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Chopper's Politics Podcast: Despite the vaccine halo, the Prime Minister isn't inoculated from electoral defeat

Christopher Hope is joined by Telegraph colleagues Camilla Tominey and Tony Diver in this week's Chopper's Politics podcast to discuss what can be learned from three very different recent by-elections. Our associate political editor, Camilla Tominey feels that going forward the same issue faces both the Tories and Labour: "They need to nail their colours to the mast. What kind of Labour party is Sir Keir Starmer going to lead, and equally now he's got Brexit done, what is Boris Johnson's ideolog

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Emergency Response Updates, And The Politics Behind Our Energy Grid Issues (Feb. 17, 2021) โ€“ Houston Public Media

On Wednesdayโ€™s show: An update on area roads, the latest from Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo, and the politics that led to our power grid problems. On Wednesday's Houston Matters: A TxDOT representative updates us on road conditions around the region. Also this hour: Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo and Meghan Arthur from Montgomery County Homeland Security and Emergency Management update us on the situations in their respective jurisdictions. And the National Weather Service updates us on the what the forecast says about the days to come. Subscribe to Today in Houston Fill out the form below to subscribe our new daily editorial newsletter from the HPM Newsroom.

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Masks on Leatherneck Square: Virus changes Marine training

Katheryn Hunter, a Marine drill instructor at Parris Island Recruit Depot in South Carolina, poses for a photo on May 27, 2020. In ways big and small, the virus is impacting training at the Marine Corps' Parris Island Recruit Depot and across the military. (AP Photo/Lolita Baldor)PARRIS ISLAND, S.C. The booming shouts of the rain-soaked Marine recruits echo across Leatherneck Square training field, barely muffled by their masks. But in ways big and small, the virus is impacting training at the Marine Corps' Parris Island Recruit Depot and across the military. Marine recruits go to either Parris Island or to Camp Pendleton in southern California, for 13 weeks of training.

The Latest: South Africa has backlog of nearly 100,000 tests

South Africa has backlog of nearly 100,000 unprocessed tests. ___JOHANNESBURG South Africa says it has a backlog of nearly 100,000 unprocessed tests for the new coronavirus. The ministry says one of the latest people to die in South Africa was an employee with the National Health Laboratory Services. Indonesia had recorded more than 24,500 COVID-19 cases as of Thursday with nearly 1,500 deaths, the most fatalities in Southeast Asia. Thailand has had just single-digit increases in the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases for most of May.

South Africa has virus testing backlog of nearly 100,000

A woman walks on the promenade in stormy weather in Sea Point, Cape Town, South Africa, Friday, May 29, 2020. With dramatically increased community transmissions, Cape Town has become the center of the coronavirus outbreak in South Africa. (AP Photo/Nardus Engelbrecht)JOHANNESBURG South Africa says it has a backlog of nearly 100,000 unprocessed tests for the coronavirus, a striking example of the painful shortage of testing kits and reagents across Africa as cases steadily rise. South Africa has conducted more tests for the virus than any other country in Africa more than 655,000 and has the most confirmed cases with 27,403. One of the latest people to die in South Africa was an employee with the National Health Laboratory Services.

As Trump deadline approaches, N.C. wants more on convention

RALEIGH, N.C. North Carolina's top health official asked Friday for more details on how GOP leaders will protect attendees of a Republican National Convention this summer during the COVID-19 pandemic. President Donald Trump has threatened to move his formal renomination elsewhere if he does not soon get guarantees of being able to hold a large-scale event. The GOP's letter Thursday did not mention such a request, but Cohen said it had been discussed by phone. The state continues to support the hosting of the Republican National Convention in Charlotte if it can be done safelty, Cohen wrote to Republican National Committee Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel and convention CEO Marcia Lee Kelly. Cooper is seeking reelection this fall in a state Trump won in 2016.

Bosnia: Officials, firm owner arrested over ventilator deal

Civil protection workers move boxes of ventilators at the customs post in the Bosnia capital Sarajevo, Thursday, April 30, 2020. (AP Photo)SARAJEVO Bosnian authorities have detained two high-ranking state officials and the owner of a private company which imported 100 ventilators from China that were found to be useless for COVID-19 patients. The three are being investigated for money laundering, fraud, embezzlement of state funds and other crimes, the prosecutors were quoted as saying. The company owner has rejected accusations that he imported the ventilators at highly inflated prices. Bosnia, which went through a bloody civil war in the 1990s, is composed of the Muslim-Croat federation and a Serb entity.

