| Seven days in Trumpland: Confusion, scandals and indictments Posted: 02 Mar 2018 03:51 PM PST  Even by the standards of a White House beset by multiple investigations, routine allegations of ethical lapses and an agenda that keeps news organizations struggling to keep pace, the seven-day span from Feb. 23 through March 2 stands out.
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| Russia may be helping North Korea skirt sanctions through smuggling Posted: 02 Mar 2018 08:20 AM PST  North Korea made $200 million over nine months through illicit trade—with the country's coal being shipped through Russia in several instances—according to a UN report obtained by NBC News.
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| Pennsylvania Redistricting Leads To Bad Blood Among Some Democrats Forced To Shuffle Electoral Plans Posted: 02 Mar 2018 12:10 PM PST  Democrats rejoiced last month when the Pennsylvania Supreme Court redrew the state's congressional districts, ruling that the GOP had gerrymandered the map unconstitutionally. The court's move made Democrats competitive in several more districts than they would have been under the Republican plan. Democrat Christina Hartman, an establishment favorite running there, announced Wednesday that she would be withdrawing from that race and running in the adjacent 10th District instead.
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| Nor'easter Grounds Flights, Halts Trains Along East Coast Posted: 01 Mar 2018 09:00 PM PST  Airlines canceled thousands of flights, mostly in the Northeast, and Amtrak suspended service along the Northeast Corridor, from Washington to Boston.
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| Three children found living in wooden box in California desert Posted: 02 Mar 2018 01:19 PM PST  A couple was charged with child abuse after authorities found their three children living in a wooden box in a southern California desert. It appeared the children - aged 11, 13 and 14 - had been living in the plywood structure for about four years, the San Bernardino Sheriff's Department said, and were not being sufficiently fed. Officials located the parents, Mona Kirk and Daniel Panico, on the property and arrested them.
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| Manhunt underway after shooting leaves two dead at Central Michigan University Posted: 02 Mar 2018 08:47 AM PST  Authorities are searching for James Eric Davis Jr., a 19-year-old student, after his parents were killed on Friday morning.
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| Australia Is Still Waiting for the U.S. to Fulfill Its Pledge to Accept Refugees Posted: 02 Mar 2018 12:21 AM PST  Only 200 refugees have been resettled since Trump agreed to accept 1,250
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| Democrat reiterates doubts about Jared Kushner's loyalty to the U.S. Posted: 02 Mar 2018 02:00 AM PST  Rep. Ted Lieu, D-Calif., a member of the House Judiciary Committee, said he was "absolutely" impugning Jared Kushner's patriotism when he tweeted Wednesday that "we don't know where his loyalties lie" — whether to America or "bailing out his and his family's debts."
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| Powerful nor’easter slams East Coast with high winds, flooding Posted: 02 Mar 2018 07:40 AM PST  Power is out, planes are grounded and flood waters are rising in many sections of the Northeast tonight, as rain, heavy snow and vicious winds pummel the region.
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| US and Russia clash over blame for Syria chemical attacks Posted: 02 Mar 2018 10:12 AM PST  UNITED NATIONS (AP) — The United States and Russia are again clashing over an expert body to determine responsibility for chemical weapons attacks in Syria, with Washington circulating a new draft U.N. resolution and Moscow moving toward a vote on its own proposal.
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| 5 Avalanche Victims Rescued At California's Squaw Valley Ski Resort Posted: 02 Mar 2018 09:52 PM PST  A powerful avalanche Friday at Squaw Valley Ski Resort above Lake Tahoe in Northern California buried five skiers and snowboarders, injuring two, officials reported. Officials are investigating what may have triggered the avalanche.
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| Police: Plot to Rob Armored Bank Car and Kill Drivers Thwarted Posted: 01 Mar 2018 09:00 PM PST  Alleged two-year plot ended with a dramatic takedown in Florida.
