WASHINGTON: President Donald Trump and rapper Kanye West were sitting down for lunch at the White House on Thursday to discuss prison reform as Trump seeks to use his celebrity roots to political advantage.
The two were to sit down for a roasted chicken lunch in the private dining room off the Oval Office, along with Hall of Fame NFL running back Jim Brown, as well as Trump’s daughter Ivanka Trump and son-in-law Jared Kushner.
White House spokesman Hogan Gidley said Trump and his guests would discuss potential future clemencies for convicts along with “addressing the massive violent crime surge in Chicago” and efforts to create jobs for African-Americans.
Kanye’s visit follows by several months a similar trip to the White House by his celebrity wife, Kim Kardashian West, who met with Trump on May 30 and persuaded him to grant clemency to Alice Johnson, who was serving a life sentence for a nonviolent drug charge in Tennessee.
Kanye has drawn fire from other celebrities for his support of Trump, the former reality TV star currently looking ahead to congressional elections on Nov. 6 and his own re-election campaign in 2020.
The Republican president has advocated prison reform and said he was open to changes in sentencing guidelines, an issue that divides the Republican Party between “law and order” hard-liners and moderates.
“There are people in jail for really long terms,” Trump said in an interview with Fox News. “We do need reform. And that doesn’t mean easy. We’re going to make certain categories tougher, when it comes to drug dealing and other things.
“It’s very unfair to African-Americans it’s very unfair to everybody. And it’s also very costly.”
He said he would overrule his attorney general, Jeff Sessions, who has balked at efforts to reduce sentences served by convicts and is unlikely to support new ones.
“Well if he doesn’t then he gets overruled by me, because I make the decisions, he doesn’t,” Trump said.
Trump claims Kanye West as a friend and a “different kind of a guy” whose big following in the African-American community helped boost his approval ratings. Asked if he would consider campaigning with the rapper, Trump said, “I could see it. I could see it.”
Trump lunches with Kanye West, will talk justice reform
Trump lunches with Kanye West, will talk justice reform
- The two were to sit down for a roasted chicken lunch in the private dining room off the Oval Office
- Kanye’s visit follows by several months a similar trip to the White House by his celebrity wife, Kim Kardashian West
Heat wave in Southeast Asia closes schools, triggers health alerts
- In-person classes were suspended at public schools in the Philippines for two days as the heat index has jumped to a record 45 degrees Celsius
- Warmer temperatures in Indonesia are driving a surge in cases of dengue fever, with cases more than doubling to 35,000 from a year earlier
- In Vietnam, people are seeking respite from the heat in air-conditioned shopping malls in the business hub Ho Chi Minh City
MANILA: Authorities across Southeast Asia have issued a series of health alerts for a crushing and deadly heat wave aggravated by the El Niño weather pattern.
In the Philippines, the education department closed down schools as energy officials warned of overloading on the nation's power grid.
“We already have reports of high blood pressure and dizziness, and fainting for pupils and teachers in the past days,” Benjo Basas, chairperson of Teachers’ Dignity Coalition, a group of educators, told DWPM radio station.
Temperatures in the Philippines are forecast to reach 37 degree Celsius (98.6 degrees Fahrenheit) in the next three days, with many classrooms crowded and without air conditioning. This has prompted the education ministry to cancel in-person classes at public schools for two days.
PAGASA, the country’s weather agency, said the heat index — the actual temperature felt by the body to include relative humidity — is expected to remain at a record 45 degrees Celsius (113° Fahrenheit), in the range which it classes as “dangerous” as conditions can trigger heat stroke from prolonged exposure.
The heat wave is also putting pressure on power supplies on the main island of Luzon, which accounts for three-quarters of economic output, with reserves thinning after 13 power plants had shut down earlier this month, the Philippines’ grid operator said in a statement.
In Thailand, temperatures are forecast to surpass 40 degrees in Bangkok and the country’s central and northern regions with the meteorological agency advising people to avoid being outdoors for extended periods.
