- @cnnbrk
- Followers: 64,140,593
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell said Saturday that he has been released from an inpatient physical therapy ftwitter.com/i/web/status/1…Nu
- @cnnbrk
- Followers: 64,140,593
Russia plans to station tactical nuclear weapons in Ukraine's neighbor Belarus, says Putin, further stoking tensiontwitter.com/i/web/status/1…BO
- @cnnbrk
- Followers: 64,140,593
The Los Angeles Unified School District reaches an agreement in negotiations with union following a three-day striktwitter.com/i/web/status/1…pE
- @cnnbrk
- Followers: 64,140,593
RT @CNN: Actress Gwyneth Paltrow is testifying in a Utah court at a trial over a skiing accident that sparked a seven-year legal battle. Fo…
- @cnnbrk
- Followers: 64,140,593
A federal judge has rejected Trump's claim of executive privilege and ordered several former aides, including Marktwitter.com/i/web/status/1…GM
- @cnnbrk
- Followers: 64,140,593
Rep. George Santos and Brazilian prosecutors reach a deal in case alleging he defrauded a shop clerk out of $1,300,twitter.com/i/web/status/1…P0
- @cnnbrk
- Followers: 64,140,593
The House fails to override Biden's first veto of his presidency on a resolution to overturn a retirement investmentwitter.com/i/web/status/1…20
CNN POLITICS ON FACEBOOK » | CNN POLITICS ON TWITTER »
The day's most popular stories
The five most popular CNN.com stories during the last 24 hours, according to Newspulse.
The gambling man who co-founded Apple and left for $800: If Ron Wayne's short-lived career at Apple had gone differently, he would be holding 10 percent of Apple's stock, instead of spending his nights at the Nugget Hotel & Casino in Nevada.
Obama moved quickly to find new general: It's still unclear whether President Obama had made up his mind before sitting down Wednesday with Gen. Stanley McChrystal, but CNN has learned that Obama gave the general a chance to defend himself.
Dim economic outlook hits stocks, dollar
A look at highlights from the day's business news:
Stocks slumped Thursday, with the Dow losing 145 points, as investors mulled mixed reports on the economy and a sell-off in bank shares as Wall Street reform talk move toward a close.
Dow Jones industrial average lost around 145 points, or 1.4 percent. The S&P 500 lost 18 points or 1.7 percent and the Nasdaq composite lost 37 points or 1.6 percent.
Security Brief: Yemen-US Aid
As Yemen faces multiple political and economic crises, President Barack Obama has announced an increase in U.S. humanitarian aid this year – more than doubling the sum to $42.5 million.
The announcement comes as the truce between the government and Houthi rebels in northern Yemen shows signs of fraying and as a secessionist revolt in the south of Yemen becomes more violent. In addition, al Qaeda has established a significant presence in more remote parts of the country, and the unrest in Somalia is a short distance across the Gulf of Aden.
“We are deeply troubled by reports of fresh outbreaks of fighting in Sa’ada, and urge full compliance with the ceasefire agreement announced in February, and an end to the violence,” Obama said of the Houthi revolt. FULL POST
Bridgeport, Conn. in stage of emergency after severe weather
Bridgeport, Connecticut, is under a state of emergency after severe weather swept through the area, Mayor Bill Finch said on Twitter Thursday afternoon.
Weather data showed winds up to 75 mph, said CNN meteorologist Sean Morris. It was not immediately clear if the winds were from a tornado or strong thunderstorm, he said.
The National Weather Service is characterizing the storm as a thunderstorm. It reports wind damage with "extensive tree damage".
The Bridgeport Police Department confirms the storm caused significant damage.
Security Brief: Funding militancy
STRATFOR, the independent U.S.-based intelligence company, is putting together an assessment of the state of the jihadist insurgency in Iraq. In the course of that research, the company says it’s uncovering more about how the Islamic State of Iraq is funding its operations. STRATFOR finds that criminal activities, including kidnappings and (more recently) armed robbery directed at banks, currency exchanges and jewelry shops, are helping the insurgency survive. Read the report here.
P.M. Security Brief
Mullen: "I was nearly sick" - Trying to draw a line in the sand after the McChrystal debacle, Defense Secretary Robert Gates told a Pentagon news conference that the strategy in Afghanistan would not miss a beat with the appointment of Gen. David Petraeus as commander of the International Security Assistance Force.
Sitting alongside Gates, Joint Chiefs Chairman Adm. Mike Mullen acknowledged that it was a “difficult” time in the war against the Taliban, but he insisted progress was being made.
Perhaps the most revealing moment of the news conference came when both were asked for their reaction when they read the Rolling Stone article.
