Several counties in North Carolina are experiencing problems with the voting machine, The Charlotte Observer reports.

Optical scanner issues were reported in the following counties of North Carolina &mdash; Cleveland, Gates, Orange, Cumberland, Wake, Craven and Forsyth.

Narth Carolina is one of the crucial battleground states that will decide the fate of US presidential candidates Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton.

There were polling problems reported from Charlotte area as well. Some people said they had to press the button to select Donald Trump at least 10 to 15 times.

North Carolina State Board of Elections has told the counties to revert to paper-based voting systems, BBC reported.

ProPublica has also reported voting problems in&nbsp;New York, Illinois, Kentucky, Texas and Ohio.

Several states &ndash; particularly Arizona and Florida &ndash; struggled to provide obligatory support to bilingual voters.

The poll glitches come at a time when&nbsp;Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump has repeatedly insisted that this year&#39;s election process would be roiled by voter fraud, by dead people voting and stolen votes.

Voters also reported long lines and isolated cases of harassment at polling places.

(WION)

Optical scanner issues were reported in several counties of North Carolina

Several counties in North Carolina are experiencing problems with the voting machine, The Charlotte Observer reports. Optical scanner issues were reported in the following counties of North Carolina — Cleveland, Gates, Orange, Cumberland, Wake, Craven and Forsyth. Narth Carolina is one of the crucial battleground states that will decide the fate of US presidential candidates Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton. There were polling problems reported from Charlotte area as well. Some people said they had to press the button to select Donald Trump at least 10 to 15 times. North Carolina State Board of Elections has told the counties to revert to paper-based voting systems, BBC reported. ProPublica has also reported voting problems in New York, Illinois, Kentucky, Texas and Ohio. Several states – particularly Arizona and Florida – struggled to provide obligatory support to bilingual voters. The poll glitches come at a time when Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump has repeatedly insisted that this year's election process would be roiled by voter fraud, by dead people voting and stolen votes. Voters also reported long lines and isolated cases of harassment at polling places. (WION)

US election 2016: Voting equipment faults reported from North Carolina, New York

Betting exchanges and online trading platforms on Tuesday said Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton held a far higher probability of winning than Republican Donald Trump.

While Trump made modest gains in probability to win on some online platforms as Americans went to the polls on Tuesday, many gave Clinton a better than 75 per cent chance of victory.

Bookmaker Paddy Power said Clinton&#39;s chance of taking the White House dipped slightly to 81.8 per cent on Election Day from 83.3 percent, while Trump&#39;s probability improved to 22 per cent from 20 percent.

&quot;The flow of money is relatively even with it slightly favouring Trump,&quot; said Paddy Power spokesman F&eacute;ilim Mac An Iomaire.

He said Paddy Power has seen at least 20 four- and five-figure bets placed on Tuesday. Different bookmakers and exchanges have different closing times for placing bets.

Record numbers of betters are pouring millions into online platforms in the hope of capturing a financial windfall from the election.

British gambling company Ladbrokes, which has Clinton&#39;s chance of winning at 76 per cent and Trump&#39;s at 24 per cent, said it anticipated more wagers coming in for the outcome of the US&nbsp;presidential election than had been placed on the European Union referendum - or &quot;Brexit&quot; vote.

&quot;The US&nbsp;election has gripped the nation,&quot; said Ladbrokes spokeswoman Jessica Bridge in a written statement. &quot;It [is] the biggest ever non-sporting event the bookmaking industry has witnessed.&quot;

British-based internet betting exchange Betfair&#39;s &quot;Next President&quot; market was on track to surpass Brexit in amount traded, owing to the surprise results of the referendum that were still fresh in many Britons&#39; minds, spokeswoman Naomi Totten said.

The market saw just under $150 million wagered since it opened in November 2012, with $7 million traded in just seven hours on Tuesday.

Clinton is trading at an 80 per cent chance on Betfair and Trump at a 20 per cent chance of winning the White House.

Trading platforms in the United States showed similar probabilities.

On PredictIt, launched in 2014 and jointly run by Victoria University in Wellington, New Zealand, and Washington, DC-based political consulting firm Aristotle International Inc, Clinton had an 80 per cent chance of victory down from 81 percent Sunday, while Trump was at 22 percent, up from 20 percent.

(Reuters)

Most of the agencies give Hillary Clinton a better than 75 per cent chance of victory

Betting exchanges and online trading platforms on Tuesday said Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton held a far higher probability of winning than Republican Donald Trump. While Trump made modest gains in probability to win on some online platforms as Americans went to the polls on Tuesday, many gave Clinton a better than 75 per cent chance of victory. Bookmaker Paddy Power said Clinton's chance of taking the White House dipped slightly to 81.8 per cent on Election Day from 83.3 percent, while Trump's probability improved to 22 per cent from 20 percent. "The flow of money is relatively even with it slightly favouring Trump," said Paddy Power spokesman Féilim Mac An Iomaire. He said Paddy Power has seen at least 20 four- and five-figure bets placed on Tuesday. Different bookmakers and exchanges have different closing times for placing bets. Record numbers of betters are pouring millions into online platforms in the hope of capturing a financial windfall from the election. British gambling company Ladbrokes, which has Clinton's chance of winning at 76 per cent and Trump's at 24 per cent, said it anticipated more wagers coming in for the outcome of the US presidential election than had been placed on the European Union referendum - or "Brexit" vote. "The US election has gripped the nation," said Ladbrokes spokeswoman Jessica Bridge in a written statement. "It [is] the biggest ever non-sporting event the bookmaking industry has witnessed." British-based internet betting exchange Betfair's "Next President" market was on track to surpass Brexit in amount traded, owing to the surprise results of the referendum that were still fresh in many Britons' minds, spokeswoman Naomi Totten said. The market saw just under $150 million wagered since it opened in November 2012, with $7 million traded in just seven hours on Tuesday. Clinton is trading at an 80 per cent chance on Betfair and Trump at a 20 per cent chance of winning the White House. Trading platforms in the United States showed similar probabilities. On PredictIt, launched in 2014 and jointly run by Victoria University in Wellington, New Zealand, and Washington, DC-based political consulting firm Aristotle International Inc, Clinton had an 80 per cent chance of victory down from 81 percent Sunday, while Trump was at 22 percent, up from 20 percent. (Reuters)

US election: Betting exchanges, online platforms back Clinton to win

The Clinton campaign has issued cease-and-desist warnings to any TV or radio station, demanding that they refrain from airing ads from pro-Trump groups stating that his democratic rival is &quot;under investigation by the FBI&quot;, <a href="http://thehill.com/homenews/media/304854-clinton-campaign-to-media-stop-airing-ads-saying-clinton-is-under">The Hill reports.</a>

CNN reported that the letters were sent on Sunday, the same day that FBI Director James Comey anounced that the newly discovered emails would not change the FBI&#39;s original conclusion from July 5, that Clinton was innocent of any criminal wrongdoing.&nbsp;

&quot;These ads falsely claim Secretary Clinton is under investigation by the FBI,&quot; wrote Marc Elias, the general counsel for the Clinton campaign. He also writes that &quot;at no point&quot; did the FBI &quot;reopen&quot; an investiation into Clinton&#39;s emails. &quot;The claim in these ads is provably false.&quot;

The prospect of misinformation affecting&nbsp;the 2016 US election, and possibly tainting its result,&nbsp;is considerable. There are <a href="http://www.wionews.com/world/us-election-fears-of-voter-intimidation-suppression-run-high-8541">already early reports </a>from advanced voting related to&nbsp;voter intimidation and voter suppression.&nbsp;

Jon Favreau, President Obama&#39;s chief speech writer from 2005-2013, pointed out that&nbsp;today&#39;s <a href="https://themoscowtimes.com/articles/moscows-news-media-helps-russians-report-vote-fraud-to-the-trump-campaign-56051">Moscow Times</a>&nbsp;reports that&nbsp;Russian news media is sending Russians living in Russia the number to a&nbsp;hotline where they&nbsp;can report so-called vote fraud to Donald Trump. While the hotline&nbsp;is primarily for Russians living in the US, there is an option to &quot;Press 1&quot; for callers located within&nbsp;Russia.

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One last push from a foreign government intervening in our election on behalf of Trump! <a href="https://t.co/0HEouhNPE6">https://t.co/0HEouhNPE6</a>
&mdash; Jon Favreau (@jonfavs) <a href="https://twitter.com/jonfavs/status/796018298324295680">November 8, 2016</a></blockquote>
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This frantic atmopshere of misinformation poses a two-fold threat: that the election result itself&nbsp;is&nbsp;tainted, and that the result is&nbsp;perceived&nbsp;to be tainted. Democracy can&#39;t be strong if its very foundations, a free voting process, is questioned.&nbsp;

(WION)

Trump supporters were airing commercials claiming the Democratic nominee for President is 'under FBI investigation', which is not true

The Clinton campaign has issued cease-and-desist warnings to any TV or radio station, demanding that they refrain from airing ads from pro-Trump groups stating that his democratic rival is "under investigation by the FBI", The Hill reports. CNN reported that the letters were sent on Sunday, the same day that FBI Director James Comey anounced that the newly discovered emails would not change the FBI's original conclusion from July 5, that Clinton was innocent of any criminal wrongdoing. "These ads falsely claim Secretary Clinton is under investigation by the FBI," wrote Marc Elias, the general counsel for the Clinton campaign. He also writes that "at no point" did the FBI "reopen" an investiation into Clinton's emails. "The claim in these ads is provably false." The prospect of misinformation affecting the 2016 US election, and possibly tainting its result, is considerable. There are already early reports from advanced voting related to voter intimidation and voter suppression. Jon Favreau, President Obama's chief speech writer from 2005-2013, pointed out that today's Moscow Times reports that Russian news media is sending Russians living in Russia the number to a hotline where they can report so-called vote fraud to Donald Trump. While the hotline is primarily for Russians living in the US, there is an option to "Press 1" for callers located within Russia. One last push from a foreign government intervening in our election on behalf of Trump! https://t.co/0HEouhNPE6 — Jon Favreau (@jonfavs) November 8, 2016 × This frantic atmopshere of misinformation poses a two-fold threat: that the election result itself is tainted, and that the result is perceived to be tainted. Democracy can't be strong if its very foundations, a free voting process, is questioned. (WION)

Clinton lawyers end ads with 'provably false' claims before election

On the campaign trail, Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump has explicitly warned, without foundation or evidence, that the US election will be &quot;rigged&quot; against him.

As a result, everybody from state leaders, voting experts and election advocates are preparing for an inordinate amount of confusion and chaos, the Washington Post reports, as the US election begins Tuesday after&nbsp;an unusually fierce and bitter presidential race.

In some states, advanced voters have faced lineups over four hours long. It has even been taken to court, as Democrats have filed lawsuits against&nbsp;Donald Trump&nbsp;supporters.&nbsp;

In Virginia, America&#39;s wealthiest state,&nbsp;a man with<a href="http://www.wionews.com/world/armed-man-wearing-trump-shirt-confronts-woman-with-child-at-polling-station-authorities-shrug-8407"> a Trump shirt and a gun </a>stood&nbsp;outside a polling station. He was said to be cooperative with the authorities when they confronted him, and complied with the regulation about standing far enough away from the entrance of the polling station. But he had already&nbsp;asked voters which candidate they favoured, and some, who saw the gun, said they were intimidated.

Election monitors are worried this year as the prospect of voter intimidation appears to be very real after Trump&#39;s&nbsp;direct and repeated calls for his supporters to stake out other polling stations and watch out for suspicious activity.

Actually, the first example of voter fraud was committed by a<a href="https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2016/oct/29/voter-fraud-iowa-trump-supporter"> Trump supporter </a>who voted twice because she feared&nbsp;Trump&#39;s unsubstantiated claim&nbsp;that her vote wouldn&#39;t be counted would come true.

&nbsp;

Specific warnings and consequences

The Washington Post reports that election officials in Pennsylvania and Arizona have become so concerned about voter intimidation that they have issued specific advisories outlining what types of threatening behaviour are not permitted, and exactly what distance they need to keep&nbsp;surrounding&nbsp;polling places.

A notice issued by Pennyslvania&#39;s secretary of state reads &quot;Individuals who conspire to interfere with a person&#39;s right to vote can face up to 10 years in prison&quot;. This was posted after Trump singled out Philadelphia as a place for his supporters to scrutinise.&nbsp;

&quot;The number and tenor of calls we&#39;ve received about problems, the amounf of litigation you already see, it all reflects the moment we&#39;re in,&quot; said Kristen Clarke, president of the nonpartisan Lawyers&#39; Committe for Civil Rights Under Law, as quoted by the Washington Post.

They report that her group will be running America&#39;s largest independent effort to deal with voters complaints, concerns and questions. The nonpartisan organisation &quot;Election Protection will have as many as 4,500 legal volunteers answering calls sent to the hotline 866-OUR-VOTE, and 2,500 volunteers are stationed at polling sites around the US&quot;.

The Washington Post further states that Clarke&#39;s has set up a headquarters in Washington where hundreds of lawyers are working for free so they can attend to all the conerned calls by voters poring in.

&nbsp;

Long lines

The worst problem may not be intimidation exactly, but another form of voter suppression: long lines. By changing laws to reduce the number of polling stations available, especially in areas where minorities (who skew Democrat)&nbsp;live, it means voters need to travel longer to get to a polling station, and need to wait there for longer in order to vote. It&#39;s designed systematically to discourage would-be Democrat&nbsp;voters

On Sunday, the only early voting station in <a href="http://www.wionews.com/world/republican-efforts-to-suppress-minority-votes-appear-to-be-working-8440">Cincinnati </a>was at least a quarter-mile long, with thousands of people lined up for hours. The Washington Post reports that food trucks handed out free tacos and cupcakes to encourage people to come out and vote. California, Arizona and Nevada all faced similar problems, the Washington Post reports.

There is special attention being paid to Florida and Ohio, where in 2012 some stations in Miami were so clogged that voters were still casting ballots at 1 am,&nbsp;while President Obama was giving his victory speech, the Washington Post reports.

A group called Stop the Steal, run by Republican operatives and a trump adviser named <a href="http://www.wionews.com/world/ohio-judge-orders-trump-campaign-to-avoid-voter-intimidation-8368">Roger Stone</a>, has been signing up &quot;vote protectors&quot; to stand outside polling stations. As of yesterday, 3,191 had signed up, the Washington Post reports

&quot;This is our best chance to stop the Democrats from stealing the election from Donald Trump. Help us fight a rigged system,&quot; the group posted on its <a href="https://stopthesteal.org/">website</a>. In&nbsp;addition to signing people up to patrol polling stations, the group also solicits monetary donations&nbsp;from visitors.&nbsp;

<a href="https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2016/oct/17/man-who-cried-rigged-problem-with-trump-election-claims">The Guardian</a> reports that while 41 per cent of Americans believe the election is rigged, an independent legal expert determined that out of over a billion ballots cast, there were only 31 cases of voter fraud, nowhere near enough to alter an election even slightly.

What this fraught atmosphere this means for the 2016 election, and whether whoever loses the race will accept the result, remains to be seen. Hopefully the fears of fraud, intimidation and suppression turn out to be blown out of proportion, but only time will tell.

