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☆ More than 100 U.S. political elites have family links to slavery
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-27 | by ( Reuters Graphic | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +46 min

Then the war came, and according to the family history, Union soldiers plundered Sessions’ 27-room house. About 48 years old at the time, he did not stand a chance to succeed without slavery, the family history suggests. ‘A Better Nation’Some historians and genealogists say there is a valuable reason for white leaders – and other white Americans – to explore their links to slavery. Nicka Sewell-Smith, a professional genealogist with the family history website Ancestry.com, said people frequently ask her what to do with such documents. The top Democrat on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, Meeks said in an interview that he has spent years trying to trace his family history back before 1870.

Persons: Black, Mitch McConnell, Lindsey Graham, Tom Cotton, James Lankford, Elizabeth Warren, Tammy Duckworth, Jeanne Shaheen, Maggie Hassan, Joe Biden, –, Donald Trump –, Jimmy Carter, George W, Bush, Bill Clinton, Barack Obama, Trump’s, Amy Coney Barrett, Neil Gorsuch –, Asa Hutchinson, Doug Burgum, Tim Scott, James Clyburn, Henry McMaster, ”, Henry Louis Gates Jr, Gates, ” “, ” Gates, enslavers, Tony Burroughs, Biden, Obama, McConnell, Burroughs, Joseph Maddox, Maddox, Sela, Rubin, James, Sal, Sam ”, Graham, Graham didn’t, Nancy Mace, Drucilla, Drucilla Mace, John Mace, Hector Godbolt, John Mace’s, Godbolt, “, ” Nancy Mace, Henry Coe, Duckworth, Coe, Margaret, Isaac, Warner, George …, Isaac Franklin –, “ There’s, ” Duckworth, George Floyd, Donald Trump, ” Biden, ‘, ’, Ben Affleck, ” Affleck, Independent Angus King, Mo Brooks, ” Brooks, Sean Kelley, Kelley, White, don’t, wasn’t, Richard Sessions, Pete Sessions, Richard’s, William Sessions, John Cowger, Tom Cotton of, ” Cotton’s, Cowger, Cotton, Archibald Crawford, Juneteenth, Shaheen, Pocahontas, Edmond Dillehay, Peter ”, Milly, Lankford, ” Lankford, Joe Wilson, Stephen H, Wilson, Boineau, General David Addison Weisiger, Wilson –, Addison Graves Wilson –, Weisiger “, ” Wilson, Daniel Weisiger, Daniel Weisiger’s, Samuel, Samuel Weisiger, Daniel, Julia Brownley, Jesse Brownley, Brownley, ” Brownley, Thomas Ferguson, Brooks, Manumission, Marie Jenkins Schwartz, ” “ It’s, Union General William Tecumseh Sherman, Harvard’s Gates, Sherman, Andrew Johnson, Abraham Lincoln, Nicka Sewell, Smith, Ancestry.com, ” Sewell, LaBrenda Garrett, Nelson, Garrett, Rick Larsen, John Wiggins, Larsen, – Gilbura, George, Agg –, ” Larsen, Gilbura, Agg, Gregory Meeks, Meeks, Jim Crow South, – Meeks, – “, ” Meeks, “ I’m, I’m, Tom Bergin, Makini Brice, Nicholas P, Brown, Donna Bryson, Lawrence Delevingne, Brad Heath, Andrea Januta, Gui Qing Koh, Tom Lasseter, Grant Smith, Maurice Tamman, Catherine Tai Design, John Emerson, Jane Ross, Emma Jehle, Jeremy Schultz, Blake Morrison Organizations: Reuters, Republicans, U.S, Supreme, Republican, Harvard University, PBS, United States Congress, Representative, WikiLeaks, Sony, Facebook, White, FedEx, National Museum of, 117th, Independent, University of Essex, Geographic, American Economic, Pete Sessions, Sessions, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Jeanne Shaheen U.S, CNN, Biden, Trump, ” Reuters, South, South Carolina General Assembly, Confederate, statehouse, Congressional, Chesterfield County, Mount Vernon College, George Washington University, Mo Brooks Former U.S, “, New York Times, United, Federal Government, Union, Black, Southern, Democrat, House Foreign Affairs, Klux Klan Locations: U.S, America, Confederate States, Arkansas, North Dakota, South Carolina, Congress, Black, Northern, Southern, Illinois, Virginia, Frederick County , Virginia, United States, Minnesota, ”, Mo Brooks of Alabama, American, Texas, Mississippi, Chicot County , Arkansas, Chicot County, Tom Cotton of Arkansas, Yell County, Yell County , Arkansas, New Hampshire, Oklahoma, Tulsa, Georgia, Pennsylvania, Michigan, Frankfurt, Germany, Chesterfield County , Virginia, California, Portsmouth , Virginia, Alabama, Haywood County , North Carolina, Antebellum, United States of America, Washington, Nicholas County , Kentucky, Queens , New York, New York, York County, Mende, Sierra Leone, Africa, Bunce