Temperatures soared to 44.2 degrees Celsius in the northern city of Lampang on April 22, with the meteorological department saying on Monday it expects the extreme heat will continue this week.
In the past month, 30 people have died from heat stroke, data from Thailand’s health ministry showed.
Dehydration, heat stock
In Vietnam, people are seeking respite from the heat in air-conditioned shopping malls in Vietnam’s business hub Ho Chi Minh City, state media reported, with the country’s national weather agency warning of risks of forest fires, dehydration, and heat shock.
Maximum temperatures measured in several parts of northern and central Vietnam ranged from 40.2 and 44.0 degree Celsius the agency said on Sunday, adding that temperatures won’t subside until Wednesday.
Vietnam’s state electricity company has also urged consumers to refrain from overworking their air conditioning units, warning that electricity consumption has reached record highs in the recent days.
Malaysia meteorological department issued hot weather warnings on Sunday for 16 areas that have recorded temperatures between 35 and 40 degrees (95 to 104 degrees Fahrenheit) for three consecutive days.
A total of 45 cases of heat-related illnesses have been reported in the country as of April 13, the health ministry said, without specifying when it began tracking the cases. Two deaths due to heat stroke have been reported, the ministry said in a statement.
4th warmest since 1929
In the neighboring city state of Singapore, the meteorological service said the country’s temperatures could soar higher in 2024 than last year, which was Singapore’s fourth-warmest year since records began in 1929.
Singapore’s hottest day recorded was May 13 last year when the highest daily maximum temperature hit 37 degrees Celsius.
Since last month some schools have relaxed rules on uniforms to allow students to wear more comfortable physical education attire amid the persistent heat.
Meanwhile, warmer temperatures in Southeast Asia’s most populated nation of Indonesia are driving a surge in cases of dengue fever, a mosquito-borne infection, with cases more than doubling to 35,000 from 15,000 a year earlier, the health ministry has said.
The El Nino weather pattern has prolonged the dry season and hotter temperatures have accelerated the mosquito lifecycle, Indonesian health ministry spokesperson Siti Nadia Tarmizi told state news agency, Antara.
Pro-Palestinian banners. Blazing Olympic rings. Workers’ May Day rallies confront turbulent times
ISTANBUL: Workers and activists around the world marked May Day with largely peaceful protests Wednesday over rising prices, low wages and calls for greater labor rights. Pro- Palestinian sentiments were also on display.
Police in Istanbul used tear gas and fired rubber bullets to disperse thousands of people who tried to break through a barricade and reach the main Taksim square in defiance of a ban. Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya said at least 210 people were detained.
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s government has long declared Taksim off-limits for demonstrations on security grounds. In 1977, unidentified gunmen opened fire on a May Day celebration there, causing a stampede and killing 34 people. On Wednesday, a small group of trade union representatives lay a wreath at a monument to victims.
May Day, which falls on May 1, is observed to celebrate workers’ rights. It’s also an opportunity to air economic grievances or political demands. “Tax the rich,” one banner in Germany read. “Don’t touch the eight-hour workday!” another read in Sri Lanka.
In Paris, police fired tear gas as thousands of protesters marched through the French capital, seeking better pay and working conditions. Police said 12 officers were hospitalized after a homemade explosive was set off on the sidelines of the march and at least 45 people were detained after instances of scattered violence
A group of protesters set makeshift Olympic rings on fire to show discontent with the Summer Games that start in less than three months. France’s unions have warned of a strike during the Games if the government does not adequately compensate people forced to work during summer holidays.
Pro-Palestinian groups joined the Paris rally, chanting slogans in support for people in Gaza. There were similar scenes in other parts of the world. In Greece, pro-Palestinian protesters joined May Day rallies, waving a giant Palestinian flag as they marched past the Greek parliament. Others displayed banners in support of pro-Palestinian protesting students in the United States.
“We want to express our solidarity with students in the United States, who are facing great repression of their rights and their just demands,” said Nikos Mavrokefalos at the march. “We want to send a message that workers say no to exploitation, no to poverty, no to high prices,” he added.
