauw University in Indiana, also spoke of similarities between the Brexit vote and the election of Donald Trump and he used his platform in the United States to urge Mr Trump to respect the incredibly precious American values of freedom, tolerance and outward-looking policies. In a wide-ranging address funded by former students Sharon and Timothy Ubben, who since 1986 have invited Tony Blair, Bill Clinton, Benazir Bhutto and Mikhail Gorbachev to speak - the former prime minister warned against being seduced by so-called strongmen leaders, such as Vladimir Putin. Telegraph

More Than 1,000 Russian Athletes Benefited From The Biggest Doping Scandal In History - McLaren Report
More than 1,000 Russian athletes benefited from the biggest doping scandal in history, according to the second part of Richard McLarens damning report into state-sponsored cheating at recent Olympics and other major events. The full scale of the cover-up of drug-taking inside the rogue nation before and during the Sochi Winter Games was laid bare by McLaren at a press conference in London five months on from the first part of his bombshell report sparked an unprecedented crisis within the Olympic movement. Telegraph

Outraged UN Member States Demand Immediate Halt To Attacks Against Civilians In Syria
Expressing outrage at the escalation of violence in Syria, particularly war-battered Aleppo, the General Assembly the universal body comprising all 193 United Nations Members States today adopted a resolution demanding an immediate and complete end to all attacks on civilians as well as an end to all sieges in war-ravaged country. In a resolution adopted by a vote of 122 in favour, 13 against and 36 abstentions, the Assembly also expressed grave concern at the continued deterioration of the devastating humanitarian situation in the country and demanded rapid, safe, sustained, unhindered and unconditional humanitarian access throughout the country for UN [] and all humanitarian actors. UN News

Human Rights Violations In DPR Korea Warning Signs Of Instability And Conflict, Security Council Told
Citing human rights violations in the Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea (DPRK), senior United Nations officials today highlighted the need for the Security Council to pay attention to the situation of great concern. History teaches us that serious human rights violations are warning signs of instability and conflict, Deputy Secretary-General Jan Eliasson said in a briefing requested by nine of the Councils 15 members. France, Japan, Malaysia, New Zealand, Spain, Ukraine, the United Kingdom, the United States and Uruguay had sent a letter to the Council President, seeking further information from the UN Secretariat on this situation and its implications for international peace and security. UN News

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