☆ Doctors Are Using Chatbots in an Unexpected Way
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-12 | by ( Gina Kolata | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

There’s a reason doctors may neglect compassion, said Dr. Douglas White, the director of the program on ethics and decision making in critical illness at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine. “Most doctors are pretty cognitively focused, treating the patient’s medical issues as a series of problems to be solved,” Dr. White said. That is what happened to Dr. Gregory Moore, who until recently was a senior executive leading health and life sciences at Microsoft, wanted to help a friend who had advanced cancer. The result “blew me away,” Dr. Moore said. Late in the conversation, Dr. Moore wrote to the A.I.

Persons: Douglas White, Dr, White, Gregory Moore, ” Dr, Moore, Moore’s, ChatGPT “ Organizations: University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Microsoft

"For the first time in history, the State Department has agreed to allow Congress to view a dissent channel cable," McCaul said in a statement. A State Department spokesperson said the department continues to believe its accommodations had been sufficient. But it said the department would let additional committee members see it. "To bring this matter to resolution, we will permit additional Members of the Committee to view the cable at the State Department," the spokesperson said in a statement. The channel allows State Department officials to air concerns to supervisors.

Persons: Antony Blinken, Michael McCaul, McCaul, Blinken, Gregory Meeks, Patricia Zengerle, Bill Berkrot Organizations: . House, Republican, House Foreign Affairs, State Department, Republicans, Wall, Thomson Locations: Afghanistan, U.S, Kabul's, McCaul, Kabul

“Please note, however, that the subpoena remains in full force and effect, and the acceptance of this accommodation does not waive any of the Committee’s rights regarding the subpoena," McCaul wrote. McCaul had scheduled a committee meeting next week to consider a contempt of Congress charge against Blinken over his refusal to release the cable despite the subpoena. In his letter, McCaul said he still wanted every member of the foreign affairs committee to be able to view the cable, something the State Department has resisted to protect the integrity of its dissent channel system. McCaul is investigating the withdrawal from Afghanistan. The State Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment on McCaul's letter.

CNN —Federal prosecutors have filed criminal charges against New York Rep. George Santos, the Republican lawmaker whose astonishing pattern of lies and fabrications stunned even hardened politicos, according to three sources familiar with the matter. Santos is expected to appear as soon as Wednesday at federal court in New York’s eastern district, where the charges have been filed under seal. Spokespeople for the Brooklyn US Attorney’s Office, the Justice Department and the FBI declined to comment. House Speaker Kevin McCarthy said he will look at the charges before determining if he thinks Santos should be removed from Congress. But as Santos’ past came under closer scrutiny, with large chunks of his official biography revealed to be conjured from nothing, he increasingly adapted the persona of a right-wing troll.

☆ Russian soldiers 'forced me to dig my own grave': US lawmakers hear accounts of Russian war crimes
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-19 | by ( Jennifer Hansler | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

CNN —A 57-year-old Ukrainian woman from Kherson testified to US lawmakers that Russian forces beat her, threatened to rape her and forced her to dig her own grave. Lyubov’s story was one of two powerful and horrific testimonies shared with House Foreign Affairs Committee members at a hearing about Russian war crimes Wednesday. Ukrainian Prosecutor General Andriy Kostin, who also testified at the hearing, said his office registered around 80,000 incidents of potential war crimes, and to date has convicted 31 Russians for war crimes in Ukrainian courts. “These are more than war crimes. Roman was able to make his way back to Ukraine with the help of volunteers from the country, the representative said.

