Trump to Muslims on first foreign trip: Drive out terrorists
Trump to Muslims on first foreign trip: Drive out terrorists
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump will use his first visit to the Middle East to call for unity in the fight against radicalism in the Muslim world, casting the challenge as a “battle between good and evil” and urging Arab leaders to “drive out the terrorists from your places of worship,” according to a draft of the speech obtained by The Associated Press.
Abandoning some of the harsh anti-Muslim rhetoric of his presidential campaign, the draft of the speech, slated to be delivered in Saudi Arabia on Sunday, envisions new partnerships with America’s traditional allies in the Middle East. It notably refrains from mentioning democracy and human rights — topics Arab leaders often view as U.S. moralizing — in favor of the more limited goals of peace and stability.
“We are not here to lecture — to tell other peoples how to live, what to do or who to be. We are here instead to offer partnership in building a better future for us all,” the document said.
Trump left Washington Friday afternoon for Riyadh, the first stop on his maiden trip overseas trip as president. The marathon trip will also take him to Israel, the Vatican, Belgium and Italy. The trip is a key test of the president’s diplomatic skills and a chance to add substance to a foreign policy he has described broadly as “America First.”
Two different sources provided the AP with copies of the draft of his remarks, billed as a marquee speech of the trip. One version, obtained late Thursday, included edits with comments from an administration official, indicating it was still a work in progress.
Weiner pleads guilty in sexting case, could go to prison
NEW YORK (AP) — Former U.S. Rep. Anthony Weiner, whose penchant for sexting strangers ended his political career and sparked a probe that upended the presidential race, pleaded guilty Friday to a sex charge, tearfully apologizing for communications with a 15-year-old girl that he said destroyed his “life’s dream in public service.”
Weiner, who could go to prison, pleaded guilty to a single count of transmitting obscene material to a minor. He admitted exchanging online messages with the girl beginning in January 2015 and “sharing explicit images and encouraging her to engage in sexually explicit conduct.”
“I have a sickness, but I do not have an excuse,” he said.
In court, the 52-year-old former Democratic congressman paused repeatedly as he fought back tears and tried to compose himself. He said he knew the texting was “as morally wrong as it was unlawful.”
Pleading to the charge, which requires him to register as a sex offender, could bring a sentence of up to 10 years. But Weiner is likely to serve much less time if he is sentenced to prison.
Brazil’s top prosecutor accuses Temer of obstructing justice
RIO DE JANEIRO (AP) — Brazil’s top prosecutor is accusing President Michel Temer of corruption and obstruction of justice, according to an investigation released Friday by the supreme court, dramatically escalating pressure to force the embattled leader from office.
At the same time, other released documents said the owner of a major meatpacker has told prosecutors that he transferred $150 million to offshore accounts for the campaigns of Temer’s two predecessors in the presidency.
Attorney General Rodrigo Janot’s charges against Temer threaten to drive him from the presidency and represent an extraordinary development in a corruption probe that is upending politics and just about everything else in Latin America’s largest nation.
For Temer, a 76-year-old career politician who was not elected, the fallout could cost him his job. Temer, then vice president, took power a year ago after President Dilma Rousseff was impeached and later removed from office for illegally managing the federal budget.
By Friday afternoon, O Globo, the flagship paper of Brazil’s largest media company, was calling for Temer’s resignation, delivering a significant blow to Temer’s prospects of survival. The media group had supported Temer’s proposed reform, and more generally wields enormous influence because of its popular soap operas and media dominance.
Haiti chefs carving out higher profile for country’s cuisine
PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (AP) — In a dining room in a wealthy district in the hills above Haiti’s capital, waiters in black outfits whisk plates of crunchy malanga fritters and a creamy cornmeal dish to well-off locals and tourists. In the kitchen, the chef ladles glistening, fresh conch into a pot as his staff dice tomatoes and watercress.
Haitian cuisine is a spicy confluence of French, Spanish, African and Amerindian cooking traditions that blends indigenous ingredients like the rich, earthy black mushroom known as djon djon with a variety of cooking techniques, crusted baguettes and flaky pastries. For decades, Haitian food has been seen as simple, hearty fare best simmered for hours over charcoal stoves at home or fried up and served in cheap curbside restaurants. Haitians who could afford a night out at a restaurant used to opt for versions of continental menus or a generic Caribbean fusion mimicking the food in island resorts.
In recent years a new generation of Haitian chefs here and abroad has begun reimagining the country’s cuisine. Traditional delicacies like the milky cornmeal beverage called akasan; the fiery carrot and cabbage condiment called pikliz; citrus-marinated chicken with boiled cashews; and whole fish in spiced broth are being prepared using haute cuisine techniques and served in the growing number of restaurants serving foreigners and Haiti’s small middle- and upper-class.
“It’s a real exciting time right now for Haitian gastronomy. We have serious, bona fide culinarians who are creative and focused on raising the profile of our food,” chef Jouvens Jean said as chile-laced shrimp sizzled in a pan at Jojo Restaurant in Petionville.
Accomplished chefs like Jean and Stephan Berrouet-Durand moved back to their homeland from the United States, importing the presentation and kitchen know-how of the various countries where they’ve worked, while others are increasingly vocal ambassadors for their food culture overseas, appearing on U.S. and European cooking programs.
Fox News fires Bob Beckel for racially insensitive remark
NEW YORK (AP) — Fox News Channel said Friday that it had fired liberal commentator Bob Beckel for making a racially insensitive remark to a black employee.
Fox offered no details on the case, but a lawyer for the employee said Beckel had “stormed out” of his office Tuesday when the man, who is a technician, came to do work on his computer, saying he was leaving because the worker was black.
The lawyer, Douglas Wigdor, also said that Beckel attempted to intimidate his client and get him to withdraw his complaint in a meeting Friday with Fox executive Kevin Lord. Fox denied that anyone tried to persuade the man to withdraw his complaint, and said that Beckel had apologized to him after he was fired.
Beckel, 68, is a veteran Democratic political strategist who is a regular on Fox’s “The Five,” where he discusses stories with four conservative panelists. The show recently moved into Fox’s prime-time lineup with the firing of Bill O’Reilly.
Beckel had only returned to Fox in January. He’d been ousted in June 2015 while dealing with substance abuse, with then-Fox executive Bill Shine saying Fox “couldn’t hold ‘The Five’ hostage to one man’s personal issues.” Beckel subsequently wrote a book “I Should Be Dead: My Life Surviving Politics, TV and Addiction.”
Judge confirms Prince’s 6 siblings as heirs to his estate
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — A judge confirmed Prince’s six siblings to be his rightful heirs in a ruling released Friday, bringing them a big step closer to collecting their shares of the music legend’s multimillion-dollar estate.
Carver County District Judge Kevin Eide formally declared that Prince died without a will and that his heirs are his sister, Tyka Nelson, and five half-siblings — Sharon Nelson, Norrine Nelson, John R. Nelson, Omarr Baker and Alfred Jackson.
The siblings will still have to wait to inherit their shares of Prince’s estate, which court filings suggest has an estimated value of about $200 million, though taxes are expected to consume about half of that.
More than 45 people came forward in the wake of Prince’s death, claiming to be his wife, children, siblings or other relatives. Some, including a Colorado prison inmate who said he was Prince’s son, were ruled out through DNA testing. Others, such as a woman and girl who claimed to be Prince’s niece and grandniece, had their claims rejected as a matter of law.
Some of those people filed appeals, and Eide said that if appellate courts send any of the rejected claimants back to him, he will consider them. And until the appeals are resolved, Eide said the siblings won’t be able to collect anything without his approval.