Virus protection adds new wrinkle to Southwest heat relief

There are still few places where our homeless can go," Salvation Army Major David Yardley said at the group's downtown center. Blistering temperatures can endanger health, and can lead to heat exhaustion, heat stroke and even death. The daily high temperatures in Phoenix were forecast to hit 110 degrees (43C) or very close to it during the extreme heat warning in effect through Sunday, National Weather Service forecasters said. The cooling stations in metro Phoenix open when the weather service declares extreme heat warnings They were also open for a string of days during an extreme heat warning in late April. In metro Las Vegas, where an excessive heat warning is in effect until Friday evening, four heat relief stations were open.

Baltimore voters face watershed moment with mayoral primary

In this June 7, 2018, photo, Thiru Vignarajah is shown after a candidate's forum for the office of Baltimore State's Attorney, in Baltimore. Although Tuesday's election is a primary, Democrats outnumber Republicans 10-1 in Baltimore, all but assuring them a general election win in November. The other front-runners are City Council President Brandon Scott, former Maryland Attorney General Thiru Vignarajah and former U.S. Treasury Department Undersecretary for Domestic Finance Mary Miller. Bernard C. Jack Young automatically became mayor after Catherine Pugh resigned, given his position at the time as City Council president. Young is seeking reelection, promising voters he will clean up the city, reduce crime and invest in the communitys youth.

White House punts economic update as election draws near

Paul Winfree, a former Trump White House director of budget policy, doubted that the holdup on the economic update was on Trump's radar. Maya MacGuineas, president of the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget, noted that the law requires the White House to update its budget forecast. In 2017, the Trump administration criticized the Obama administration for rosy expectations of growth during the Great Recession more than a decade ago. An updated forecast in the mid-session review could make the Trump White House a similar target for criticism. This is a White House that is in denial about the trajectory of the economy.___Associated Press writers Alexandra Jaffe and Emily Swanson in Washington contributed to this report.

Police across US speak out against Minneapolis custody death

Law enforcement officials nationwide have rushed to condemn the actions of Minneapolis officers in the death of a black man in custody, a wave of harsh criticism experts say is unprecedented. Police nationwide, in unequivocal and unprecedented language, have condemned the actions of Minneapolis police in the custody death of a handcuffed black man who cried for help as an officer knelt on his neck, pinning him to the pavement for at least eight minutes. A bystander's disturbing video shows Officer Derek Chauvin, who is white, kneeling on Floyd's neck, even as Floyd begs for air and slowly stops talking and moving. Weve got to remember that it was not just Officer Chauvin who was sitting on George Floyds neck, she said. Minneapolis is bracing for more violence after days of civil unrest, with burned buildings, looted stores and angry graffiti demanding justice.

Trump tries a new response after George Floyd's death

I feel very, very badly," Trump said Thursday of George Floyd's death while handcuffed and in the custody of Minneapolis police. But some activists doubt that Trump has suddenly evolved on the issue of police brutality and instead see election-year political calculations. Trump was very upset when he saw that video," White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany said Thursday. The White House and Department of Justice have long had the power to address these issues. Sharpton credited both the magnitude of outrage in response to Floyd's death as well as the upcoming election for the changed approach.

Chinese grad students may be next hit by US-China tensions

Well be announcing what were doing tomorrow with respect to China and we are not happy with China," Trump told reporters at an unrelated event Thursday, referring mainly to COVID-19. Pompeo's determination opened the door to possible sanctions and the loss of special perks Hong Kong has received from the United States. The officials could not say how many people could ultimately be expelled, although they said it would be only a fraction of the Chinese students in the country. Overall, there were 369,548 students from China, accounting for 33.7% of international students who contributed nearly $15 billion to the U.S. economy in 2018. But the timing of a potential announcement could come at a time of increasingly heated rhetoric about the imposition of national security laws on Hong Hong in violation of the Sino-British accord.