[1/2] Senator Bob Menendez (D-NJ), speaks during a Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing on the Fiscal Year 2023 Budget at the Capitol in Washington, U.S., April 26, 2022. The bill is led by Senator Bob Menendez, chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and Representative Gregory Meeks, the ranking Democrat on the House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Committee. Under U.S. law, the chair and ranking member of the Foreign Relations and Foreign Affairs committees review major weapons transfers. They often take human rights into account and at times seek to delay or block planned sales. For example, Menendez opposes the sale of Lockheed Martin F-16 aircraft to Turkey for reasons including its record on human rights.

And I'm prepared to serve this," Representative Michael McCaul told Secretary of State Antony Blinken as he testified to the committee about the department's budget request. McCaul has launched an investigation into the messy withdrawal from Afghanistan and events in the country since. McCaul sent a letter to Blinken this week requesting the information before Thursday. Blinken responded at Thursday's hearing that the department is working to provide as much information as possible. Blinken told the committee that several Americans were being held in Afghanistan, but they were not being identified at their families' request.

WASHINGTON — The U.S. House Foreign Affairs Committee voted Wednesday to advance a bill that would grant President Joe Biden the authority to ban TikTok, the Chinese social media app used by more than 100 million Americans. Yet even as Democrats objected, many of them said they did so regretfully, and they would have much preferred to support a version of McCaul's TikTok ban. "My bill empowers the administration to ban TikTok or any other software application that threatens U.S. national security." "It would be unfortunate if the House Foreign Affairs Committee were to censor millions of Americans," TikTok spokeswoman Brooke Oberwetter told CNBC in an email Monday. On Monday, the Biden administration released new implementation rules for a TikTok ban that applies only to federal government-owned devices, which was passed by Congress in December.

☆ U.S. House panel approves bill giving Biden power to ban TikTok
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-01 | by ( David Shepardson | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

WASHINGTON, March 1 (Reuters) - The U.S. House Foreign Affairs Committee voted on Wednesday along party lines to give President Joe Biden the power to ban Chinese-owned social media app TikTok and other apps. Democrats on the committee opposed the bill, which was sponsored by Republican committee chair Michael McCaul. The fate of the measure is still uncertain and it would need to be passed by the full House and U.S. Senate before it can go to Biden. McCaul told Reuters after the vote that he thinks the TikTok bill will be taken up on the floor "fairly soon" and voted on by the full House this month. Reporting by David Shepardson; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama and Deepa BabingtonOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ US House Democrat opposes giving Biden power to ban TikTok
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-28 | by ( David Shepardson | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

WASHINGTON, Feb 28 (Reuters) - The top Democrat on the House Foreign Affairs Committee said on Tuesday he opposes a Republican bill that would give President Joe Biden the power to ban Chinese-owned social media app TikTok and other apps. TikTok and CFIUS have been negotiating for more than two years on data security requirements. "We need to address TikTok," Meeks said. The American Civil Liberties Union urged Congress not to ban TikTok, saying it would violate the free speech rights of millions of Americans. This month, Biden said he was not sure if Washington would ban TikTok.

☆ House panel to vote on bill empowering Biden to ban TikTok
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-28 | by ( Brian Fung | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

The legislation — introduced Friday and fast-tracked by Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Mike McCaul — would empower the Biden administration to impose a nationwide TikTok ban under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA). Legal experts and even some TikTok creators have cited the Berman Amendment as a potential barrier to a nationwide TikTok ban because it may violate the Berman Amendment’s protections for electronic information. US officials have said that the data could benefit China by facilitating targeted misinformation campaigns or by providing it with intelligence targets. In seeking to restrict access to a specific social media platform, the bill risks violating Americans’ First Amendment rights to free expression, the ACLU said. “Would an entity be under the influence of China if the CEO’s sister had moved there, or married a Chinese person?