Mullen responded: “Honestly, when I first read it, I was nearly sick. It made me - I - literally, physically, I couldn't believe it. So I was stunned.”
Clashing strategies - The counterinsurgency strategy that’s become known as COIN is designed to win the "hearts and minds" of the population with rules of engagement that protect civilian populations and minimize casualties.
Gen. David Petraeus is the concept’s founding father, but as CNN State Department Producer Elise Labott explains, COIN is not always easy to implement. FULL POST
Readers sound off: Military code and McChrystal
iReporters Cliff Olney, Melissa Fazli, Egberto Willies shared their views on the military code and how McChrystal did or didn't act in accordance with it.
An interesting conversation developed on CNN.com about First Amendment rights versus the military code of conduct following Gen. Stanley McChrystal’s resignation.
Comments on a story about McChrystal’s resignation have come from people who identify themselves as veterans and current members of the military - a majority of whom said they were shocked and embarrassed by McChrystal’s conduct.
AFGChuck said, “It was a complete breach of military protocol.” Several others agreed and referenced the Uniform Code of Military Justice.
Deezy007
Non-military don't realize that the UCMJ is law in the military. When your [sic] in uniform not only do you represent the troops you represent a whole country.
Article 88 of the UCMJ states that any commissioned officer who uses contemptuous words against the president, the vice president, Congress or the secretary of defense shall be punished as a court-martial may direct.
Security Brief: Why Blackwater won't die
Erik Prince, the private contractor company's owner, testifying before Congress about his firm's work abroad.
Xe, the private contractor formerly known as Blackwater, is getting a new contract worth about $120 million to protect CIA facilities in Afghanistan and elsewhere. Although the contract may be new, the relationship isn't.
Protecting CIA teams and sites in Afghanistan is a job Blackwater/Xe has been doing since early 2002, when the Agency's Henry Crumpton led a successful push against the Taliban in the post-September 11 era. Crumpton's teams made it to Kabul so quickly that they didn't even have enough bodies to secure everything that needed securing, so amid a big push at Langley by former CIA Executive Director Buzzy Krongard, Blackwater got the deal.
That was how the relationship began. It hasn't changed much despite the incredible public relations lows the company has experienced, though the personal relationship between the company and the Agency hasn't been without its own ups and downs.
In December, Xe lost another significant contract with the CIA after the company's owner, Erik Prince, pulled a Gen. McChrystal with Vanity Fair. He boasted of his company's relationship with the Agency in an article that had some at Langley so unsettled, they not only canceled the contract, they made it clear that they thought Prince was living in a dream world.
Man arrested with weapons near G-20 summit site
A 53-year-old man in a car was arrested with five cans of gas and an array of weapons near the G-20 summit site in Toronto, security officials tell CNN's Jeanne Meserve.
Constable Samantha Nulle, with the Peel Regional Police, told CNN an officer pulled over a suspicious vehicle and found the man had gas cans, a crossbow, saws, hatchets, a winch, other weapons and cans filled with unknown substances.
Another official said that the man had pellet guns, chemical products and gas tanks in the car as well. The official said Hazmat teams are testing many of the chemicals right now.
At this point, Nulle said there were no specific signs the incident is linked to the G-20 summit.
USGS: 4.0 quake hits southern California
A light earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 4 shook southern California Thursday, the U.S. Geological Survey reported.
Moving on: Media focuses on Petraeus, Afghan war
Gen. Petraeus will take command over the mission in Afghanistan.
Within hours of President Obama’s announcement that he had accepted Gen. Stanley McChrystal’s resignation, the general who was hand-picked by the president to head the Afghan war became “an afterthought,” as TIME magazine’s Joe Klein points out.
The media quickly switched its attention to McChrystal’s replacement, Gen. David Petraeus, and the war against terror. Last week Petraeus, while battling exhaustion, fainted during testimony before Congress.
In a blog entry posted shortly after McChrystal’s resignation, The Washington Post’s Rajiv Chandrasekaran leads with how the change in command will create complications in the U.S. efforts to stabilize Afghanistan. McChrystal forged the closest relationship with Afghan President Hamid Karzai of any senior American official, Chandrasekaran writes.
He thinks Petraeus will have challenges to overcome, but doesn't discount the fact that Petraeus has a head start.
He has been a regular visitor to Kabul and knows not just Karzai but many other senior Afghan government officials. He also has worked closely with top U.S. civilian officials responsible for Afghanistan, including special envoy Richard C. Holbrooke.
In a New York Times blog, Andrew Exum, a fellow at the Center for a New American Security and a veteran of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan writes that the problems McChrystal faced won’t elude Petraeus.