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| Paul Teutel Sr. Slapped with Fraud Lawsuit Posted: 02 Mar 2018 11:15 AM PST  Paul Teutel Sr. Slapped with Fraud Lawsuit Paul Sr.'s terrible, horrible, no good, very bad decade continues With reality TV star Paul Teutul already scheduled to appear in court later this month due to the foreclosure of his multi-million dollar New York
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| Student Who Allegedly Killed His Parents in College Dorm Arrested, Family Shocked Posted: 03 Mar 2018 08:32 AM PST  It is unclear what prompted the alleged shooting.
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| Cryptocurrency gave young South Koreans a glimmer of hope, now dashed Posted: 02 Mar 2018 04:00 AM PST  For Juwon Park, cryptocurrency investment represented a 'life raft' to escape drowning in debt and one day move out of her parents' home. But she wasn't counting on the South Korean government's plans to regulate the market.
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| New TV Ad Demands Trump Drop His Ban On Transgender Troops Posted: 01 Mar 2018 10:10 PM PST  The Human Rights Campaign and other LGBTQ advocacy groups are launching a television ad campaign across the nation Friday demanding that "impulsive president" Donald Trump drop his attempt to ban transgender service members in the military. The total ban on transgender troops demanded by Trump last summer is currently blocked by federal court rulings and has been criticized by military leaders. "An impulsive president tweets that transgender Americans won't be allowed to serve," the ad says.
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| Indicted Missouri governor goes after top prosecutor Posted: 02 Mar 2018 02:05 PM PST  JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — Since he was indicted on allegations related to an extramarital affair, Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens has shifted into attack mode, zeroing in on the St. Louis prosecutor who launched the investigation with comments decried by some critics as politically or racially charged.
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| US shrinks its Cuba mission after mystery 'attacks' Posted: 02 Mar 2018 05:08 PM PST  The United States is to permanently scale back its mission to Cuba after what it alleges were series of mystery "attacks" on the health diplomats, the State Department said Friday. The Havana embassy had already been operating with a reduced staff since September 2017, when diplomats and family members were evacuated after suffering brain injuries. Cuba's communist government has angrily denied that it had anything to do with any attack on US personnel, and US officials have been unable to determine the cause of the injuries.
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| 'We’re Gonna Do What International Law Says We Can Do.' Aboard the USS Carl Vinson in the South China Sea Posted: 02 Mar 2018 01:11 AM PST  TIME tours one of America's biggest warships as it prepares for a historic Vietnam port call
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| Silicon Valley police use decoy bus to hunt people shooting BB gun at coaches carrying Apple and Google workers Posted: 02 Mar 2018 05:46 AM PST  California police are using decoy "bait buses" to try to catch attackers who have been firing BB guns at coaches taking Google, Apple and other tech company workers from their San Francisco homes to their Silicon Valley offices. The motive for the attacks is unclear, but previously the luxury coaches – known by the catch-all term 'Google buses' - have been the target of peaceful protests by those who blame the influx of thousands of tech workers on gentrification and unaffordable rents in San Francisco. On January 16 alone, five buses were hit as they carried Apple and Google employees along the Interstate 280 highway between the city and San Francisco Bay area's Silicon Valley.
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| Joshua Tree couple arrested after 3 kids found living in box for years, authorities say Posted: 01 Mar 2018 07:09 PM PST  A couple were arrested after deputies found their three children had been living in a large box for years.
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| Central Michigan University shooting: Police detain suspect who 'shot dead parents in dormitory' Posted: 03 Mar 2018 01:34 AM PST  A student suspected of killing his parents in a Central Michigan University dormitory has been arrested. James Eric Davis Jr, a 19-year-old student, is suspected of shooting dead both his parents after being released from hospital for an alleged drug-related health problem. Diva Jeneen Davis and James Eric Davis Sr, both 47, were killed after shots were fired in Campbell Hall residence on the university campus.