Several thousand protesters joined the Athens marches as labor strikes disrupted public transport across Greece. The largest union demands a return to collective bargaining after labor rights were scrapped during the 2010-18 financial crisis.
In the German capital, around 11,600 people marched through the immigrant neighborhoods of Kreuzberg and Neukoelln, waving Palestinian flags and holding banners that read “No weapons for Israel” or “Free Palestine,” German news agency dpa reported.
Throughout Latin America, workers marched to protest austerity measures and demand higher wages. In Argentina, unions galvanized crowds to vent their rage over libertarian President Javier Milei’s economic policies, which they say benefit the wealthy while inflicting pain on the poor and middle class.
“Paying rent is difficult, buying rice is difficult, everything under this guy (Milei) is difficult,” said 40-year-old garbage collector Leandro Rosas, trailing protesters down the street with a broom because this May Day, he said he couldn’t even surrender a shift’s pay.
Meanwhile, Bolivian President Luis Arce joined the workers’ march and decreed a 5.8 percent increase in the national minimum wage, a bid to mobilize support as a worsening economic crisis raises the specter of social unrest. The thousands-strong protests in Santiago, Chile, turned violent in some areas as security forces unleashed water cannons and tear gas on corwds, drenching and dispersing protesters who vandalized shops and government buildings.
In Brazil, President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva ratified a law that extends income tax exemptions to those earning up to two minimum wages per month, or about $544.
“In our country there will be no tax breaks to favor the richest, but to favor those who work and live off their wages,” Lula told a crowd sweltering in the sun at a soccer stadium in São Paulo.
In Nigeria, where inflation is the highest in 28 years, at over 33 percent, unions demanded bigger salary increases. In South Africa, pro-Palestinian demonstrators joined May Day events and in Kenya, President William Ruto called for an increase in the country’s minimum wage.
In Lebanon, pro-Palestinian marchers mingled with workers demanding an end to a miserable economic crisis. “Politicians do not feel the pain of the worker or the economic conditions,” said one demonstrator, Abed Tabbaa. In Iraq, protesters demanded better wages, the reopening of closed factories and the end to privatization of certain businesses.
Tens of thousands Sri Lankans paraded through the capital as the country struggles through its worst economic crisis, two years after declaring bankruptcy. Discontent has grown over efforts to increase revenue by raising the price of electricity and imposing taxes on professionals and small businesses.
In South Korea’s capital, thousands of protesters shouted pro-labor slogans at a rally that organizers said was meant to step up criticism of what they call anti-labor policies pursued by President Yoon Suk Yeol’s conservative government.
“In the past two years under the Yoon Suk Yeol government, the lives of our laborers have plunged into despair,” Yang Kyung-soo, leader of the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions, said in a speech. Union members criticized Yoon’s recent veto of a bill aimed at limiting companies’ rights to seek compensation for damages caused by union strikes.
In Japan, more than 10,000 people gathered in Tokyo, demanding salary increases to set off price increases.
Indonesian workers demanded protections for migrant workers abroad and a minimum wage raise. They gathered amid a tight police presence, chanting slogans against the new Job Creation Law and loosened outsourcing rules.
In the Philippines, hundreds of workers and left-wing activists marched to demand wage increases and job security amid soaring food and oil prices. Riot police stopped them from getting close to the presidential palace.
Biden blames China, Japan and India’s economic woes on ‘xenophobia’
- Concern about irregular migration has become a top issue for many US voters ahead of November’s presidential election
WASHINGTON: President Joe Biden said on Wednesday that “xenophobia” from China to Japan and India is hobbling their growth, as he argued that migration has been good for the US economy.
“One of the reasons why our economy’s growing is because of you and many others. Why? Because we welcome immigrants,” Biden said at a Washington fundraising event for his 2024 re-election campaign and marking the start of Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander Heritage Month.
