EAST COUNTY MAGAZINE WORLD WATCH: NATIONAL AND GLOBAL NEWS

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East County News Service

December 6, 2016 (San Diego’s East County) -- East County Magazine's World Watch helps you be an informed citizen about important issues globally and nationally. As part of our commitment to reflect all voices and views, we include links to a wide variety of news sources representing a broad spectrum of political, religious, and social views. Top world and U.S. headlines include:

U.S.

General news

Presidential transition

WORLD

For excerpts and links to full stories, click “read more” and scroll down.

U.S.

General news

Ohio State attacker may have been inspired by overseas militants, FBI says (Reuters)

 A Somali immigrant who injured 11 people in a car and knife attack at Ohio State University may have been inspired by Islamic State and the late al Qaeda-linked cleric Anwar al-Awlaki, an FBI official said on Wednesday.  The Islamic State militant group on Tuesday claimed responsibility for the attack at the Columbus campus.

Graham preparing ‘Dreamers’ bill (Politico)

Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) is readying legislation that would extend legal protections for previously undocumented immigrants who came here as children — benefits granted under a 2012 directive from President Barack Obama that are at risk with the incoming Trump administration.

ADL Retracts Ellison DNC Endorsement (Jewish World Review)

U.S. Rep. Keith Ellison's 2010 comments about Israeli political influence, first reported Tuesday by the Investigative Project on Terrorism, are "deeply disturbing and disqualifying" to his bid to become head of the Democratic National Committee, the Anti-Defamation League announced in a statement Thursday afternoon.

What do the SPLC's post-election hate-incident reports mean? (Christian Science Monitor)

The Southern Poverty Law Center's database is of limited use to statisticians, but it provides a great deal of anecdotal evidence to support the group's position.

U.S. Expected to Forgive at Least $108 Billion in Student Debt (NPR)

The Obama administration dramatically expanded a program to forgive student debt. Now a new report from the Government Accountability Office says it will cost much more than expected. 

US students gain a bit on math, science scores but still lag Asia(CS Monitor)

US 8th-graders posted their highest math scores ever in 2015, but did not improve relative to students from other higher-scoring nations.

Presidential transition

Trump threats 35% tariff on U.S.  companies that move jobs overseas (Washington Post)

President-elect Donald Trump fired another warning shot Sunday at U.S. companies considering moving their operations out of the country, threatening “retributions or consequences” such as a hefty border +tax if they do.

Trump could face the ‘biggest trial of the century’ over climate change (Washington Post)

A few weeks ago, a federal judge in Oregon made headlines when she ruled that a groundbreaking climate lawsuit will proceed to trial. And some experts say its outcome could rewrite the future of climate policy in the United States.  The case, brought by 21 youths aged 9 to 20, claims that the federal government isn’t doing enough to address the problem of climate change to protect their planet’s future — and that, they charge, is a violation of their constitutional rights on the most basic level.

Trump picks retired Marine Gen. James Mattis as Secretary of Defense (Washington Post)

President-elect Donald Trump said Thursday he has chosen retired Marine Gen. James N. Mattis, who has said that responding to “political Islam” is the major security issue facing the United States, to be secretary of defense. “We are going to appoint Mad Dog Mattis as our secretary of defense,” Trump told a rally in Cincinnati, the first stop on a post-election “thank-you tour.”

Trump threatens ‘consequences’ for U.S. firms that relocate offshore (Washington Post)

President-elect Donald Trump on Thursday warned that the government would punish companies seeking to move operations overseas with “consequences,” setting the stage for an unusual level of intervention by the White House into private enterprise.

Should Donald Trump be suspended from Twitter? (Vanity Fair)

Trump has repeatedly used Twitter to attack his enemies, inciting very real harassment from his followers. Is that enough to get him suspended?

Trump turning away intelligence briefings since election(Washington Post)

President-elect Donald Trump has received two classified intelligence briefings since his surprise election victory earlier this month, a frequency that is notably lower — at least so far — than that of his predecessors, current and former U.S. officials said.

Trump calls for revoking flag burners’ citizenship. Court rulings forbid it.  (New York Times)

…the Supreme Court long ago ruled that the Constitution does not permit the government to take a person’s citizenship against his or her will.  But on Tuesday, President-elect Donald J. Trump revived the idea and took it much further than the extreme case of a suspected terrorist. He proposed that Americans who protest government policies by burning the flag could lose their citizenship...

Trump’s team of faux populists and real crony capitalists (Washington Post)

“My whole life I’ve been greedy, greedy, greedy. I’ve grabbed all the money I could get. I’m so greedy,” President-elect Donald Trump boasted last January. “But now I’d like to be greedy for the United States.”  It was a compelling story: the rapacious mogul turned Robin Hood, setting out to reform the rigged system that made him rich in the name of the common good…Now, Trump’s transition has ended any remaining doubts that his promise to “drain the swamp” of corrupt government was a lie. Based on his post-election moves, it seems the Trump White House will be an experiment in crony capitalism on steroids.

WORLD

Colombian peace deal passed by Congress, ending 52-year war  (Reuters)

 Colombia's Congress approved a new peace deal with FARC rebels late on Wednesday, despite objections from former President and now Senator Alvaro Uribe, who said it was still too lenient on the insurgents who have battled the government for 52 years.

Dutch parliament votes to ban burqa in public buildings (CS Monitor)

The government of the Netherlands became the latest in Europe to approve a face-covering ban on Tuesday…  It is only in public buildings such as hospitals, government buildings, public transport, and schools that individuals must keep their faces visible for identification purposes. And, like burqas, any headgear that covers the face and head, such as helmets and ski masks, is also banned in those places.

Italy PM Renzi says he will resign following referendum defeat  (Yahoo News)

Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi said he would resign following a stinging defeat on Sunday in a referendum over his proposals for constitutional reform.

Trump Taiwan call:  China launches protest (BBC)

China's foreign ministry says it has lodged a complaint with the US after President-elect Donald Trump spoke to Taiwan's leader in a phone call. China sees Taiwan as a breakaway province. US policy set in 1979 cut formal relations with Taiwan. Trump's transition team said he and Tsai Ing-wen noted "close economic, political, and security ties".

China warns Trump: Good luck bringing jobs back to U.S. (CNN)

…Mere hours after Trump, Vice President-elect Mike Pence and Carrier announced a deal to keep nearly 1,000 factory jobs in the U.S., a top Chinese newspaper published an analysis piece with the headline: "China would benefit from Trump's effort to bring manufacturing jobs back to U.S."

Four major cities plan to ban diesel by 2025 (BBC)

The mayors of Paris, Mexico City, Madrid and Athens say they are implementing the ban to improve air quality.

Iran issues threat over U.S. bill renewing sanctions (CBS)

Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani demanded Sunday that U.S. President Barack Obama not sign an extension of U.S. sanctions, saying the bill is a violation of a landmark nuclear deal between Iran and world powers.

Austrians roundly reject far right in presidential election (Reuters)

Austrian voters roundly rejected on Sunday a candidate vying to become the first freely elected far-right head of state in Europe since World War Two, halting at least temporarily the wave of populism sweeping Western democracies.

 


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