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| Donald Trump among mourners as 'America's pastor' Billy Graham is laid to rest Posted: 02 Mar 2018 04:20 PM PST  The late Reverend Billy Graham, spearhead of an evangelical Christian movement that touched millions worldwide and who provided spiritual counsel to several US presidents, returned for good to his North Carolina home on Friday. President Donald Trump and Vice President Mike Pence attended the 90-minute funeral along with some 2,000 mourners who gathered to say goodbye to the man who became known as "America's pastor". The ceremony took place at the Billy Graham Library on the family's property in Charlotte, under a broad white tent that harkens back to the "canvas cathedral" in 1949 that helped propel Graham to prominence. "My father's greatest longing has been granted. He's in the presence of God," said son Franklin Graham, one of several relatives to speak. Mr Trump, who attended with First Lady Melania Trump, did not address the gathering, but he sang along to hymns including "To God Be The Glory". President Donald Trump and the first lady attend a funeral service for Billy Graham Credit: AP He was the only one of six living presidents to attend the ceremony, although all of them issued statements honoring the late reverend. As the funeral began, Graham's casket - a simple but elegant plywood pine coffin crafted by inmates at a Louisiana prison - was carried by pallbearers through the library's cross-shaped glass entryway and out to the tent, which was buffeted by strong winds. Graham, who preached in person to more than 200 million people in 85 countries over a decades-long career, and millions more through the power of television, died last week at age 99, leaving a Christian evangelist movement without its best known champion of modern times. puff: billy graham obit Graham was bestowed the rare tribute of laying in honour for two days this week in the US Capitol's Rotunda, where Trump praised him as "an ambassador for Christ who reminded the world of the power of prayer and the gift of God's grace." The onetime backwoods minister was to be buried in the late afternoon at the foot of a cross-shaped brick walkway in the library's prayer garden, next to his late wife Ruth, who died in 2007. More than 100 international dignitaries paid tribute to Graham in Charlotte, including Billy Kim, a Korean pastor and friend who served as Graham's translator in South Korea. Mr Kim said he offered thanks on behalf of Christians worldwide. "Thank you for bringing your salvation message to our part of the world," he said. Graham, with his energetic - some would say aggressive - speaking style, made a robust impact in Asia, and particularly in South Korea, where he held his largest ever "crusade". Some 1.1 million people attended the event's final service, in Seoul in 1973, according to the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association. The casket carrying the body of Rev Billy Graham is carried to his funeral service at the Billy Graham Library Credit: Getty Images But he also made inroads in places like Germany, preaching to tens of thousands in Berlin in the 1960s at the height of the Cold War. Graham offered spiritual guidance and friendship to 13 presidents, several of whom prayed with the minister at the White House. His daughter Anne Graham Lotz said her father's death would be as significant as his decades of ministry. "I believe this is a shot across the bow from heaven," she said of Graham's passing. "And I believe God is saying, 'Wake up church. Wake up world. Wake up Anne. Jesus is coming.'"
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| The 20 Funniest Tweets From Women This Week Posted: 02 Mar 2018 05:47 AM PST  The ladies of Twitter never fail to brighten our days with their brilliant ― but succinct ― wisdom. Each week, HuffPost Women rounds up hilarious 280-character musings. For this week's great tweets from women, scroll through the list below. Then visit our Funniest Tweets From Women page for our past collections.
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| Deadly attacks by extremists strike Burkina Faso capital Posted: 02 Mar 2018 04:12 PM PST  OUAGADOUGOU, Burkina Faso (AP) — Islamic extremists struck the French Embassy and army headquarters in simultaneous attacks of gunfire and explosives Friday in Burkina Faso's capital, killing eight people and wounding more than 80 others. All eight militants were slain by security forces.
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| 'The Internet Is The Only Place We Simultaneously Desire Fame And Anonymity' Posted: 02 Mar 2018 06:17 AM PST  The shower isn't just a place to sing. Separated from our cellphones, standing under running water often allows people's minds to run free.