(WION)

Officials are taking extra measures to ensure fairness after Trump warned repeatedly, but without evidence, that the election was 'rigged'

On the campaign trail, Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump has explicitly warned, without foundation or evidence, that the US election will be "rigged" against him. As a result, everybody from state leaders, voting experts and election advocates are preparing for an inordinate amount of confusion and chaos, the Washington Post reports, as the US election begins Tuesday after an unusually fierce and bitter presidential race. In some states, advanced voters have faced lineups over four hours long. It has even been taken to court, as Democrats have filed lawsuits against Donald Trump supporters. In Virginia, America's wealthiest state, a man with a Trump shirt and a gun stood outside a polling station. He was said to be cooperative with the authorities when they confronted him, and complied with the regulation about standing far enough away from the entrance of the polling station. But he had already asked voters which candidate they favoured, and some, who saw the gun, said they were intimidated. Election monitors are worried this year as the prospect of voter intimidation appears to be very real after Trump's direct and repeated calls for his supporters to stake out other polling stations and watch out for suspicious activity. Actually, the first example of voter fraud was committed by a Trump supporter who voted twice because she feared Trump's unsubstantiated claim that her vote wouldn't be counted would come true. Specific warnings and consequences The Washington Post reports that election officials in Pennsylvania and Arizona have become so concerned about voter intimidation that they have issued specific advisories outlining what types of threatening behaviour are not permitted, and exactly what distance they need to keep surrounding polling places. A notice issued by Pennyslvania's secretary of state reads "Individuals who conspire to interfere with a person's right to vote can face up to 10 years in prison". This was posted after Trump singled out Philadelphia as a place for his supporters to scrutinise. "The number and tenor of calls we've received about problems, the amounf of litigation you already see, it all reflects the moment we're in," said Kristen Clarke, president of the nonpartisan Lawyers' Committe for Civil Rights Under Law, as quoted by the Washington Post. They report that her group will be running America's largest independent effort to deal with voters complaints, concerns and questions. The nonpartisan organisation "Election Protection will have as many as 4,500 legal volunteers answering calls sent to the hotline 866-OUR-VOTE, and 2,500 volunteers are stationed at polling sites around the US". The Washington Post further states that Clarke's has set up a headquarters in Washington where hundreds of lawyers are working for free so they can attend to all the conerned calls by voters poring in. Long lines The worst problem may not be intimidation exactly, but another form of voter suppression: long lines. By changing laws to reduce the number of polling stations available, especially in areas where minorities (who skew Democrat) live, it means voters need to travel longer to get to a polling station, and need to wait there for longer in order to vote. It's designed systematically to discourage would-be Democrat voters On Sunday, the only early voting station in Cincinnati was at least a quarter-mile long, with thousands of people lined up for hours. The Washington Post reports that food trucks handed out free tacos and cupcakes to encourage people to come out and vote. California, Arizona and Nevada all faced similar problems, the Washington Post reports. There is special attention being paid to Florida and Ohio, where in 2012 some stations in Miami were so clogged that voters were still casting ballots at 1 am, while President Obama was giving his victory speech, the Washington Post reports. A group called Stop the Steal, run by Republican operatives and a trump adviser named Roger Stone, has been signing up "vote protectors" to stand outside polling stations. As of yesterday, 3,191 had signed up, the Washington Post reports "This is our best chance to stop the Democrats from stealing the election from Donald Trump. Help us fight a rigged system," the group posted on its website. In addition to signing people up to patrol polling stations, the group also solicits monetary donations from visitors. The Guardian reports that while 41 per cent of Americans believe the election is rigged, an independent legal expert determined that out of over a billion ballots cast, there were only 31 cases of voter fraud, nowhere near enough to alter an election even slightly. What this fraught atmosphere this means for the 2016 election, and whether whoever loses the race will accept the result, remains to be seen. Hopefully the fears of fraud, intimidation and suppression turn out to be blown out of proportion, but only time will tell. (WION)

US Election: Fears of voter intimidation, suppression run high

The Afghan conflict is now in its 16th year but finds little mention in the US presidential election campaign. Even a NATO airstrike in north western Kunduz province of Afghanistan which killed 30 civilians including women and children merited no mention. It underscored the point that the news from Afghanistan is uniformly negative.

Reports say that 33 of that country&#39;s 400 districts are under Taliban control.&nbsp;Hundreds of schools, homes and businesses have been destroyed in fighting with nearly 160,000 civilians displaced by the conflict in the first six months of this year.

The Afghan National Army is at 87 per cent of its authorised strength but desertions currently at 33 per cent are rising.

Worse still, the Taliban is now expanding into areas in the north where they never had a base from Kunduz to Takhar and Badakshan. The Taliban are spreading out, plundering mines for semi-precious stones that are sold to fund their movement.

Peace initiatives have floundered in the face of Pakistan&#39;s determination to be the sole arbiter in Kabul. A recent report of the Taliban secretly meeting representatives of the Afghan government saw Islamabad respond with a warning that the Taliban leadership and their families would be denied any further sanctuary in Pakistan if they tried to cut the latter out.

(WION)

It underscored the point that the news from Afghanistan is uniformly negative

The Afghan conflict is now in its 16th year but finds little mention in the US presidential election campaign. Even a NATO airstrike in north western Kunduz province of Afghanistan which killed 30 civilians including women and children merited no mention. It underscored the point that the news from Afghanistan is uniformly negative. Reports say that 33 of that country's 400 districts are under Taliban control. Hundreds of schools, homes and businesses have been destroyed in fighting with nearly 160,000 civilians displaced by the conflict in the first six months of this year. The Afghan National Army is at 87 per cent of its authorised strength but desertions currently at 33 per cent are rising. Worse still, the Taliban is now expanding into areas in the north where they never had a base from Kunduz to Takhar and Badakshan. The Taliban are spreading out, plundering mines for semi-precious stones that are sold to fund their movement. Peace initiatives have floundered in the face of Pakistan's determination to be the sole arbiter in Kabul. A recent report of the Taliban secretly meeting representatives of the Afghan government saw Islamabad respond with a warning that the Taliban leadership and their families would be denied any further sanctuary in Pakistan if they tried to cut the latter out. (WION)

US election campaign never included Afghan conflict

FBI Director James Comey was under attack from some of his own agents and members of Congress on Monday over his handling of an inquiry into Hillary Clinton&#39;s emails, but the White House was remaining supportive, for now.

In stunning fashion, Comey has injected the Federal Bureau of Investigation, meant to be politically neutral, into the thick of the 2016 US&nbsp;presidential race, making a series of announcements on the inquiry.

The latest was on Sunday, when he said the FBI stood by a July decision not to recommend criminal charges against the Democratic presidential candidate. Sunday&#39;s announcement came days after Comey disclosed the FBI was examining a trove of newly discovered emails.

With the election coming on Tuesday, Comey&#39;s statements and the FBI&#39;s overall handling of the emails controversy has drawn fire from congressional Democrats, who criticised the agency for clouding Clinton&#39;s campaign so close to the election, while Republicans questioned why the new inquiry ended so quickly.

FBI &quot;field agents have felt the derivative impact of the criticism fired at Director Comey as a result of the Clinton email scandal,&quot; said Jon Adler, president of the Federal Law Enforcement Officers Association Foundation, which represents more than 3,500 FBI agents.

He said some agents disapprove of Comey&#39;s handling of the investigation and think he should resign, while others support him, but do not appreciate being in a political crossfire.

A spokesman for the FBI Agents Association said the more than 13,000 active and former special agents it represents have become the victims of &ldquo;unwarranted attacks&rdquo; on their integrity.

&quot;Implications that agents do not respect the confidentiality of those investigations is simply false,&quot; said the association&rsquo;s president Thomas O&rsquo;Connor.

Comey has so far kept the support of President Barack Obama, who has the power to fire the FBI director. &quot;The president views Director Comey as a man of integrity, a man of principle,&quot; White House spokesman Josh Earnest told reporters in a briefing on Monday. &quot;The president&#39;s views of him have not changed ...he continues to have confidence in his ability to run the FBI.&quot;

The White House has said it will not criticise or defend Comey over his handling of the Clinton email investigation.

Charles Schumer, a close Clinton ally and expected Senate majority leader should Democrats regain control of the chamber, said on October&nbsp;30 that he was &ldquo;appalled at what Director Comey did&rdquo; and owes an explanation to Clinton and the American people.

FBI directors are appointed by the president and confirmed by the Senate to serve 10 years, unless they are fired or resign.

Only one FBI director in recent history has been fired. William Sessions was fired by President Bill Clinton in 1993 after a report emerged about Sessions using an FBI airplane for personal travel and other unethical practices. FBI Director Louis Freeh resigned in 2001, two years short of the end of his term, amid a scandal over Robert Hanssen, a senior FBI official charged with spying for the Soviet Union and Russia undetected for 15 years.

If Clinton wins the election, as polls suggest, she would also be in the position to fire Comey, but might not do so to avoid being portrayed as seeking political retaliation.

&quot;I don&rsquo;t know what her view will be, but ...you just cannot have an FBI director in place who believes he is accountable to neither the rules nor the attorney general,&rdquo; said Matthew Miller, former chief spokesman for the Obama Justice Department.

Under the federal Hatch Act, Justice Department employees may not engage in partisan political activity while on duty.

On Sunday, Democratic Representative Adam Schiff said Comey&#39;s &quot;original letter&quot; telling Congress that Clinton&#39;s emails were once again under investigation &quot;should never have been sent so close to an election&quot;.

Republican Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Charles Grassley called on the Justice Department&#39;s inspector general on Novemeber&nbsp;2 to examine the FBI&#39;s investigation.

(Reuters)

The FBI Director has drawn the Republican's ire for ending the Clinton email investigation so quickly, and Democrats' for starting it at all

FBI Director James Comey was under attack from some of his own agents and members of Congress on Monday over his handling of an inquiry into Hillary Clinton's emails, but the White House was remaining supportive, for now. In stunning fashion, Comey has injected the Federal Bureau of Investigation, meant to be politically neutral, into the thick of the 2016 US presidential race, making a series of announcements on the inquiry. The latest was on Sunday, when he said the FBI stood by a July decision not to recommend criminal charges against the Democratic presidential candidate. Sunday's announcement came days after Comey disclosed the FBI was examining a trove of newly discovered emails. With the election coming on Tuesday, Comey's statements and the FBI's overall handling of the emails controversy has drawn fire from congressional Democrats, who criticised the agency for clouding Clinton's campaign so close to the election, while Republicans questioned why the new inquiry ended so quickly. FBI "field agents have felt the derivative impact of the criticism fired at Director Comey as a result of the Clinton email scandal," said Jon Adler, president of the Federal Law Enforcement Officers Association Foundation, which represents more than 3,500 FBI agents. He said some agents disapprove of Comey's handling of the investigation and think he should resign, while others support him, but do not appreciate being in a political crossfire. A spokesman for the FBI Agents Association said the more than 13,000 active and former special agents it represents have become the victims of “unwarranted attacks” on their integrity. "Implications that agents do not respect the confidentiality of those investigations is simply false," said the association’s president Thomas O’Connor. Comey has so far kept the support of President Barack Obama, who has the power to fire the FBI director. "The president views Director Comey as a man of integrity, a man of principle," White House spokesman Josh Earnest told reporters in a briefing on Monday. "The president's views of him have not changed ...he continues to have confidence in his ability to run the FBI." The White House has said it will not criticise or defend Comey over his handling of the Clinton email investigation. Charles Schumer, a close Clinton ally and expected Senate majority leader should Democrats regain control of the chamber, said on October 30 that he was “appalled at what Director Comey did” and owes an explanation to Clinton and the American people. FBI directors are appointed by the president and confirmed by the Senate to serve 10 years, unless they are fired or resign. Only one FBI director in recent history has been fired. William Sessions was fired by President Bill Clinton in 1993 after a report emerged about Sessions using an FBI airplane for personal travel and other unethical practices. FBI Director Louis Freeh resigned in 2001, two years short of the end of his term, amid a scandal over Robert Hanssen, a senior FBI official charged with spying for the Soviet Union and Russia undetected for 15 years. If Clinton wins the election, as polls suggest, she would also be in the position to fire Comey, but might not do so to avoid being portrayed as seeking political retaliation. "I don’t know what her view will be, but ...you just cannot have an FBI director in place who believes he is accountable to neither the rules nor the attorney general,” said Matthew Miller, former chief spokesman for the Obama Justice Department. Under the federal Hatch Act, Justice Department employees may not engage in partisan political activity while on duty. On Sunday, Democratic Representative Adam Schiff said Comey's "original letter" telling Congress that Clinton's emails were once again under investigation "should never have been sent so close to an election". Republican Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Charles Grassley called on the Justice Department's inspector general on Novemeber 2 to examine the FBI's investigation. (Reuters)

FBI agents, lawmakers hammer Comey over Clinton emails inquiry

When Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Director James Comey announced 11 days before the election&nbsp;that the agency would be reviewing a new batch of Democractic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton&#39;s emails,&nbsp;many thought&nbsp;the race&#39;s momentum had swung towards Trump for good.

For days, the headlines had been about&nbsp;Trump&#39;s comments on&nbsp;grabbing women &quot;by the p*ssy&quot;, and now they were about&nbsp;Clinton&#39;s emails again.

But Comey has written a new letter today, saying unequivocally that the FBI&nbsp;have reviewed &quot;all of the&nbsp;communications&nbsp;that were to or from Hillary Clinton while she was Secretary of State&quot;, and that based on this, they have not changed their conclusion from July, which stated&nbsp;that nothing was&nbsp;illegal.&nbsp;

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As expected, the review of the additional emails has not changed the FBI&#39;s original conclusion. <a href="https://t.co/iVMTWRLv4h">pic.twitter.com/iVMTWRLv4h</a>
&mdash; Adam Schiff (@RepAdamSchiff) <a href="https://twitter.com/RepAdamSchiff/status/795360399948390405">November 6, 2016</a></blockquote>
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Comey was criticised for contravening the Department of Justice&#39;s standard policy by commenting on an investigation, seemingly all on his own,&nbsp;so close to the election.&nbsp;

Trump surrogate and former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani said, then denied, that he had advanced knowledge that&nbsp;the FBI was reviewing&nbsp;new&nbsp;Clinton emails, which suggested that the FBI was leaking&nbsp;information to him and the Trump campaign.

Whether&nbsp;this&nbsp;Comey letter gets as much prominence&nbsp;in US media is yet to be determined. Also to be determined is whether or not Comey&#39;s&nbsp;new letter will undo the damage his old one did to&nbsp;the Clinton campaign.

(WION)&nbsp;

FBI?chief wrote they have reviewed all communication?'to or from Hillary Clinton while she was secretary', nothing illegal was found

When Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Director James Comey announced 11 days before the election that the agency would be reviewing a new batch of Democractic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton's emails, many thought the race's momentum had swung towards Trump for good. For days, the headlines had been about Trump's comments on grabbing women "by the p*ssy", and now they were about Clinton's emails again. But Comey has written a new letter today, saying unequivocally that the FBI have reviewed "all of the communications that were to or from Hillary Clinton while she was Secretary of State", and that based on this, they have not changed their conclusion from July, which stated that nothing was illegal. As expected, the review of the additional emails has not changed the FBI's original conclusion. pic.twitter.com/iVMTWRLv4h — Adam Schiff (@RepAdamSchiff) November 6, 2016 × Comey was criticised for contravening the Department of Justice's standard policy by commenting on an investigation, seemingly all on his own, so close to the election. Trump surrogate and former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani said, then denied, that he had advanced knowledge that the FBI was reviewing new Clinton emails, which suggested that the FBI was leaking information to him and the Trump campaign. Whether this Comey letter gets as much prominence in US media is yet to be determined. Also to be determined is whether or not Comey's new letter will undo the damage his old one did to the Clinton campaign. (WION)

New Comey letter clears Clinton, a second time

Advanced voting among African Americans in North Carolina&nbsp;is down by 8.7 per cent from last year, according to Michael McDonald, an Associate Professor at the University of Florida who specialises in American elections.

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Something went very wrong for African-Americans&#39; voting in North Carolina <a href="https://t.co/ZpwjyEavmd">pic.twitter.com/ZpwjyEavmd</a>
&mdash; Michael McDonald (@ElectProject) <a href="https://twitter.com/ElectProject/status/795378059570544645">November 6, 2016</a></blockquote>
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This comes as US District Judge Loretta Biggs slammed a still-continuing North Carolinan voter purge during a hearing Wednesday, telling county attorneys that she was &quot;horrified&quot; by the &quot;insane&quot; process by which residents&nbsp;could be removed from the registered list of voters&nbsp;without their knowledge, <a href="http://www.slate.com/blogs/the_slatest/2016/11/03/federal_judge_slams_north_carolina_voter_purge.html">Slate </a>reports.&nbsp;&quot;This sounds like something that was put together in 1901&quot;, she said, which&nbsp;as Slate reminds us&nbsp;was when the state used Jim Crow laws to prevent black citizens from&nbsp;voting.

CBS reports that the comments came during an emergency hearing over allegations raised by the National Association for the Advancement of Coloured People (NAACP) that at least three counties in the&nbsp;state are being purged unfairly in a process that targets African Americans.&nbsp;

Lawyers for North Carolina countered that state data shows that in the last two years fewer than 7,000 statewide out of a total of 6.8 million registered voters have been purged.

Meanwhile, McDonald says that the lower numbers in one state are not represenative of&nbsp;African American eagerness to vote&nbsp;overall. In Georgia, the same number has gone up by a considerable margin.

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Again Afr-Am enthusiasm should not be judged by NC alone: Georgia Afr-Am <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/earlyovte?src=hash">#earlyovte</a> up +23,859 from 2012, but NC down -65,650 votes
&mdash; Michael McDonald (@ElectProject) <a href="https://twitter.com/ElectProject/status/795305361435660288">November 6, 2016</a></blockquote>
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But North Carolina wasn&#39;t the only crucial state&nbsp;to experience longer than normal waits for minorities. Also affected was Cincinnati, Ohio,&nbsp;who are expected to vote Democrat.

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4,000 people are waiting in line to vote in Cincinnati right now. This is how long the line is. <a href="https://t.co/bilpnGsrzl">pic.twitter.com/bilpnGsrzl</a>
&mdash; Saahil Desai (@Saahil_Desai) <a href="https://twitter.com/Saahil_Desai/status/795342933364973570">November 6, 2016</a></blockquote>
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Approximately 2500 people in line to vote early in Cincinnati! <a href="https://t.co/Rqfsi7zSoN">pic.twitter.com/Rqfsi7zSoN</a>
&mdash; Allan B (@albhere) <a href="https://twitter.com/albhere/status/795353794980810752">November 6, 2016</a></blockquote>
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This fits a trend. As the New York Times <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2014/09/25/opinion/long-lines-at-minority-polling-places.html">reported</a>&nbsp;in a 2014 piece on the same topic, &quot;Some of the longest lines on Election Day occur at polling places in black and&nbsp;Hispanic neighbourhoods.&quot;

A conclusion&nbsp;reached after examining a study by the Brennan Center for Justice&nbsp;was decisive:&nbsp;&quot;There was a clear relationship in those states between the racial makeup of a precinct and the number of voting machines it received from the state.&quot;

This week, the&nbsp;New York Times even published on their website&nbsp;an interactive game called &quot;The Voter Suppression Trail&quot;, allowing users to try to overcome various obstacles in order to cast a vote, while playing as an&nbsp;African American or&nbsp;Latino character.