GOP lawyer fights California governor on stay-at-home orders

She is one of Californias two elected members of the Republican National Committee, and shes a co-chair of Women for Trump that is part of the presidents reelection campaign. She chaired the city's Republican Party before winning election as vice chair of the state GOP in 2013. The governor's policies and the policies of counties are falling more heavily on Democrats than Republicans because there are more Democrats than Republicans in the state, Dhillon said. Dhillon represented the California Republican Party in a successful challenge last year to a law aimed at requiring Trump to release his tax returns to be on the California ballot. In fact its reinforcing the bad image of the Republican Party," he said of Dhillon's recent lawsuits.

Both businesses and customers conflicted as DC reopens

Non-essential businesses, shuttered since late March, will be able to start offering curbside pickup. All across the capital and the four neighboring Virginia counties that are reopening on the same schedule business owners and their customers are deciding whether they're really ready. James Waterhouse runs Garden District, an outdoor beer garden in the heart of a lively stretch of bars and clubs. Customers are going to have to make their own set of decisions about their comfort level. But first there are internal safety modifications to deal with, amid obstacles that include unexpected shortages of suddenly precious resources.

Mitch McConnell stresses need to wear face masks in public

(AP Photo/Patrick Semansky, File)Wading into a politically charged issue, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell on Thursday preached the importance of wearing masks in public as the nation's economy reopens from the cataclysmic" damage inflicted by the coronavirus pandemic. During a tour of hospitals this week in his home state of Kentucky, the Republican leader has stressed wearing masks in public and following social distancing guidelines. There should be no stigma attached to wearing a mask," McConnell said during an appearance in Owensboro. President Donald Trump has refused to wear face coverings, and polls find that conservative Americans are more likely to forgo them. The events were his first public appearances in the Bluegrass State since mid-March due to the pandemic.

UK police say Johnson aide made 'minor' lockdown rule breach

LONDON British police said Thursday that Prime Minister Boris Johnsons adviser Dominic Cummings likely broke the rules by traveling away from home during lockdown, but will not face further action. Cummings has acknowledged driving 250 miles (400 km) to his parents house in Durham, northeast England, during the lockdown, and later taking another drive to a scenic town 30 miles (50 kms) away. Durham Constabulary said that the second drive, to the town of Barnard Castle, might have been a minor breach of lockdown rules that would have warranted police intervention" had he been caught in the act. He says he drove to Barnard Castle to test whether his eyesight, which had been affected by illness, was good enough for the long trip back to London. Johnson has stood by his aide.

Czech National Museum exhibits masks made during pandemic

Visitors view en exhibition of face masks at the National Museum in Prague, Czech Republic, Thursday, May 28, 2020. With the coronavirus pandemic still not over yet, the Czech National Museum in Prague has put on display the most visible symbol of the country's response to it, face masks. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)PRAGUE The National Museum in Prague has put on display the most visible symbol of the Czech Republic's response to the coronavirus - face masks. If we want to leave a legacy for future generations, this collection of face masks says only positive things about us, National Museum spokeswoman Lenka Bouckova said Thursday. The Nation Museum exhibition is set to expand with future donations when people no longer need to use masks.

Trump continues to claim broad powers he doesn't have

As he battles the coronavirus pandemic, President Donald Trump has been claiming extraordinarily sweeping powers that legal scholars say the president simply doesn't have. Trump also has showed he's willing to exercise powers that modern presidents have largely avoided, including his recent purging of inspectors general. All the while he continues to claim stunning powers that he doesnt have, he said. Even if he doesn't follow through on threats, Trump's statements still can have consequences as he uses his bully pulpit. But Jack Balkin, a Yale University law professor and First Amendment expert, said thats not Trump's point.

Moscow updates coronavirus statistics to show more deaths

(AP Photo/Alexander Zemlianichenko)MOSCOW Health officials in Moscow updated their figures on coronavirus deaths Thursday, seeking to dispel doubts about Russia's comparatively low COVID-19 death toll. On top of 636 deaths in April directly caused by COVID-19 reported earlier, the Moscow Health Department added the deaths of 756 people who tested positive for the virus but died of other causes. The health department also factored in 169 deaths of people who tested negative but autopsies showed likely succumbed to the virus. Earlier this month, the Moscow Health Department acknowledged that the 639 coronavirus deaths it reported for April represented about 40% of the people who died in the city after testing positive for the virus. If only the deaths directly caused by the coronavirus are taken into account, Moscow's virus mortality index last month would stand at 1.4%, the health department said.