“Why is China stalling so badly economically, why is Japan having trouble, why is Russia, why is India, because they’re xenophobic. They don’t want immigrants. Immigrants are what makes us strong.”
The International Monetary Fund forecast last month that each country would see its growth decelerate in 2024 from the year prior, ranging from 0.9 percent in highly developed Japan to 6.8 percent in emerging India.
They forecast that the United States would grow at 2.7 percent, slightly brisker than its 2.5 percent rate last year. Many economists attribute better-than-expected performance partly to a migrants expanding the country’s labor force.
Concern about irregular migration has become a top issue for many US voters ahead of November’s presidential election.
Biden, who has condemned the rhetoric of his Republican opponent Donald Trump as anti-immigrant, has worked to court broad economic and political relations with countries including Japan and India to counter China and Russia globally.
Trump blasts Biden in rare day on campaign trail
WAUKESHA, US: Donald Trump used a break in his hush money trial to stage back-to-back appearances in two Midwestern battleground states Wednesday — but kept his legal woes front-and-center as he accused President Joe Biden of weaponizing the courts against him.
The former Republican president, who is running for a return to the White House, rallied supporters in Wisconsin and Michigan, among the most hotly contested states in his expected rematch with Democrat Biden in November.
The speeches featured all of Trump’s go-to set-pieces, from complaints about environmentally friendly household appliances to apocalyptic warnings of a looming world war — but his evening speech in Michigan was notable for its vitriol.
“Every single thing he touches turns to shit,” Trump said of Biden in a speech in Freeland, Michigan peppered with profane language about his criminal charges, his 2020 election defeat and his determination to win reelection in November.
Trump had already spoken in an afternoon rally in the Wisconsin town of Waukesha, where he railed against Biden’s handling of the economy and immigration.
In both appearances he accused Democrats of “executing” newborn babies as he turned to the deeply divisive issue of abortion rights, and in both he revived baseless claims that Biden is behind the 88 felony charges he is facing.
“I’ve got to do two of these things a day,” he told a sea of red hats at his Michigan rally.
“You know why? Because I’m in New York all the time with the Biden trial — a fake trial that all of the legal scholars say is a disgrace,” he said in Michigan.
Trump regularly claims that his indictments — three for alleged cheating in elections and one for hoarding classified documents — are being orchestrated as part of a political witch hunt, but never offers any evidence.
The 77-year-old tycoon used his rare day on the stump to project his preferred image as a confident, seasoned campaigner, far from the Manhattan courtroom where he is accused of covering up payments to a porn star before the 2016 presidential election.
Trump is the first former US president to face criminal charges, and the trial appears to have annoyed him to no end.
For two weeks he has been sitting through long hours of witness testimony, visibly bored and angry at no-nonsense Judge Juan Merchan, who required him to be present — and then imposed a gag order prohibiting Trump from publicly attacking witnesses, jurors or court staff.
Before and after each day’s proceedings, Trump has been addressing journalists outside, venting about his legal problems, the US economy, his wife’s birthday and the “freezing” temperature inside the courtroom.
“He hates being there in court, where he is just another criminal defendant,” political expert Larry Sabato from the University of Virginia told AFP. “He has no control and is not in charge.”
Biden’s campaign has not missed a chance to bait his opponent over his legal troubles — referring to Trump as “Sleepy Don” after reports from the courtroom that the Republican was nodding off during the proceedings.
The nickname evoked the “Sleepy Joe” taunt Trump has long used for Biden.
Biden has advanced in the polls since March, with the two candidates now running neck and neck.
But Trump and his supporters hope to harness the media attention surrounding the trial to fire up his base, and push his message that Democrats are destroying the country through negligence on border security and poor economic stewardship.
In Waukesha, the former president accused Biden of being too passive on the pro-Palestinian student demonstrations that have convulsed college campuses nationwide, and of allowing the country to be “invaded” by migrant hordes.
Although Trump is energized by his campaign rallies, he had not held a single one since the start of his trial on April 15, with the only planned event canceled due to weather.