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| Populists, far-right eye gains in Italian election Posted: 03 Mar 2018 07:35 AM PST  Rival parties held their final rallies on Friday as no campaigning was allowed on Saturday, at the end of a bitter race marred by clashes between far-right and anti-fascist activists. The result could end up in a draw between the anti-establishment Five Star Movement, three-time prime minister Silvio Berlusconi's right-wing coalition and the ruling centre-left Democratic Party. One of the most remarkable features of the election has been the return to the political limelight of the 81-year-old Berlusconi despite a career overshadowed by sex scandals and legal woes.
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| Gazprom seeks to halt Ukraine gas contracts as dispute escalates Posted: 02 Mar 2018 08:15 AM PST  By Vladimir Soldatkin and Natalia Zinets MOSCOW/KIEV (Reuters) - Russia's Gazprom said on Friday it would terminate its gas contracts with Ukraine after it lost a court case, escalating a dispute which has left Ukraine struggling to stay warm and which the EU said could threaten gas flows to Europe. A Stockholm arbitration court ordered Gazprom this week to pay more than $2.5 billion to Ukrainian energy firm Naftogaz - a ruling meant to conclude a long legal battle that has run alongside Ukraine's broader political stand-off with Russia.
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| Teen Had Semi-Automatic Rifle and 100 Rounds of Ammunition Outside High School, Police Say Posted: 02 Mar 2018 07:45 AM PST  "Whatever we prevented, the outcome was going to be bad"
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| What's killing more pedestrians: smartphones or legal weed? Posted: 02 Mar 2018 05:00 AM PST  There were roughly 6,000 pedestrians killed in car accidents in the U.S. in 2017. That's the same high level of pedestrian fatalities as was recorded in 2016, up from about 5,400 in 2015. In fact the number has been climbing since 2009, with only the smallest of dips in 2013. Now, it doesn't take a genius to see the main change in our society since 2009. Just look out of your window and you're likely to see a zombified walker staring at her smartphone, or maybe a driver sneaking an illegal look at a black rectangle. SEE ALSO: Put your smartphone away, you're missing the entire history of you Some 80 percent of us now own smartphones, compared to a mere 17 percent in 2009. It's a sea change in society and we're still grappling with the implications. But that didn't stop the Governors Highway Safety Association from sneaking another possible cause into its latest pedestrian deaths report: the fact that seven states and the District of Columbia have legalized marijuana for recreational use. The report was careful to say that it wasn't "making a direct correlation or claiming a definitive link" between legal weed and pedestrian deaths. Nevertheless, the New York Times was on it. The Grey Lady conjured up a headline that managed to look both schoolmarmish and clickbait-ish: "When pedestrian deaths are up, is marijuana to blame?" Hey, I'm just asking. Even Fox News managed to avoid the anti-marijuana clickbait approach in its headline on the report. But the Times — home to self-hating former stoner David Brooks and Maureen Dowd, who wrote a widely derided column about gobbling up marijuana edibles in Colorado without asking about proper dose levels — has a disturbing tendency to grasp for any reefer madness angle it can find. SEE ALSO: Vermont just legalized marijuana. Here's why that's so important. Yes, pedestrian deaths are increasing at a slightly faster rate in the eight legalized states (Washington, Oregon, Nevada, California, Colorado, Alaska, Maine, Massachusetts) plus Washington, D.C. But further down the Times piece, we discover that we're not really dealing with statistically significant numbers: there are almost no pedestrian deaths in weed-legal Alaska or Maine, and a mere four extra in Colorado. We also discover that in the first half of 2017, the states with the most pedestrian fatalities per 100,000 people were Arizona, New Mexico, Delaware, Louisiana, and Florida. None of those states have legalized marijuana for recreational purposes. Which means that you could just as easily make a pro-pot argument from these numbers. When pedestrian deaths are up, should more states allow recreational marijuana? After all, plenty of pot users will tell you they get more aware of their surroundings when high — not to mention jumpy, paranoid, and more likely to think a car is heading in their direction when it isn't. Other important questions that both the Times and the GHSA failed to ask: Is the rate of smartphone adoption growing faster than average in those eight legalized states, which are generally wealthier than the average? Could that account for the difference, perhaps? And is there a significantly higher number of pot smokers in legal states, rather than just people transitioning from getting America's No. 1 cash crop illegally? And at a time when the U.S. Attorney General is threatening to roll back the Obama administration's tolerant approach to state-level legalization, is this kind of scare headline irresponsible in the extreme? Dig into the report and you'll find another interesting and largely ignored explanation: There are simply more pedestrians in our streets. More of us are discovering the joys (and the health benefits) of walking to work. And yet the infrastructure itself has hardly changed. There's no great national public works effort afoot to widen our sidewalks or strengthen our curbs or build more structures, such as parklets, that put some space between walkers and drivers. Or, y'know, more street lamps, since 75 percent of all pedestrian deaths take place at night. It isn't just democracy that dies in darkness. Perhaps the New York Times should worry more about lights and less about lighting up.