This controversy surrounding voter suppression&nbsp;comes as Republican presidential candidate&nbsp;Donald Trump has warned -- without foundation, but repeatedly&nbsp;-- that the 2016 US election is &quot;rigged&quot; to favour Hillary Clinton.&nbsp;

&nbsp;(WION)

African American advanced voting is way down in North Carolina, with a 8.7% drop, and lineups in other states are hours-long

Advanced voting among African Americans in North Carolina is down by 8.7 per cent from last year, according to Michael McDonald, an Associate Professor at the University of Florida who specialises in American elections. Something went very wrong for African-Americans' voting in North Carolina pic.twitter.com/ZpwjyEavmd — Michael McDonald (@ElectProject) November 6, 2016 × This comes as US District Judge Loretta Biggs slammed a still-continuing North Carolinan voter purge during a hearing Wednesday, telling county attorneys that she was "horrified" by the "insane" process by which residents could be removed from the registered list of voters without their knowledge, Slate reports. "This sounds like something that was put together in 1901", she said, which as Slate reminds us was when the state used Jim Crow laws to prevent black citizens from voting. CBS reports that the comments came during an emergency hearing over allegations raised by the National Association for the Advancement of Coloured People (NAACP) that at least three counties in the state are being purged unfairly in a process that targets African Americans. Lawyers for North Carolina countered that state data shows that in the last two years fewer than 7,000 statewide out of a total of 6.8 million registered voters have been purged. Meanwhile, McDonald says that the lower numbers in one state are not represenative of African American eagerness to vote overall. In Georgia, the same number has gone up by a considerable margin. Again Afr-Am enthusiasm should not be judged by NC alone: Georgia Afr-Am #earlyovte up +23,859 from 2012, but NC down -65,650 votes — Michael McDonald (@ElectProject) November 6, 2016 × But North Carolina wasn't the only crucial state to experience longer than normal waits for minorities. Also affected was Cincinnati, Ohio, who are expected to vote Democrat. 4,000 people are waiting in line to vote in Cincinnati right now. This is how long the line is. pic.twitter.com/bilpnGsrzl — Saahil Desai (@Saahil_Desai) November 6, 2016 × Approximately 2500 people in line to vote early in Cincinnati! pic.twitter.com/Rqfsi7zSoN — Allan B (@albhere) November 6, 2016 × This fits a trend. As the New York Times reported in a 2014 piece on the same topic, "Some of the longest lines on Election Day occur at polling places in black and Hispanic neighbourhoods." A conclusion reached after examining a study by the Brennan Center for Justice was decisive: "There was a clear relationship in those states between the racial makeup of a precinct and the number of voting machines it received from the state." This week, the New York Times even published on their website an interactive game called "The Voter Suppression Trail", allowing users to try to overcome various obstacles in order to cast a vote, while playing as an African American or Latino character. This controversy surrounding voter suppression comes as Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump has warned -- without foundation, but repeatedly -- that the 2016 US election is "rigged" to favour Hillary Clinton. (WION)

Republican efforts to suppress minority votes appear to be working

Rudy Giuliani and Newt Gingrich are in consideration for major positions in Trump's cabinet should he win the presidency, NBC reports

As the 2016 American presidential election finally winds up, a picture is emerging of what the White House will look like should Donald Trump win. NBC reports that the names being considered, according to three campaign advisers who requested anonymity, are Rudy Giuliani for attorny general, Newt Gingrich for secretary of state, retired Lieutenant General Michael Flynn for defense secretary or national security adviser, Trump's finance chairman Steve Mnuchin for Treasury secretary, and Republican National Chairman Committee finance chair Lew Eisenberg for commerce secretary. NBC reports that Trump has not particiapted much in planning the transition, as he is superstitious. NBC says that Trump fears that planning before a victory will "jinx" the campaign. Trump has openly warred with many figures of the Republican establishment, so speculation suggests that he'll promote those who remained loyal to him while the media and political opponents berated him for bragging about sexaully assualting women, stirring up xenophobia by telling lies about immigrants, spreading racist lies on social media and in campaign speeches, and more. Salon characterises Newt Gingrich's tenure as secretary of state duringt he 90s as pushing right on a number of social, economic and foreign policy issues. Giuliani was viewed with considerable sympathy and admiration, as he was New York's mayor during 9/11, but, as Salon claims, he became notorious for "expanding policing powers at the expense of civil rights of poor and non-white citizens". He has consistently defended Trump all throughout the 2016 election. As a pronent of the "broken windows" theory of policing, Giuliani's guiding philosophy is that arresting everyday criminals, rather than addressing the root causes of crime, will rid the city of crime. LiberationNews reports that, citing the NYPD's own statistics, the year before Giuliani took office, 720 New Yorkers were arrested for misdemeanor marijuana-related charges. In his last year as mayor, that number jumped to 60,000. NBC reports that the conservative Heritage Foundation is helping to vet names, along with members of Mitt Romey's presidential run and George W Bush's administration. It will be interesting to note how many veteran Republicans make it into Trump's inner clique, given that the theme of his campaign has been "drain the swamp" and that he's positioned himself as an outsider without Washington inner-circle connections. NBC reports that running mate Mike Pence is heavily involved in the selection process, and is expected to play as active a role in a Trump administration as Joe Biden and Al Gore played while they were vice presidents. A possible barometer to tell whether Trump will strengthen or destroy bridges with established Republicans is how he will appoint the current Republican National Chairman, Reince Priebus, who is currently under consideration to be Trump's chief of staff. Priebus didn't object to Trump, and was his dependable defender, while other Republicans distanced themselves over the course of the 2016 presidential campaign. (WION)

Donald Trump likely to install loyalists in White House, if elected

As the United States&nbsp;goes to the polls in two days, Bangladesh hopes that the next US administration would relax its protectionist measures to encourage higher consumer spending in its retail economy.

Despite the South Asian country strengthening its ties with China, security and strategic experts in Bangladesh hope that the US would make room for the Bangladeshi economy to prosper with more trade preferences and less political prejudice.

Bangladesh is of &quot;deep strategic interest&quot;&nbsp;for the United States from a security perspective. With attacks waged by militant outfits on locals and foreigners by Jamaatul Mujahideen Bangladesh and Ansar Al Islam in affiliation with Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) and Al-Qaida in the Indian Subcontinent (AQIS) respectively, the US plays a key role in helping Dhaka combat terrorism.

Climate Change

Bangladesh is one of the most vulnerable countries to climate change and despite the US being the largest emitter of greenhouse gases,&nbsp;it has shown little responsibility in the area, observers said.

&ldquo;The US has to show minimum responsibility. If it doesn&rsquo;t then it would be disastrous,&rdquo; Dr Atiq Rahman, the executive director of Bangladesh Centre for Advanced Studies, told WION.

Very little about climate change has been discussed during the US presidential election but Dhaka expects the US to take&nbsp;some responsibility in mitigation and finance.

Trade and investment

Bangladeshi exports to the US stand at $6.22 billion and remittances have earned Bangladesh $2.4 billion in the&nbsp;financial year 2015-16. According to Bangladesh&rsquo;s central bank, the United States is the third-largest remitting nation after the UAE and Saudi Arab.

Industrialists hope that the next US president will provide Bangladesh greater market access by reducing tariffs on garment supplies. Bangladesh is one of the highest tariff payers in the US for its garment products, at 15.41 per cent.

Bangladesh also wants the US to reinstate the Generalised System of Preferences. The GSP&nbsp;is a preferential tariff system provided by developed countries to developing countries&nbsp;

The US had scrapped the GSP after Bangladesh experienced the horrifying Rana Plaza factory disaster in April 2013.

&ldquo;After the unfortunate Rana Plaza incident, we have with commendable speed met the targets that [were] set on us,&rdquo; said former state minister for foreign affairs Abul Hasan Chowdhury.

However, Bangladeshi industrialists hope Trump does not become the next president.

&quot;There are concerns about increased protectionist measures if Trump comes to power. We don&rsquo;t know how far it will go, we don&rsquo;t know what his chances are, but obviously his presidency will be damaging for emerging markets like Bangladesh,&rdquo; said Syed Nasim Manzur, who is the president of Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce and Industries, Dhaka.

Manzur, also the managing director of Apex Footwear Limited, is one of the largest Bangladeshi suppliers of leather goods to global markets including the US. He bemoaned that suspension of GSP had raised manufacturing costs.

&ldquo;We are hoping for an administration that will revive spending in the US retail economy because that will then prop up demand for Bangladeshi products in the US market,&rdquo; he said while speaking to WION.

Security and strategy

With Bangladesh and China entering into a strategic partnership in which China would be providing $24.45 billion in financial assistance to 27 development projects and another $13.6 billion in joint ventures, security and strategic experts say it would be interesting to see how the United States plays its cards.

&ldquo;So far the US has not offered any huge investment prospect that would match the type that we have been offered by China,&rdquo; says Muhammad Shahiduzzaman, professor of International Relations at the University of Dhaka.

The US has also been wary of China being involved so much in the Bay of Bengal or around the vicinity of Bangladesh&rsquo;s territorial waters.

Additionally, most of Bangladesh&rsquo;s arms deals have gone to China and very recently to Russia.

But experts want Bangladesh to keep a balanced geopolitical relationship with countries around the world for its economic prosperity.

The US has very deep partnership with India not only in economy but also in security, says Prof Shahiduzzaman. &ldquo;It would be Bangladesh&rsquo;s responsibility to act with India in a manner where these two powers would accommodate our relationship with China in clear economic terms,&rdquo; he said.

Bangladesh is looking forward to an economic buildup, which would require that &ldquo;we treat our relationships on the question of mega projects with a clear degree of utility in terms of maximizing our ability to develop the infrastructure,&rdquo; he said.

The country has had a better relation with the Clinton administration and the democrats but for a country like Bangladesh where United States is the biggest market for readymade garments and also for other areas of export, it cannot undermine the republicans in anyway if they come to power, say experts.

As regards Bangladesh&rsquo;s preference towards the presidential candidates, Rahman believes, Bangladesh en masse is supporting Hillary Clinton. The country has been against Donald Trump for spewing a litany of sexist and racist slurs.

(WION)

Industrialists hope that the next US dispensation will provide Bangladesh greater market access by lowering tariffs on garment supplies

As the United States goes to the polls in two days, Bangladesh hopes that the next US administration would relax its protectionist measures to encourage higher consumer spending in its retail economy. Despite the South Asian country strengthening its ties with China, security and strategic experts in Bangladesh hope that the US would make room for the Bangladeshi economy to prosper with more trade preferences and less political prejudice. Bangladesh is of "deep strategic interest" for the United States from a security perspective. With attacks waged by militant outfits on locals and foreigners by Jamaatul Mujahideen Bangladesh and Ansar Al Islam in affiliation with Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) and Al-Qaida in the Indian Subcontinent (AQIS) respectively, the US plays a key role in helping Dhaka combat terrorism. Climate Change Bangladesh is one of the most vulnerable countries to climate change and despite the US being the largest emitter of greenhouse gases, it has shown little responsibility in the area, observers said. “The US has to show minimum responsibility. If it doesn’t then it would be disastrous,” Dr Atiq Rahman, the executive director of Bangladesh Centre for Advanced Studies, told WION. Very little about climate change has been discussed during the US presidential election but Dhaka expects the US to take some responsibility in mitigation and finance. Trade and investment Bangladeshi exports to the US stand at $6.22 billion and remittances have earned Bangladesh $2.4 billion in the financial year 2015-16. According to Bangladesh’s central bank, the United States is the third-largest remitting nation after the UAE and Saudi Arab. Industrialists hope that the next US president will provide Bangladesh greater market access by reducing tariffs on garment supplies. Bangladesh is one of the highest tariff payers in the US for its garment products, at 15.41 per cent. Bangladesh also wants the US to reinstate the Generalised System of Preferences. The GSP is a preferential tariff system provided by developed countries to developing countries The US had scrapped the GSP after Bangladesh experienced the horrifying Rana Plaza factory disaster in April 2013. “After the unfortunate Rana Plaza incident, we have with commendable speed met the targets that [were] set on us,” said former state minister for foreign affairs Abul Hasan Chowdhury. However, Bangladeshi industrialists hope Trump does not become the next president. "There are concerns about increased protectionist measures if Trump comes to power. We don’t know how far it will go, we don’t know what his chances are, but obviously his presidency will be damaging for emerging markets like Bangladesh,” said Syed Nasim Manzur, who is the president of Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce and Industries, Dhaka. Manzur, also the managing director of Apex Footwear Limited, is one of the largest Bangladeshi suppliers of leather goods to global markets including the US. He bemoaned that suspension of GSP had raised manufacturing costs. “We are hoping for an administration that will revive spending in the US retail economy because that will then prop up demand for Bangladeshi products in the US market,” he said while speaking to WION. Security and strategy With Bangladesh and China entering into a strategic partnership in which China would be providing $24.45 billion in financial assistance to 27 development projects and another $13.6 billion in joint ventures, security and strategic experts say it would be interesting to see how the United States plays its cards. “So far the US has not offered any huge investment prospect that would match the type that we have been offered by China,” says Muhammad Shahiduzzaman, professor of International Relations at the University of Dhaka. The US has also been wary of China being involved so much in the Bay of Bengal or around the vicinity of Bangladesh’s territorial waters. Additionally, most of Bangladesh’s arms deals have gone to China and very recently to Russia. But experts want Bangladesh to keep a balanced geopolitical relationship with countries around the world for its economic prosperity. The US has very deep partnership with India not only in economy but also in security, says Prof Shahiduzzaman. “It would be Bangladesh’s responsibility to act with India in a manner where these two powers would accommodate our relationship with China in clear economic terms,” he said. Bangladesh is looking forward to an economic buildup, which would require that “we treat our relationships on the question of mega projects with a clear degree of utility in terms of maximizing our ability to develop the infrastructure,” he said. The country has had a better relation with the Clinton administration and the democrats but for a country like Bangladesh where United States is the biggest market for readymade garments and also for other areas of export, it cannot undermine the republicans in anyway if they come to power, say experts. As regards Bangladesh’s preference towards the presidential candidates, Rahman believes, Bangladesh en masse is supporting Hillary Clinton. The country has been against Donald Trump for spewing a litany of sexist and racist slurs. (WION)

Bangladesh wants next US administration to lower trade barriers

A man clad in a Donald Trump&nbsp;shirt stood&nbsp;outside a Loudun Country, Virginia polling station Friday carrying a 357 magnum, the Huffington Post reports.&nbsp;There is apparently nothing the authorities can do about it.

Erika Cotti told the Huffington Post that she encountered the man when she went to vote at the county&#39;s registrar&#39;s office.

&quot;I had my 9-year-old son with me. I felt intimidated,&quot; she said. &quot;And I had to explain to my 9-year-old why a man with a 357 magnum is standing outside the polling station.&quot;

Cotti said that she rejected the Republican sample ballot she was offered.&nbsp;&quot;He&#39;s like, &#39;Who are you going to vote for, crooked Hillary?&#39; And I was like, that&#39;s really none of your business.&quot; Cotti added that the man was standing on the sidewalk outside of the office when they left, and blocked their path.

A local registrar,&nbsp;Judy Brown, confirmed that the man was standing outside her office, handing out Republican Party literature. He had a holstered gun in an open carry state, so law enforcement was powerless to do anything, Brown told Huffington Post.

Virginia is the wealthiest county in America.&nbsp;

In the US, while there is broad national legislation bearing on guns, the laws concerning open-carry versus concealed-carry vary from&nbsp;state to state.

Brown told the Huffington post that the man was &quot;being nice&quot; to people, and appeared to be observing the rule forbiding canvassing within forty feet zone of the polling station entrance.

Next, Brown said her office contacted the local Republican Party, which spoke to the man and convinced him to pull his Trump shirt over the weapon, blocking it from sight.

The Loudon County Republican Committee Chairman, Will Estrada, told the Huffington Post that the man was a former law enforcement official, and also a veteran with a perrmit to carry a concealed weapon. Estrada specifically said that he doesn&#39;t want to ban volunteers from carrying weapons, even at polling stations.

CNN reports that on Friday, a federal judge warned Trump&#39;s campaign, and Republican operative Roger Stone, against any &quot;voter intimidation&quot; activity in Ohio. The Democrats have brought several cases&nbsp;

A federal judge Friday warned Donald Trump&#39;s campaign and Republican operative Roger Stone against any &quot;voter intimidation&quot; activity in Ohio, the result of one of several cases brought by Democrats before Election Day.

The Huffington Post&nbsp;pointed to a pretty startling&nbsp;inconsistency; while a&nbsp;man outside a polling station carrying a gun doesn&#39;t bother them this time, their tolerance appears to be selective.