Feb 28 (Reuters) - The Biden administration approved more than $23 billion worth of licenses for companies to ship U.S. goods and technology to blacklisted Chinese companies in the first quarter of 2022, a Republican lawmaker said on Tuesday. The data comes amid growing pressure on the administration of Democratic President Joe Biden to further expand a broad crackdown on shipments of sensitive U.S. technology to China from Republican lawmakers, who now control the House of Representatives. The data comes a week after the Biden administration added new Chinese companies to the trade blacklist for aiding Russia’s military and months after announcing a sweeping new policy aimed at dramatically curbing shipments of chips and chipmaking tools to China. Chinese tech giant Huawei Technologies Co Ltd was added to a trade blacklist known as the entity list by former Republican President Donald Trump in 2019, amid allegations of sanctions violations, spying capabilities, and intellectual property theft. Reporting by Karen Freifeld and Alexandra Alper; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama, Marguerita Choy and Leslie AdlerOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Kevin McCarthy lashed out at reporters when asked why he hasn't punished George Santos
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-26 | by ( Tom Porter | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

He was being questioned about why he continues to back Rep. George Santos. "What happens in the Intel Committee, [with the] secrets that are going on in the world other members of Congress don't know," McCarthy said. McCarthy is under increasing pressure to take action against Santos as calls grow for the New York congressman to resign. "We urge you to act swiftly to prevent George Santos from abusing his position and endangering our nation," the two New York congressmen said. They wrote: "It is clear that Congressman George Santos has violated the public's trust on various occasions and his unfettered access to our nation's secrets presents a significant risk to the national security of this country."

☆ Democrats urge House Speaker McCarthy to deny GOP Rep. George Santos access to classified info
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-25 | by ( Kevin Breuninger | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Two congressional Democrats asked House Speaker Kevin McCarthy on Wednesday to restrict Republican Rep. George Santos' access to classified information, arguing the scandal-plagued freshman lawmaker "cannot be trusted" with confidential materials. "It is clear that Congressman George Santos has violated the public's trust on various occasions," Reps. Joseph Morelle and Gregory Meeks, both from Santos' own state of New York, said in a letter to McCarthy. "His unfettered access to our nation's secrets presents a significant risk to the national security of this country," the Democrats wrote. "We urge you to act swiftly to prevent George Santos from abusing his position and endangering our nation." Santos' "untrustworthiness could warrant the Intelligence Community to slow down or limit certain classified information it shares with Congress," they told McCarthy.

☆ George Santos' ex-roommate called him 'the Anna Delvey of Queens' for lying his way into Congress
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-23 | by ( Tom Porter | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

George Santos' former roommate compared him to the fraudster Anna Sorokin, aka Anna Delvey. Sorokin was jailed in 2019 after posing as a heiress to gain access to New York's social elite. "George Santos is whoever you want him to be at whatever time you want him to be. I called him the Anna Delvey of Queens," said Gregory Morey-Parker, speaking to CBS News. Delvy is the name Sorokin used while enacting her con.

☆ George Santos used fake Jewish name on GoFundMe because he thought 'Jews will give more,' former roommate says
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-18 | by ( Joshua Zitser | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

George Santos used a fake Jewish last name to raise money on GoFundMe, a former roommate told CNN. Using the name Zebrowski would encourage Jews to "give more," Santos said, per the roommate. Gregory Morey-Parker, who previously lived with Santos, told CNN's Anderson Cooper on Tuesday that Santos used several aliases during their time as roommates. Morey-Parker said he primarily knew Santos, who has listed his full name as George Anthony Devolder Santos, as Anthony Devolder. Santos later told the New York Post that he is Catholic and only claimed to be "Jew-ish."

☆ George Santos' former roommate says the congressman stole his $520 Burberry scarf and wore it to a 'Stop the Steal' rally: report
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-15 | by ( Hannah Getahun | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Two roommates of Rep. George Santos suspect the congressman of stealing a Burberry scarf in 2020. The roommates also believe Santos stole other valuable clothing items from them. One of the roommates became convinced after seeing Santos wear a Burberry scarf a year later. In messages sent in 2020 between Morey-Parker and Rabello obtained by Patch, the two roommates vented about the items they suspected Santos had stolen, including an Armani shirt worth $500. The roommates refer to him as Anthony in the messages, matching reports that Santos was previously using the name Anthony Devolder.

☆ Revoke Bolsonaro's visa, 41 U.S. Democrats urge Biden administration
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-12 | by ( Patricia Zengerle | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

They sent a letter calling on the administration to support democracy and the rule of law in Brazil. State Department and White House officials did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the letter. The State Department has said repeatedly its policy is not to discuss specific visa cases. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Wednesday that Washington had not received any specific requests from Brazil over Bolsonaro. Bolsonaro has said on social media that he would return to Brazil earlier than planned for medical reasons.

