International
Biden predicts final-hour shift to Democrats before midterms
| By AFP |
President Joe Biden on Friday predicted a final-hour shift in favor of the Democrats in the midterm elections, saying that the economy, seen as the party’s weakest issue, is steadily improving.
“It’s been back and forth, with them ahead, us ahead, them ahead, back and forth,” Biden told reporters at the White House, three weeks before elections deciding control of Congress.
“Polls have been all over the place. I think we’re going to see one more shift back to our side in the closing days,” Biden said.
Recent polls show momentum rising on the Republican side, with voters increasingly anxious about high inflation and likely to punish the Democrats. Biden’s party currently has a razor-thin majority in Congress but Republican leaders say they will block his legislation if they take over the legislature.
In fiery remarks predicting that the Republicans would “crash the economy” if they are in charge of Congress, Biden said voters were starting to see “some good news in the economy” and would return to supporting Democrats in time for voting day November 8.
Biden listed gradually falling gasoline prices, low unemployment across most of the country, and Friday’s news of “the largest-ever decline in the federal deficit.”
The deficit reduction is “further proof that we’re rebuilding the economy in a responsible way,” he said.
Republicans, he said, will eliminate the minimum tax rate for big corporations and “double down” on tax cuts for the most wealthy.
Referring to former president Donald Trump’s far-right Make America Great Again or MAGA movement, Biden said the Republican economic plan was “mega-MAGA trickle-down” economics — “the kind of policies that have failed the country before and will fail again.”
The Republicans quickly shot back, citing Biden’s “flailing dishonesty.”
“Republican-led states continue to keep Americans working, children in schools, and small businesses operating, while Biden and Democrats created a recession, historic inflation, and high gas prices. This election is about the economy,” Republican National Committee chairwoman Ronna McDaniel said in a statement.
In a speech to mostly African American students at Delaware State University in his home state Friday, Biden highlighted two recent widely popular measures that the White House says show the president keeping his own election promises.
A ruling to forgive $10,000 of university student loans — $20,000 for poorer students — will “make sure you have a shot,” Biden said. Referring to Republican opposition, Biden underlined his populist message, insisting “I will never apologize for helping working and middle class Americans.”
The Democrat also touted his decision to pardon thousands of Americans convicted of marijuana possession — a longtime demand of Black rights activists who point out the disproportionate impact of criminalizing possession of cannabis on Black people.
“I’m keeping my promise that no one, no one should be in jail for barely using or possessing marijuana,” he said.
International
El Chapo’s son Joaquín Guzmán López pleads guilty to U.S. drug trafficking charges
Joaquín Guzmán López, one of the sons of notorious Mexican drug lord Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán, pleaded guilty on Monday to drug trafficking charges in a U.S. court, months after his brother Ovidio reached a similar plea agreement, according to local media reports.
The defendant appeared before a federal court in Chicago early Monday afternoon and changed his previous plea in the case, the Chicago Tribune reported. U.S. authorities accuse him of forming, together with his three brothers, the cartel faction known as “Los Chapitos.”
The group is believed to have continued the operations of El Chapo, who has been serving a life sentence in the United States since 2019.
Guzmán López, 39, was arrested after landing in Texas in a small aircraft alongside cartel co-founder Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada.
International
Venezuela authorizes return flights as U.S. continues deportations amid rising tensions
The arrival of U.S. aircraft carrying undocumented Venezuelan migrants continued regularly despite rising tensions between Washington and Caracas over President Donald Trump’s military deployment in the Caribbean.
Trump maintains that the deployment is part of an anti-narcotics operation, while Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro insists the true objective is to remove him from power and seize the nation’s oil resources.
Venezuela’s aviation authority has “received a request from the United States government to resume repatriation flights for Venezuelan migrants from that country to Venezuela,” the Ministry of Transportation said in a statement .
“Under the instructions of President Nicolás Maduro, authorization has been granted for these aircraft to enter our airspace,” it added.
Caracas will permit two Eastern Airlines flights to land on Wednesday and Friday.
Migration remains one of the Trump administration’s flagship issues. On Monday, the U.S. president held a meeting with his National Security Council to discuss the situation in Venezuela, a day after confirming he had spoken with Maduro by phone, without offering further details.
According to the Venezuelan government, roughly 75 deportation flights have been carried out this year, returning at least 13,956 Venezuelans from the United States.
International
20,000 rounds stolen from german army after driver leaves cargo unattended
The German army confirmed the theft of a shipment of ammunition that occurred a week ago while it was being transported by a civilian delivery driver, a military spokesperson told AFP, confirming earlier media reports.
According to Der Spiegel and the regional broadcaster MDR, around 20,000 rounds of ammunition were stolen from an unguarded parking lot near Magdeburg, in eastern Germany, while the driver was asleep in a nearby hotel. No information has been released regarding the identity of the suspects, and the military declined to specify the exact type or amount of ammunition taken.
Authorities have also not indicated how the perpetrators knew the cargo would be left unattended.
“The theft was discovered upon delivery at the barracks,” the German army spokesperson said.
A police spokeswoman confirmed to AFP that an investigation has been opened but refused to provide further details “for tactical reasons.”
Sources close to the German military, cited by Der Spiegel, believe it is unlikely the theft was a coincidence. They suspect the thieves waited for the driver to stop for the night before striking.
Der Spiegel also reported that the Defense Ministry normally requires two drivers for this type of transport to ensure the cargo is constantly monitored. However, in this case only one driver was assigned, meaning the civilian transport company failed to comply with the security protocols.
El Chapo’s son Joaquín Guzmán López pleads guilty to U.S. drug trafficking charges
Venezuela authorizes return flights as U.S. continues deportations amid rising tensions
20,000 rounds stolen from german army after driver leaves cargo unattended
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