Conservative media outlets and Republican politicians spent significant time and money attacking Obama&#39;s administration over how the Justice Department handled a 2008&nbsp;incident involving a man standing outside a polling place carrying a nightstick. But, the Huffington Post points out, what&#39;s interesting is the man who promoted and condemned the video of the nightstick-wielder is a man named Mike Roman, who reports say has been working on so-called election protection efforts related to the Trump campaign.

Despite all of Donald Trump&#39;s rhetoric about the election being rigged, it&#39;s unlikely that&nbsp;Republicans will&nbsp;be galvanised to protect the freedom from voter intimidation over this latest incident in Virginia.

(WION)

&nbsp;

'Who are you going to vote for, Crooked Hillary?' he asked. 'That's really none of your business'

A man clad in a Donald Trump shirt stood outside a Loudun Country, Virginia polling station Friday carrying a 357 magnum, the Huffington Post reports. There is apparently nothing the authorities can do about it. Erika Cotti told the Huffington Post that she encountered the man when she went to vote at the county's registrar's office. "I had my 9-year-old son with me. I felt intimidated," she said. "And I had to explain to my 9-year-old why a man with a 357 magnum is standing outside the polling station." Cotti said that she rejected the Republican sample ballot she was offered. "He's like, 'Who are you going to vote for, crooked Hillary?' And I was like, that's really none of your business." Cotti added that the man was standing on the sidewalk outside of the office when they left, and blocked their path. A local registrar, Judy Brown, confirmed that the man was standing outside her office, handing out Republican Party literature. He had a holstered gun in an open carry state, so law enforcement was powerless to do anything, Brown told Huffington Post. Virginia is the wealthiest county in America. In the US, while there is broad national legislation bearing on guns, the laws concerning open-carry versus concealed-carry vary from state to state. Brown told the Huffington post that the man was "being nice" to people, and appeared to be observing the rule forbiding canvassing within forty feet zone of the polling station entrance. Next, Brown said her office contacted the local Republican Party, which spoke to the man and convinced him to pull his Trump shirt over the weapon, blocking it from sight. The Loudon County Republican Committee Chairman, Will Estrada, told the Huffington Post that the man was a former law enforcement official, and also a veteran with a perrmit to carry a concealed weapon. Estrada specifically said that he doesn't want to ban volunteers from carrying weapons, even at polling stations. CNN reports that on Friday, a federal judge warned Trump's campaign, and Republican operative Roger Stone, against any "voter intimidation" activity in Ohio. The Democrats have brought several cases A federal judge Friday warned Donald Trump's campaign and Republican operative Roger Stone against any "voter intimidation" activity in Ohio, the result of one of several cases brought by Democrats before Election Day. The Huffington Post pointed to a pretty startling inconsistency; while a man outside a polling station carrying a gun doesn't bother them this time, their tolerance appears to be selective. Conservative media outlets and Republican politicians spent significant time and money attacking Obama's administration over how the Justice Department handled a 2008 incident involving a man standing outside a polling place carrying a nightstick. But, the Huffington Post points out, what's interesting is the man who promoted and condemned the video of the nightstick-wielder is a man named Mike Roman, who reports say has been working on so-called election protection efforts related to the Trump campaign. Despite all of Donald Trump's rhetoric about the election being rigged, it's unlikely that Republicans will be galvanised to protect the freedom from voter intimidation over this latest incident in Virginia. (WION)

Armed man wearing Trump shirt confronts woman with child at polling station, authorities shrug

Rudy Giuliani said on Friday that he knew&nbsp;the FBI planned to review more emails in connection with Hillary Clinton before FBI Director James Comey made a public&nbsp;announcement about the investigation last week,&nbsp;confirming&nbsp;that the agency leaked information to Donald Trump&#39;s presidential campaign.

&quot;Did I hear about it? Darn right I heard about it&quot;, he said.

Watch the clip below to hear Giuliani&#39;s admission:

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WATCH: Rudy Giuliani admits that Trump campaign had advanced warning from the <a href="https://twitter.com/FBI">@FBI</a> about Comey&#39;s letter. <a href="https://t.co/7AOJopgQOB">pic.twitter.com/7AOJopgQOB</a>
&mdash; Correct The Record (@CorrectRecord) <a href="https://twitter.com/CorrectRecord/status/794539625348038658">November 4, 2016</a></blockquote>
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The former mayor of New York City had recently dropped hints that he had advance knowledge that the FBI was going to look at emails potentially connected to Clinton&#39;s private server. The FBI had discovered more Clinton-related emails in a separate investigation targetting the former congressman Anthony Weiner for allegedly sexting a minor.

Giuliani said he felt Comey&#39;s annoucement was going to be made &quot;three or four weeks ago&quot;, meaning the FBI was sitting on this knowledge but, controversially, Comey decided to release it only 11 days before the election.&nbsp;

&nbsp;

<a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/rudy-giuliani-fbi-clinton-emails_us_581c9e3fe4b0e80b02c93d6b">Huffington Posts</a> reports that for months Giuliani had bragged that &quot;outraged FBI agents&quot; told him that they&#39;re frustrated by the handling of the Clinton investigation. Just days before FBI Director James Comey announced that they would be reviewing newly uncovered&nbsp;emails, Giuliani said that Trump&#39;s campaign had a &quot;couple of surprises left&quot;.

A day before Comey&#39;s announcement about the investigation, Giuliani told&nbsp;Fox News,&nbsp;&quot;We got a couple things up our sleeve&nbsp;that should turn this around&quot;.

<a href="http://edition.cnn.com/2016/10/28/politics/fbi-reviewing-new-emails-in-clinton-probe-director-tells-senate-judiciary-committee/">CNN&nbsp;</a>reports that Comey decided to make the announcement regarding Clinton&#39;s emails despite concerns from the US Department of Justice (DOJ) that doing so only 11 days before the US presidential&nbsp;election would affect the outcome. One source told CNN that it was contrary to department polices and procedure to comment so close to the November 8 election. While there was no direct contact between Comey and both Attorney General Loretta Lynch and Deputy Attorney General Sally Yates in the (DOJ), the disagreement was communicated to him via DOJ staff.&nbsp;

Comey decided to ignore this concern. This comes nearly four months after the FBI chief said he woudn&#39;t recommend criminal charges over Clinton&#39;s use of the private server for emails.

(WION)

'Did I hear about it? You're darn right I heard about it'

Rudy Giuliani said on Friday that he knew the FBI planned to review more emails in connection with Hillary Clinton before FBI Director James Comey made a public announcement about the investigation last week, confirming that the agency leaked information to Donald Trump's presidential campaign. "Did I hear about it? Darn right I heard about it", he said. Watch the clip below to hear Giuliani's admission: WATCH: Rudy Giuliani admits that Trump campaign had advanced warning from the @FBI about Comey's letter. pic.twitter.com/7AOJopgQOB — Correct The Record (@CorrectRecord) November 4, 2016 × The former mayor of New York City had recently dropped hints that he had advance knowledge that the FBI was going to look at emails potentially connected to Clinton's private server. The FBI had discovered more Clinton-related emails in a separate investigation targetting the former congressman Anthony Weiner for allegedly sexting a minor. Giuliani said he felt Comey's annoucement was going to be made "three or four weeks ago", meaning the FBI was sitting on this knowledge but, controversially, Comey decided to release it only 11 days before the election. Huffington Posts reports that for months Giuliani had bragged that "outraged FBI agents" told him that they're frustrated by the handling of the Clinton investigation. Just days before FBI Director James Comey announced that they would be reviewing newly uncovered emails, Giuliani said that Trump's campaign had a "couple of surprises left". A day before Comey's announcement about the investigation, Giuliani told Fox News, "We got a couple things up our sleeve that should turn this around". CNN reports that Comey decided to make the announcement regarding Clinton's emails despite concerns from the US Department of Justice (DOJ) that doing so only 11 days before the US presidential election would affect the outcome. One source told CNN that it was contrary to department polices and procedure to comment so close to the November 8 election. While there was no direct contact between Comey and both Attorney General Loretta Lynch and Deputy Attorney General Sally Yates in the (DOJ), the disagreement was communicated to him via DOJ staff. Comey decided to ignore this concern. This comes nearly four months after the FBI chief said he woudn't recommend criminal charges over Clinton's use of the private server for emails. (WION)

Rudy Giuliani confirms FBI leaked information to him, Trump campaign

The FBI and US&nbsp;intelligence agencies are examining faked documents aimed at discrediting the Hillary Clinton campaign as part of a broader investigation into what US&nbsp;officials believe has been an attempt by Russia to disrupt the presidential election, people with knowledge of the matter said.

US&nbsp;Senator Tom Carper, a Democrat on the Senate Homeland Security Committee, has referred one of the documents to the FBI for investigation on the grounds that his name and stationery were forged to appear authentic.

In a document forged to appear as though Carper was writing a letter to Clinton, Carper is quoted as saying the Department of Homeland Security had advised him of a risk that a &quot;massive&quot; cyber attack &quot;could change the election results in favour of a specific candidate&quot;. The document dated October 3 was reviewed by Reuters.

It concludes, &quot;Any suspicious incident will be immediately reported to your assistants so that a recount of votes could be timely organised. You will not lose the election because of some compromised electronic voting systems.&quot; The fake Carper letter is one of several documents presented to the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the US&nbsp;Department of Justice for review in recent weeks, the sources said.

Carper spokeswoman Meghan Pennington confirmed on Friday that the senator had sent a copy of the letter to the FBI and the Senate&rsquo;s chief law enforcement officer.

&quot;Our office became aware of a fake letter on Senator Carper&rsquo;s official letterhead and immediately referred it to federal law enforcement to investigate its genesis,&quot; Pennington said.

As part of an investigation into suspected Russian hacking, FBI investigators have also asked Democratic Party officials to provide copies of other suspected faked documents that have been circulating along with emails and other legitimate documents taken in the hack, people involved in those conversations said.

A spokesman for the FBI confirmed the agency was &ldquo;in receipt of a complaint about an alleged fake letter&rdquo; related to the election but declined further comment. Others with knowledge of the matter said the FBI was also examining other fake documents that recently surfaced.

US&nbsp;intelligence officials have warned privately that a campaign they believe is backed by the Russian government to undermine the credibility of the US&nbsp;presidential election could move beyond the hacking of Democratic Party email systems. That could include posting fictional evidence of voter fraud or other misinformation in the run-up to voting on November&nbsp;8, US&nbsp;officials have said.&nbsp;

&nbsp;

Russian officials deny any such effort.&nbsp;

In addition to the Carper letter, the FBI has also reviewed a seven-page electronic document that carries the logos of Democratic pollster Joel Benenson&rsquo;s firm, the Benenson Strategy Group, and the Clinton Foundation, a person with knowledge of the matter said.

The document, identified as a fake by the Clinton campaign, claims poll ratings had plunged for Clinton and called for &ldquo;severe strategy changes for November&rdquo; that could include &ldquo;staged civil unrest&rdquo; and &ldquo;radiological attack&rdquo; with dirty bombs to disrupt the vote.

Like the Carper letter, it was not immediately clear where the fraudulent document had originated or how it had begun to circulate. &nbsp;&nbsp;

On October&nbsp;20, Roger Stone, a former Trump aide and Republican operative, linked to a copy of the document on Twitter with the tag, &ldquo;If this is real: OMG!!&rdquo;&nbsp;Stone did not respond to emails requesting comment.

Benenson&rsquo;s firm had no immediate comment. Craig Minassian, a spokesman for the Clinton Foundation, said the document was &ldquo;fake.&rdquo; He said he did not know if the FBI had examined it.

A spokesman for the Clinton campaign, Glen Caplin, said the document was a fake and part of a &ldquo;desperate stunt&rdquo; to capitalise on the leak of Democratic emails by Wikileaks. &nbsp;

The developments highlight the unusually prominent role US&nbsp;law enforcement and intelligence agencies have played in a contentious election and an ongoing debate about how public they can or should be about their inquiries.

FBI Director James Comey, a Republican appointed by President Obama, touched off an outcry from Democrats last week when he alerted Congress that agents had found other emails that could be linked to an inquiry into Clinton&rsquo;s use of a private email server when she was Secretary of State, effectively re-opening an investigation he had closed in July.

(Reuters)

Investigators believe it's part of a broader campaign conducted by Russia to disrupt the US election, those with knowledge of the matter say

The FBI and US intelligence agencies are examining faked documents aimed at discrediting the Hillary Clinton campaign as part of a broader investigation into what US officials believe has been an attempt by Russia to disrupt the presidential election, people with knowledge of the matter said. US Senator Tom Carper, a Democrat on the Senate Homeland Security Committee, has referred one of the documents to the FBI for investigation on the grounds that his name and stationery were forged to appear authentic. In a document forged to appear as though Carper was writing a letter to Clinton, Carper is quoted as saying the Department of Homeland Security had advised him of a risk that a "massive" cyber attack "could change the election results in favour of a specific candidate". The document dated October 3 was reviewed by Reuters. It concludes, "Any suspicious incident will be immediately reported to your assistants so that a recount of votes could be timely organised. You will not lose the election because of some compromised electronic voting systems." The fake Carper letter is one of several documents presented to the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the US Department of Justice for review in recent weeks, the sources said. Carper spokeswoman Meghan Pennington confirmed on Friday that the senator had sent a copy of the letter to the FBI and the Senate’s chief law enforcement officer. "Our office became aware of a fake letter on Senator Carper’s official letterhead and immediately referred it to federal law enforcement to investigate its genesis," Pennington said. As part of an investigation into suspected Russian hacking, FBI investigators have also asked Democratic Party officials to provide copies of other suspected faked documents that have been circulating along with emails and other legitimate documents taken in the hack, people involved in those conversations said. A spokesman for the FBI confirmed the agency was “in receipt of a complaint about an alleged fake letter” related to the election but declined further comment. Others with knowledge of the matter said the FBI was also examining other fake documents that recently surfaced. US intelligence officials have warned privately that a campaign they believe is backed by the Russian government to undermine the credibility of the US presidential election could move beyond the hacking of Democratic Party email systems. That could include posting fictional evidence of voter fraud or other misinformation in the run-up to voting on November 8, US officials have said. Russian officials deny any such effort. In addition to the Carper letter, the FBI has also reviewed a seven-page electronic document that carries the logos of Democratic pollster Joel Benenson’s firm, the Benenson Strategy Group, and the Clinton Foundation, a person with knowledge of the matter said. The document, identified as a fake by the Clinton campaign, claims poll ratings had plunged for Clinton and called for “severe strategy changes for November” that could include “staged civil unrest” and “radiological attack” with dirty bombs to disrupt the vote. Like the Carper letter, it was not immediately clear where the fraudulent document had originated or how it had begun to circulate. On October 20, Roger Stone, a former Trump aide and Republican operative, linked to a copy of the document on Twitter with the tag, “If this is real: OMG!!” Stone did not respond to emails requesting comment. Benenson’s firm had no immediate comment. Craig Minassian, a spokesman for the Clinton Foundation, said the document was “fake.” He said he did not know if the FBI had examined it. A spokesman for the Clinton campaign, Glen Caplin, said the document was a fake and part of a “desperate stunt” to capitalise on the leak of Democratic emails by Wikileaks. The developments highlight the unusually prominent role US law enforcement and intelligence agencies have played in a contentious election and an ongoing debate about how public they can or should be about their inquiries. FBI Director James Comey, a Republican appointed by President Obama, touched off an outcry from Democrats last week when he alerted Congress that agents had found other emails that could be linked to an inquiry into Clinton’s use of a private email server when she was Secretary of State, effectively re-opening an investigation he had closed in July. (Reuters)

FBI examining fake documents targeting Clinton campaign

Republican presidential candidate&nbsp;Donald Trump warned&nbsp;an Albuquerque, New Mexico&nbsp;rally that&nbsp;Hillary Clinton&#39;s &quot;open borders&quot; policy could permit as many as 650 million immigrants in a week.

He said, &quot;You could have 650 million people pour in and we do nothing about it. Think of it, that&#39;s what could happen. You triple the size of your country in one week. Once you lose control of the borders you have no country.&quot;

It&#39;s hard to say what aspect of this claim is the most outlandish: The figure of 650 million is beyond preposterous. CNN says that in 2014, the US had just over one million legal immigrants, nowhere near Trump&#39;s 650 million. The insinuation that there are mobs of dangerous people trying to enter the US in order to fatally undermine it is unsubstantiated. The US is not at risk of losing its borders, its country is not on the brink of disaster.

Trump has claimed that Mexico is deliberately sending rapists into the US, and has compared Syrian refugees fleeing war to Greek soldiers hiding in the Trojan Horse to kill their wartime enemies. Trump has invoked the Trojan Horse multiple times, but his analogy is backwards. It is unlikely&nbsp;has has ever&nbsp;read Homer or Virgil. At the very least, he is rusty.

The Guardian reports that Clinton is on&nbsp;record for favouring comprehensive immigration reform, to provide a way for&nbsp;undocumented immigrants currently living in the country to become legal citizens. She has never said anything about increasing the population by roughly 200 per cent in one week.

&nbsp;

Election fraud

The comments come after Trump has repeatedlt&nbsp;fanned the flames of paranoia over election fraud. In a presidential debate, Trump refused to say whether or not he would accept the result of the election. This was widely-condemned as an unprecedented repudiation of the basic tenets of American democracy.