Gen. Stanley McChrystal’s comments to Rolling Stone magazine were inexcusable, but the frustration he voiced with Ambassador Eikenberry for sending cables to Washington questioning the strategy without first sharing his reservations with General McChrystal was understandable. It is clear that there is little agreement between the U.S. embassy in Kabul and the NATO command on the way forward in Afghanistan.
Alleged Jamaican drug lord extradited to U.S.
Christopher "Dudus" Coke has said he won't fight extradition to the U.S. for drug charges.
Christopher "Dudus" Coke, the alleged Jamaican drug kingpin, was put on a plane with U.S. marshals after declining to fight his extradition to the U.S. on Thursday afternoon, according to several sources.
Coke did not contest the extradition, his lawyer said, because he wanted to leave his country immediately and face gun and drug charges in the United States.
Peter Bunting, general secretary of the opposition People's National Party, told CNN in an e-mail stamped 2:30 p.m. ET that Coke was at the airport awaiting to be transported to the United States, and a Jamaican Information Service report said he was flown off the island early in the afternoon. It was not clear to where he would fly, but the indictment against him was handed up in New York.
Coke released a statement through his lawyers saying he made the decision to be extradited despite his belief that he would have been vindicated by Jamaican courts.
"I take this decision for I now believe it to be in the best interest of my family, the community of West Kingston, and in particular, the people of Tivoli Gardens and, above all, Jamaica," the statement said.
He further said he was "deeply upset and saddened" for many Jamaicans, including the security forces who were killed. The situation could have been avoided, Coke said in his statement asking that Jamaicans pray for him.
Regarding concerns that those loyal to Coke would stir up trouble, parliament member Peter Phillips, a former national security minister and senior member of the opposition, said there has been little unrest in West Kingston or Tivoli Gardens because the government declared a state of emergency last month and put troops in the streets.
Things have been quiet in West Kingston because of the “dislocation of the criminal groups that are able to mount some kind of resistance,” he said, referring to the weeks-long violence between government security forces and gunmen alleged to be loyal to Coke.
Affidavits from two confidential informants form the basis for charges that Coke, 41, has pumped cocaine and hundreds of pounds of marijuana into the United States.
One witness quoted in the affidavit said Coke used women to "body-carry," or smuggle internally, the cocaine and travel to New York under the guise of purchasing clothing for their shops in Kingston.
About Philippe Cousteau Jr.
Philippe Cousteau is the 30 year-old son of Jan and Philippe Cousteau Sr., and the grandson of Captain Jacques-Yves Cousteau. As a member of the legendary family, Philippe is continuing the work of his father through EarthEcho International (www.earthecho.org), the non-profit organization he founded with his sister and mother and of which he serves as CEO. His goal is to engage and empower people to take action for a brighter future. His tools are simple – education, unbiased advocacy and a commitment to action.
Philippe Cousteau is committed to telling the important environmental and human stories impacting our planet. To that end, he has been a tireless advocate for the people and the wildlife in the Gulf of Mexico during the oil crisis, visiting the area and learning first hand the impact the disaster has had not only on the ecosystem but on the people who suffer as a result of the catastrophe. Speaking out about environmental issues through documentaries, media appearances, congressional hearings, books, articles and speeches, he provides perspective and compassion.
Defending champion Italy knocked out of World Cup
Italy's World Cup title defense came to an embarrassing end with a dramatic 3-2 defeat by European footballing minnows Slovakia on Thursday
The Azzurri followed 2006 runners-up France in making a first-round exit despite a frantic finale in which they had a goal disallowed.
Slovakia progressed into the last 16 along with Paraguay, who topped Group F despite a 0-0 draw with New Zealand.
The Kiwis were knocked out of the tournament despite finishing unbeaten with three draws - a sharp contrast to their only other finals appearance in 1982 which ended with three defeats.
The epic match that finally ended: Isner beats Mahut
[Updated at 11:56 a.m.] Nicolas Mahut sat his prize down and took a big breath as the Wimbledon crowd applauded for him.
After the match was immediately over, Mahut buried his head in his towel, frustrated with the loss. Still, Mahut acted like a champion, speaking on court after the match.
"It was amazing to think of you guys you [the crowd] you were completely fantastic and John deserves to win it's so unbelievable," Mahut said. "He's a champion. He was - it really was an honor to play - we played the greatest match ever in the greatest place ever."
Mahut was in a tough position, always being down to Isner's serve and trying to come back. Asked about it, Mahut said that wasn't part of his mindset.