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| EU, SE Asia talk up trade deal amid alarm over Trump tariffs Posted: 02 Mar 2018 01:15 AM PST  Southeast Asia and Europe pledged Friday to speed up efforts for an elusive free trade deal, vowing to support open markets in the face of growing US protectionism under Donald Trump. EU trade chief Cecilia Malmstrom said a deal would "send a strong signal to the world" after Trump's plan to put tariffs on steel and aluminum sparked an outcry among American trade partners, including Europe. Trump said Thursday he would sign off on the measures next week, sending stock markets into a tailspin.
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| BlackRock: Investment giant threatens to pull funds from gunmakers after Florida high school shooting Posted: 03 Mar 2018 05:55 AM PST  BlackRock, the world's largest money manager, will offer its clients the ability to opt out of investing in gun manufacturers in the wake of the deadly Florida high school shooting. The firm, which manages close to $6 trillion (£4.3 trillion) in assets, said on Friday the attack had "driven home the terrible toll from gun violence in America". BlackRock said its clients will also be offered the opportunity to avoid investing in gun makers.
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| Mennonite investigator remains jailed after court ruling Posted: 02 Mar 2018 06:44 PM PST  DENVER (AP) — A Colorado criminal defense investigator who refused to testify for the prosecution in a death penalty case because she says it's against her Mennonite faith will remain jailed after an appeals court on Friday ruled against her request to testify under alternative conditions.
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| Suspected Boko Haram militants kill 11 including 3 aid workers in Nigeria attack Posted: 02 Mar 2018 04:43 AM PST  By Paul Carsten ABUJA (Reuters) - Suspected Boko Haram militants killed at least 11 people including three aid workers in an attack on a military facility in Nigeria's northeastern Borno state late on Thursday, according to two security reports seen by Reuters. The raid in the town of Rann marks the latest high-profile attack by militants in the northeast, coming less than two weeks after militants abducted 110 girls from a school in the town of Dapchi in neighbouring Yobe state. The United Nations confirmed three aid workers, all Nigerian nationals, were killed in the attack in Rann, near the Cameroon border, and said a female nurse was missing, feared abducted.
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| UN rights council postpones vote on Syria resolution Posted: 02 Mar 2018 09:30 AM PST  The UN Human Rights Council on Friday postponed voting on a British resolution condemning the crisis in Syria's besieged rebel enclave of Eastern Ghouta, after members-states failed to agree on a final text. The British draft introduced at an emergency council session calls for immediate humanitarian access to the area, where a controversial truce unilaterally declared by Damascus-ally Russia has been unable to produce a breakthrough. The draft also instructs war crimes investigators from the UN-backed Commission of Inquiry for Syria to conduct an investigation into alleged atrocities in the area, battered by a Russia-backed regime assault that began February 18.