The Guardian claims that a recent study found 31 cases of in-person voter fraud out of one&nbsp;billion ballots cast between 2000-2014.

Trump has repeatedly called on supporters to patrol election booths to watch out for so-called&nbsp;fraud, which both Democrats and Republicans have denied exists and which was widely considered to be a call to intimidate voters.

Actually, a Trump supporter from&nbsp;Des Moines was charged with voter&nbsp;fraud,&nbsp;saying she voted twice because she believed&nbsp;Trump&#39;s claim that the election was rigged, and&nbsp;feared her vote for Trump would be changed&nbsp;to a vote for Clinton. (If it was actually rigged, then logically, she&nbsp;voted twice for Clinton.)

What Trump&#39;s&nbsp;dog whistles mean for an intimidation-free election vary from state to state: Bloomberg news reports that&nbsp;in&nbsp;Texas guns aren&#39;t allowed in polling centres, while they are in Pennsylvania.

Trump&#39;s has told his followers that after they vote on November 8, it&#39;s their duty to go to &quot;some other place&quot; to make sure there&#39;s no voter fraud. &quot;Go sit there with your friends and make sure it&#39;s on the up-and-up.&quot;&nbsp;

The call to go to &quot;some other place&quot; was interpreted by many as telling white people to go non-white communities, while &quot;...make sure it&#39;s on the up-and-up&quot; is way of telling them to fight against the impending fraud, but without&nbsp;uttering those&nbsp;exact words aloud.

Bloomberg reports that US federal law prohibits conduct that could be perceived as intimidating to voters on the basis of race or ethnicity. They cited&nbsp;New York University&#39;s Brennan Center for Justice, which claims this includes a direct&nbsp;confrontation with voters, using threatening language or raised voices, and disseminating misleading information on election.

(WION)

In his latest rally, Trump stoked immigration paranoia, again, while also fanning the flames of election fraud, again

Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump warned an Albuquerque, New Mexico rally that Hillary Clinton's "open borders" policy could permit as many as 650 million immigrants in a week. He said, "You could have 650 million people pour in and we do nothing about it. Think of it, that's what could happen. You triple the size of your country in one week. Once you lose control of the borders you have no country." It's hard to say what aspect of this claim is the most outlandish: The figure of 650 million is beyond preposterous. CNN says that in 2014, the US had just over one million legal immigrants, nowhere near Trump's 650 million. The insinuation that there are mobs of dangerous people trying to enter the US in order to fatally undermine it is unsubstantiated. The US is not at risk of losing its borders, its country is not on the brink of disaster. Trump has claimed that Mexico is deliberately sending rapists into the US, and has compared Syrian refugees fleeing war to Greek soldiers hiding in the Trojan Horse to kill their wartime enemies. Trump has invoked the Trojan Horse multiple times, but his analogy is backwards. It is unlikely has has ever read Homer or Virgil. At the very least, he is rusty. The Guardian reports that Clinton is on record for favouring comprehensive immigration reform, to provide a way for undocumented immigrants currently living in the country to become legal citizens. She has never said anything about increasing the population by roughly 200 per cent in one week. Election fraud The comments come after Trump has repeatedlt fanned the flames of paranoia over election fraud. In a presidential debate, Trump refused to say whether or not he would accept the result of the election. This was widely-condemned as an unprecedented repudiation of the basic tenets of American democracy. The Guardian claims that a recent study found 31 cases of in-person voter fraud out of one billion ballots cast between 2000-2014. Trump has repeatedly called on supporters to patrol election booths to watch out for so-called fraud, which both Democrats and Republicans have denied exists and which was widely considered to be a call to intimidate voters. Actually, a Trump supporter from Des Moines was charged with voter fraud, saying she voted twice because she believed Trump's claim that the election was rigged, and feared her vote for Trump would be changed to a vote for Clinton. (If it was actually rigged, then logically, she voted twice for Clinton.) What Trump's dog whistles mean for an intimidation-free election vary from state to state: Bloomberg news reports that in Texas guns aren't allowed in polling centres, while they are in Pennsylvania. Trump's has told his followers that after they vote on November 8, it's their duty to go to "some other place" to make sure there's no voter fraud. "Go sit there with your friends and make sure it's on the up-and-up." The call to go to "some other place" was interpreted by many as telling white people to go non-white communities, while "...make sure it's on the up-and-up" is way of telling them to fight against the impending fraud, but without uttering those exact words aloud. Bloomberg reports that US federal law prohibits conduct that could be perceived as intimidating to voters on the basis of race or ethnicity. They cited New York University's Brennan Center for Justice, which claims this includes a direct confrontation with voters, using threatening language or raised voices, and disseminating misleading information on election. (WION)

Trump falsely claims Clinton could triple US population in one week

French President Emmanuel Macron appointed veteran centrist François Bayrou as the new prime minister on Friday (Dec 13) following the collapse of the previous government of PM Michel Barnier.

In other news,&nbsp;US Secretary of State Antony Blinken made a surprise visit to Iraq on Friday (Dec 13) and pledged to work with Baghdad to ensure no resurgence of the Islamic State group after the former Syrian President Bashar al-Assad regime's ouster from Syria.&nbsp;

Click on the headlines&nbsp;to read more:

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/who-is-francois-bayrou-the-new-french-pm-who-will-battle-the-political-chaos-783765">Who is Francois Bayrou? The new French PM set to battle the political&nbsp;chaos</a>

<img alt="main img" src="https://cdn.wionews.com/sites/default/files/styles/story_page/public/2024/12/13/471050-00036qc2wd.jpg?imwidth=400" />

French President Emmanuel Macron appointed veteran centrist François Bayrou as the new prime minister on Friday (Dec 13) following the collapse of the previous government of PM Michel Barnier.

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/syria-crisis-updates-blinken-vows-to-work-with-iraq-against-is-syrians-celebrate-assads-fall-783807">West Asia crisis: Blinken vows to work with Iraq against IS</a>

<img alt="main img" src="https://cdn.wionews.com/sites/default/files/styles/story_page/public/2024/12/13/471080-luigi-mangione-18.png?imwidth=400" />

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken made a surprise visit to Iraq on Friday (Dec 13) and pledged to work with Baghdad to ensure no resurgence of the Islamic State group after the former Syrian President Bashar al-Assad regime's ouster from Syria.&nbsp;

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/russian-airstrike-targets-ukraines-energy-system-in-retaliation-for-us-supplied-missile-use-783735">Russian airstrike targets Ukraine’s energy system in retaliation for US-supplied missile use</a>

<img alt="main img" src="https://cdn.wionews.com/sites/default/files/styles/story_page/public/2024/12/06/469922-untitled-design-8.jpg?imwidth=400" />

Russia carried out a major aerial strike on Ukraine on Friday (Dec&nbsp;13) morning, deploying cruise missiles and drones to target energy infrastructure, particularly in the western border regions. The attack is part of a renewed campaign against Ukraine’s electricity network, which has already caused extended power outages for millions of civilians.

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/india-news/three-indian-students-murdered-in-canada-says-new-delhi-783790">'Terrible tragedies': Three Indian students killed in Canada, says New Delhi</a>

<img alt="main img" src="https://cdn.wionews.com/sites/default/files/styles/story_page/public/2024/12/13/471068-untitled-4.png?imwidth=400" />

India’s Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said on Friday (Dec 13) that three Indian students were murdered in Canada in the last week or so, adding, it was in touch with the victims' families and the local authorities to ensure a thorough investigation.&nbsp;

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/india-news/parents-of-kolkata-rape-murder-victim-slam-failing-system-after-sandip-ghosh-one-other-granted-bail-783797">Parents of murdered RG Kar doctor slam system after ex-principal gets bail</a>

<img alt="main img" src="https://cdn.wionews.com/sites/default/files/styles/story_page/public/2024/08/13/449072-untitled-design-54.png?imwidth=400" />

The parents of the junior doctor who was raped and murdered at&nbsp;RG Kar Medical College and Hospital in the Indian city of&nbsp;Kolkata&nbsp;expressed their heartbreak and disappointment after two&nbsp;accused in the case were granted bail on Friday (Dec 13).

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/india-can-influence-putin-on-peace-estonia-fm-margus-tsahkna-783707">India can influence Putin on peace: Estonia FM Margus Tsahkna</a>

<img alt="main img" src="https://cdn.wionews.com/sites/default/files/styles/story_page/public/2024/12/13/471009-sibal-interview.jpg?imwidth=400" />

Estonia's Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna has emphasised that India can influence Russian President Vladimir Putin for peace as the war in Ukraine enters its third year in 2025.

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/drones-seen-in-new-jersey-white-house-says-no-proof-that-sightings-pose-national-security-threat-783775">Drones seen in New Jersey: White House says no proof that sightings pose national security threat</a>

<img alt="main img" src="https://cdn.wionews.com/sites/default/files/styles/story_page/public/2024/12/13/471054-untitled-3.png?imwidth=400" />

The White House on Friday (Dec 13) said that the United States (US) administration had no evidence that the recent drone sightings in the US state of New Jersey posed a national security or a public safety threat.

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/jamaica-proposes-bill-to-remove-king-charles-as-head-state-and-become-a-republic-783796">Jamaica proposes bill to remove King Charles as head state and become a republic</a>

<img alt="main img" src="https://cdn.wionews.com/sites/default/files/styles/story_page/public/2024/12/13/471073-luigi-mangione-17.png?imwidth=400" />

In the first step to remove King Charles as head state and become a country republic, the Jamaican government presented a bill in parliament on Wednesday (Dec 11) to abolish the constitutional monarchy.&nbsp;

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/cricket/champions-trophy-2025-icc-approves-hybird-model-after-long-saga-india-to-play-in-dubai-report-783784">Champions Trophy 2025: ICC approves hybrid model after long saga - Report</a>

<img alt="main img" src="https://cdn.wionews.com/sites/default/files/styles/story_page/public/2024/09/13/454589-champions-trophy-2025-pcb-to-spend-this-whooping-amount-on-stadium-renovation.png?imwidth=400" />

The saga surrounding the Champions Trophy 2025 is over as the International Cricket Council (ICC) has approved the hybrid mode, meaning India will not travel to Pakistan for the coveted tournament.

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/entertainment/actor-allu-arjun-granted-bail-from-high-court-783754">Actor Allu Arjun granted bail from High court in Pushpa 2 stampede case</a>

<img alt="main img" src="https://cdn.wionews.com/sites/default/files/styles/story_page/public/2024/12/13/471055-happy-30th-birthday-45.png?imwidth=400" />

Actor Allu Arjun has been granted interim bail from the High Court in connection with the death of a woman in Hyderabad. Earlier in the day (Dec 13), the Pushpa 2 actor was arrested in a case filed against him for causing a stampede-like situation that resulted in the death of a woman.&nbsp;

Slamming Clinton's policy on Syria, Trump warned that her plan could 'drag the US into a world war against Russia'

French President Emmanuel Macron appointed veteran centrist François Bayrou as the new prime minister on Friday (Dec 13) following the collapse of the previous government of PM Michel Barnier. In other news, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken made a surprise visit to Iraq on Friday (Dec 13) and pledged to work with Baghdad to ensure no resurgence of the Islamic State group after the former Syrian President Bashar al-Assad regime's ouster from Syria. Click on the headlines to read more: Who is Francois Bayrou? The new French PM set to battle the political chaos French President Emmanuel Macron appointed veteran centrist François Bayrou as the new prime minister on Friday (Dec 13) following the collapse of the previous government of PM Michel Barnier. West Asia crisis: Blinken vows to work with Iraq against IS US Secretary of State Antony Blinken made a surprise visit to Iraq on Friday (Dec 13) and pledged to work with Baghdad to ensure no resurgence of the Islamic State group after the former Syrian President Bashar al-Assad regime's ouster from Syria. Russian airstrike targets Ukraine’s energy system in retaliation for US-supplied missile use Russia carried out a major aerial strike on Ukraine on Friday (Dec 13) morning, deploying cruise missiles and drones to target energy infrastructure, particularly in the western border regions. The attack is part of a renewed campaign against Ukraine’s electricity network, which has already caused extended power outages for millions of civilians. 'Terrible tragedies': Three Indian students killed in Canada, says New Delhi India’s Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said on Friday (Dec 13) that three Indian students were murdered in Canada in the last week or so, adding, it was in touch with the victims' families and the local authorities to ensure a thorough investigation. Parents of murdered RG Kar doctor slam system after ex-principal gets bail The parents of the junior doctor who was raped and murdered at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital in the Indian city of Kolkata expressed their heartbreak and disappointment after two accused in the case were granted bail on Friday (Dec 13). India can influence Putin on peace: Estonia FM Margus Tsahkna Estonia's Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna has emphasised that India can influence Russian President Vladimir Putin for peace as the war in Ukraine enters its third year in 2025. Drones seen in New Jersey: White House says no proof that sightings pose national security threat The White House on Friday (Dec 13) said that the United States (US) administration had no evidence that the recent drone sightings in the US state of New Jersey posed a national security or a public safety threat. Jamaica proposes bill to remove King Charles as head state and become a republic In the first step to remove King Charles as head state and become a country republic, the Jamaican government presented a bill in parliament on Wednesday (Dec 11) to abolish the constitutional monarchy. Champions Trophy 2025: ICC approves hybrid model after long saga - Report The saga surrounding the Champions Trophy 2025 is over as the International Cricket Council (ICC) has approved the hybrid mode, meaning India will not travel to Pakistan for the coveted tournament. Actor Allu Arjun granted bail from High court in Pushpa 2 stampede case Actor Allu Arjun has been granted interim bail from the High Court in connection with the death of a woman in Hyderabad. Earlier in the day (Dec 13), the Pushpa 2 actor was arrested in a case filed against him for causing a stampede-like situation that resulted in the death of a woman.

Hillary Clinton's policies could spark World War III: Trump

An ABC News poll shows Clinton has 50 per cent of the vote to Trump's 38 per cent, a lead of 12 points

Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton has stretched her lead to 12 points over her rival Donald Trump in the race for the White House, according to a new poll released on Sunday. The poll result, which comes a little over two weeks before the US goes to vote on November 8, is evidence of the damage done to the Trump campaign following a litany of allegations of sexual misconduct or inappropriate behaviour made by eleven women in recent days. The ABC News poll shows Clinton has 50 per cent of the vote to Trump's 38 per cent, a lead of 12 points, just ten days after an ABC News/Washington Post poll showed the lead to be a mere four points. While Trump enjoys a 47 to 43 per cent lead among white Americans, his rival has a healthy lead of 20 points among women and a 32 per cent lead among college-going women. We are behind: Trump campaign The poll result came hours before Trump's team for the first time admitted that they were "behind" in the presidential race. Trump's campaign director Kellyanne Conway made the admission on Sunday, but insisted that they would fight on till the very end. Conway also spelled out Trump's plans to fight back against the current wave of unpopularity. She said Trump will put in more resources in states that are considered to be crucial to winning the election. Trump plans to hold up to three rallies and other such events in these states which include Florida, Ohio, Nevada, Iowa and North Carolina. Between Sunday and Tuesday, Trump is scheduled to hold five rallies in Florida. Trump has also tried to woo voters by promising to create 25 million jobs and slash taxes for middle-class Americans. An optimistic Team Clinton Team Clinton, on the other hand, is hoping for a landslide win. But they also sounded cautious. "We're not taking anything for granted at all," campaign manager Robby Mook told Fox News on Sunday, adding: "This is not over yet." Mook also said early voting trends in some states indicate that they have an upper hand at the moment. "We feel very, very good about what we've seen so far...And we're encouraged also by who is turning out," Mook said. (WION with inputs from AFP)

US election: Clinton lead over Trump now in double digits

Melania Trump rose to her husband&#39;s defence on Monday, describing lewd comments the Republican presidential nominee made on a leaked 2005 video in which he bragged about groping women as &quot;boy talk.&quot;

Trump, who has kept a low profile during her husband&#39;s presidential campaign, gave her first television interview&nbsp;since the October 7 release of the tape that has shaken Donald Trump&#39;s campaign ahead of the November 8 election.

She told CNN her husband was engaged in &quot;boy talk, and he was led on - like, egged on - from the host to say dirty and bad stuff&quot; in the conversation with &quot;Access Hollywood&quot; host Billy Bush.

She added in a CNN interview that aired on Monday night that she was surprised because she had never heard her husband use that kind of language before.

&quot;No. No, that&#39;s why I was surprised, because I said like I don&#39;t know that person that would talk that way, and that he would say that kind of stuff in private,&quot; Melania Trump said.

In partial transcripts from a separate interview with Fox News, she said she had forgiven her husband for the comments in the tape, which was first published by the Washington Post.

&quot;Those words, they were offensive to me and they were inappropriate. &nbsp;And he apologised to me. And I ... accept his apology. &nbsp;And we are moving on.&rdquo;

They were her first public comments since a statement she issued after the tape&#39;s publication in which she said: &quot;The words my husband used are unacceptable and offensive to me. This does not represent the man that I know. I hope people will accept his apology, as I have.&quot;

Melania Trump told Fox News that her husband, a New York businessman and former reality television star, was committed to running for office even though it was difficult because he had been &quot;in so many shows, so many tapes&quot; over the years.