Democrats charge OSHA isn't protecting front-line workers

Instead of an emergency standard, the agency has relied on voluntary guidance that recommends companies erect physical barriers, enforce social distancing and install more hand-sanitizing stations, among other steps. More than 80,000 cases of COVID-19 have been reported among health care workers, meatpacking employees and prison staff, including at least 372 deaths, Adams said. OSHA quickly pivoted to focus intensely on giving employers and workers the guidance they need to work safely in this rapidly changing situation. A group of Senate Democrats asked the Labor Departments inspector general to investigate OSHAs inspections and citations related to COVID-19. The lawmakers, led by Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., also want the watchdog to investigate OSHAs decision not to put in place a temporary emergency standard to deal with the virus.

White House won't issue economic projections this summer

WASHINGTON The White House will not release its official midyear economic update this summer, declining to put its stamp on data documenting the plunge into recession during the coronavirus pandemic and avoiding going on record with a prediction about the economy's future. Updated information about the budget picture will come out as planned, a senior Trump administration official said Thursday. A key report on second-quarter economic growth will not come out until after the July 15 deadline for the annual update. The Trump team's economic projections, like those from earlier administrations, have tended to be overly optimistic, and the White House has not shown much interest in put in place its annual budgets, which have called for spending cuts unpopular even among its allies on Capitol Hill. The Washington Post first reported the White House decision to scrap the economic data release.

UK will extend HK visa rights if China pursues security law

LONDON The British government said Thursday that it will grant hundreds of thousands of Hong Kong residents greater visa rights if China doesnt scrap a planned new security law for the semi-autonomous territory. U.K. Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab said about 300,000 people in Hong Kong who hold British National (Overseas) passports would be able to stay in Britain for 12 months instead of the current six if China does not rethink its plan. Raab said the length of stay also would be extendable and provide a pathway to U.K. citizenship. When Hong Kong returned to China in 1997 after 150 years as a British colony, its residents were not granted the right to live in the U.K.Chinas proposed national security law aims to reinforce Beijings control over Hong Kong in a bid to prevent a return of often-violent protests seen for months last year. Raab and the foreign ministers of the United States, Canada and Australia said in a joint statement the proposed law would curtail the Hong Kong peoples liberties, and in doing so, dramatically erode Hong Kongs autonomy and the system that made it so prosperous.

Chinese grad students may be next hit by US-China tensions

Four administration officials say President Donald Trump is currently considering a months-old proposal to revoke the visas of Chinese students affiliated with educational institutions in China that are linked to the Peoples Liberation Army or Chinese intelligence services. Serious consideration of the proposal, first reported by The New York Times, has faced opposition from U.S. universities and scientific organizations who depend on tuition fees paid by Chinese students to offset other costs. In addition, those institutions fear possible reciprocal action from Beijing that could limit their students' and educators' access to China. The officials could not say how many people could ultimately be expelled, although they said it would be only a fraction of Chinese students in the country. That was, in turn, followed by the limiting of the number of visas for Chinese journalists allowed to work in the United States.

Democratic lawmakers seek records on Russian ventilators

The lawmakers, who lead five House committees and subcommittees, sent the request to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo. The Federal Emergency Management Agency has confirmed that no Aventa-M ventilators purchased from Russia have been used in the U.S., but lawmakers still have concerns. The lawmakers said the State Department received a final invoice from Russia for $659,283. They are seeking all records and communications between the State Department and the White House related to the shipments and a summary of a March 30 call between President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin, as well as other records. The White House referred questions to the State Department, which did not immediately reply to a request for comment.

US charges North Korean bank officials in sanctions case

WASHINGTON The Justice Department unsealed charges Thursday against more than two dozen North Korean individuals accused of making at least $2.5 billion in illicit payments linked to the country's nuclear weapons and missile program. The case, filed in federal court in Washington, is believed to be the largest criminal enforcement action ever brought against North Korea. The 33 defendants include executives of North Korea's state-owned bank, Foreign Trade Bank, which in 2013 was added to a Treasury Department list of sanctioned institutions and cut off from the U.S. financial system. Five of the defendants are Chinese citizens who operated covert branches in either China or Libya. The prosecution underscores ongoing concerns about sanctions violations by North Korea.