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| Ukraine says weapons decision heralds new era of cooperation with U.S. Posted: 02 Mar 2018 08:21 AM PST  By Alessandra Prentice and Sergiy Karazy KIEV (Reuters) - Ukrainian Defence Minister Stepan Poltorak on Friday said the decision by the United States to approve the supply of anti-tank missiles opened the door for closer military cooperation in the face of Russian aggression. On Thursday, the Pentagon announced that the sale of Javelin missiles and launch units to Ukraine had been approved - a move the United States has been mulling since early 2015 to help Ukraine in its standoff with Russia-backed separatists. "Unfortunately the issue of giving lethal weapons was under consideration for a long time," Poltorak said in an interview with Reuters.
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| Amandla Stenberg Passed On ‘Black Panther’ To Make Way For Darker-Skinned Actors Posted: 02 Mar 2018 02:33 PM PST  Amandla Stenberg put a lot of thought into not entering the Marvel cinematic universe. Last week, "The Hunger Games" actress explained to CBC Arts that she was in the running for a lead part in "Black Panther" but decided to back out because she didn't want to take the role from a darker-skinned actor. The biracial actress said she put a lot of thought into rejecting a role in which she'd play a purely African woman.
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| Seventh-Grader Who Killed Himself in School Bathroom Planned to Shoot Others, Police Say Posted: 02 Mar 2018 04:20 AM PST  A boy who shot and killed himself inside an Ohio middle school restroom was planning to shoot others before changing his mind, police said
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| Cat Given CPR After Dramatic Rescue From Apartment Fire Posted: 02 Mar 2018 08:30 AM PST  The cat appeared to be suffering from smoke inhalation.
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| U.S. Allies Threaten Retaliation Over Trump's Tariffs Announcement Posted: 02 Mar 2018 05:48 AM PST  Many of America's top trade partners bristled at the news that President Donald Trump plans to impose tariffs of 10 percent on aluminum and 25 percent on steel imports next week. Trump announced the new measures during a meeting with industry executives at the White House Thursday. Canada called the tariffs "unacceptable" and "inappropriate," saying it hoped to receive an exemption from the policy, though the president plans to offer zero exemptions, according to The New York Times.
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| Walmart Loses Its Biggest Selling Point Posted: 02 Mar 2018 08:27 AM PST ![Walmart Loses Its Biggest Selling Point]( "Walmart Loses Its Biggest Selling Point") In 2017, Walmart Inc. (NYSE: WMT) demonstrated to investors that its business can stand up to online competition from Amazon.com Inc. ( AMZN). Now that online sales growth appears to be slowing, however, analysts are having a tough time finding reasons for investors to buy WMT stock. On Friday, Oppenheimer analyst Rupesh Parikh downgraded Walmart stock from "outperform" to "perform" and said there's no longer a reason to be excited about the stock.
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| Mike Huckabee speaks out after quitting country music board Posted: 02 Mar 2018 04:49 PM PST  After facing backlash, Mike Huckabee resigned from the country music organization, citing political and religious intolerance; the former Arkansas governor speaks out on 'The Story.'
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| Equifax breach could be most costly in corporate history Posted: 02 Mar 2018 02:57 PM PST  NEW YORK/TORONTO (Reuters) - Equifax Inc said it expects costs related to its massive 2017 data breach to surge by $275 million this year, suggesting the incident at the credit reporting bureau could turn out to be the most costly hack in corporate history. "It looks like this will be the most expensive data breach in history," said Larry Ponemon, chairman of Ponemon Institute, a research group that tracks costs of cyber attacks. Equifax on Thursday reported fourth-quarter profit that topped Wall Street forecasts and disclosed that it uncovered an additional 2.4 million people whose data was stolen in the attack.
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| Saudi crown prince sets off on maiden foreign tour Posted: 03 Mar 2018 02:29 AM PST  Saudi Arabia's crown prince lands in Egypt Sunday on the first leg of his maiden foreign tour as heir to the throne, a diplomatic charm offensive that follows his stunning rise to power. Prince Mohammed bin Salman's two-day visit to Cairo comes ahead of a scheduled trip to Britain on Wednesday for talks with Prime Minister Theresa May and the United States from March 19-22. The son of Saudi King Salman is already seen as the country's de facto ruler controlling the major levers of government.
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