"It was not thinking about [that] I was just thinking about winning the game I was playing ... again and again," he said. "It was very long but I think we both enjoy[ed] it."
[Updated at 11:53 a.m.] After the match ended, John Isner, was asked "The world's press, the world's media is watching, how do you feel?"
"[I] got a little bit tired but when you come out and play a match like this, in an atmosphere like this you don't feel tired...this crowd was fantastic," Isner said.
Asked about his opponent Nicholas Mahut, who now has the second most aces ever in a tennis match, Isner said it was an "honor" to play him.
"What more can you say the guy's an absolute warrior," Isner said. "It stinks that someone had to lose."
UGA coach: Isner's strength 'culmination of years of effort'
[Updated at 11:51 a.m] Eleven hours and five minutes - and three days after their match first started - it is finally over.
The All-England Club said they decided to reward special mementos to the umpire and two players "in recognition of this quite extraordinary, unbelievable match."
[Updated at 11:47 a.m.] The match that kept on going - finally came to an end.
John Isner put a three-day match to rest with a final shot that gave him the 70-68 tiebreaker win in the fifth set.
Nicolas Mahut, Isner's challenger, left the court immediately. He shook his head when stopped.
[Posted at 9:56 a.m.] Will the third time be the charm for John Isner and Nicolas Mahut? Not the third set, or their third time meeting, but their third day of play at Wimbledon. It's been a match that has lasted 10 hours and been stopped twice due to darkness, and the fifth set has lasted 118 games by itself.
On Thursday, the pair is trying again, with the score standing at 59-59 in the fifth. They're hoping to find a conclusion to a grueling, record-breaking length game (163 games total so far.) SI.com live scoreboard
With iPhone 4 excitement comes complaints
As iPhone 4 buyers prepared to unbox their new smartphones on Thursday morning, some screamed with joy. Others trumpeted vuvuzelas.
But shortly after testing out the world's new "it" phone, some of those consumers turned to the internet to report problems with the new Apple product.
On Web forums and on blogs, some consumers posted videos and rants about the iPhone 4's new antenna, which is built into a metal rim around the phone and, some claim, causes the phone to get unnecessarily bad reception.
The blog Gizmodo has posted a roundup of the complaints. Several people say that when they hold the iPhone 4 by its metal sides - essentially, when they're touching the antenna - the reception gets worse or drops.
Latest developments on Gen. David Petraeus
Here are the latest developments involving Gen. David Petraeus, who has been chosen to replace Gen. Stanley McChrystal as the top U.S. commander in Afghanistan. McChrystal was relieved of duty after he and his staff made comments in a Rolling Stone magazine article that appear to mock top civilian officials, including the vice president.
NEW DEVELOPMENTS
- Petraeus said Thursday that he supports President Obama's July 2011 deadline to start withdrawing U.S. troops from Afghanistan. Petraeus' comments to CNN's Dana Bash were his first public remarks since being tapped as the new U.S. commander in Afghanistan.
- Petraeus' confirmation hearing is scheduled for Tuesday morning, according to a statement from Senate Armed Services Committee.
Petraeus hearing scheduled
The Senate Armed Services Committee will meet on Tuesday to consider the nomination of Gen. David Petraeus to the post of U.S. and NATO-led forces commander in Afghanistan.
Petraeus: A 'privilege to serve,' but 'sad' in this manner
Gen. David Petraeus told CNN's Dana Bash Thursday that "it's a privilege to serve" as the new U.S. commander in Afghanistan. But "it's very sad that I have to assume it in this manner. We obviously all have enormous respect and gratitude to Gen. McChrystal for all that he did. He's played a key role in helping get the inputs right in Afghanistan."
UGA coach: Isner's strength 'culmination of years of effort'
John Isner reacts Wednesday during his epic Wimbledon match, which is still ongoing.
When John Isner arrived at the University of Georgia, he was an average tennis player who was out of shape.
“He was not the most conditioned, health-oriented type of guy when he was a freshman,” recalled Manny Diaz, his UGA coach. “But I saw that he was just extremely gifted and a different type of tennis athlete.”
Diaz sat the 6-foot-9 player down during his sophomore year and tried to inspire him to take the sport more seriously.
"I said, ‘You have a gift. It’s a great lifestyle [to be a tennis player] and it’s going to a tremendous opportunity, but you are going to have to work for it. Or you can choose a typical path and work 8 to 5 like the rest of us for the next 35 to 40 years.”
The player heard his coach loud and clear. A bad back also spurred change in Isner.
The young player spent the next years, until he graduated in 2007, completely transforming his body and his game, Diaz said.
On Twitter
On Twitter
@cnnbrk on Twitter
Recent Comments