Big Time News Blog: 08/14/20

Friday, August 14, 2020

US says Iran briefly seizes oil tanker near Strait of Hormuz

The Iranian navy boarded and briefly seized a Liberian-flagged oil tanker near the strategic Strait of Hormuz amid heightened tensions between Tehran and the U.S., the American military said Thursday. The U.S. military's Central Command published a black-and-white video showing what appeared to be special forces fast-roping down from a helicopter onto the MT Wila, whose last position appeared to be off the eastern coast of the United Arab Emirates near the city of Khorfakkan. The Iranian navy held the vessel for some five hours before releasing it Wednesday, said a U.S. military official who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity to discuss details not yet made public.

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Looking Behind Trump’s Latest Attack on Canada’s Aluminum Exports

By BY IAN AUSTEN from NYT World https://ift.tt/3fW8D9F

U.S. judge dismisses NRA lawsuit challenging gun shop closures in New York state

A federal judge on Friday dismissed the National Rifle Association's lawsuit challenging New York's decision to close gun stores in the state in the early stages of the coronavirus pandemic. The decision came eight days after New York Attorney General Letitia James filed a lawsuit seeking to dissolve the gun rights group, accusing senior leaders of corruption including the improper diversion of millions of dollars. U.S. District Judge Mae D'Agostino said the NRA lacked standing to challenge on behalf of its members a March 20 executive order by Governor Andrew Cuomo requiring gun stores to close in the state because they were "non-essential" businesses.

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Cop fired for racist Christmas decorations returns to work

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Yale University 'discriminated against white and Asian students', says Department of Justice

Yale University illegally discriminated against white and Asian American students, the US Justice Department said after its investigation found race to be the “determinative factor in hundreds of admissions decisions each year.” The findings are the result of a two-year investigation in response to a complaint by Asian American groups concerning Yale's conduct. The Justice Department said it had concluded that the Ivy League university gave too much weight to race in reviewing applications, in violation of federal civil rights law. Eric Dreiband, the assistant attorney general for the civil rights division, claimed that Yale grants “substantial, and often determinative” preferences to certain “racially-favored applicants” and disfavours others. He also asserted that for “the great majority” of cases, Asian American and white applicants have “only one-tenth to one-fourth of the likelihood of admission as African American applicants with comparable academic credentials.”

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Oregon State Police leaving Portland over lack of prosecutions

The state police were deployed to Portland two weeks ago under an agreement between Oregon Governor Kate Brown and Vice President Mike Pence to withdraw federal agents after weeks of clashes with protesters. President Donald Trump threatened to send National Guard troops to Portland, if requested by Oregon authorities, if local law enforcement was unable to protect the federal courthouse.

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Ex-FBI lawyer to plead guilty in Trump-Russia probe review

A former FBI lawyer plans to plead guilty to making a false statement in the first criminal case arising from U.S. Attorney John Durham's investigation into the probe of ties between Russia and the 2016 Trump campaign, his lawyer said Friday. Kevin Clinesmith is accused of altering a government email about a former Trump campaign adviser who was a target of secret FBI surveillance, according to documents filed in Washington's federal court.

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The first 'second gentleman'? Meet Kamala Harris' husband, Doug Emhoff

A successful entertainment lawyer who married into politics and is known for fiercely defending his wife.

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When Trump Calls a Black Woman ‘Angry,’ He Feeds This Racist Trope

By BY MELENA RYZIK, REGGIE UGWU, MAYA PHILLIPS AND JULIA JACOBS from NYT Arts https://ift.tt/3aogVGr

A Dictatorship in Belarus Is Shaken

By BY THE EDITORIAL BOARD from NYT Opinion https://ift.tt/3kKVu79

Mourners Remember Fort Hood Spc. Vanessa Guillen

By BY THE ASSOCIATED PRESS from NYT U.S. https://ift.tt/30ZHajs

Postal Service Warns States It May Not Meet Mail-In Ballot Deadlines

By BY LUKE BROADWATER, HAILEY FUCHS AND NICK CORASANITI from NYT U.S. https://ift.tt/3fXLJPr

Billy Goldenberg, TV, Movie and Stage Composer, Dies at 84

By BY RICHARD SANDOMIR from NYT Arts https://ift.tt/3aoXwFn

Fox Host makes ominous prediction about Joe Biden then immediately tries to walk it back

Fox News host Jeanine Pirro suggested Wednesday night that "something" was going to happen to presumptive Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden that would keep him from appearing on the ballot come November.Her comment during an appearance on "The Five" as she was answering a question about a recent poll from right-wing outlet Rasmussen that claimed more than half of its respondents didn't believe Mr Biden would survive his first term in office.

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Riot declared in downtown Portland, protesters tear-gassed

Local and state police made arrests after demonstrators returned to downtown area despite withdrawal of federal agents

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Eagle rips propeller off mapping drone, sends it plunging into Lake Michigan, agency says

The drone was on its fourth day of a shoreline survey mission for the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy — also known as EGLE.

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Mourners gather in Houston to remember slain soldier

Vanessa Guillen, who was last seen on April 22, was memorialized nearly four months after she is said to have been killed by a fellow soldier at Fort Hood, a U.S. Army base in Texas. Mourners gathered at Cesar Chavez High School in Houston, where Guillen grew up playing soccer and dreaming of joining the military. “She’s very happy where she is next to God and the Virgin Mary,” Lupe Guillen said.

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Department of Justice says Yale discriminates against whites and Asians

The Ivy League university denied that its admissions process breached Supreme Court rulings.

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AOC responds to apparent Democratic party convention speech snub: 'Eternity is in it'

Firebrand lawmaker Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has hit back at an alleged snub by the Democratic party after being given just 60 seconds to deliver a speech a next week’s convention.AOC responded on Twitter by posting the poem ‘I have only just a minute’, written by the late Dr Benjamin E. Mays, an American Baptist minister and civil rights leader.

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