☆ Sam Bankman-Fried is set to testify before Congress on Tuesday. He could be grilled on his past statements — and expose himself to more legal risks.
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-12 | by ( Sindhu Sundar | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Sam Bankman-Fried plans to appear remotely before the House Financial Services Committee on Tuesday. The House Financial Services committee has its own investigative mandate, outlined by its role in inquiring into financial failures, and in helping to craft legislation to prevent similar episodes in the future. Participating could expose Bankman-Fried to more legal risksTestimony provided to House lawmakers would usually be under oath, thought not necessarily so. The House Financial Services committee, chaired by Democratic Representative Maxine Waters of California, comprises progressive political stars like Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York and Rashida Tlaib of Michigan. The House Financial Services committee hearing is scheduled to kick off at 10 a.m. Eastern on Tuesday.

The stop-motion musical reimagines the classic tale through the unique lens of filmmaker Guillermo del Toro. How to watch 'Guillermo del Toro's Pinocchio'You can watch "Guillermo del Toro's Pinocchio" at home exclusively on Netflix. Is 'Guillermo del Toro's Pinocchio' worth watching? "Guillermo del Toro's "Pinocchio" has received critical acclaim. What is 'Guillermo del Toro's Pinocchio' based on?

☆ 'Pinocchio' review: A reimagined story is beautiful but comes with too many strings attached
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-09 | by ( Brian Lowry | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

CNN —The mere title “Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio” announces that this stop-motion animated movie reflects the keen eye and visual style of the directing auteur, with a healthy dose of revisionism and reimagining baked into that. Yet despite its beauty, several of those narrative touches don’t fully work, leaving behind a movie that’s aesthetically lovely but narratively uneven. Perhaps foremost, del Toro makes the ill-advised decision to incorporate songs into the story, although he keeps interrupting them, which might speak to a certain lack of conviction about that particular aspect. It’s around that point where del Toro (who shares directing credit with animator Mark Gustafson) appears determined to connect this “Pinocchio” to larger and more ambitious themes. “Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio” premieres December 9 on Netflix.

☆ American and British Airways just opened brand new joint luxury lounges at New York's biggest airport as they grow their partnership — see inside
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-08 | by ( Taylor Rains | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: 1 min

But, to better streamline their operation, British Airways has moved into Terminal 8, and the pair are now officially "roommates," as American CEO Robert Isom put it at a press conference in November. (L-R): Iberia CEO Javier Sánchez-Prieto, British Airways CEO Sean Doyle, American Airlines CEO Robert Isom, Port Authority Executive Director Richard Cotton, Congressman Gregory Meeks (D-NY), and Queen Borough President Donovan Richards Jr. cut the ribbon to the new Terminal 8 at JFK on Tuesday, November 29. Taylor Rains/Insider

The GOP, especially in South Florida, is trying to portray Democrats as "socialists" and soft on foreign policy, with Taddeo touting her hard-line stance against leftist governments. Salazar and Taddeo have similar hard-line foreign positions against the governments of Cuba, Venezuela and Nicaragua. Taddeo, according to a spokesperson, feels current foreign policy toward Cuba, Venezuela, and Nicaragua cannot change until there are democratic transitions in those countries. There are about 275,000 Colombian eligible voters in Florida and a significant number live in the district. The two candidates recently left many puzzled when they tweeted that former Colombian President Iván Duque seemingly supports both of them.

☆ Novavax says COVID booster dose shows benefit against Omicron variants
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-12 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Oct 12 (Reuters) - Novavax Inc (NVAX.O) said on Wednesday data from studies in adults and adolescents showed that the booster dose of its COVID vaccine produced robust antibodies against several Omicron variants, including BA.1, BA.2 and BA.5. The data was from two studies - a late-stage study evaluating the booster in adults and adolescents who had received Novavax primary vaccination and another study testing it in those aged 18 to 49 who had received primary series of Novavax vaccine or other authorized or approved vaccines. In the late-stage study, a single homologous booster dose significantly increased antibody levels against these variants relative to pre-boost levels, the company said. "These data are an early indication that our vaccine may be effective against variants such as Omicron," Novavax executive Gregory M. Glenn said. The company said ongoing trials are studying the efficacy of the vaccine against variants including BA.4 and BA.5.

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