The RealClearPolitics average of national opinion polls shows his Democratic rival, Hillary Clinton, currently leading Trump by 6.9 percentage points, at 45.9 per cent to 39 per cent.

Asked if it was fair for the media or her husband to bring up charges of infidelity in former President Bill Clinton&#39;s past, Melania Trump told Fox News: &quot;Well, if they bring up my past, why not?&rdquo;

After Trump denied during a debate with Clinton on October 9 that he had actually done the things he bragged about in the tape, a number of women accused him of groping and kissing them without permission in incidents stretching back decades. He has denied the charges.

Asked about those accusations, Melania Trump told Fox News: &ldquo;All these women are coming out and they are allegations but they are not true. Why now? Why three weeks before the election?&rdquo;

(Reuters)

Melania Trump told CNN she had never heard her husband talk like that and has forgiven him after he apologised

Melania Trump rose to her husband's defence on Monday, describing lewd comments the Republican presidential nominee made on a leaked 2005 video in which he bragged about groping women as "boy talk." Trump, who has kept a low profile during her husband's presidential campaign, gave her first television interview since the October 7 release of the tape that has shaken Donald Trump's campaign ahead of the November 8 election. She told CNN her husband was engaged in "boy talk, and he was led on - like, egged on - from the host to say dirty and bad stuff" in the conversation with "Access Hollywood" host Billy Bush. She added in a CNN interview that aired on Monday night that she was surprised because she had never heard her husband use that kind of language before. "No. No, that's why I was surprised, because I said like I don't know that person that would talk that way, and that he would say that kind of stuff in private," Melania Trump said. In partial transcripts from a separate interview with Fox News, she said she had forgiven her husband for the comments in the tape, which was first published by the Washington Post. "Those words, they were offensive to me and they were inappropriate. And he apologised to me. And I ... accept his apology. And we are moving on.” They were her first public comments since a statement she issued after the tape's publication in which she said: "The words my husband used are unacceptable and offensive to me. This does not represent the man that I know. I hope people will accept his apology, as I have." Melania Trump told Fox News that her husband, a New York businessman and former reality television star, was committed to running for office even though it was difficult because he had been "in so many shows, so many tapes" over the years. The RealClearPolitics average of national opinion polls shows his Democratic rival, Hillary Clinton, currently leading Trump by 6.9 percentage points, at 45.9 per cent to 39 per cent. Asked if it was fair for the media or her husband to bring up charges of infidelity in former President Bill Clinton's past, Melania Trump told Fox News: "Well, if they bring up my past, why not?” After Trump denied during a debate with Clinton on October 9 that he had actually done the things he bragged about in the tape, a number of women accused him of groping and kissing them without permission in incidents stretching back decades. He has denied the charges. Asked about those accusations, Melania Trump told Fox News: “All these women are coming out and they are allegations but they are not true. Why now? Why three weeks before the election?” (Reuters)

Melania Trump calls taped comments by Donald Trump 'boy talk'

United States presidential nominee Donald Trump insinuated that his rival Hillary Clinton was on drugs during the second head-to-head&nbsp;debate last Sunday.

Trump called for drug-testing ahead of the final television debate in Las Vegas on Wednesday, saying: &quot;Athletes, they make them take a drug test. I think we should take a drug test prior to the debate. Why don&#39;t we do that?&quot;

Making his latest attack on Clinton, the 70-year-old Republican nominee during a rally in New Hampshire said: &quot;At the beginning of her last debate, she was all pumped up at the beginning. At the end, it was like, &#39;Take me down,&#39; she could barely reach her car.&quot;

These comments mark the&nbsp;latest&nbsp;in a litany of unsubstantiated personal attacks against Clinton. Days after Clinton was down with a bout of pneumonia, Trump had&nbsp;questioned if his rival was medically fit to be the next president of the US.

The US billionaire also felt that the election has been &quot;rigged&quot; by the &quot;corrupt media&quot; to favour his rival. He also attacked the &quot;global elite&quot; of trying its best to beat him.

&quot;The election is being rigged by corrupt media pushing completely false allegations and outright lies in an effort to elect her president,&quot; he said.&nbsp;

Trump has been under increasing pressure after ten women accused him of molesting them. &quot;Nothing ever happened with any of these women. Totally made up nonsense to steal the election. Nobody has more respect for women than me!&quot; he responded on Twitter.

Trump was also heard making derogatory comments about Arianne Zucker during a 2005 shoot. He later apologised for his sexist comments.

But the recent scandals have hardly put a dent in his support. An ABC News/Washington Post poll out Sunday shows Clinton leading&nbsp;Trump&nbsp;47-43&nbsp;percent among likely voters, which is&nbsp;a small change from 46-44 in a survey taken ahead of the first presidential debate.

(WION with inputs from Reuters)

The US presidential candidate also blamed 'corrupt media' for pulling out all stops to help his rival win

United States presidential nominee Donald Trump insinuated that his rival Hillary Clinton was on drugs during the second head-to-head debate last Sunday. Trump called for drug-testing ahead of the final television debate in Las Vegas on Wednesday, saying: "Athletes, they make them take a drug test. I think we should take a drug test prior to the debate. Why don't we do that?" Making his latest attack on Clinton, the 70-year-old Republican nominee during a rally in New Hampshire said: "At the beginning of her last debate, she was all pumped up at the beginning. At the end, it was like, 'Take me down,' she could barely reach her car." These comments mark the latest in a litany of unsubstantiated personal attacks against Clinton. Days after Clinton was down with a bout of pneumonia, Trump had questioned if his rival was medically fit to be the next president of the US. The US billionaire also felt that the election has been "rigged" by the "corrupt media" to favour his rival. He also attacked the "global elite" of trying its best to beat him. "The election is being rigged by corrupt media pushing completely false allegations and outright lies in an effort to elect her president," he said. Trump has been under increasing pressure after ten women accused him of molesting them. "Nothing ever happened with any of these women. Totally made up nonsense to steal the election. Nobody has more respect for women than me!" he responded on Twitter. Trump was also heard making derogatory comments about Arianne Zucker during a 2005 shoot. He later apologised for his sexist comments. But the recent scandals have hardly put a dent in his support. An ABC News/Washington Post poll out Sunday shows Clinton leading Trump 47-43 percent among likely voters, which is a small change from 46-44 in a survey taken ahead of the first presidential debate. (WION with inputs from Reuters)

US election: Trump says Clinton was on drugs during second presidential debate

Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump came out swinging in a crunch US presidential debate today, with the Republican and Democrat aggressively pitching their case to tens of millions of viewers. 
 
Clinton hit her rival as coming from a &quot;very fortunate&quot; background and called on voters to judge them both on the basis of &quot;who can shoulder the immense, awesome responsibilities of the presidency.&quot; 
 
Trump ditched his red power tie for a more statesmanlike blue and took on a restrained tone, but reprised the themes that have catalysed his improbable campaign, insisting jobs were being lost to Mexico and China. 
 
&quot;We have to renegotiate our trade deals and we have to stop these countries from stealing our companies and our jobs,&quot; he said, saying Clinton had decades without making lives better for ordinary Americans. 
 
Clinton hit back, accusing Trump&#39;s economic platform of amounting to &quot;the most extreme&quot; package of tax cuts for the wealthy in US history.&nbsp; 
 
&quot;I call it trumped up trickle-down, because that&#39;s exactly what it would be,&quot; she quipped. 
 
This first 2016 presidential debate could be pivotal in deciding whether Clinton will become the first woman president, or if Trump can pull off the greatest upset in US political history. 
 
When the celebrity businessman launched his campaign in June 2015, bookmakers put his odds at 100/1 and he was roundly mocked.&nbsp; 
 
But the 70-year-old weathered allegations of bigotry and sexism to triumph in a vicious Republican primary campaign. 
 
He now has a real shot at being sworn in as the 45th president of the United States on January 20. 
 
Six weeks out from election day the polls have tightened to a virtual dead heat. 
 
Clinton, &nbsp;the 68-year-old former secretary of state, first lady and US senator, is perhaps the most qualified presidential candidate since George Bush senior, Dwight Eisenhower or Ulysses Grant. 
 
She has a massive organisational advantage, a bigger campaign warchest, a lead in the popular vote and is in a notably stronger position state-by-state. 
 
But she remains deeply unpopular. In a country split 50/50 between Democrats and Republicans, only 40 per cent of voters say they have a favorable view of her. 
 
Polling group Gallup reports that 69 per cent of US adults are sure they will vote, down from 76 per cent in 2012. 
 
In the last two presidential elections, young, black, Hispanic and Asian-American voters turned out in record numbers for Barack Obama. 
 
Clinton&#39;s campaign has struggled so far to match that level of enthusiasm. 
 
Only 47 per cent of voters aged 18 to 34 say they will definitely vote this time round, that is down from 74 per cent when Obama was first elected. 
 
This Super Bowl of politics is taking place at Hofstra University on Long Island, a mere 60-minute drive from Manhattan and chaired by NBC Nightly News anchor Lester Holt. 
 
The questions will revolve around three themes: &quot;America`s direction, achieving prosperity, and securing America.&quot; 
 
Watching from the venue were Melania Trump and Bill Clinton, two spouses who have made their impact felt on during the campaign.Monday`s target will be the estimated nine per cent of American voters who are still undecided. Can the Democrat win their minds, if not their hearts? Can Trump persuade them that he has the gravitas to lead? 
 
If Trump remains disciplined and focuses on issues, he could earn credibility among college-educated whites. 
 
Clinton will no doubt aim to seize on Trump`s toxic campaign trail rhetoric, using his words to paint her rival as a divisive demagogue. 
 
But she may struggle to meet expectations. A Quinnipiac poll found that voters expect Clinton to win the debate 41 to 32 per cent, and that 84 per cent said they intend to watch. 
 
Clinton&#39;s campaign has expressed concerns of being held to a double standard, saying the bar is higher for her while Trump stood to win praise for a merely adequate performance. 
 
Usually first presidential debates expose a candidate to a public beyond their home state or the Washington political bubble. But like much else in the 2016 race, that is not the case this year. 
 
The names of both candidates were recognised by almost 100 per cent of the adult population, even before the debate. 
 
(AFP)&nbsp;

Usually first presidential debates expose a candidate to a public beyond their home state or the Washington political bubble

Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump came out swinging in a crunch US presidential debate today, with the Republican and Democrat aggressively pitching their case to tens of millions of viewers. Clinton hit her rival as coming from a "very fortunate" background and called on voters to judge them both on the basis of "who can shoulder the immense, awesome responsibilities of the presidency." Trump ditched his red power tie for a more statesmanlike blue and took on a restrained tone, but reprised the themes that have catalysed his improbable campaign, insisting jobs were being lost to Mexico and China. "We have to renegotiate our trade deals and we have to stop these countries from stealing our companies and our jobs," he said, saying Clinton had decades without making lives better for ordinary Americans. Clinton hit back, accusing Trump's economic platform of amounting to "the most extreme" package of tax cuts for the wealthy in US history. "I call it trumped up trickle-down, because that's exactly what it would be," she quipped. This first 2016 presidential debate could be pivotal in deciding whether Clinton will become the first woman president, or if Trump can pull off the greatest upset in US political history. When the celebrity businessman launched his campaign in June 2015, bookmakers put his odds at 100/1 and he was roundly mocked. But the 70-year-old weathered allegations of bigotry and sexism to triumph in a vicious Republican primary campaign. He now has a real shot at being sworn in as the 45th president of the United States on January 20. Six weeks out from election day the polls have tightened to a virtual dead heat. Clinton, the 68-year-old former secretary of state, first lady and US senator, is perhaps the most qualified presidential candidate since George Bush senior, Dwight Eisenhower or Ulysses Grant. She has a massive organisational advantage, a bigger campaign warchest, a lead in the popular vote and is in a notably stronger position state-by-state. But she remains deeply unpopular. In a country split 50/50 between Democrats and Republicans, only 40 per cent of voters say they have a favorable view of her. Polling group Gallup reports that 69 per cent of US adults are sure they will vote, down from 76 per cent in 2012. In the last two presidential elections, young, black, Hispanic and Asian-American voters turned out in record numbers for Barack Obama. Clinton's campaign has struggled so far to match that level of enthusiasm. Only 47 per cent of voters aged 18 to 34 say they will definitely vote this time round, that is down from 74 per cent when Obama was first elected. This Super Bowl of politics is taking place at Hofstra University on Long Island, a mere 60-minute drive from Manhattan and chaired by NBC Nightly News anchor Lester Holt. The questions will revolve around three themes: "America`s direction, achieving prosperity, and securing America." Watching from the venue were Melania Trump and Bill Clinton, two spouses who have made their impact felt on during the campaign.Monday`s target will be the estimated nine per cent of American voters who are still undecided. Can the Democrat win their minds, if not their hearts? Can Trump persuade them that he has the gravitas to lead? If Trump remains disciplined and focuses on issues, he could earn credibility among college-educated whites. Clinton will no doubt aim to seize on Trump`s toxic campaign trail rhetoric, using his words to paint her rival as a divisive demagogue. But she may struggle to meet expectations. A Quinnipiac poll found that voters expect Clinton to win the debate 41 to 32 per cent, and that 84 per cent said they intend to watch. Clinton's campaign has expressed concerns of being held to a double standard, saying the bar is higher for her while Trump stood to win praise for a merely adequate performance. Usually first presidential debates expose a candidate to a public beyond their home state or the Washington political bubble. But like much else in the 2016 race, that is not the case this year. The names of both candidates were recognised by almost 100 per cent of the adult population, even before the debate. (AFP)

US presidential debate showdown: Clinton, Trump spar over economy

Early this week, Donald Trump Junior, who is a close political adviser to his father, issued a tweet comparing Syrian refugees to poisoned candies: 
&nbsp;

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
This image says it all. Let&#39;s end the politically correct agenda that doesn&#39;t put America first. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/trump2016?src=hash">#trump2016</a> <a href="https://t.co/9fHwog7ssN">pic.twitter.com/9fHwog7ssN</a>
&mdash; Donald Trump Jr. (@DonaldJTrumpJr) <a href="https://twitter.com/DonaldJTrumpJr/status/778016283342307328">September 19, 2016</a></blockquote>
<script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

The tweet, bearing Trump&#39;s official campaign logo, was criticised for several reasons. One, <a href="http://object.cato.org/sites/cato.org/files/pubs/pdf/pa798_1_1.pdf">the Cato Institute</a> calculated the odds of an American being killed by a refugee to be one in 640,000,000, not three in however many skittles there are in the above bowl. Two, the analogy is logically flawed: leaving uneaten Skittles in a bowl poses no ethical or moral dilemma, which isn&#39;t comparable to neglecting the lives of human beings fleeing war. 
 
Wrigley&#39;s, Skittles&#39; parent company, having been dragged into this affair made an official statement&nbsp;reaching the same conclusion: &quot;Skittles are candy. Refugees are people. We don&#39;t feel it&#39;s an appropriate analogy. We will respectively refrain from further commentary, as anything we say could be misinterpreted as marketing.&quot; 
 
Trump&#39;s tweet was also <a href="http://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2016/09/21/494854951/donald-trump-jr-used-skittles-photo-without-permission-from-former-refugee">copyright infringement</a>, as the picture was taken without permission. The rightful owner of the picture is especially angry it was used by the Trump campaign this way, as at 6-years-old he himself was a refugee fleeing Cyprus following the Turkish invasion. 
 
In addition to being grossly misleading, xenophobic, logically flawed and theft, the tweet also has a racist connection. Skittles carry very loaded associations for the alt-right&mdash;an unofficial assembly of far-right wingers characterised by heavy misogyny, racism and white supremacy&mdash;because of the symbol it became during and after the murder trial of George Zimmerman.&nbsp; 
 
Trayvon Martin was carrying Skittles when George Zimmerman killed him in 2012. This was a very high-profile case in North America. Martin was an African American 17-year-old high school student. Zimmerman was the neighbourhood watch coordinator of a gated community in Florida, an American state with Stand Your Ground laws, meaning it is legal to protect yourself from threats or&nbsp;perceived&nbsp;threats. Zimmerman was ultimately acquitted by a jury after only about a month.&nbsp; 
 
Skittles&nbsp;became a symbol of injustice to <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/shortcuts/2013/jul/15/skittles-trayvon-martin-zimmerman-acquittal">Martin&#39;s supporters</a>, and was used in memes by <a href="http://www.quickmeme.com/meme/3okg2c">Zimmerman&#39;s supporters</a>, who incorporated the candy in jokes mocking the dead teenager.&nbsp; 
&nbsp;

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
Hillary is obsessed with a cartoon frog and her voters are angrier about a picture of Skittles than people getting bombed. 
 