Graham urges older judges to retire so GOP can fill openings

Chairman Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., speaks during a Senate Judiciary Committee confirmation hearing on the nomination of Judge Justin Walker to be a U.S. Circuit Court judge for the District of Columbia Circuit on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, May 6, 2020. So if youre a circuit judge in your mid-60s, late 60s, you can take senior status. If confirmed, Walker would take an appeals court seat being vacated by Judge Thomas Griffith, who intends to retire in September. The vacancy creates an election-year slot on the influential appeals court, where four of the nine current Supreme Court justices served, including Roberts and Brett Kavanaugh.

Court denies request to revive US pipeline permit program

A U.S. appeals court on Thursday turned down a request by the Trump administration and energy industry groups to revive a permit program for new oil and gas pipelines that had been canceled by a lower court. The case originated with a challenge to the Keystone XL oil pipeline from Canada to the U.S. but has affected oil and gas pipeline proposals across the nation. Backed by numerous states and industry groups, attorneys for the government argued the cancellation would delay construction of pipelines needed to deliver fuel to power plants and other destinations. Circuit Court of Appeals denied an emergency request to block Morris' ruling. They said in a one-page decision that the government, states and industry groups had not demonstrated sufficient harm to their interests to justify reviving the program while the case is still pending.

North Carolina governor: RNC hasn't submitted safety plan

North Carolina Health and Human Services Secretary Mandy Cohen sent a letter Monday to the top RNC organizer asking for a written safety plan after Trump demanded in a tweet that North Carolina guarantee a full-scale, in-person convention will be held. Cooper and Cohen say that they had discussed various scenarios with convention organizers but want their plan in writing. Were ready to hold the RNC convention in North Carolina in a safe way. Cooper said his administration required a similar written plan from NASCAR ahead of its recent race in the Charlotte area that was held without fans. The county surrounding Charlotte has had the most virus cases of any in North Carolina, and the state is experiencing an upward trend in cases.

Washington recovers $300M in fraudulent unemployment claims

This photo shows a sign at the headquarters for Washington state's Employment Security Department Tuesday, May 26, 2020, at the Capitol in Olympia, Wash. Washington state's rush to get unemployment benefits to residents who lost jobs due to the coronavirus outbreak left it vulnerable to criminals who made off with hundreds of millions of dollars in fraudulent claims. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren)OLYMPIA, Wash. Washington has recovered $300 million paid to criminals who used stolen personal information to file fraudulent unemployment benefit claims amid the COVID-19 crisis, state officials said Thursday. This is a national attack by sophisticated criminals and isnt just happening to Washington state, LeVine said. Nearly 1.5 million claims for benefits with some of that number reflecting people who filed multiple claims were filed for the week of May 17-23, and more than $494.5 million was paid last week to 424,995 individual claims. Washingtons stay-at-home order has been in place since March 23 and the states unemployment rate jumped to a record 15.4% last month.

French way of life to resume with restaurants reopening

France is reopening its restaurants, bars and cafes starting next week as the country eases most restrictions amid the coronavirus crisis. Edouard Philippe defended the gradual lifting of lockdown up to now, saying the strategy was meant to avoid provoking a second wave. (AP Photo/Christophe Ena)PARIS The French way of life is set to largely resume next week, with most virus-related restrictions easing as the country prepares for the summer holiday season amid the pandemic. From June 2 restaurants and cafes will reopen, together with monuments and museums, concert halls and theaters, beaches, campsites, gyms and public swimming pools. Philippe also pledged to revive cultural and sport life. Most shops reopened on May 11, and hotels are now awaiting clients.

VA says it'll stop almost all use of unproven drug on vets

(AP Photo/Andrew Harnik, Pool)WASHINGTON Veterans Affairs Secretary Robert Wilkie said Thursday that his department has all but stopped use of an unproven malaria drug on veterans with COVID-19. Major veterans organizations had called on the VA to explain its use of hydroxychloroquine after an analysis of VA hospital data was published month showing hundreds of veterans who took the drug saw no benefit for COVID-19. They remained at higher levels before tapering off in late April amid backlash over results of the VA hospital analysis and as remdesivir emerged as a form of treatment. The Food and Drug Administration has warned against the drug and said hydroxychloroquine should only be used for the coronavirus in formal studies. The VA has said it prescribed the drug only when medically appropriate, after full discussion between doctor and patient about the risks.