“I have come here today from New York City where I’m being forced to sit for days on end in a kangaroo courtroom with a corrupt and conflicted judge enduring a Biden Sideshow trial at the hands of a Marxist district attorney,” he complained in Michigan.
Georgian police disperse protesters as parliament approves ‘foreign bill’ on second reading
- 11 people, including six police officers, were injured after Wednesday’s altercations, say health ministry officials
- Critics have dubbed the bill “the Russian law,” saying it is inspired by laws used to suppress dissent in Vladimir Putin’s Russia
TBILISI: Georgia’s parliament on Wednesday approved the second reading of a bill on “foreign agents” that has been criticized as Kremlin-inspired, as police fired tear gas and stun grenades to clear a large crowd of protesters opposed to the draft law.
The bill, which would require organizations receiving more than 20 percent of their funding from abroad to register as agents of foreign influence, has sparked a rolling political crisis in the South Caucasus country.
Ever-growing numbers of protesters have been taking to the street nightly for almost a month, with a heaving crowd tens of thousands strong shutting down central Tbilisi on Wednesday, the largest anti-government demonstration yet.
Georgia’s Health Ministry, in a bulletin quoted by Georgian media, said 11 people, including six police officers, had received hospital treatment after Wednesday’s altercations.
Deputy Interior Minister Aleksandre Darakhvelidze, quoted by Georgian media, said protesters had tried to push their way into parliament using various objects and were attacking policemen.
Darakhvelidze said police action on Tuesday resulted in 63 arrests and six police officers injured.
President says to look to the election
Georgian President Salome Zourabichvili, who opposes the bill but has only largely ceremonial powers, told protesters in a video posted on social media to show restraint. The real task, she said, was to oust the government in an October election.
“Our fate will not be determined by this law,” she said in comments quoted by media. “This fight will take place in the forthcoming parliamentary election after which (this) law and many others will be rescinded.”
Georgian media cited the country’s Orthodox Church, one of its most respected institutions, as calling for the government and protesters to hold talks to resolve a “political crisis.”
Protester Sergi Kapanadze said that for him the protest movement amounted to a struggle for Georgia’s national survival.
“What are we afraid of more?” he told Reuters. “Being gassed, being beaten up, or losing the country?“
Georgian critics have dubbed the bill “the Russian law,” saying it is inspired by laws used to suppress dissent in Vladimir Putin’s Russia. Russia is unpopular among many citizens of Georgia, which lost a brief war with Moscow in 2008.
Both the head of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, and the EU’s foreign policy chief, Josep Borrell, condemned the violence. The EU gave Georgia candidate member status in December but has said the bill could halt its integration into the bloc.
Police cleared the crowd by the parliament building using tear gas and stun grenades fired from within the fortress-like complex. Water cannon were also deployed.
Protesters regrouped, with some lighting a bonfire outside parliament, and others attempting to build makeshift barricades to block key roads. A Reuters eyewitness saw at least one man carried away from the action, his face bloodied.
The protests have pitched the ruling Georgian Dream party against a coalition of opposition parties, civil society groups, celebrities and the president.
Parliament, controlled by Georgian Dream and its allies, voted to advance the bill, prompting a boos from protesters outside. The bill must pass one more vote before becoming law.
Wednesday’s parliamentary debate was tense, with opposition members expelled and scuffles between legislators, a not uncommon occurrence in Georgia’s often-rowdy parliament.
One pro-government deputy was seen throwing a book at opposition legislators, while others shouted and physically confronted opponents.
Levan Khabeishvili, leader of the United National Movement party, Georgia’s largest opposition bloc, spoke in parliament with his face heavily bandaged. His party said he was beaten by police at the previous day’s protest, leaving him with concussion, broken facial bones, and missing four teeth.
The bill’s supporters, including Bidzina Ivanishvili, the billionaire founder of Georgian Dream and former prime minister, say the law would bolster sovereignty amid what he said were Western attempts to pit Georgia against Russia.