Victory is near! <a href="https://t.co/qiAiGWNqMd">pic.twitter.com/qiAiGWNqMd</a>
&mdash; Vendetta Vidame (@Vendetta92429) <a href="https://twitter.com/Vendetta92429/status/778086672353234944">September 20, 2016</a></blockquote>
<script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

&nbsp;

 
Given how many times the Trump campaign has appealed to the alt-right or echoed their racist memes (this<a href="http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/statements/2015/nov/23/donald-trump/trump-tweet-blacks-white-homicide-victims/"> racist and bogus crime stat </a>retweeted from a white supremacist account; Hillary Clinton with a <a href="http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/article/2016/jul/05/donald-trumps-star-david-tweet-recap/">Jewish star of David</a>&nbsp;beside dollars and &quot;corruption&quot;;&nbsp;<a href="http://www.vox.com/2016/9/21/12893656/pepe-frog-donald-trump">Pepe the frog</a>...), it is hard to imagine that the allusion to skittles is an accident or coincidence. More likely, the campaign is issuing another dog whistle&mdash;a kind of covert tip of the hat, or a thumbs up&mdash;to the kind of Trump supporters who joke about dead African American teenagers. 
 
&nbsp;(WION)

&nbsp;

The message wasn't just xenophobic and fallacious, Skittles was a loaded symbol of racial injustice after the George Zimmerman murder trial

Early this week, Donald Trump Junior, who is a close political adviser to his father, issued a tweet comparing Syrian refugees to poisoned candies: This image says it all. Let's end the politically correct agenda that doesn't put America first. #trump2016 pic.twitter.com/9fHwog7ssN — Donald Trump Jr. (@DonaldJTrumpJr) September 19, 2016 The tweet, bearing Trump's official campaign logo, was criticised for several reasons. One, the Cato Institute calculated the odds of an American being killed by a refugee to be one in 640,000,000, not three in however many skittles there are in the above bowl. Two, the analogy is logically flawed: leaving uneaten Skittles in a bowl poses no ethical or moral dilemma, which isn't comparable to neglecting the lives of human beings fleeing war. Wrigley's, Skittles' parent company, having been dragged into this affair made an official statement reaching the same conclusion: "Skittles are candy. Refugees are people. We don't feel it's an appropriate analogy. We will respectively refrain from further commentary, as anything we say could be misinterpreted as marketing." Trump's tweet was also copyright infringement, as the picture was taken without permission. The rightful owner of the picture is especially angry it was used by the Trump campaign this way, as at 6-years-old he himself was a refugee fleeing Cyprus following the Turkish invasion. In addition to being grossly misleading, xenophobic, logically flawed and theft, the tweet also has a racist connection. Skittles carry very loaded associations for the alt-right—an unofficial assembly of far-right wingers characterised by heavy misogyny, racism and white supremacy—because of the symbol it became during and after the murder trial of George Zimmerman. Trayvon Martin was carrying Skittles when George Zimmerman killed him in 2012. This was a very high-profile case in North America. Martin was an African American 17-year-old high school student. Zimmerman was the neighbourhood watch coordinator of a gated community in Florida, an American state with Stand Your Ground laws, meaning it is legal to protect yourself from threats or perceived threats. Zimmerman was ultimately acquitted by a jury after only about a month. Skittles became a symbol of injustice to Martin's supporters, and was used in memes by Zimmerman's supporters, who incorporated the candy in jokes mocking the dead teenager. Hillary is obsessed with a cartoon frog and her voters are angrier about a picture of Skittles than people getting bombed. Victory is near! pic.twitter.com/qiAiGWNqMd — Vendetta Vidame (@Vendetta92429) September 20, 2016 Given how many times the Trump campaign has appealed to the alt-right or echoed their racist memes (this racist and bogus crime stat retweeted from a white supremacist account; Hillary Clinton with a Jewish star of David beside dollars and "corruption"; Pepe the frog...), it is hard to imagine that the allusion to skittles is an accident or coincidence. More likely, the campaign is issuing another dog whistle—a kind of covert tip of the hat, or a thumbs up—to the kind of Trump supporters who joke about dead African American teenagers. (WION)

The racist subtext of Donald Trump Jr's Skittles tweet

US senator and Donald Trump&#39;s arch rival Ted Cruz said on Friday he would vote for the Republican presidential nomiee in the upcoming elections. 
 
&quot;After many months of careful consideration, of prayer and searching my own conscience, I have decided that on Election Day, I will vote for the Republican nominee, Donald Trump,&quot; he posted on Facebook. 
 
&quot;A year ago, I pledged to endorse the Republican nominee, and I am honoring that commitment,&quot; he added. &quot;And if you don&#39;t want to see a Hillary Clinton presidency, I encourage you to vote for him.&quot; 
 
The Texas senator had earlier this year backed off from the presidential race to hand Trump the chance to take on Hillary Clinton, the Democratic presidental nominee. 
 
According to media reports, Cruz&#39;s backing may help Trump garner support from rest of the Republicans who were hesitant to support for him.&nbsp; 
 
However, during their initial battle there was much mudslinging between the two, with Trump body-shaming Cruz&#39;s wife Heidi by mocking her physical appearence. He also alledged Cruz&#39;s father had connections with President John F. Kennedy&#39;s murderer.&nbsp; 
 
Cruz hit back by calling him a &quot;pathological liar&quot;.&nbsp; 
 
On Friday, Trump said he was grateful for the endorsement.&nbsp; 
 
&quot;We have fought the battle and he was a tough and brilliant opponent and I look forward to working with him for many years to come in order to make America great again,&quot; Trump said, AFP reported.&nbsp; 
 
According to Reuters, Cruz&#39;s support for Trump comes from the fear of Democrats taking control of the US Supreme Court.&nbsp; 
 
(WION with inputs from agencies) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
&nbsp;

Cruz urged voters to vote for Trump if they do not want to see Hillary Clinton as president

US senator and Donald Trump's arch rival Ted Cruz said on Friday he would vote for the Republican presidential nomiee in the upcoming elections. "After many months of careful consideration, of prayer and searching my own conscience, I have decided that on Election Day, I will vote for the Republican nominee, Donald Trump," he posted on Facebook. "A year ago, I pledged to endorse the Republican nominee, and I am honoring that commitment," he added. "And if you don't want to see a Hillary Clinton presidency, I encourage you to vote for him." The Texas senator had earlier this year backed off from the presidential race to hand Trump the chance to take on Hillary Clinton, the Democratic presidental nominee. According to media reports, Cruz's backing may help Trump garner support from rest of the Republicans who were hesitant to support for him. However, during their initial battle there was much mudslinging between the two, with Trump body-shaming Cruz's wife Heidi by mocking her physical appearence. He also alledged Cruz's father had connections with President John F. Kennedy's murderer. Cruz hit back by calling him a "pathological liar". On Friday, Trump said he was grateful for the endorsement. "We have fought the battle and he was a tough and brilliant opponent and I look forward to working with him for many years to come in order to make America great again," Trump said, AFP reported. According to Reuters, Cruz's support for Trump comes from the fear of Democrats taking control of the US Supreme Court. (WION with inputs from agencies)

US election: Ted Cruz publicly endorses Donald Trump

Hillary Clinton wore&nbsp;a red trouser suit for the first 2016 US Presidential debate while Donald Trump appeared in a blue tie, which was an interesting colour reversal;&nbsp;red is usually associated with the Republicans and blue with the Democrats.&nbsp;

Mr Trump called Hillary &quot;Secretary Clinton&quot; during the&nbsp;debate, moderated by the anchor of NBC Nightly News Lester Holt and conducted at New York&#39;s Hoftsra university, while she called him &quot;Donald&quot;. But that was about as long as the cordiality lasted.&nbsp;

The exchange that came after was testy, with myriad interruptions and Mr Holt struggling to rein in the two nominees.&nbsp;

Shortly into the debate -- divided into three sections:&nbsp;achieving prosperity, America&#39;s direction, and securing America -- Mrs Clinton said Mr Trump&nbsp;began his career with a $14 million handout from his father. Trump responded by saying he had used the money to build a &quot;fantastic&quot; business empire, something that was worth a lot more today than the original sum. &nbsp;

The jabs became more frequent, a lot of them coming surprisingly from Clinton rather than from (considering his record) Trump.&nbsp;

There was a lot riding on this&nbsp;debate, with polls saying as many as 50 per cent&nbsp;of undecided voters would make up their minds about whom they would vote for&nbsp;depending on what they heard from the two candidates.&nbsp;

And in the end -- there are two more debates still to come, on October 9 and 19 -- the polls gave the first debate to Clinton.&nbsp;

A CNN/ORC poll said 62 per cent thought Clinton had won, while 27 per cent thought Trump had. And a poll by Public Policy Polling said 51 per cent thought Clinton had won, while 40 per cent gave it to&nbsp;Trump.

&nbsp;

Good beginning

The pundits said Mr Trump had begun well. And that he was &quot;effective&quot; when he said in the first section -- achieving prosperity -- that businesses, and jobs, were leaving America. (Trade and economy, the pundits said, were areas that Mr Trump felt strongly about. Mr Trump also talked about the enormity of America&#39;s national debt and how the country could no longer afford it.) &nbsp;

When manufacturers leave America but want to continue to sell their products in the country, Mr Trump said, he would tax those products. And, he added, he would work to stop those businesses from leaving in the first place.&nbsp;

Mr Trump said he would do so by slashing the corporate tax rate from 35 to 15 per cent, the biggest tax cut since Ronald Reagan&#39;s in 1981. And that would keep businesses in America and create thousands of jobs, he said.&nbsp;

That of course was a variant of the theory of&nbsp;trickle-down economics,&nbsp;and Mrs Clinton was quick to pounce on it, calling it &quot;trumped up trickle-down&quot;.&nbsp; 
She said her plan -- investment in small businesses because she said that&#39;s what creates new jobs -- had been vetted, unlike Trump&#39;s, and that it would create 10 million jobs&nbsp;while Mr Trump&#39;s would lead to the loss of 3.5 million jobs.&nbsp;

Some of that is misleading.&nbsp;

What the available data actually shows is that the American economy is expected to create 7.2 million jobs despite what Mrs Clinton, should she win, does. So it would be fairer to say Mrs Clinton&#39;s plan is expected to create about 3 million jobs while Mr Trump&#39;s is expected to cut 400,000 jobs.&nbsp;

&nbsp;

Mistakes

Mr Trump got more riled as the debate went on, taking, the pundits said, &quot;the bait&quot; each time Mrs Clinton dangled it in front of him.&nbsp;

The mistakes that he made, they said, included his response to Mrs Clinton when she said he had cheered on the housing collapse of 2008 so that he could make money off the crash.&nbsp;

&quot;That&#39;s business,&quot; Mr Trump replied.&nbsp;

&nbsp;

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false"><img alt="" draggable="false" src="http://s.wionews.com/photos/deb1-20160927023913.jpg" />
<div class="media-description">
Clinton criticised Trump for not releasing his tax returns and said that decision raised questions about whether he was as rich and charitable as he has claimed to be. (Reuters)
</div>
<a class="close-mark close-div" href="javascript:void(0)" id="jqclosemark">&times;</a></div>

&nbsp;

When she said he paid no federal income tax -- Mr Trump has still not released his tax returns -- he said &quot;that makes me smart&quot;. Mrs Clinton pounced on that too, saying he paid &quot;zero for troops, zero for schools, zero for health&quot;.&nbsp;

And that if he paid his taxes, there would be a lowering of the national debt.&nbsp;

Later, when Mr Trump was asked how we would improve race relations, he said &quot;law and order&quot;. That, the pundits said, was the wrong answer, especially in the current climate&nbsp;when there has&nbsp;been a high number of fatal shootings of African American men by police.&nbsp;

&nbsp;

Tinkering with the truth

As might have been expected with Mr Trump, there was also some amount of tinkering with the truth.&nbsp;

He said it was Mrs Clinton who started the controversy over whether or not President&nbsp;Obama had been born in the United States, and that it occurred&nbsp;while they were contending the 2008 Democratic Presidential nomination. He also claimed&nbsp;that her then campaign manager, Patti Solis Doyle, had sent a reporter to Kenya looking for President&nbsp;Obama&#39;s birth certificate. (President&nbsp;Obama has a Kenyan father. He was born in Hawaii, he released his birth certificate in 2011.)&nbsp;

Ms Doyle was on television a few minutes later, refuting Mr Trump&#39;s claim.&nbsp;

Mr Trump also claimed he had not supported the invasion of Iraq, which is untrue.&nbsp;

(WION)

As expected there were staggering lies, interruptions, pre-scripted zingers and more. But Clinton won by letting Trump appear like himself

Hillary Clinton wore a red trouser suit for the first 2016 US Presidential debate while Donald Trump appeared in a blue tie, which was an interesting colour reversal; red is usually associated with the Republicans and blue with the Democrats. Mr Trump called Hillary "Secretary Clinton" during the debate, moderated by the anchor of NBC Nightly News Lester Holt and conducted at New York's Hoftsra university, while she called him "Donald". But that was about as long as the cordiality lasted. The exchange that came after was testy, with myriad interruptions and Mr Holt struggling to rein in the two nominees. Shortly into the debate -- divided into three sections: achieving prosperity, America's direction, and securing America -- Mrs Clinton said Mr Trump began his career with a $14 million handout from his father. Trump responded by saying he had used the money to build a "fantastic" business empire, something that was worth a lot more today than the original sum. The jabs became more frequent, a lot of them coming surprisingly from Clinton rather than from (considering his record) Trump. There was a lot riding on this debate, with polls saying as many as 50 per cent of undecided voters would make up their minds about whom they would vote for depending on what they heard from the two candidates. And in the end -- there are two more debates still to come, on October 9 and 19 -- the polls gave the first debate to Clinton. A CNN/ORC poll said 62 per cent thought Clinton had won, while 27 per cent thought Trump had. And a poll by Public Policy Polling said 51 per cent thought Clinton had won, while 40 per cent gave it to Trump. Good beginning The pundits said Mr Trump had begun well. And that he was "effective" when he said in the first section -- achieving prosperity -- that businesses, and jobs, were leaving America. (Trade and economy, the pundits said, were areas that Mr Trump felt strongly about. Mr Trump also talked about the enormity of America's national debt and how the country could no longer afford it.) When manufacturers leave America but want to continue to sell their products in the country, Mr Trump said, he would tax those products. And, he added, he would work to stop those businesses from leaving in the first place. Mr Trump said he would do so by slashing the corporate tax rate from 35 to 15 per cent, the biggest tax cut since Ronald Reagan's in 1981. And that would keep businesses in America and create thousands of jobs, he said. That of course was a variant of the theory of trickle-down economics, and Mrs Clinton was quick to pounce on it, calling it "trumped up trickle-down". She said her plan -- investment in small businesses because she said that's what creates new jobs -- had been vetted, unlike Trump's, and that it would create 10 million jobs while Mr Trump's would lead to the loss of 3.5 million jobs. Some of that is misleading. What the available data actually shows is that the American economy is expected to create 7.2 million jobs despite what Mrs Clinton, should she win, does. So it would be fairer to say Mrs Clinton's plan is expected to create about 3 million jobs while Mr Trump's is expected to cut 400,000 jobs. Mistakes Mr Trump got more riled as the debate went on, taking, the pundits said, "the bait" each time Mrs Clinton dangled it in front of him. The mistakes that he made, they said, included his response to Mrs Clinton when she said he had cheered on the housing collapse of 2008 so that he could make money off the crash. "That's business," Mr Trump replied. Clinton criticised Trump for not releasing his tax returns and said that decision raised questions about whether he was as rich and charitable as he has claimed to be. (Reuters) × When she said he paid no federal income tax -- Mr Trump has still not released his tax returns -- he said "that makes me smart". Mrs Clinton pounced on that too, saying he paid "zero for troops, zero for schools, zero for health". And that if he paid his taxes, there would be a lowering of the national debt. Later, when Mr Trump was asked how we would improve race relations, he said "law and order". That, the pundits said, was the wrong answer, especially in the current climate when there has been a high number of fatal shootings of African American men by police. Tinkering with the truth As might have been expected with Mr Trump, there was also some amount of tinkering with the truth. He said it was Mrs Clinton who started the controversy over whether or not President Obama had been born in the United States, and that it occurred while they were contending the 2008 Democratic Presidential nomination. He also claimed that her then campaign manager, Patti Solis Doyle, had sent a reporter to Kenya looking for President Obama's birth certificate. (President Obama has a Kenyan father. He was born in Hawaii, he released his birth certificate in 2011.) Ms Doyle was on television a few minutes later, refuting Mr Trump's claim. Mr Trump also claimed he had not supported the invasion of Iraq, which is untrue. (WION)

Clinton wins first US election debate: Polls

Donald Trump&#39;s eldest son sparked an online storm on Tuesday as he compared Syrian refugees to lethal candies reiterating his father&#39;s hardline stance on immigration.&nbsp; 
 
Donald Jr, who is one of the surrogates of Republican presidential candidate, posted a tweet on the microblogging website saying: &nbsp;&quot;This image says it all,&quot; The picture showed a white bowl filled with the popular, rainbow-colored Skittles candies. 
&nbsp;
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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
This image says it all. Let&#39;s end the politically correct agenda that doesn&#39;t put America first. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/trump2016?src=hash">#trump2016</a> <a href="https://t.co/9fHwog7ssN">pic.twitter.com/9fHwog7ssN</a>
&mdash; Donald Trump Jr. (@DonaldJTrumpJr) <a href="https://twitter.com/DonaldJTrumpJr/status/778016283342307328">September 19, 2016</a></blockquote>
<script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>
 
Written above the image is: &quot;If I had a bowl of skittles and I told you just three would kill you, would you take a handful? That&#39;s our Syria refugee problem.&quot;&nbsp; 
 
&quot;It is too dangerous to welcome migrants when a tiny number of them could later launch attacks,&quot; &nbsp;he stressed.&nbsp; 
 
In a company statement, Wrigley, the maker of Skittles, criticised Trump Jr&#39;s tweet&nbsp; 
 
&quot;Skittles are candy. Refugees are people. We don&#39;t feel it&#39;s an appropriate analogy,&quot; the official statement read.&nbsp; 
 
The statement also triggered an online outrage as some users posted heart-wrenching pictures of Syrian refugees.&nbsp; 
&nbsp;
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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
Skittles. <a href="https://t.co/BdrBjQh2OR">pic.twitter.com/BdrBjQh2OR</a>
&mdash; Nish Weiseth (@NishWeiseth) <a href="https://twitter.com/NishWeiseth/status/778066919655997441">September 20, 2016</a></blockquote>
<script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>
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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
Remember when everyone thought the Trump kids were classy before they called refugee&#39;s skittles, walked out on media last week <a href="https://t.co/8fcgPFvkbM">https://t.co/8fcgPFvkbM</a>
&mdash; Barry Ybarra (@ybarry45) <a href="https://twitter.com/ybarry45/status/778464303804329985">September 21, 2016</a></blockquote>
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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
I have an idea. Let&#39;s stop with analogies and address the problems head on. 
 
