Top News Stories for Today – feb 2, 2019
Top News Stories for Today – feb 2, 2019
Russia suspends role in nuclear pact
Russia has suspended its involvement in the Cold War-era Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty (INF) following a similar decision by the US. President Vladimir Putin said Russia would start developing new missiles. On Friday, the US, which has long accused Russia of violating the treaty, formally announced it was suspending its obligations under the agreement.
Signed in 1987 by the US and USSR, it banned the use of short and medium-range missiles by both countries. “Our American partners announced that they are suspending their participation in the treaty, and we are suspending it too,” Putin said on Saturday. “All of our proposals in this sphere, as before, remain on the table, the doors for talks are open,” he added. Source: BBC
Calls grow for Virginia governor to resign
Calls are mounting for Virginia’s governor to step down from office after the emergence of a racist photo in which he appeared in his medical school yearbook more than 30 years ago. Ralph Northam apologized Friday for the “racist and offensive” costume seen on his 1984 medical school yearbook page. In a video statement Northam said the photo does not reflect the person he is today.
The page features a photograph of a person in blackface and another in full Ku Klux Klan garb. The governor has indicated he is one of the people in the photograph but has not said which one. The Congressional Black Caucus and the Virginia Legislative Black Caucus have urged him to step down. Source: VOA
US restricts visas on Ghanaians
he United States imposed visa restrictions on Ghanaian nationals Thursday, making it more difficult for citizens of the West African country to visit the US In levying the sanctions, the Trump administration accused Ghana of not repatriating nationals who had been deported.
The United States periodically restricts visas when countries fail to allow its citizens, when removed from the US, to be repatriated. In July, the Department of Homeland Security imposed visa restrictions on Burma and Laos, after those countries failed to accept removed nationals. Those restrictions affected B1 and B2 nonimmigrant visas, for visitors seeking to enter the United States as tourists or on business trips. The DHS did not specify what visa classes would be affected by the latest sanctions. Source: VOA
Cory Booker enters 2020 presidential race
Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.) officially announced Friday he is running for president in 2020. In a video posted to a newly-launched campaign website, Booker said, “I believe we can build a country where no one is forgotten, no one is left behind,” also saying that “we will channel our common pain back into our common purpose.”
Booker is the latest Democrat to jump into the 2020 race alongside Sen. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.), Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), and others. Following his announcement, he has several radio interviews lined up and is expected to appear Friday on The View. He will subsequently head to Iowa and South Carolina for events next week. Source: Cory Booker, The New York Times via The Week
January job gains smash expectations
The Labor Department reported Friday that the US economy added 304,000 jobs in January, smashing expectations despite a feared drag from the 35-day partial government shutdown. Economists polled by MarketWatch had forecast, on average, a gain of 172,000 jobs in what have been a widely anticipated pullback following December’s surprisingly strong gain of 312,000 non-farm jobs. The Labor Department said the government shutdown had no “discernible” impact on hiring overall, although it helped nudge the unemployment rate higher.
The unemployment rate edged up to 4 percent from 3.9 percent the month before. The Labor Department reported Thursday that the number of people seeking unemployment benefits increased by 53,000 to a seasonally adjusted 253,000 for the last week of January, the biggest jump since September 2017. Source: CNBC via The Week
Lindsey Vonn to retire from skiing
Lindsey Vonn announced Friday she will retire from professional skiing. In a post on her official Facebook page, Vonn said she will take part in the world championships next week in Sweden before hanging up her skis. Questions about Vonn’s future grew after she was unable to finish a run at the World Cup super-G on Jan. 20 with pain in her knee stemming from multiple surgeries throughout the course of her career.
Vonn, 34, became the first American woman in history to win an Olympic gold medal in the downhill race in 2010. She also won two gold medals at the 2009 World Championships in the downhill and super-G. Her final Olympic appearance in 2018 resulted in a bronze medal in the downhill. She also placed sixth in the super-G. Vonn also won the FIS Alpine Ski World Cup overall title four times in 2008, 2009, 2010 and 2012. Source: Bleacher Report
Cavity in Antarctica glacier could quicken sea level rise
The Thwaites Glacier in Antarctica, responsible for four percent of the world’s rising sea levels, has a massive underwater cavity that could likely speed up the glacier’s deterioration. The glacier is roughly the size of Florida, and scientists recently discovered a cavity that is approximately two-thirds the size of Manhattan, capable of holding more than 14 billion tons of ice.
Most of that ice has melted in the last three years, and the cavity allows ocean waters to melt the glacier even faster. If the remainder of the Thwaites Glacier melted, sea levels could rise by as much as two feet. Source: The New York Times via The Week