Enough trying to soften the blows of actual problems. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Skittles?src=hash">#Skittles</a>
&mdash; Mitsurugi Reiji (@MitsuReiji) <a href="https://twitter.com/MitsuReiji/status/778464650962743296">September 21, 2016</a></blockquote>
<script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>

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<a href="https://twitter.com/SethAbramovitch">@SethAbramovitch</a> the fact they disowned that analogy tells you where <a href="https://twitter.com/Skittles">@Skittles</a> stands. Real far away from Mr Trump.
&mdash; Patchouli Woollahra (@PatchouliW) <a href="https://twitter.com/PatchouliW/status/778463659353776128">September 21, 2016</a> 
 
 
&nbsp;</blockquote>
<script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>
 
 
Meanwhile, Trump has repeatedly warned of the risks posed by Syrian refugees, citing the arrival in Europe of Islamic State operatives disguised as simple refugees.&nbsp; 
 
On Tuesday, the Republican candidate called them a dangerous &quot;Trojan horse&quot; who enter the country with the aim of doing harm, is inextricably linked to his meteoric political rise. 
 
&quot;It&#39;s just a plain fact that our current immigration system makes no real attempt to determine the views of the people entering our country. We have no idea who they are, what they think,&quot; he said in a speech at High Point University in North Carolina. 
 
The real estate tycoon also renounced the &quot;open borders&quot; that he said his Democratic rival Hillary Clinton advocated as secretary of state, blaming her for the rise of the Islamic State group. 
 
(WION with inputs from AFP)&nbsp;

'It is too dangerous to welcome migrants when a tiny number of them could later launch attacks,' Donald Jr said

Donald Trump's eldest son sparked an online storm on Tuesday as he compared Syrian refugees to lethal candies reiterating his father's hardline stance on immigration. Donald Jr, who is one of the surrogates of Republican presidential candidate, posted a tweet on the microblogging website saying: "This image says it all," The picture showed a white bowl filled with the popular, rainbow-colored Skittles candies. This image says it all. Let's end the politically correct agenda that doesn't put America first. #trump2016 pic.twitter.com/9fHwog7ssN — Donald Trump Jr. (@DonaldJTrumpJr) September 19, 2016 Written above the image is: "If I had a bowl of skittles and I told you just three would kill you, would you take a handful? That's our Syria refugee problem." "It is too dangerous to welcome migrants when a tiny number of them could later launch attacks," he stressed. In a company statement, Wrigley, the maker of Skittles, criticised Trump Jr's tweet "Skittles are candy. Refugees are people. We don't feel it's an appropriate analogy," the official statement read. The statement also triggered an online outrage as some users posted heart-wrenching pictures of Syrian refugees. Skittles. pic.twitter.com/BdrBjQh2OR — Nish Weiseth (@NishWeiseth) September 20, 2016 Remember when everyone thought the Trump kids were classy before they called refugee's skittles, walked out on media last week https://t.co/8fcgPFvkbM — Barry Ybarra (@ybarry45) September 21, 2016 I have an idea. Let's stop with analogies and address the problems head on. Enough trying to soften the blows of actual problems. #Skittles — Mitsurugi Reiji (@MitsuReiji) September 21, 2016 @SethAbramovitch the fact they disowned that analogy tells you where @Skittles stands. Real far away from Mr Trump. — Patchouli Woollahra (@PatchouliW) September 21, 2016 Meanwhile, Trump has repeatedly warned of the risks posed by Syrian refugees, citing the arrival in Europe of Islamic State operatives disguised as simple refugees. On Tuesday, the Republican candidate called them a dangerous "Trojan horse" who enter the country with the aim of doing harm, is inextricably linked to his meteoric political rise. "It's just a plain fact that our current immigration system makes no real attempt to determine the views of the people entering our country. We have no idea who they are, what they think," he said in a speech at High Point University in North Carolina. The real estate tycoon also renounced the "open borders" that he said his Democratic rival Hillary Clinton advocated as secretary of state, blaming her for the rise of the Islamic State group. (WION with inputs from AFP)

Trump's son compares Syrian refugees to lethal candies, triggers online outrage

Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump is not fit to be the next US commander-in-chief, according to outgoing president Barack Obama. 
 
The criticism comes a day after billionaire Trump said Russia&nbsp;President Vladimir Putin is a better leader than Obama. 
 
&quot;I don&#39;t think the guy&#39;s (Trump) qualified to be president of the United States, and every time he speaks, that opinion is confirmed,&quot; said Obama, who is currently in Laos to attend a summit with Southeast Asian leaders. 
 
Obama also blasted Trump for being uninformed and having &#39;&#39;whacky ideas&#39;&#39;. 
 
Trump had previously said that if he came to power, he would ask the military brass to forge a plan within 30 days to destroy Islamic State in the Middle East. 
 
Trump&#39;s promise was assailed by&nbsp;a&nbsp;retired army general.&nbsp;&quot;I had to ask myself, what the hell does he think we&#39;ve been trying to do for the last 14 years in terms of al Qaeda?&quot;&nbsp;Retired Army Lt. Gen. Mark Hertling had&nbsp;told CNN.&nbsp; 
 
Trump is contending with Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton to become the next president of the United States. The election is on November 8.&nbsp; 
 
(WION with inputs from AFP)

The outgoing president also assailed the Republican presidential candidate for having 'whacky ideas'

Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump is not fit to be the next US commander-in-chief, according to outgoing president Barack Obama. The criticism comes a day after billionaire Trump said Russia President Vladimir Putin is a better leader than Obama. "I don't think the guy's (Trump) qualified to be president of the United States, and every time he speaks, that opinion is confirmed," said Obama, who is currently in Laos to attend a summit with Southeast Asian leaders. Obama also blasted Trump for being uninformed and having ''whacky ideas''. Trump had previously said that if he came to power, he would ask the military brass to forge a plan within 30 days to destroy Islamic State in the Middle East. Trump's promise was assailed by a retired army general. "I had to ask myself, what the hell does he think we've been trying to do for the last 14 years in terms of al Qaeda?" Retired Army Lt. Gen. Mark Hertling had told CNN. Trump is contending with Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton to become the next president of the United States. The election is on November 8. (WION with inputs from AFP)

Donald Trump unfit to be next US president: Obama

Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump promised to expand US military and outline a plan to beat Islamic State within a month of assuming office. 
 
Trump said he would increase military spending, number of soldiers, aircraft and warships to revive the&nbsp;&quot;depleted&quot; US forces.&nbsp; 
 
Speaking in Philadelphia, the billionaire gave a detailed plan of increasing the US military. The US army would have 540,000 troops, the air force would have at least 1.200 fighter aircraft&nbsp;and the navy would have 350 surface ships and submarines, the AFP reported. 
 
About his plans to tackle the IS, Trump said, &quot;Immediately after taking office, I will ask my generals to present to me a plan within 30 days to defeat and destroy IS.&quot; 
 
Trump&#39;s 30-day timeframe to beat the IS was, however, assailed by a retired army general.&nbsp; 
 
&quot;I had to ask myself, what the hell does he think we&#39;ve been trying to do for the last 14 years in terms of al Qaeda?&quot;&nbsp;Retired Army Lt. Gen.&nbsp;<a href="http://www.cnn.com/profiles/mark-hertling-profile" target="_blank">Mark Hertling&nbsp;</a>told CNN.&nbsp; 
 
Trump, meanwhile, also took a swipe at his opponent Hillary Clinton, calling her &quot;trigger happy&quot; because of her &quot;legacy in Iraq, Libya and Syria&quot; that has &quot;produced only turmoil and suffering and death&quot;. 
 
With the election campaign having entered&nbsp;the homestretch, Trump also urged NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organisation) to spend 2 per cent of its national income on defence.&nbsp; 
 
(WION)

Republican presidential candidate also vowed to increase military spending to revive the ''depleted" US forces if he assumed office

Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump promised to expand US military and outline a plan to beat Islamic State within a month of assuming office. Trump said he would increase military spending, number of soldiers, aircraft and warships to revive the "depleted" US forces. Speaking in Philadelphia, the billionaire gave a detailed plan of increasing the US military. The US army would have 540,000 troops, the air force would have at least 1.200 fighter aircraft and the navy would have 350 surface ships and submarines, the AFP reported. About his plans to tackle the IS, Trump said, "Immediately after taking office, I will ask my generals to present to me a plan within 30 days to defeat and destroy IS." Trump's 30-day timeframe to beat the IS was, however, assailed by a retired army general. "I had to ask myself, what the hell does he think we've been trying to do for the last 14 years in terms of al Qaeda?" Retired Army Lt. Gen. Mark Hertling told CNN. Trump, meanwhile, also took a swipe at his opponent Hillary Clinton, calling her "trigger happy" because of her "legacy in Iraq, Libya and Syria" that has "produced only turmoil and suffering and death". With the election campaign having entered the homestretch, Trump also urged NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organisation) to spend 2 per cent of its national income on defence. (WION)

Donald Trump vows to forge plan in 30 days to 'destroy' IS

Roger Ailes, the former Fox News chairman who last month left the station in disgrace amid sexual harassment allegations, is now an adviser to Donald Trump, reports the <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2016/08/17/us/politics/donald-trump-roger-ailes.html">New York Times</a>.&nbsp; 
 
<a href="http://www.vox.com/2016/8/15/12416662/roger-ailes-fox-sexual-harassment-women-list">Vox.com</a> reports that over 20 women have accused Ailes of sexual harrassment.&nbsp; 
 
Fox News has had a distinct place in all the controversies in Trump&#39;s presidential campaign, especially in the dispute with host Megyn Kelly. The two clashed bitterly in the first Republican primary debate back in 2015 after Mr Trump attributed her agitation during the debate to the fact she was menstruating. 
 
After making a number of statements considered to be insulting and offensive, female support for Trump is at its lowest. Perhaps as a result, as Fortune.com&nbsp;points out, of Mr Trump&#39;s new slew of economic advisers, eight of the nine are women. This comes after naming an exclusively male group of advisers. The site points to a&nbsp;poll conducted by <a href="http://fortune.com/2016/08/11/women-donald-trump-chart/">Morning Consult</a>&nbsp;that lists Hillary Clinton&#39;s support among females at 47 per cent, whereas Trump has 34 per cent. 
 
Trump has repeatedly denied being sexist. It is unclear how bringing aboard an adviser just relieved of his high-profile position after allegations of sexual harassment will help him woo female voters. &nbsp;But Mr Ailes has been a Republican political consultant for years, including as a top adviser for Richard Nixon&#39;s presidential campaign and a debate coach for both Ronald Reagan in 1984 and George Bush in 1988. 
 
As the New York Times article highlights, Trump was asked on July 24 by NBC&#39;s Chuck Todd whether Mr Ailes was going to advise the campaign, and he replied:&nbsp;&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t want to comment. But he&rsquo;s been a friend of mine for a long time.&rdquo; He said that Mr Ailes was a &ldquo;very, very good person&rdquo; and said, &ldquo;A lot of people are thinking he&rsquo;s going to run my campaign.&rdquo; 
 
(WION)

Ailes, who has been accused by over 20 women of sexual harassment, has been a Republican political consultant for years

Roger Ailes, the former Fox News chairman who last month left the station in disgrace amid sexual harassment allegations, is now an adviser to Donald Trump, reports the New York Times. Vox.com reports that over 20 women have accused Ailes of sexual harrassment. Fox News has had a distinct place in all the controversies in Trump's presidential campaign, especially in the dispute with host Megyn Kelly. The two clashed bitterly in the first Republican primary debate back in 2015 after Mr Trump attributed her agitation during the debate to the fact she was menstruating. After making a number of statements considered to be insulting and offensive, female support for Trump is at its lowest. Perhaps as a result, as Fortune.com points out, of Mr Trump's new slew of economic advisers, eight of the nine are women. This comes after naming an exclusively male group of advisers. The site points to a poll conducted by Morning Consult that lists Hillary Clinton's support among females at 47 per cent, whereas Trump has 34 per cent. Trump has repeatedly denied being sexist. It is unclear how bringing aboard an adviser just relieved of his high-profile position after allegations of sexual harassment will help him woo female voters. But Mr Ailes has been a Republican political consultant for years, including as a top adviser for Richard Nixon's presidential campaign and a debate coach for both Ronald Reagan in 1984 and George Bush in 1988. As the New York Times article highlights, Trump was asked on July 24 by NBC's Chuck Todd whether Mr Ailes was going to advise the campaign, and he replied: “I don’t want to comment. But he’s been a friend of mine for a long time.” He said that Mr Ailes was a “very, very good person” and said, “A lot of people are thinking he’s going to run my campaign.” (WION)

Trump to be advised by disgraced former Fox News chairman Roger Ailes

Democrats gathered in Philadelphia formally selected Tim Kaine as their US vice presidential candidate yesterday, completing the party&#39;s ticket for the November election. 
 
Kaine, a 58-year-old senator from the battleground state of Virginia, was nominated by voice vote, setting the stage for his address to the convention later in the evening. 
 
Congresswoman and acting convention chair Marcia Fudge motioned to dispense with the roll call vote and nominate Kaine by acclamation, which led to a chorus of &quot;Ayes.&quot; 
 
&quot;The motion to suspend the rules and nominate by acclamation is adopted,&quot; declared Fudge to loud cheers. 
 
The tickets are now set for both parties: Hillary Clinton and running mate Kaine for the Democrats, with Republicans Donald Trump and running mate Mike Pence, both of whom were nominated last week and their party&#39;s convention in Cleveland. 
 
With working-class roots and a spotless record both as Virginia governor and senator, he is seen as helping Clinton garner support among reluctant independent male voters - although at the risk of alienating the party&#39;s progressive left wing. 
 
Supporters of Clinton&#39;s main adversary in the Democratic primary race, Bernie Sanders, had argued that she should choose a more liberal running mate such as the feisty leftist Elizabeth Warren. 
 
But Clinton, at a Florida rally last weekend introducing her vice presidential pick, said Kaine was a can-do progressive who is ready to &quot;step into this job and lead from Day One.&quot; 
 
Kaine, she said, is &quot;everything Donald Trump and Mike Pence are not.&quot; 
 
(AFP)

The 58-year-old senator was nominated by voice vote. Kaine is 'everything Donald Trump and Mike Pence are not', Clinton said last week

Democrats gathered in Philadelphia formally selected Tim Kaine as their US vice presidential candidate yesterday, completing the party's ticket for the November election. Kaine, a 58-year-old senator from the battleground state of Virginia, was nominated by voice vote, setting the stage for his address to the convention later in the evening. Congresswoman and acting convention chair Marcia Fudge motioned to dispense with the roll call vote and nominate Kaine by acclamation, which led to a chorus of "Ayes." "The motion to suspend the rules and nominate by acclamation is adopted," declared Fudge to loud cheers. The tickets are now set for both parties: Hillary Clinton and running mate Kaine for the Democrats, with Republicans Donald Trump and running mate Mike Pence, both of whom were nominated last week and their party's convention in Cleveland. With working-class roots and a spotless record both as Virginia governor and senator, he is seen as helping Clinton garner support among reluctant independent male voters - although at the risk of alienating the party's progressive left wing. Supporters of Clinton's main adversary in the Democratic primary race, Bernie Sanders, had argued that she should choose a more liberal running mate such as the feisty leftist Elizabeth Warren. But Clinton, at a Florida rally last weekend introducing her vice presidential pick, said Kaine was a can-do progressive who is ready to "step into this job and lead from Day One." Kaine, she said, is "everything Donald Trump and Mike Pence are not." (AFP)

Democrats nominate Tim Kaine as vice-president pick

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